

In its pilot episode, The Chi missed a few opportunities to really dig into societal and cultural structures that make the Chicago violence presented in the show possible. âAlee,â the seasonâs second episode, is a marked improvement as its narrative structure moves beyond the pilotâs broad strokes and alludes to the gritty details the series will hopefully explore. âAleeâ brings our four leads (Kevin, Ronnie, Emmett, and Brandon) into a sharper focus and binds their stories through overarching themes that represent realistic challenges to black masculinity. Overall, âAleeâ fixes a lot of the issues seen in the pilot, but thereâs a need for the show to expand its scope. The episode still fails to give the showâs black female characters much opportunity, but it does highlight how the women in the lives of these men are affected by their actions while depending on them.
Emmett is perhaps the best example of this uneasy balance. Emmett is very clearly a trifling and irresponsible kid. After a paternity test, he can no longer deny that heâs a father now and heâs forced to accept his new duties. Heâs literally forcedâhis baby momma drops the kid off and disappears. His mother refuses to raise his child and expects him to take care of his child and pay rent. Lena Waitheâs script doesnât ask us to have sympathy for Emmett, but it does ask us to see his frustration. When Emmett almost abandons his kid in a swing, but changes his mind, itâs not a joyous moment marking his newfound adulthood, so much as it is him deciding to be a decent person.
Itâs growth for a kid who canât even keep his eyes on his girlfriend, but Emmett is clearly headed down a dangerous path as he attempts to get a handle on fatherhood. The mysterious loan Emmett receives from Quentin is clearly suspect and will inevitably get Emmett tangled up in the same mess that Jason, the murdered basketball star, was involved with. Yet, itâs realistic that a man in Emmettâs situation, frustrated and out of options, would fall down this rabbit hole. While Jason remains a mystery to the audience, itâs not hard to believe he was just a kid, hustling like Emmett to support the people in his life.
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Itâs these same circumstances that have seemingly motivated Ronnie. Ronnie has multiple women who he supports this episodeâhis ailing grandmother, who depends on him to stay out of a state-run home, and Jasonâs mother, who believes he got justice. Yet, because the audience knows that Ronnie isnât the hero he believes himself to be, itâs still difficult to have sympathy for him or root for his romance since itâs built on violence. Waitheâs script does a wonderful job of showcasing the thin line between black male hubris and fragility, however. Ronnie goes from gliding through the streets as his boys congratulate him for âtaking care of businessâ to a broken man once heâs informed that Coogi truly had nothing to do with Jasonâs death. The moment is a perfect conclusion to the episodeâs events and strips Ronnie of all the false pride he felt from his violent act.
Finally, Brandon and Kevinâs storylines interact as they realize how necessary it may be for them to depend on each other. While Brandon excels at taking care of his wife and mother (as much as his mother will allow), he was unable to protect his own brother. It make sense that he would take Kevin under his protection, but just like Coogi, thereâs very little he can do without jeopardizing his own opportunities. He canât take Kevin to the police as a witness if he wants to protect him. He canât protect Kevin from Ronnie without confronting Ronnie.
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When Kevin tells him he has to handle his shit, itâs clear that Brandon is aware of his limited options, which leads him to calling his coworker to put their violent plan into place. From Jason to Coogi to Brandon and Kevin, itâs an incredible depiction of how cycles of violence are perpetuated, but it also seems as though Brandon should know better.
Brandonâs development in The Chiâs pilot was one of the highlights and the show hasnât done enough to really show us heâs reckless enough to give up on his dream of becoming a chef to immediately move to violence. Sure, they are making it incredibly clear that he is going to cheat on his wife, but Iâm not convinced he wouldnât try more reputable options before turning to violence. While it seems as though Brandon could share that information with the cop who showed a personal interest in Coogi, he does have obvious reasons not to trust the police.
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However, this is the most exciting development from âAlee,â because Kevin and his school friends make up the best parts of The Chi, so far. Itâs already easy to see how Kevin could end up the next casualty whose street memorial makes up an intro to a future episode. As Brandon plots his next move, itâll be Kevin who truly faces the fallout and itâs sad that he seems all too aware of that as a child.
Stray Observations
- Like, seriously, just have Brandon fuck that restaurant lady already. The flirting between them is just too obvious. Heâs ready to blow his life apart, even though his wife is seemingly wonderful.
- Sonja Sohn isnât given much to do here, but her brief scene as a day drunk was wonderful. I hope we continue to see the direct impact of Coogiâs death on her, rather than experiencing it through Brandon.
- The kids in this show are truly amazing actors and I canât wait to see what happens with Kevinâs crush.
- I like that Detective Cruz isnât entirely presented as this âgood rogue copâ who just wants to do the right thing. Even though heâs fighting with another cop, the moment heâs still invited to softball really does show that the CPD is a brotherhood.
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