Is Cookie in trouble? Get your sneak peek into tonight’s episode of Empire airing on FOX at 9 PM (ET/PT).
We were two episodes in when it was announced that FOX would renew Empire for a second season. Now as we come upon the 5th episode, the drama on Empire has reached some epic levels. Last week on Empire, season 1, episode 4, “False Imposition,” Lucious (Terrence Howard) tasks Anika (Grace Gealey) with bringing in rap artist Titan (Jim Beanz/James Washington) from rival company Safe House Records. Titan is currently in jail so Anika meets with his management team and the only business that gets done is bodies dropping to the floor when bullets came flying through the glass to send a message. One can only guess that Safe House Records owner Baretti (Judd Nelson), wasn’t too happy with Empire Entertainment trying to steal his star talent. And Baretti, who somewhat assisted with Lucious becoming a household name let Lucious know this when the two had a verbal sparring match at Leviticus.
Cookie (Taraji P. Henson) in “False Imposition” was making a name for herself at Empire Entertainment. First she takes on the role of Tiana’s (Serayah) manager and makes a suggestion that puts forth a tween-friendly duo track between Tiana and Hakeem (Bryshere Gray). Then when Jamal (Jussie Smollett) gets writer’s block and isn’t able to compose any original music, she kicks his bum into gear. But her impressive feat of the evening was strolling into Titan’s, Nation of Islam mother’s home, in a miniskirt and establishing a connection with his mother that made the way for Lucious to solidify Titan being on the Empire Entertainment label.
Tonight on Empire, season 1, episode 5, “Dangerous Bonds, ” which was directed by John Singleton, Cookie receives a gift from an anonymous admirer. She suspects the gift is a subtle threat from a person associated with her past in prison. Also, Lucious takes the lead on Hakeem’s first video shoot. “Dangerous Bonds” guest stars include Anthony Hamilton as himself, Ta’Rhonda Jones as Porsha, and Nealla Gordon as Agent Harlow Carter.
Now let’s a further look into “Dangerous Bonds” with the below four clips and promotional images from the episode. In the first clip, we get an inside look into “Dangerous Bonds” from cast members Terrence Howard, Taraji P. Henson, and Jussie Smollett. Terrence tells us why Lucious proposes to Anika; Taraji gives us a breakdown of her day that starts with the belief that she is being targeted by a drug kingpin; Jussie gives us some insight into why Hakeem and Jamal will come to fistacuffs. In the second clip, we see Cookie testifying before a grand jury where she finds out some vital information that Agent Carter neglected to tell her that has her questioning whether or not the Feds can protect her. In the third clip, Jamal takes Cookie to a seedy recording studio, explaining to her this is all he can afford since he has broken away from Lucious and his endless cash flow. And in the final clip, Hakeem sees images of Tiana with India (Elizabeth Whitson). The promotional images from “Dangerous Bonds” focus on Tiana, Hakeem, Jamal, Lucious, Anika, Anthony Hamilton, Jamal, Porsha, and Andre (Trai Byers).
