Power Book II: Ghost – The Devil’s Playground

The mid-season premiere of Powerbook II: Ghost left me right where I was after the last episode before the break-on the edge of my seat. The biggest surprise for me was finding out Detective Don Carter of the NYPD is a villain, using his position and power to control Monet and her family, among others, to gain intel, and a piece of the drug operation. This revelation makes me wish this wasn’t the final season of Ghost because there’s a lot to unpack with this character. Bringing in the NYPD and exposing them as dirty cops provides a more intriguing and deeper layer to the Tejada family and all their connections. 

We also find out a little more about why Carter entered this ruthless mindset, and his desire for control since the tragic death of his wife. “Ruthless” doesn’t even begin to describe Carter and his team on the NYPD, especially Officer Felicia, who orders Diana to kill Zion after realizing he’s too much of a liability to their plan. Diana confides in Tariq, and in an effort of wanting to protect her and their unborn child, he takes matters into his own hands by stabbing and shooting Zion to death. Tariq tells Diana the job has been done and she asks to meet up with him at a place she chose in lieu of a late-night craving. Upon her arrival, Officer Felicia asks Diana why Tariq did the job she specifically asked her to do and after Diana refuses to cooperate, Officer Felicia violently assaulted her, and her baby, by aiming brutal kicks directly at her stomach. 

As someone who’s invested in Diana and Tariq’s relationship, I was shocked and upset by this scene. When Officer Felicia approached Diana and threw her to the ground and proceeded to kick her in her stomach, it hit hard as if it had happened to someone I knew. When Tariq arrived, Diana wasn’t there so he called her, and much to his horror, he found Diana unconscious on the side of the building. As he ran over and grabbed her, he yelled for help and called 911. 

Meanwhile Noma and Cane is getting more interesting. Cane, as her right-hand man, is determined to impress her and prove his loyalty and strength. However, it’s clear that Noma is a little jealous of Effy, since Cane’s concern for her goes deeper than she’d like. The fact that Carter hasn’t really crossed paths or have much knowledge with Noma is surprising despite his resources and ability to uncover who’s who of the city. 

Carter’s ruthlessness strikes again at the end of the episode when he kills Detective Tate for being reluctant to Carter’s proposition of joining the “dirty” side of the job. To say this episode was intense is an understatement, as it started off with a bang, setting the stage for more explosive drama to come in the final stretch of Ghost, delivering gripping moments every week.