When you think about the series within the Power Universe, love isn’t something that first comes to mind.

Drama? Yes. Family dynamics? Of course. Violence? Definitely. But love wouldn’t be near the top, yet it’s an integral part of all these worlds.

Love came back to haunt Tommy in the closing moments of Power Book IV: Force Season 2 Episode 6, and now it feels almost inevitable he's setting himself up for another round of heartbreak.

Tommy’s failures in love have been well-documented over the years, and while he took a lengthy break from love after LaKeisha, he’s been all-in on Mireya since the minute they met.

And Power Force, in particular, speed runs through their relationships because they aren’t the main course when it comes to the stories they’re looking to tell.

We’ve seen Tommy and Mireya interact a handful of times, and while the chemistry has been there and continues to flourish, I must have missed the part where the two were THIS invested in one another.

She was still dating Kendall when Power Book IV: Force Season 2 Episode 5 began!

Either way, Tommy and Mireya hit a little speed bump when she got nervous about Tommy’s well-being on more than one occasion, but her fears only brought them closer together in the end.

I like seeing Tommy happy and content in his personal life, but he doesn’t seem to be taking the very real threat of Miguel seriously at all. Sure, he can handle himself, there’s no doubt about that, but Miguel isn’t only dangerous and violent but also has a big say in his business.

He won’t take kindly to finding out that Tommy and Mireya have been sneaking around behind his back, though they’re sneaking in plain sight.

People can change, and circumstances can realign, but I have to admit Holly wasn’t wrong in what she told Tommy when he spoke to a vision of her. Because everything Tommy touches DOES get destroyed, and he DOES hurt people.

But other times, like with Liliana, she stayed of her own volition, and while he may blame himself for not keeping her safe, she knew the risks, and not everything that happened to her could be added to the weight he already carries on his shoulder.

He’s carried so much guilt for Holly’s death, and he never properly grieved her, so getting a chance to say sorry out loud to whatever he’d conjured up in his mind was probably a pretty cathartic moment for him.

But Holly returned at that moment to remind Tommy that he can’t have it all. As long as he stays in this life, the one he’s committed to, he’ll never be able to have the safe and secure love of a partner because of the danger at play.

Holly’s warning felt like some serious foreshadowing. And it, coupled with Mireya’s pushback to Miguel and her Abuela, feels like the writing is on the wall for Miguel to find out about their relationship sooner rather than later.

And maybe Miguel loves his sister, but he treats her like she’s indebted to him and someone he can control. He doesn’t care about her feelings or what she wants, not in the way a loving sibling would.

If Mireya continues to drift further from his control, there’s no telling what he’s capable of.

However, I do wonder who the real Mireya is. I don't think we've gotten to see that yet.

Keeping on the love topic, apparently, Jenard and Shanti are also in a full-fledged relationship we haven’t seen much of. They clearly have a past, but it hasn’t exactly been spelled out to us what that is.

It’s strong enough that Diamond has gone to her multiple times regarding Jenard. And while she knew Jenard was using, she didn’t do much about it until Diamond told her Jenard could get back into CBI.

Am I trying to imply Shanti may not like Jenard as much as we think? Maybe. Time will tell on that front, but it’s apparent that she has bigger plans in mind than doing the same old things she’s been doing.

And maybe she always did.

Jenard was hitting rock bottom, and while it was a little unrealistic to think one ultimatum would get him to stop cold turkey, it did seem like a decision he wanted to make. He just needed the right push, and Shanti did that.

Shanti may have made it a decision between her and the drugs, but she also reminded him about who he was and what he could do. Power Book IV: Force Season 2 has been the season of losses for Jenard, but it wasn’t always that way.

Jenard slipped into drug use, most likely to help quell some of his frustration at himself for falling so far behind his brother and watching everything he worked for slip away from him.

But once upon a time, Jenard ran CBI when Diamond was gone. And he ran a profitable outfit with loyal soldiers. I mean, just look at his house! He did damn well for himself.

He could be that man again, but not if he was using.

Jenard’s first order of business to turn down Claudia was a nice callback to her earlier refusal to team up with Jenard. But was it the best business decision? Is going back to CBI and working under Diamond and Tommy what’s best for him?

Tommy: If we let Jenard back in, and he fuck up one time, he dead.
Diamond: I'm good with that.

Permalink: I'm good with that.

