“The Chi” Recap: ‘Thanksgiving’

HOLLYWOOD—I was truly looking forward to this season finale for the sixth season of “The Chi.” The season had truly been building up to a massive battle between Douda and the rest of Chicago. Well, that battle culminated in the season finale in a grand way. SPOILER ALERT: if you have not watched the season finale you will want to stop reading this now!

After being the big bad for more than five seasons, Douda was taken out and it was done in epic fashion to say the least. The finale opened with a clever scene with Bianca being questioned by authorities and a body covered by a sheet. The sheet was slowly pulled back to reveal a very dead Douda, so within the first two to three minutes of the episode, we know he was dead, it was more a question of who pulled the trigger.

So, we flashback to eight hours earlier, where the pieces of the puzzle were slowly, and I mean slowly put together for the audience. Why did this annoy me? There wasn’t much else transpiring in the episode, until like the final 15 minutes. I mean Emmett and Kiesha, you guys were quite lively for people whose lives were just threatened with a car explosion.

Kiesha revealed that she was pregnant. Jeez, Emmett this is like your fourth child I think. Dude might be time for a vasectomy. The pair wanted to wait in terms of sharing the news with everyone else. The rest of the episode was really everyone celebrating Thanksgiving, by cooking and bickering. The only Thanksgiving dinner that was of intrigue involved Kenya’s father and his guests. I did find it very interesting that Kenya of all people was NOT in attendance at her father’s dinner. That is a tale I want to investigate a bit more.

With that said, the preacher and Tatianna had a bit of a tussle, and it didn’t help that Sarah tried to throw her two cents into the mix and that only frustrated Jema who bickered. Then you had Jake, the preacher, Tatianna and Papa all going at it. I have to be honest America; it was hilarious as hell to watch. The one caveat that came to light is Papa’s new mentor has some major skeletons in his closet as a face from the past returned, begging for forgiveness and immediately turning to blackmail when his inquiries were not met with gratitude.

I knew Douda had someone kill Papa’s father, I NOW know who requested that hit, it was Kenya’s father. That secret is going to come to light and the audience should expect some explosive action as a result. The big climax we were waiting for: Douda vs. Alicia. After Bianca ‘distracted’ Douda, Alicia made her move pulling a gun on Douda, who did not seem too scared. He uttered an expletive, before a bullet blew his head off. Wow, Alicia did not pull the trigger, so who was it?

The person I expected; it was Douda’s #1 before being benched, Nuck. Yeah, Nuck took a massive beating and I mean massive beating in the penultimate episode, and I think after learning about Douda trying to kill Kiesha and little Ronnie in that car explosion pushed him over the edge. He deemed himself the new man in charge in town, and I thought that was a bit of a reach. You literally just got your butt kicked by a man in his 50s and all of a sudden you’re the king of Chicago? C’mon, a bit of a stretch in terms of a storyline if you ask me.

Alicia made it clear that she does not and will not work under Nuck’s guise, so I see this war brewing for the seventh season, especially after the event that slightly shook me. Bakari and his sister had a sit down where he made it clear he doesn’t trust her, but she planned to earn his trust back. I wonder if Britney telling Douda what Nuck was up to will come back to bite her causing a war between Bakari and Nuck.

Nina spilled to her family that she is about to travel with LaPorche who is pursing her music career. It was a conversation that Kiesha didn’t want to hear, but ultimately accepted, just as Jamal stepped up to the plate to note he’d take care of his sister in the process.

Now the big moment, after Thanksgiving was over, at least the feast of eating, Rob dropped off money to Nuck and made it clear he no longer works for him. Zay uttered the same, before Nuck unexpectedly fired a string of bullets into Rob killing him. I expected a character to die, but I expected a bigger character, not Rob and it stung to see it. Alicia just lost her ex-husband and now her son, oh, this woman is about to be out for blood.

Nuck made it clear to Zay he’s not messing around and Bakari was recruited to help dispose of Rob’s body which was dropped off right on the porch steps of Alicia’s home. C’mon Nuck, would you really want to send such a message to Alicia like that? She is going to know you killed her son after the threat you issued. Bakari is back in the streets, and it seems his relationship with Lynae is over also because she made him choose, her or his cronies.

That scene of Alicia, Shaad and Bianca stumbling upon Rob’s body was heartbreaking, Lynn Whitfield delivered some acting gravitas during that scene that was amazing. I wanted to see Tiffani’s reaction. The audience didn’t get that, so I expect her to reel in season seven, especially after that conversation she had with Kiesha about how happy Rob makes her. I mean Nuck you were just sharing a meal with all these people on Thanksgiving, and you take out this guy without flinching?

Oh, Kiesha and Emmett are about to be placed in a tough position, why? They know Nuck killed Douda when he showed up to their home bloody, not realizing the blood was not from Douda, it was from Rob. Tiffany is going to want Nuck’s head on a silver platter, in addition to Alicia, and I think Emmett too, but how will Kiesha respond to the world wanting the father of her child being dead.

I am eager for season seven as new dynamics have unfolded that will have a major impact. The problem is the audience will have to wait over a year to find out.