‘BMF’ Recap: ‘See It… Touch It… Obtain It…’

Written by John Edward Betancourt

It is definitely safe to say, that stories about the rise and fall of criminal empires, are supremely enticing to audiences around the world and understandably so. Because not only are these stories about everyday people who decided to give the world and its rules the middle finger and get rich in doing so… but these are stories that simply perplex us. Because we simply don’t understand what drives a person down that path and we hope these stories provide us with that. But even, the vast majority don’t. They just plunge us into a lawless world that fascinates us and reminds us that crime does pay, and we hold to that because perhaps… we may never understand such decisions. But you’ll note that we stated a majority of stories in this vein don’t bother explore such matters, but a handful do, and they are most certainly worth celebrating.
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Because not only do they try to offer us the perspective we crave, but they do so in a stunning manner. One that really hammers home how the flaws of modern society breed this kind of decision, alongside other factors and one such show that excels at this is BMF on STARZ. For this is a tale that explores the real life rise and fall of the Black Mafia Family that existed from the 1980s to about 2006, and tying this show to real events is what allows for those all-important lessons to take place and as it turns out, the series premiere of this saga, wasted little time in informing us, that one of the big factors that goes into people turning to a life of crime and building a criminal empire… is related to the American Dream. Or rather, a lack of being able to obtain it. For we are all promised that if we work hard and play by the rules, it will come to us, and we will reap its rewards.

But so many people, don’t see that return upon their investment in America and that is the case for Demetrius ‘Big Meech’ and Terry ‘Southwest T’ Flenory. For when we are properly introduced to these young men in the 1980s in ‘See It… Touch It… Obtain It…’, they have come to realize that the American Dream has ignored their family. After all, their father, Charles, works himself to the bone at one of the Big Three Factories in Detroit and has little to show for it. In fact, the mortgage is behind. And their mother, Monique, is working in fast food to make ends meet. Not to mention, on the streets of Detroit, these brothers aren’t exactly seeing a push to make life easy for anyone. So, they deem it best to join forces with one of the town’s biggest drug dealers, Pat, to make ends meet and forge their own path and future. 

Which is… the perfect way to teach us what we want to know. Because we get to see in the raw, how the world forges criminal empires with its own ignorance and apathy and that makes for a fascinating story that is further enhanced by something we also don’t see often in stories in this vein. Specifically, how enticing money and that freedom can be. Because make no mistake about, danger surrounds the Flenory brothers often in this tale, including with how the premiere ends. But they keep on pushing, because deep down they know…. this will indeed give them some measure of respect and of course, riches beyond their wildest dreams. Not to mention, we can tell that they are enjoying this and the thrill of being in control in this manner, is another contributing factor to why people choose this life.

If anything, it is safe to declare this to be… a perfect series premiere. Since it takes the time to flesh out this story and its characters and it really helps us to understand who they are/were and why they chose to go down this path and the dangers that accompany this life. Not to mention, the writing is sublime, the acting is simply top-notch with Da’Vinchi (Terry), and Demetrius Flenory Jr. (Meech) leading the charge there, and their performances humanize and a pair of men that made rough choices, and going that route pulls you into this story and demands your attention. So, you can see how they live with those choices and how they justify them because of the trouble they bring, and how those choices led to fame and fortune, and sorrow. And it will be fascinating to watch that play out as we continue our journey through season one, as we count down to the arrival of season two of this stunning show. Until next time.

‘BMF’ returns for season two on STARZ on January 6, 2023.

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