I'm getting tired of the cyclical nature of Tommy. I thought we saw some growth when Tommy tried to break the pattern by supporting Gloria and Vic's desire to run off with each other. Even though Gloria seemed to want to run off with Tommy he ultimately decides it would be best for her and him to not get to close. That all changes when we're sort of brought back to day 1 Tommy. The Tommy that gets drunk/high and starts acting impulsively. The Tommy that wants to be a crime boss at all cost. Yes, we did see him try to show us his other side with JP. However, his best efforts is subconsciously turning JP into James (notice I didn't mean Ghost) replacement. Not in the sense he wants a partner in crime, but a brother that pursues a life that isn't muddled by crime. It's cool that we saw some change to Kate when she turned down Tommy's offer of cocaine. I just don't see it lasting mostly because the grand child is not as sheltered as Ghost's children were. I was thrown off a bit with Claudia shooting Lauryn as it made no sense based on the confrontation. She knows that there were at least 3 people that knew about what the drug was outside of those two, and two of those are still alive. Other two cooks (one really), had intimate knowledge of the recipe. The only real point to killing her was Lauryn was the easiest person to let her frustration out on as well as being a liability now that letting her go will only cause more problems in the future. She could have let her lived or even at least humored the thought of asking Lauryn if there was a way to improve on Dahlia before ultimately killing her. It could have been a scene where she shows up and asked, "Is there any way you can improve the high or lower the cost for the same high?" to which Lauryn will pause and before she can start her long-winded explanation about why that's impossible she catches a bullet in the head. Immediately, she plots to retaliate against Tommy. Vic feels out of placed. After talking to Claudia about how they were 50/50 partners, it was all thrown away when Claudia didn't mention her conversation with Jenard or discuss what to do with Lauryn. Or at the very least tell Vic to meet her at the lab. I suppose we shouldn't be surprised that Claudia is quick to use people around her and her duplicitous nature. Just thought we were get more than one episode that ends it. Jenard doesn't seem like a person that is completely devoid of good nature. Shanti was practically throwing herself on to him multiple times before he gave in. Even took a moment to realize in his mind that it was a bad idea to let Shanti get close to him with how volatile his situation is. I can't see a win for Jenard at this point with so many promises that he can barely keep. Cutting the cost to recruit Chewy, and I'm sure he made similar promises to keep the loyalty of his subordinates. At this point, only Shanti actually cares about him. Serbs don't care if he succeeds or not because it takes one less player off the board without the cost of their men. Diamond has already called open season on Jenard and his crew. Tommy is tired of the nuisance of Jenard's actions. Flynn's don't even recognize him as a legitimate threat. Probably just take an portion of an episode to dispose of him once the Tommy and Diamond problems are dealt with. Miguel would probably rather deal with the more capable and experienced Diamond. JP is stuck in this constant need to prove his self worth. He desire to seek approval will probably turn him into a martyr. As I mentioned before, Tommy is grooming JP to be the James that never was. Wouldn't it be surprising that JP is James Patrick? Not only do both James and JP desire to be legitimate business owners. He also runs an establishment that sells liquor. The most obvious similarities are they are both black, both lost their intimate relationship with their baby momma because of their dick, and both have a son that doesn't think to highly of them. I guess this really speaks more about the show wanting to be safe by recreating the same successful dynamic in the first series. This entire series so far has been about Tommy getting a second chance at everything. It's hard to not see the tragic ending for Tommy. I am enjoying Tommy much like how I enjoyed the journey of Richard in Silicon Valley. This show is definitely more fun to watch than Book II or III because it progresses a well-established character from the first series. Tariq also falls under this, but he was always a McGuffin that drove James. I probably would have enjoyed Book two a little bit more if it was a Tasha story. I really don't want them to just make another James. Out of no where Tariq becomes this genius after how dumb he was originally portrayed. This sheltered child suddenly has the decades of street smarts that James, Tommy and Kanan developed.
