This week’s episode of Power Book III: Raising Kanan might go down as one of the most pivotal of the entire series.
If there’s one thing that hit home, it’s this: we just witnessed the true birth of Jukebox’s cold-blooded persona. The transformation is on its way and it’s chilling.
The aftermath of Famous’s death is showcased across every storyline, but it’s especially powerful in how it affects Kanan and Jukebox. You can see it in their faces. They’re emotionally drained, broken even. Kanan looks hollow, like the light that used to make him pause, doubt, and hesitate has finally gone out. And Jukebox? She’s practically unrecognizable from who she was in Season 1. She shook down four people this episode, and the way she laughed, wild and unhinged, was genuinely unsettling. Tommy’s infamous line about her being crazy in Power makes so much more sense now. We’re watching the gradual hardening of someone who’s about to become one of the most feared figures in the Power Universe.
Famous’ death also draws a straight line through Kanan’s past. It brings to mind that haunting moment when Laces told him, “You don’t have any friends, do you?” Looking back, it’s painfully true. D-Wiz and Famous, the two closest people to him, are both gone. They were killed when they were still just kids. The trauma is piling up, and the emotional isolation is carving Kanan into the person we know he becomes.
One of the standout elements this week was the respect paid to Famous’ character. Too often, TV series rush past major deaths, but Raising Kanan gave him a full memorial and wake, treating his passing with weight and sincerity. It makes me wonder if Raq, Marvin, or Lou really were behind it, especially with the police confirming he was tortured. Then again, we’ve seen what Raq and Marvin are capable of, so nothing is off the table.
Speaking of Raq, her reaction to Unique’s reveal might have been the most shaken we’ve ever seen her. She’s usually the calm in the storm, but this moment rattled her, and that says a lot.
Then there’s B Rilla. It feels like his fate is sealed, either prison or death. And if that happens, Lou’s music dreams in New York are done. The small detail of Jess possibly going back to LA wasn’t a throwaway. It could hint that someone’s escaping the storm to come.
Overall, this was easily the most plot-heavy episode of the season so far, and honestly, the most emotionally gripping. If the show keeps this pace, we’re in for a brutal, unforgettable endgame.
