In the “Mayans M.C.” recap, Isaac strikes back, Letty tries to rescue Hope, Alvarez seeks vengeance and the Mayans hold a funeral for a fallen brother…
By Damon Martin — Editor/Lead Writer
There was undoubtedly going to be an emotional windfall from last week’s shocking episode of “Mayans M.C.” where the body count was higher than ever with several legacy characters shuffling off this mortal coil.
EZ continued to tighten his grip over the Mayans while striking a deal to put them in business with the Iron War M.C. and Storm 88, which gives them control over the drug trade in all the California prisons, but it came at a high price. That deal also requires the Mayans to produce copious amounts of street level Fentanyl, which only works thanks to a continued partnership with the Broken Saints M.C.
Of course before EZ could execute his plans for the prison, he first had to take care of one last problem on the inside by ordering Creeper’s death after he discovered that the current president of the Santo Padre chapter was a rat. EZ protected his secret by offing Creeper, which seems like the kind of act where there’s no turning back — especially because that wasn’t the only person who knew he was an informant when he got released from prison.
Last week also saw Adelita meet a grim demise after she turned on the LNG cartel to then hand over the keys to the heroin trade to her former protégé Mini only to have the girl stab her to death. Sadly, Adelita failed to share her job with the cartel from Angel, which means he returned home with their son and only found an empty house with no signs that she would ever return.
Now as we pick up this week, Letty is desperately trying to get back Hope, who was kidnapped by her psycho ex-cult leader Isaac as he used her for collateral to gain information on what kind of the partnership the Mayans struck with the Broken Saints.
Creeper’s death sends shockwaves through the Mayans but it’s the death of two other members that may ultimately escalate the war to an even bigger level, especially after Marcus Alvarez learns that his best friend Diaz was gunned down in cold blood. Little does he know that it was a Mayan pulling the trigger.
With that said, let’s get to our recap for the latest episode of “Mayans M.C.” for the episode titled “Her Blacks Crackle and Drag”…
Ring the Bell
The episode begins with Downer and Guero driving with the bodies of Diaz and Jinx — the president and vice president of the Oakland chapter of the Mayans — in the back of the van. Guero exacted revenge on Diaz after learning that he pulled the trigger to kill his father Ibarra, the former head of the Tuscon chapter when the Mayan civil war first exploded.
That led to Bishop killing Jinx because at that point why leave a living witness?
As much as this creates a whole new shit storm for the Mayans, Downer tells Guero that everybody knows why he had to kill Diaz, especially knowing how his own father was gunned down by another brother. The only way out of this whole situation is to pin the murders on a rival faction, which is what Downer and Guero are doing with the bodies.
They soon arrive at the Grim Bastards’ clubhouse where they stage the bodies outside — with both Mayans dressed in Sons of Anarchy kuttes — before Downer tells Guero to ring the bell to let them know there’s a surprise waiting outside. Downer ends up honking the horn several times before making Guero chase the fan to get inside because what’s more practical than playing a joke while dumping off dead bodies.
The next morning back at the Mayans’ compound, Sofia can’t help but notice that Sally is following her every step — and this certainly seems like a sign that perhaps she’s pregnant with EZ’s child. It’s never explicitly stated in the episode but it definitely appears like that might be happening, especially after Sofia finally faced her own demons after accidentally causing the death of her daughter years earlier.
When Sofia walks outside, EZ is putting himself through a torturous workout and he barely acknowledges her when she tells him that Creeper wouldn’t want him to suffer through this. Little does she know that EZ’s responsible for Creeper’s death.
A moment later, the Grim Bastards roar through the Mayans’ front gate and Lucky, the club president, lays down the two Mayans’ kuttes from the members found outside their doors. It seems like the Mayans’ plan has worked because the Grim Bastards took this as a warning shot from the Sons of Anarchy after they intervened and tried to play peace keepers during the ongoing war between the two clubs.
“That war of yours, now it’s ours. Sons think they can intimidate us? Nah. Nobody threatens the Grim Bastards. Black and brown unite.”
~ Lucky
It appears EZ is getting exactly what he wanted by turning the Grim Bastards against the Sons of Anarchy, which leaves the club even more vulnerable with numbers mounting against them.
As for Marcus Alvarez, he’s cooking breakfast for his family and it appears he’s trying to get back to some sense of normalcy rather than continuing to wallow in his own misery after he was booted from the Mayans. It’s a short lived reprieve, however, because Alvarez soon gets a call telling him that Diaz is dead.
It doesn’t take long for Alvarez to tear out of his own, mount up on his motorcycle for the first time since he was exorcized from the club he founded and he’s out looking for answers.
The drive takes him all the way to Charming where he tracks down Rane Quinn — longtime member of the Sons of Anarchy Motorcycle Club Redwood Original — because he wants answers. Alvarez points a gun to Quinn’s and threatens the pull the trigger unless he names the person responsible for killing Diaz.
Quinn doesn’t flinch with the gun pressed against his chin as he informs Alvarez that the truce between SAMCRO and the northern charters had already been broken after Happy was gunned down by the Reyes brothers. Alvarez had no idea that happened but he still wants answers about who killed Diaz and Quinn suggests he should look a little closer to home.
“Try your own backyard. We’re all down for the trip, brother, but you Mayans you kill each other more than we kill you. It wasn’t us.”
~ Quinn
Alvarez drops the gun and leaves the clubhouse without further interaction before returning home. In the end, Alvarez cuts the Mayan patches off his kutte before throwing everything into a fire — it seems he’s finally severing all ties with the club he loved so much.
Finally at the Mayans’ clubhouse, EZ and Hank look over a map of California as they discuss the new partnership with the Grim Bastards, which gives them the numbers in the war against the Sons of Anarchy. EZ knows this is the advantage they’ve needed and now the Sons are cornered in every part of the state, which means they will soon have to concede defeat or risk being crushed all together.
