The pressure is on J on Animal Kingdom Season 3 Episode 2, but will he be able to handle it?

A better question might be whether or not the other Cody boys will go along with his plan.

They're not too keen on the idea of J being in charge, and who could blame them? J may be part of the family, but he's still an outsider.

The person J really needs to keep his eye on is Pope. 

Don't mess with Pope, kid, that's all I gotta say.

Deran was a fool to strike out on his own, and I'm a little disappointed that he's decided to go out on his own. I had thought that he wanted to go straight, but it doesn't seem like that's part of his plan right now.

Related: Animal Kingdom Season 3 Episode 1 Review: The Killing

What's even more concerning is that he thought he did something under the radar, but he got busted. There's going to be a certain level of distrust between the brothers, and that's going to spell big-time trouble for everyone.

I love that Deran is willing to back up his boyfriend, but there's not going to be a boyfriend if he continues to do illegal stuff. That guy (I forget his name) is not going to go along with Deran's lifestyle.

And I'm still shocked that Deran lied about not seeing Craig for some time. The lies will catch up to Deran, and he's going to lose everything. 

The most important person in his life is this boyfriend. They really click. I'd hate to see their relationship go sour. They've gone through some nasty stuff already, so Deran needs to stay on his best behavior.

It was funny (and true) when Deran told that partner of his that he was the nice brother. I don't think it's in Deran's character to kill anyone, but I bet him letting that guy go will come back to bite him.

Deran is making some big mistakes. Sure, it was smart of him to keep Craig away from the car job, but bringing in others wasn't a good idea. Someone will rat him out, and that's going to be the beginning of the end for Deran.

Plus we have his dad (Denis Leary) coming, so who knows what kind of mess that's going to bring. Maybe Deran's dad will actually be the one to save him from disaster. 

We can always hope.

Animal Kingdom Season 2 Episode 13 Review: Betrayal

I can't decide if I was surprised or not about Smurf knowing about J's stash. I guess I shouldn't be surprised because Smurf seems to know everything.

J was pretty surprised himself, and the stuff Smurf said definitely hit home.

Oh, c'mon, baby. I know you have your own stash. My boys never missed a meal. Not you, baby. You have gone hungry. You have slept in cars, just like me. You have a Plan B.

Smurf

• Permalink: Oh, c'mon, baby. I know you have your own stash. My boys never missed a meal. Not you, baby....

I don't quite understand why J just doesn't take his money and run. The amount of pressure he's under is enough to make anyone crazy. 

He has an end game, but he keeps his cards so close to his chest that I don't even think the audience will learn his plans until he's ready.

J is a smart kid. He handled Morgan like a pro by not letting her convince him to sell some of the family's properties. He knows better, but he also knows that if he did, Smurf would have a fit.

What I'm concerned about is that Mia now knows where J keeps his stash.

Mia is going to go after Nancy, but if she's a smart girl, which it seems she is, she's going to realize that there has to be more money hiding in Nancy's house.

J put Nancy in danger, and I'm surprised he made such a stupid move. I get that he had no choice. Mia wasn't going anywhere, but still.

Nicky is becoming quite the house mom, which is kind of funny. Unfortunately, I think her time is limited. I wouldn't put it past Mia that she sets her sights on getting rid of Nicky.

I don't think Mia is truly interested in J, but there's no doubt she wants to make J's life miserable. There's an ulterior motive to everything she's doing. Make no mistake about that.

I absolutely love, love, love the idea of Pope being a dad to Lena. I still wonder if perhaps he's her real dad anyway, but he is trying so hard to make life right for her, it's heartwarming.

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I know that Pope is the crazy one in the family, but there's a lot of good in him. If he was given a chance, he could turn out to be the greatest guy ever. 

Oh, I know he's a murderer and what he did to Catherine was horrible, especially for the fact that he adored the woman, but that part of him is all Smurf's fault.

Instead of getting him help, she pulled him out of school. 

We all know Smurf isn't going to win parent of the year anytime soon, but each time we learn something new about her, it just makes me dislike her more and more.

Okay, I admit, I have a love/hate relationship with her, but she's one messed up woman.

My heart broke when it was revealed that Lena was getting bullied in school. How great was it that Pope decided to the best way to handle the situation was to send her to another school?

That was a very responsible thing for him to do. He could have succumbed to Lena's wishes of just skipping school, but he made a good argument and came up with a great solution.

I love him more and more each installment.

Pope: Smurf never made me go to school She never saw the point. I used to get into fights. I used to punch people. One time I lit a teacher's desk on fire. And grandma Smurf, she didn't want the hassle so she let me skip it.
Lena: But I hate it there.
Pope: School sucks. But you are smart, like your mom. She'd want you to go, so you're going.

• Permalink: Smurf never made me go to school She never saw the point.

I hope he'll somehow survive what's the storm that's coming. Maybe he'll take Lena and run off to Mexico or somewhere else. Wouldn't that be great?

Have you noticed he's the only one who has shown any interest in Lena? 

Lucy's interest was fake. She's still playing games, and I can't wait until Pope discovers what she did and makes her pay. 

She's up to something, that much is clear.

Craig needs to get his head together. I'm not a big fan of Renn, but she's watching out for him, and I have to respect that. 

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However, he keeps doing stupid stuff, and not even Renn will be able to save him. He's going to bring even more troubles to the family if he doesn't stop being such a fool.

So much is happening with the Codys, and not everyone is going to survive. My guess is that Craig is going to be the first to go.

Who's your pick?

What did you think of "In the Red"? Will Pope be a good "dad" to Lena? Could he be Lena's real dad?

Will Nicky catch wind of Mia and J? Will J crack?

Hit the comments and share your thoughts.

If you need to catch up, you can watch Animal Kingdom online right here via TV Fanatic!