‘Empire’ Season 2 Spoilers: Lucious’s Dark Childhood Revealed; What Inspired

Empire stars Terrence Howard as Lucious Lyon, Taraji P. Henson as Cookie Lyon, Jussie Smollett as Jamal Lyon, Bryshere “Yazz” Gray as Hakeem Lyon, Trai Byers as Andre Lyon, Grace Gealey as Anika Calhoun, Kaitlin Doubleday as Rhonda Lyon, Gabourey Sidibe as Becky, Ta’Rhonda Jones as Porsha and Serayah McNeill as Tiana.

Whew. Jesus be a fence ’cause Cookie is wide open.

What will Lucious do to sabotage her new plan? His performance is hauntingly handsome, too (unlike the Boom Boom Boom Boom track, which pervades the entire episode).

Is Laz just one of Lucious’ workers trying to get information from the inside? Eleven minutes into the episode and he was already released!

Jamal’s recording, but he clearly needs Cookie’s help.

However, only those with participating television providers can watch “True Love Never” online for free the next day.

Lucious goes to meet his future business partner in a boxing gym, which, duh, ends up with Lucious hopping in the ring. Of course she succeeds – that chick’s vocals are next-level – but Hakeem looks legit shocked when Laura plants a kiss on him when she’s done. But that requires Lucious to play nice with the founder, described as a Mark Zuckerberg type who went off the rails a little bit. Whether it’s genuine for Mimi Whitman remains to be seen or whether it’s strategy in a chess game, but Lucious usually win. We learn he was hiding the bullets from his mom (Kelly Rowland) who had mental issues, although we still don’t know what kind. (The spinning cylinder and trigger clicks of his mother’s gun add percussive sizzle to the experience.) Mimi, meanwhile, also exits the menage a trois to take a phone call that sends her into ugly-cry mode – and makes Lucious surprisingly protective of her? In celebration, Laura launches a full-on makeout sesh on Hakeem, who we’re pretty sure isn’t complaining, but still. In rehearsal, Laura pushes Carmen out of the way, and Cookie approves. She then plays a game of Russian Roulette right in front of the then-innocent child, repeating “Boom boom boom boom” over and over again.

Not to be dissuaded by his mother, Hakeem takes Laura to a random street corner to perform.

She thanks Hakeem by giving him a big public smooch. With Mimi toying with the guy’s morphine drip, Lucious is able to manipulate him into a deal that wouldn’t hold up in a court of law – but definitely sails over the low bar of soap opera plausibility. Together, they finally lay down the flawless rendition of “Boom Boom Boom Boom” (the best song title in music history).

But the song – which the producers have been beating us over the head with this entire episode – suddenly takes on a new meaning. Lucious rushes into the studio, calls Freda in and hosts the most Hustle & Flowish session yet.