‘Hightown’ Recap: ‘Girl Power’

Written by John Edward Betancourt

Caution: This article contains spoilers for Episode 202 of ‘Hightown’.
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It is definitely safe to say, that the universe is mired in chaos. Because it doesn’t seem to matter how well we plan or how hard we work to make things happen in life, things just go awry out of the blue and we have no choice but to pivot and adapt and hope for the best when the chaos reigns and this is so irritating and so exhausting that we have created little pockets of control to feel some semblance of it, by way of storytelling. Because stories in any medium, are carefully planned out and meticulously crafted so we find relief from the storm outside. But as popular culture grows and the demand for new stories gets heavier, some creative minds are starting to embrace the chaos in storytelling, in order to provide their readers and viewers with the most dynamic and stunning stories possible. Because there are no limits on the page or on the screen and one such series that is embracing the chaos is Hightown. For this is a series that understands its power and that’s led to some powerful moments during this show’s run.
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The kind that has left us gasping in shock but compel us to continue so we can see if control will come to the cape or if chaos will reign supreme and well, chaos is of note today because it was once again on full display during last night’s episode. For ‘Girl Power’ did a wonderful job of exploring all the ups and down and left and rights that life takes us upon, and it accomplished that feat by showing us a bevy of unique journeys. For instance, Ray Abruzzo’s path in this tale, served to remind us of how hard times all can motivate us to fight hard for something better, since he finally worked to make amends with his son and tried (and stumbled) to keep on a better path so he wouldn’t find himself back in the dark place that ruined his career, and he wasn’t the only one dealing with this tough aspect of life. Since Osito decided to pin Kizzle’s murder on Junior in the hopes of putting himself in a better place in prison, one where he didn’t find his life threatened on a consistent basis. Which really did make for some compelling moments for certain, the kind that definitely left us hoping for Ray and Osito to find some peace, since they are clearly tortured souls. 

But of course, since this chaotic universe does offer good moments as well, we were also treated to those, several of which involved Sergeant Alan Saintille. Since he did indeed look good to the brass for finding Kizzle’s body, regardless of the suspicious intel because… solving crimes is what officers of his caliber do and that puts faith in his abilities, as did the collar that he helped with interrogation wise. Since a local and dumb dealer named Dug, got pinched and sang like a little birdy, outright confessing to Alan and the arresting officers that he was the one that killed Coco. All because they couldn’t come to an agreement about their products and how they should be sold, and his inability to speak about the Cuevas cousin's involvement out of fear, gave Alan just enough to order up some overall surveillance upon them, and it really was quite wonderful to see Alan enjoy some solid wins in this story. 

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Speaking of wins, well we also need to talk about the officers that busted Dug. Because that was Jackie and Leslie and their work here also served as a reminder that sometimes the universe will indeed throw us a bone and give us some victories if we seize the opportunity, and it was Jackie that expressed that. Because as part of the plan to hunt down who was dealing Great White, she and Leslie enlisted the help of a newly clean junkie to do a controlled buy from Dug. Which went, very, very wrong when she went radio silent and left Dug’s den. Which motivated Jackie to take matters into her own hands and control the buy herself to get intel, which almost ended in disaster. But this duo works well together, and they managed to arrest Dug and get the confession that led to Alan’s victory and it turns out… they might be couple material. But all of that aside, it was just nice to see more victories take place in this tale and be reminded of the fact that sometimes, going for it pays off in spades.

But of course, an episode about chaos means nothing without something genuinely bad taking place and that was handled by way of the Cuevas family. Since this episode saw the meeting with Charmaine take place and well, that meeting went poorly at first since she had little, she wanted to say to a pair of drug dealers that she didn’t care about to begin with. But a quick intervention from Renee allowed for an unholy alliance to take place, one where Frankie and Jorge would go the extra mile to keep Charmaine happy and keep the good stuff flowing into the cape. And while it was rough to see Renee step into something bad, especially when one considers that she is pregnant again with what appears to be Ray’s child, that’s not where the evil in this journey takes place. Because the Cuevas boys made sure to set a fail-safe plan in motion, one that involved killing Charmaine's best dealer, the one responsible for selling the Great White that killed those kids. In part because they wanted leverage over Charmaine through fear, but also to keep their noses clean and the cops off their back as they prepare to poison the Cape with their disgusting product.

In the end however, this was just, another engaging tale. One that flawlessly showed us the ups and down that life sends our way and how complex our world is, since everything we discussed today was happening at the same time and of course, a story like this leaves us eager for more. Since we are desperate to see what Osito’s endgame is now that he’s basically on his own in prison, and of course… what Ray will become now that he’s motivated to try and grab hold of something positive in his life and most important of all, we’re dying to see what will come out of this investigation. Because now there are no underlying issues lurking about the Cuevas case, and both Jackie and Alan are focused on bringing them down and that will undoubtedly make life difficult for Frankie and Jorge and Renee and that is both exciting and terrifying. Simply because the Cuevas cousins are ruthless and cunning, and they will clearly stop at nothing to build their empire. Until next time.

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