Shockingly, he seemed on board with it, perhaps because he had no other proven options. But Shanti wasn’t down with it, and her plan to gut CBI from the inside out sounded risky as hell.

For starters, Shanti doesn’t know Tommy Egan. I hear her concerns about an outsider coming into her city and thinking he can take over without pushback, but Tommy has assembled people. He’s not alone. It’s no longer him and Liliana against the world.

He’s delivered on what he’s promised, and he and Diamond have CBI eating good in the neighborhood. So, how easy does she think it will be to take him out and then slide in to take things over?

The answer is it won’t be. And what about the Diamond of it all? For as intelligent and capable as Jenard can be, Diamond is the better leader. He just is, and Jenard should be concerned about getting money again and getting himself right, not staging a coup against his brother.

It worked out so well the last time and all.

Jenard didn’t seem on board with Shanti’s plan if his pained expression after she walked away was anything to go by. But will he do anything to stop her is the bigger question moving forward.

He and Tommy don’t trust one another, and I can’t see a universe in which they ever become half of what Tommy and Diamond are, but he has to consider what’s in his best interest now and in the immediate future.

Because he should know by now that if he takes the shot at Tommy, he can’t miss.

Elsewhere during this hour, which was pretty tame by Power Force standards, Vic Flynn entered his snitch era, and it wasn’t even remotely hard to get back in with Tommy because there was already a level of peace between them.

Tommy knew Vic would come to him, but he, of course, didn’t realize that was a decision made for him by the FEDs.

I like that Vic is a bit conflicted with his decision because he doesn’t actually hate Tommy or want to take him down, but alas, he figures the only way to get fully out is to be a rat and get that rat protection from the government.

Tommy doesn’t suspect anything yet, but all it will take is one mistake from Vic for Tommy’s paranoia to kick in and everything to go to hell.

Vargas following Vic so closely could be his undoing, or maybe he’ll push too hard about meeting the connect.

You can just feel this all going sideways somehow, and that’s not even mentioning the Serbs effectively declaring war against CBI.

Tommy’s confidence and bravado often help him, but sometimes, the smugness ignites a fire in his rival. And that’s what happened with Mirković.

The Crimson Projects were a gold mine for him, and he’d sat aside for a bit until he decided to take back what he felt was his. And Claudia’s fake intel proved right when Diamond came to pay off Jenard’s debt, and you could see he had his mind set at that moment.

The Serbs went heavy on sending a message, and it put Diamond and Tommy on notice. Knowing Tommy, he may still want to steamroll his way into the Northside, and Diamond will want to think things through.

They need to reignite that Miguel and Mirković feud, which seemed to die down after Tommy and Diamond stole those drugs. Because what’s going to happen when Miguel finds out they’re taking over all these territories?

The key to taking over Chicago has always been to have everyone take each other out, and they will need to continue with that plan if they want a shot at making Chicago theirs.

Taking Miguel out will also kill any heat he'll get for shacking up with Mireya as long as she doesn't discover that he orchestrated her brother's demise, of course.

Everything Else You Need To Know

Of all the original Power characters to appear, it just had to be Holly. We couldn’t get Tariq and Brayden on the run from the Tejadas? No, we had to get Holly with a baby bump haunting Tommy even further. We need better. Can we get Ghost next?

This subplot with Diamond, Leon, and Gianna plays odd when it’s interspersed between everything else. It doesn’t fit, but Diamond continues to be the best guy on the series, and his beatdown of Jamal was well-deserved.

JP is going to beat himself up about what happened to D-Mac, and I fear this will continue to be an issue between him and Tommy, as will the Kate situation.

P and Tommy may never be able to understand one another regarding Kate because they’re just different people with different experiences, but her sudden disappearance feels like it will have consequences.

Claudia was gunning for the Oscar when she manufactured those tears for Walter. She was happier than Vic to see him gone.

Speaking of Walter, what a petty man. Leaving Vic with everything was such a Walter thing to do.

I thought Vic would make Claudia sweat longer, but he’s done pretending now (unless bound by law). And I believe him when he says he’s done with Claudia. If your name is not Gloria, that man does not care!
Claudia runs into business opportunities at every turn, doesn’t she?

Prayers up for Big Smurf!

Holly returned, Jenard rejoined the crew, and the quest to bring Tommy down began! There was a lot to unpack during this hour, so slide into the comment section and let me know all your thoughts!

As always, you can watch Power Book IV: Force online via TV Fanatic anytime your heart desires.