Hasn't Mercedes suffered enough?

After being jailed for fighting with Patrice, The Pynk's O.G. found herself potentially stuck in a cell with her mother for the weekend on P-Valley Season 1 Episode 5.

Her jailer was Jesse, a man with whom she had gotten into a disagreement at the club. So he wasn't inclined to help her out.

What fresh hell was this?

Poor Mercedes. Unlike many of her peers, she had set up a path to respectability and was carefully following it. She should be admired for that.

She wanted to be the coach of her own dance squad, to bring accolades to Chucalissa. Based on what's been shown of the town, the question of why comes to mind.

The upshot of that plan was that Mercedes's biological daughter, Terrica, was on her squad. Also, once Mercedes was running her own business, she would stand a better chance legally of regaining some form of custody of Terrica.

However, that plan went awry when Terrica started flaunted her body on social media on P-Valley Season 1 Episode 3 and her stepmother pulled her off Mercedes's team as a result, viewing Mercedes as a bad influence.

So now Mercedes can't even see Terrica anymore.

Even worse, Mercedes forgot all about their checkered family history (much of which came to light) and trusted Patrice with her money.

For a bright woman, that was sure a dumb choice. Patrice managed to rip off both Mercedes and the church which she felt had wronged her.

Patrice felt unappreciated by the men in her church. So she took Mercedes's money and used it to buy the building Mercedes wanted in which to establish her church.

The Bible is full of cautionary verses about pride. As an example, here's Isaiah 2:12: "The Lord Almighty has a day in store for all the proud and lofty, for all that is exalted (and they will be humbled)."

Patrice's fall is coming. And it will be more than her only daughter telling her that she was dead to her.

It appeared that Chucalissa is a rowdy place on a Friday night, with all the cells overflowing.

How precisely is a casino, with all its attendant vices, supposedly to benefit the townfolk?

The money they can't afford to drop at The Pynk would instead be spent at the casino. The town treasury would probably get a cut and Mayor Ruffin undoubtedly would be getting a kickback. But the residents, unless they end up working there, would be no better off.

Instead of her triumphant departure from The Pynk, Mercedes, in her new performance outfit, got perp-walked and treated like a piece of meat by the men (and some women) jailed there.

Jesse, the jailer, felt bad enough for her that he offered her his jacket so she could cover herself.

Mercedes did the right thing turning down Clifford's offer of bail because she knew he had much bigger financial problems on his hands.

Give Gidget credit. Despite being miffed with Mercedes, she still attempted to put together the bail money. If only Mercedes hadn't dug herself such a deep hole legally.

Why did Autumn bail out Mercedes, despite their rivalry?

She was probably just being opportunistic. She couldn't use her fake identity any more to transfer funds electronically, so she needed someone desperate to become her new partner in crime.

But maybe she sensed a kindred soul, someone else who had lost a daughter. Why else would she share her history which she has kept secret since arriving in town?

In any event, it could prove a mutually beneficial arrangement. Autumn needs money to keep running and Mercedes just needs to replenish her stacks.

But Autumn's abusive boyfriend Montavius, from whom she's running, has arrived in Chucalissa. And he somehow seemed to be able to track her transfers as well. So Mercedes may be in trouble as well.

Also in trouble was Uncle Clifford. If she's been falling deeper and deeper in the hole financially for months, even years, how is she supposed to come up with $55,000 in two weeks?

Why was she was at all surprised? It was clear that Mayor Ruffin had it for her. Trading The Pynk for the casino, which is his legacy project is a win-win situation for Ruffin.

Ruffin is a truly despicable character who is looking out only for himself and uses people when it benefits him. Once he referred to Andre as his godson, it became apparent why Andre has had anything to do with him.

Andre appears to be a well-meaning guy who is actually trying to bring jobs to his former hometown. So maybe he'll come up with a way to make the casino happen while working with Clifford to save The Pynk.

Clifford has certainly picked the wrong time to get involved in a May-December relationship (is that harsh?) and she knew it.

She tried to explain the reality of their situation to L'il Murda. But the young rapper wasn't willing to give up that easily.

Finally, Keyshawn was getting blinded by the spotlight, annoying her coworkers with her boasting about her social-media popularity.

It was beneficial that her abusive boyfriend, Derek, came along to bring her crashing back to Earth.

With Mercedes vowing not to return to The Pynk, Keyshawn is the star now. But who knows how long that's worth anything?

To follow Autumn's story, watch P-Valley online.

Can Autumn and Mercedes work together?

How long before Autumn determines that Montavius has found her?

What can Clifford do to save The Pynk?

Comment below.

Dale McGarrigle is a staff writer for TV Fanatic. Follow him on X.