HOLLYWOOD—Being deprived of a guilty pleasure is never a good thing, which is how I felt waiting for the next episode of the Starz series “Power” after that unexpected death that I knew was coming, but I quite didn’t see it coming. This penultimate episode before the mid-season finale was thrilling, exciting and filled with unexpected chaos. ‘Scorched Earth’ kicked off with Tommy dealing with the repercussions of Keisha’s death. Tommy was grieving, and it was written all over his face. He was forced to deliver Cash to his father, as he speculated what his next move would be.

Once again, Detective Rodriguez is seriously starting to irk my nerves. She’s like that pesky fly that just doesn’t know how to leave things alone. She questioned Tommy about Keisha’s death, but we all know way too well that Tommy is no idiot when it comes to speaking to the cops. Ghost went looking for new property to continue his project to honor his daughter Raina. Bombs were dropped as James learned Tate’s opponent wants him as Lt. Governor. Now, I wonder how Tate will respond to this news.

Tommy has no idea that it was Tasha and not Ghost who murdered Keisha. When that news is revealed it’s going to cause ripple effects in Tommy’s world. Rodriguez just has her hands in way too many cookie jars. She questioned Dre about Keisha’s murder and he pointed the finger at Tommy, while pushing his agenda to dismantle Tommy’s organization for his own selfish needs. The guy is smart, but this move is going to come back to haunt him. Ghost wanted Jason to invest in his business project as a ruse to take out a threat, unaware that Tommy and Dre had other plans.

I loved the fact that Ramona didn’t reveal to Tate that she was working behind his back with Ghost, just as Rashad made threats about taking out his enemy once and for all. Ghost learned that Tasha wasn’t just running a daycare, but pushing drugs. He was livid and that led to other bombshells after he paid a visit to Tariq’s school. Ghost confronted Tasha about using their son to push drugs and threats were made. This is a side of Ghost I’ve never seen with Tasha as he got quite physical leaving a major bruise on her arm. Tasha isn’t afraid of much, but this is a time where she looked downright spooked by her ex.

Dre delivered Intel to Jason that Tommy’s warehouse was about to be paid a visit by the feds, which indeed transpired, just as Tommy’s goons watched him from a distance. They suspected Tommy set them up, but it was actually Dre. As much as I hate to say this, Tommy and Ghost need each other far more than they can imagine. They have threats after them on both ends. Fed up with Tasha’s antics, Ghost made an anonymous tip to authorities about drugs being run out of Tasha’s daycare facility.

However, Tasha is not idiot and ensured to have her bases covered by the time authorities showed up. It sent a clear message to Tasha that this is war with Ghost. The level of betrayal between Dre, Tommy, Ghost and Tasha this episode was unrelenting. Quentin paid Tasha a visit where he discovered Ghost has injured a woman he cares about. Something tells me Quentin is not who he claims to be. Jason arrived at Ghost’s new endeavor unaware that his death was just moments from transpiring. Jason suspected Ghost was up to no good, but that text he got from Tommy confirmed it. Ghost and Jason battled, but it was Ghost who gained the upper hand killing his threat in bloody fashion.

When he learned about Keisha’s death from Tommy, it forced him to set-up Dre to take the fall for Jason’s murder, which Dre fell for hook, line and sinker. Benny questioned Ghost about Joe’s death, as it became clear that he knows it was Tommy. I thought I would never see the moment that Tommy would come crawling back to Tariq and Tasha, as he revealed the time is now to take out Ghost. However, Tariq picked up on the fact that his mother was responsible for Keisha’s murder, not Ghost.

Benny did his best to take out Tommy, but found himself six-feet under as a result. Ghost was already having a bad day, but it only got worse with Rashad stopping by and making threats. The tension between these two was fantastic. Ghost teased about upcoming plans, but it was Ramona who sealed the deal letting Tate know she now works for his enemy.

Cooper Saxe is back in the mix, as Rodriguez paid her a visit in hopes of getting the goods on Tasha about what really happened with Keisha. Tasha is a terrible actor, because she practically screamed guilty to Saxe and Rodriguez when they asked her about Keisha’s death. However, threats about Tariq’s role in the death of Raymond Jones forced Tasha to admit that Ghost killed Terry Silver. How Tasha knew precisely where the body was I’m still trying to figure out? The authorities discovered the body, just as Saxe withheld Silver’s phone as he planned to use it as leverage.

Saxe asked Dre to plant the phone in Ghost’s hotel suite, which he did, but something tells me, this plan is going to backfire. How and when? Not sure, but nothing is ever this easy on the series “Power” people! The episode culminated with Tariq puffing his chest yet again, as Ghost looked like he was mere minutes from beating the hell out of his son. Tariq threatened to kill his father, but something, and I mean something unnerved me, where I feel it is a certainty Tariq will lose his life before the series wraps.

To be honest I wouldn’t mind seeing it because this kid thinks he’s tough as nails, but has NO CLUE of how dangerous the criminal underworld can be. So it looks like Ghost has NO ONE in his corner now, which makes him more dangerous than ever. The question is why doesn’t everyone else realize that? I cannot wait to see next week’s mid-season finale. I’m certain plenty of characters we love and some that we hate will meet a grisly demise. Until next Sunday “Power” fanatics!