"Ballers" Recap: "Machete Charge"

Written by Scotty

THIS IS THE EMERGENCY SPOILER ALERT SYSTEM...YOU ARE ADVISED TO READ AT YOUR OWN RISK...

When all is lost and you need someone to console you and say that everything will be all right, who do you turn to? Your friends of course, since you know that no matter what you have done to them in the past, they will be there for you when you really need it.  It does not matter what you need, your friends will always bend over backwards to make sure you make it out of hard times without a scratch, even if you have made them mad at you for something stupid.  These are the people that you want to keep in your life at all times, because when times get tough, your friends will provide that extra muscle you need to move forward.

After finding his car all messed up, Ricky Jerret is back at the dealership waiting to get repaired but has found a new one to drive.  After talking to his girlfriend about the troubles he is having with Alonzo, he is not willing to come clean about what has happened with his teammate’s mother, but is given a great idea about how to squash the current tension between the two.  Inviting Alonzo to the strip club to talk, Ricky finds that the young man has brought all of his family and friends to partake in the fun and when Ricky tries to get real with him, the subject always tends to change and Alonzo finds something better to do.  But when Alonzo takes one of the strippers out to his car for some midday fun, a police officer comes along and is ready to arrest the Dolphins player, but lucky enough for him Ricky is walking out of the club at the same time.  The officer recognizes Ricky and lets the young buck off with just a warning and Ricky has become the hero of the day.  But Ricky has a little secret, as the officer is his girlfriend’s uncle and a set-up has taken place to gain some respect out of the young cocky teammate, and his number 18 returned.

Charles Greane is still getting text messages from his new fan.  As he is not able to get the latest picture out of his head, he is imagining about what it would be like with this girl, but does not want his wife to know.  After talking with Ricky at the club and breaking off the communications for good, Charles is having a hard time letting go of the picture.  After sending it to himself for safekeeping, he returns home with his errands done, but his wife has seen the picture as well.  Charles tries to explain his way of thinking about the situation, but with his wife saying the same thing about the picture as his best friend said at the club, Charles knows that he is fighting a losing battle.  Leaving the house to let his wife calm down, Charles will have an uphill battle ahead of him before being able to reconnect in his relationship.

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Spencer and Joe are putting the final touches on signing Victor Cruz when an emergency call comes from Vernon.  Although Spencer has already put his foot down with his friend that there will be no communication between the two until the loan is paid back, Vernon has a blackmail problem starting.  Receiving a call from an unknown woman saying that she has pictures from the ‘Corporate Event’ Spencer and Joe held of him doing drugs, she is willing to make them go away for a price and will give the star defensive lineman the first opportunity to pay.  After getting a look at the pictures, Spencer takes the lead in the situation and pushes Reggie to the curb since it was his fault for Vernon being in the compromising position to start with.  Getting a call from the woman’s lawyer, Spencer and Joe will have to suit up and find out what she really wants.

Spencer and Joe get together and come up with a game plan about what is going to happen. With a fifty grand max number in their heads they arrive at the lawyers office and are ready for battle. But before they enter, Spencer gets a disturbing call from Jason, Vernon’s agent saying that the lineman’s deal has been put on hold.  Spencer knows that if these pictures come out, the deal will be squashed, along with any chance of a massive payday in the future.  After talking with the lawyer, Spencer and Joe are taken back with the number that has been named, at the tune of five hundred thousand.  The two do not currently have the funds to even consider paying this inflated number but before they leave, Spencer is able to get the name of the woman that is looking for her payday and from his past travels, Spencer knows exactly who she is.

It seems like any secret that anyone has attempted to keep as a secret in this series has come to light sooner rather than later and that does not bode well for anyone at this point.  Ricky has pulled out all of the stops to get Alonzo to leave him alone and be a teammate, but have him fake arrested by his girlfriend’s uncle...damn. It is great he is hooked up that way, but when Alonzo finds out, much less the department, someone is going to go to jail.  I would say that I feel bad for Vernon and the pictures of him doing blow and smoking weed, but at the same time, he was ready to bounce when his buddy Reggie begged him to stay.  He put himself in the situation and I am surprised that Spencer and Joe are ready to go to battle for him since there is no way they can spin it in a positive light.  Charles, Charles, Charles, what can I say to the man?  He should have just deleted the photo and gone on with his happy married life, but for some reason he was not ready to let go of the booty pic.  Even with the blowup between him and his wife Julie that was pretty epic, he could fix it by just saying he was wrong, and I think he knows that, but is he proud enough to admit it is the question.  Spencer and Joe are ready for war, but I don’t know how far they are ready to go to protect Vernon from what is coming next.  If Spencer knows the woman who is trying to blackmail the player, it could be an in, but if it is an ex-girlfriend or something like that, I am prepared to see Joe turn on the charm and try to rekindle the broken relationship.  I don’t want to look away, not quite yet as I am ready to see some resolution come through on one of these stories.

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