Empire Season 6 Episode 4 Review: Tell the Truth
Paul Dailly
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It looks like Empire is saying goodbye to more than one Lyon during Empire Season 6.
Empire Season 6 Episode 4 was another weak installment of this FOX soap, but the final scene was undoubtedly a wild one.
Lucious is already seemingly dead in the future storyline, but having Cookie get into a car only for it to burst into flames is a different direction.
We don't quite know why Cookie was running out of the Lyon manor, but it certainly seems like we're supposed to believe that it was in the aftermath of the murder of Lucious.
She was jittery, confused, and had to get away from the scene, so it would make sense, but this being Empire, anything is really possible.
Cookie wanting to murder Lucious has already played out, so having them tread the same water all over again would be a bit of a stretch.
Even though she spent years in prison for the man, she can't help but return to him whenever he's in trouble.
Some people are like magnets, and there's no way that these two are going to turn on one another again.
Becky: Gladys, hey!
Giselle: Don't say Hi to Gladys, we don't work at Empire anymore. We run Bossy Media, remember?
Becky: Excuse you, I was well-loved here.
Giselle: But, she's not your co-worker anymore.
Becky: I know. We are the competition.
Giselle: This is a negotiation, so when Andre tries to pat our heads.
Becky: No one's patting my head.
Giselle: Shut that condescension down.
It would take Lucious harming one of their children, and I'm not so sure he would go that far after everything he's done to get back in good graces.
Lucious is rightfully concerned about the state of Empire, and that is all thanks to the way it seems to be crumbling under Andre's rule.
If you watch Empire online, you know Andre has long wanted to be at the helm of the firm. He's proven to be the firm's biggest asset on several occasions.
Andre: This meeting and deal are off.
Becky: Okay, not what I was expecting.
Giselle: What's going on, Andre?
Andre: Your fingerprints are all over that stunt Tiana pulled. You met with her, unsanctioned, and put a bat on your back.
Giselle: Because that was our bright idea to get you to agree to a collab with our artist?
Becky: Exactly, and you know that this collab is going to rehab Tiana's career. You've seen me do this with artists for years.
Andre: I'll get Tiana back on track without the help of your little label.
Becky, Giselle: Oh, little label.
Andre: Which won't be working with Tiana or any Empire artist ever.
But he's also proven that he doesn't work well when the pressure starts to mount. He's never done well when the going gets tough.
He tried to handle the Tiana situation the best way he could while keeping it from becoming a PR nightmare.
But he learned the hard way that being the leader of the firm means making some tough calls.
The truth is that Tiana had her views, and she wanted to stand by them. There's nothing wrong with that, and she didn't want to feel like a hypocrite by backing down.
Related: Empire Coming to an End!
Giselle's words of wisdom to Tiana were clearly a way to make Tiana realize that being part of a label like Bossy Media means that she is not leaving her career in the control of men.
Giselle accomplished her goal, but she's going to have to answer to the Lyons in the aftermath.
Becky's sentiments were frustrating more than anything. In the line of work she's in, people are bound to have differing views.
She's been one of the most career-focused people since the show kicked off, so it's hard to imagine her letting her feelings get in the way of the fact that signing someone like Tiana will bring more recognition to the label.
Giselle: Are you thinking what I'm thinking?
Becky: Of course I am. Let's get a brick and bus all these windows.
Giselle: Or we just sign Tiana right from under him.
Becky: I'm actually not thinking that at all.
Lucious and Andre are not going to react well to this act of betrayal, but these storylines only serve to increase the pool of suspects who could be the ones to take the Lyons down.
Tracy knew she was at a disadvantage with Lucious back at Empire, and that's how she turned to his former nemesis for assistance.
It's unclear what, exactly, is being offered to this new man, but Lucious sure looked scared shitless when they crossed paths.
Lucious has strolled around New York with too much power popping caps in people who look at him the wrong way for too long.
Related: Empire Season 6 Episode 3 Review: You Broke Love
Now, everyone is starting to understand that he's a crook who is never going to change, and that might make the remaining episodes watchable.
The positive from this particular installment was that Lucious finally admitted that he thought he and Cookie were broken.
There's a fundamental issue between them, and it's communication. They have a honeymoon period when they get back together, but then the scheming kicks off, and they will try to outdo the other.
By Cookie actually attending therapy, it tells me that we might get progression for that character. Whether Lucious will follow suit, is unclear.
For now, the series is going in circles. It's like the producers are throwing every single twist they can think of into the scripts in the name of creating drama.
The first half of Empire Season 5 was great. Everything felt natural, but now everything feels forced, to the point that I could care less about who lives and dies.
The characters are all over the place. Heck, Hakeem has barely had any screentime. It's like he's been pushed to the side, only popping up for musical moments.
It's a shame the show is going out like this.
Over to you, Empire Fanatics?
Do you think Cookie is really dead, or are we being fooled? Do you think it's possible that Cookie and Lucious could be faking their deaths to run off for a fresh start somewhere new?
Hit the comments below.
Empire continues after the World Series on FOX.
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Paul Dailly was an Associate Editor for TV Fanatic.Follow him on X.
