This week on Black Lightning, Jefferson and the ASA reformed their alliance to plan a rescue of Lynn from the Markovians. Meanwhile, TC and Jennifer ventured into Khalil’s mind to free him from Painkiller’s control.
1. Reunited and it feels (not) so good
At the Markovian lair, Lynn is reunited with Dr. Helga Jace, and the two’s animosity quickly reemerges when she physically attacks her (a sequence set amusingly to Patsy Cline’s “Crazy For You”). Colonel Yuri Mosin isn’t very concerned, revealing (through his spies’ intel) how Odell manipulated her into becoming a Green Light addict – not that he’s any better, leaving her a sample so she can begin working for them.
2. That Was Negligent
For whatever reason, the Markovians didn’t take Sgt. Grayle, even though he was knocked out with Lynn. He returns to her apartment and calls up Jefferson and Anissa to arrive so he’ll inform them what happened – it’s contrived, but whatever. Afterwards, Jefferson informs Anissa about her mother’s addiction – all things considered, she takes the news very well, as befitting her profession as a doctor, although she finds Jefferson to leave her to help the resistance when he found out questionable.
3. A Treasonous Alliance
It’s quite surprising the ASA would hear out Jefferson after, well, everything, but it turns out Major Grey has her reasons for deciding to help rescue Lynn: she and Dr. Blair (who displays some scruples this week) are now using the chips designed to control Khalil on the young metahumans Lynn was treating, and have ordered them to kill her. I suppose we’ll see next week if Jefferson, Anissa and Gambi have any sense about this alliance and have a contingency plan in place if (when) they get stabbed in the back.
4. Proto-Outsiders
It’s not just the three Pierces and Gambi anymore, the rescue team includes Lynn’s kids/unwitting assassins, TC, Brandon, Grayle, and Grace, who proves herself willing and able to go into action after sparring with her girlfriend in their apartment. It’s like the show, having helped introduce the Justice League in “Crisis,” is now raring to introduce the DCW Universe’s Outsiders. Last week, Brandon was mulling Geo as a codename, a clear nod to the comics’ Geo-Force (whose name was Brion): it sure seems like it’s happening!
5. Retrieving One More Member
It seems like the episode is set to end with Lynn’s rescue, but it’s put off to focus on TC and Jen’s attempts to break the brainwashing of Khalil: TC enters his subconscious, while Jen applies a small voltage to keep the Painkiller chip program at bay (which is funny, it’s like electroshock therapy).
Then, after transforming herself into energy, Jennifer enters this virtual world herself and convinces Khalil to leave, although the Painkiller personality taunts him with images of what he’s done with his body, including the murder of his mother. (Hence the title.) Once awake, Khalil is afraid of what he’s become, the killer still inside the chip animating him, just like the guilt that he must now live with. (Man, where’s Wakanda when you need them?)
With any luck, he’ll start carrying out his redemption when our heroes find their backs against the wall towards the end of the season.
Bonus thoughts:
– Jefferson’s line about believing in second chances reminds me – has he been at the school since getting beaten up? That’s probably a good reason for his absence after betraying Odell, but to the outside world he was fine enough to attend Tavon’s funeral.
– There’s a lot of techno music in this episode.
See you all next week for chapter 4 of “Markovia.”
