‘BMF’ Recap: ‘The King of Detroit’

Written by John Edward Betancourt

Our journey through season one of the STARZ series, BMF, has been downright incredible to say the least. Simply because… not only has the first season of this show been a masterclass in how to tell an origin story, but it has also been a masterclass in how to tell a story, period. For there’s been quality character growth every single step of the way, and critical plot threads that help with that growth or set the stage for bigger moments. And of course, the characters in and of themselves are as rich and dynamic as they come, and Terry and Meech’s quest to rule Detroit’s drug underworld has captivated us through and through. But alas, all amazing journeys must come to their end, and endings are top of mind today for one reason and one reason alone.
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For we have in fact, reached the season one finale of the show, and wow… the producers and writers, definitely saved the best for last. For ‘The King of Detroit’ is a story that masterfully brought multiple storylines to their respective conclusions, all while growing the characters and setting the stage for season two and well… perhaps the best place to start in discussing what made this tale so great… is to examine those closure points. Since this is a story that saw the police, utterly fail in trying to bring down the Flenory operation. Because despite arresting everyone to try and sweat them, they had nothing to keep anyone behind bars, freeing the team at last and leaving the police besides themselves, and unable to act. Which meant operations could resume and a critical important plot point could be handled.

Specifically, Lamar. Because he was still on the streets and still working to cause trouble and bring Terry and Meech down and that prompted Meech to try something bold and confirm his suspicions about Kota. Because that had been gnawing at him for some time and once B-Mickie spilled the beans… Meech saw a grand opportunity to go for broke and lure Lamar into a trap. Which worked like a charm since he and B-Mickie isolated the two of them and were able to handle business the gangster way. Bringing an end to Kota and to Lamar’s reign of terror and once again, freeing the business to finally grow as Terry and Meech saw fit. And that peace gave rise at last to a new direction for the franchise. Wherein anyone that worked for Tee and Meech would be part of the Black Mafia Family, or BMF for short, and that made it seem as though, a happy ending was on the horizon.

The kind that would see BMF quickly rise to the top and dominate the landscape as the last great American crime family. But that… would betray the detailed work that goes into this series and its quest to show us every formative moment and every roadblock the Flenory brothers overcame to achieve the sweet life. Which is why this story also saw Terry decide to leave the business behind to take care of his little one and try his business savvy in a new field, a car service that his father helped him put together with that settlement check. Leaving Meech in a shocked and uncertain place, and of course… the police aren’t done with BMF just yet. As evidenced by the fact that Detective Bryant brought B-Mickie in with proper evidence at hand to try and get him to work for the police in bringing Meech down. Setting the stage for a powerhouse season two.  

One where Terry will have to truly decide if everyday life is for him and where Meech will have to figure out how to handle the business alone, and with but a few allies around him. In the end however, this was the perfect end to a perfect season. Since this finale truly did a wonderful job of closing one chapter in the life and times of the Flenory brothers, to give way to a new one. Not to mention, this tale was filled with more quality tension and memorable moments and well, it truly does not get any better than that for a finale. But the best news of all, is that rather than wait ages on end to enjoy more of this series and geek out about it with our friends, we only have to wait a few more hours before fresh stories from this series head our way. For tomorrow will see the season two premiere of BMF drop on STARZ and we cannot wait to dig into this brilliant series further and learn more about how these troublesome times gave rise to one of the most powerful criminal empires in American history. Until next season. 

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