'The Chi' Season 4 Episode 3 Review: Relationship struggles make 'Native Son' a bittersweet watch
Spoiler alert
‘The Chi’ is one of the few shows out there that tackles the subject of racial discrimination with a realistic approach. However, it also tells the viewers how these people manage to navigate their personal lives and dilemmas while trying to protect their lives from police brutality and various other things.
The second episode, ‘Cooley High’, shed enough light on the main characters and we saw Douda Perry (Curtiss Cook) defunding the Chicago Police Department following the violence against Jake (Michael V Epps). And while ‘Native Son’ gives an idea of how some pivotal characters of the show are coming together to eradicate discrimination from society, it also focuses on the personal relationships that could change their lives forever. For starters, Emmett (Jacob Latimore) is still trying to mend his relationship with Tiffany (Hannaha Hall). He tries talking to his mother Jada (Yolonda Ross) about the situation, but seeing his mother having sex with a guy just years older than him makes him really uncomfortable.
RELATED ARTICLES
‘The Chi’ Season 4 Episode 2 Review: Slow burner blends BLM, heartbreak and revenge in copious doses
It is worth noting that Emmett still doesn’t know that his mother is suffering from breast cancer. Will Emmett soon get to know the heartbreaking news about his mother’s diagnosis? We certainly hope for it.
Tiffany and Dom Morris (La La Anthony) come face to face after the revelation. Both ladies are cool with what happened and have made it clear that they are not angry about it. Later in the episode, Tiff and others are attending a party where two men tell Tiff that she should be in an open marriage with Emmett. Tiff talks about it with Emmett and he is not at all happy. However, he says yes to be in an open marriage with Tiff because he knows that he created all the chaos in their relationship.
On the other hand, Douda and his peers in the office are continuously making efforts to bridge the gap between the Black community and the police. They are also planning to bid for the Olympics and make Chicago the “greatest city in the world”. Douda asks Tracy Roxboro (Tai Davis) about bidding for the Olympics. Tracy tells him that the Black community doesn’t care about the sporting event and just wants to feel safe in the city. Mayor Douda, Tracy and Trig (Luke James) decide it is time to take community protection into their own hands.
The episode ends with Tracy visiting Douda’s penthouse and having a drink together. Without any guesses, the duo start kissing each other and try to make this moment just about themselves. However, when things just start to get really hot between the two, Douda’s ex-wife Roselyn Perry (Kandi Burruss) enters the apartment and sits on the couch.
Douda is really surprised to see her, but Tracy is in no mood to stop and continues kissing Douda in front of his estranged wife as the show comes to an end.
At 54 minutes, the episode perfectly sets the tone for the entire season. ‘Native Son’ takes the audience closer to the show’s major characters and what’s happening in their lives. On the other hand, Trig is undoubtedly becoming one of the most integral parts of the story and we might see more of him as the series progresses. All in all, ‘Native Son’ is one of those episodes where the makers need to take the story forward by giving attention to what’s happening in the lives of its major characters. The episode manages to keep you glued to their screens, but we surely would want to see the show picking up pace in the coming weeks.
‘The Chi’ Season 4 returns with a new episode on Sunday at 10 pm ET on Showtime.
