'Narcos: Mexico' Season 2 Episode 8 Review: Walt's plan goes for a toss, Félix is the boss and [spoiler] dies
Spoiler Alert for 'Narcos: Mexico' Season 2 Episode 8 — 'Se Cayó El Sistema'
"Félix Gallardo came to my ranch," Pablo Acosta (Gerardo Taracena) tells a reporter, "...sometime back with Don Neto." He reveals major details that should not be made public. The journalist gives Acosta a word of caution: "My newspaper will publish it. But you are making some serious accusations here. Dangerous accusations." So why is Acosta doing this? "These a**holes, Félix, his Mexico City friends, are desperate. The whole thing is, uh... shaky," he retaliates.
The Acosta article comes out in the newspaper and everyone — Mexican authorities, the FBI and Félix — is concerned. Walt Breslin (Scoot McNairy) looks for Acosta's girlfriend Mimi Webb Miller (Sosie Bacon) in a vacant house. He gets a loud bang on his head and knocks off unconscious. When he wakes up, he is surrounded by the FBI. After a scornful exchange of pleasantries, they tell him to alert them if Acosta or his girl tries to reach out.
The presidential election begins
Félix gets a warning by his political counterparts that if another article comes out, it will be the end of his involvement in his election. They successfully prepare a SNIPE and a fake-SNIPE to create two different election results. Félix is banking on the government's win big time.
"How do you run a clean election in a country that's been defined by corruption? Transparency," Breslin's narration goes. As the first set of results starts to come, Félix's prediction works and he seems to have rigged the election without leaving a lick of evidence. But soon, the journalists find out the fallacy and there is chaos all around.
Félix is screwed. He is in a state of panic. He still tries to go with his plan by changing tally sheets. Se Cayó El Sistema translates to "the system crashed." That's precisely what happens.
El Chapo and Palma vs Félix
There is a major hatred bubbling inside Palma (Gorka Lasaosa) for Félix: "When the time comes, we'll have to get in line to put a bullet in his head," he says. Later, in the episode, tables start to turn. An opportunist, Felix finds himself in soup during the elections and calls El Chapo (Alejandro Edda). "Sometimes we fight, we have differences but in the end... we are family," he says.
Chapo asks for Héctor Palma to be back in return for the favor.
Félix then calls Benjamin (Alfonso Dosal) and says he wants plaza bosses he can trust. Both, El Chapo and Benjamin send their men to put a gun on ballot men's heads and force them to add "a zero" next to the votes. The zeroes work and the PRI gets thousands of votes. Later, the rigged elections lead to protests and threats. But no one can do anything about it. Carlos Salinas de Gortari is declared the winner.
Where is Mimi?
Walt is on a hunt to find Mimi. She has already escaped into faraway lands on a boat. Mimi reaches where Acosta is hiding. "It's insane, Pablo. You lit their house on fire," she tells him. She quizzes him as to why he did so. Over two cans of beers, the two talk. Acosta explains he left her because he didn't want to put her in danger.
Acosta reveals that he is planning a whole series of articles. Mimi finally calls Breslin and she lets slip Acosta's whereabouts when he tells her: "I'm the only one who can keep him alive." Walt reaches the spot. But there's a big twist: the FBI follows Breslin too. It results in an abrupt shootout with too many civilian casualties. Breslin tells Mimi to "trust" him. Guillermo González Calderoni (Julio Cesar Cedillo) comes and gives Breslin a heads-up: "Pablo Acosta... is gonna die."
A major gun war ensues outside Acosta's place of hiding. In the midst of all the tussle, Breslin puts his hands up and goes inside. That way, neither the FBI can shoot nor can Acosta and his men. Acosta and Breslin share a drink and the latter promises to take the drug lord across the river. He also blurts out some of his secrets. The reporter Poppa told Walt there are no more articles coming in and he also tells Acosta that Mimi is pregnant. While Walt leads him out of the house, Acosta decides to fight the men and gets brutally shot. "Tell her I'm sorry," are his last words.
Even after death, the townspeople honor Acosta at his funeral. "It's gonna be a boy," Mimi finds out as she floats on her way in the same boat. Félix emerges as the mastermind. Meanwhile, Walt will have to find another connection and for now, all of Félix's links seem to be strong.
The episode marks a major shift in power and shows no one knows who gets to be the head honcho in 'Narcos: Mexico'.