EZ also laments Creeper’s death inside the prison — obviously never showing the hand he played in that murder — while promising Hank that nothing like that will ever happen to a brother again now that they control the drug trade. It’s almost like EZ has detached himself from reality as if he didn’t get Creeper killed.
Fathers and Sons
Felipe Reyes receives a knock on his door and he’s surprised to find Miguel Galindo there waiting for him. He invites his son into the house — and Miguel can’t help but look at all the family photos and the happy life that the Reyes family had together without him.
Miguel then presents Felipe with a photo that shows him alongside his surrogate father Jose Galindo, who raised him as his own even knowing deep down that the child wasn’t his. Miguel tells Felipe that Jose was an angry man, who lashed out often, but he still accepted him as his son — while Felipe never bothered to try and claim him and instead just started a new family north of the border.
For all the violence enacted under Jose Galindo’s watch, Miguel says that his father still cared about him and that’s more than Felipe has ever done for him. Felipe knows he abandoned his son after leaving his mother to start a new life in America and he can’t make up for the past.
“The only thing a father can ask of his son is to forgive his mistakes.”
~ Felipe Reyes
Miguel refuses to forgive his father’s misgivings as he continues to push Felipe away while reminding him that they will never be a family.
It’s not long before Felipe receives a visit from another of his children when Angel arrives at his doorstep with Maverick in tow. Angel tells his father than Luisa (Adelita) never returned home and he can’t stand to be in that house without her.
So Felipe invites Angel and Maverick to stay with him because this has always been their home whether they lived there or not. Felipe may have lost two sons forever in Miguel and EZ but he’s obviously doing everything possible to keep Angel near him.
Meanwhile, Gilly is struggling with his own family after Rae told him that he should finally become a father to his son Jacob but to do that he would need to leave the Mayans behind. Before Gilly can make that decision, he’s confronted by a drunk Paul, who arrives at the house to confront his wife and former friend while just blurting out that he’s been Jacob’s father for the past 12 years while his real dead has been absent.
Jacob is understandably confused and Gilly explodes by throwing Paul to the ground and viciously beating him up. That act alone tells Gilly that he’s not in the right head space to be a father to his son, especially since Jacob has only ever known one dad in his life and it’s not him.
So Gilly decides to drive Paul to rehab and tells him to get his life together because Rae and Jacob need him. Paul attempts to reminisce with Gilly about their past together as soldiers where they carried out some heinous acts — including a moment where a little girl was thrown off a building — but it’s not something either of them really want to remember.
That explains Paul’s post-traumatic stress as well as Gilly’s refusal to face the consequences of his past, which is why he can’t try to be a husband to Rae much less a father to Jacob. Instead, Gilly tells Paul to get his act together and go home to his family.
He then returns to find Rae and Jacob moving out of his house as he shares a final moment with the woman he loved and the son he’ll probably never know. As much as this stings, Gilly begins to realize that they’re both better off with him.
Funeral for a Friend
The day has come to lay Creeper to rest and the Mayans share a somber memorial for their fallen brother back at the clubhouse. Even Taza — the former Santo Padre club member who indirectly got the war with the Sons of Anarchy started — returns for the funeral.
Creeper’s sister gives a heartfelt eulogy for her brother while telling the Mayans how much they all meant to him — but she singles out EZ as the person he cared about the most.
Now that really has to sting.
EZ emerges from the crowd and says a silent goodbye to Creeper before addressing the Mayans and taking responsibility for his actions — well not exactly anyways.
“I killed my brother. I killed Creeper. It was on my watch.”
~ EZ Reyes
EZ confesses but instead of admitting that he actually ordered Creeper’s death, he just owns up to the blame for not protecting his brothers in prison. He promises it will never happen again.
That’s when Kate — formerly known as Kodi — emerges from the back of the room as she reaches out and touches Creeper’s face one last time before staring down EZ Reyes. She leaves without saying a word as Hank tells the other members that is Creeper’s old lady.
Now the club doesn’t know that Kodi is actually a fake name she used while undercover as an ATF agent, which is how she was planted with Creeper to get information against the Mayans. She no longer works for the ATF but she does know that EZ was the rat, which obviously raises her suspicions that he was the person responsible for getting Creeper killed.
It will be interesting to see how this all plays, especially if EZ or Kate’s secret is ever revealed.
Following the memorial, the Mayans party away their grief with Taza sneaking outside where he’s reunited with Bishop. Of course these two were formerly close friends until Bishop learned that Taza was gay and that he killed Riz to help cover up his past, which led to the escalating tensions with the Sons of Anarchy.
But rather than continuing to hold a grudge, Bishop says the past is the past while Taza admits that perhaps it’s time that he finally returns home. Bishop tries to tell him he would be dumb to comeback now because it’s the worst possible time to rejoin the Santo Padre chapter but Taza admits he’s never been particularly smart anyways.
As for EZ, he ends his night back in bed with Sofia, who tries to get him to talk to her but he refuses. EZ is keeping everything bottled up and that will eventually come back to bite him, especially if he soon learns that perhaps Sofia is carrying his child.
Sleep Now in the Fire
Following a couple of nights spent at the Broken Saints’ compound and discovering that they are cooking up drugs for the Mayans, Letty plans her escape — and she’s nearly discovered — but still manages to find a working truck to leave before anyone catches her.
She soon arrives at the Sons of Anarchy San Bernardino clubhouse where she’s reunited with Isaac.
Letty tells him that the Broken Saints are making drugs for the Mayans but she wasn’t able to find out anything else without being caught. Still, Letty believes she did exactly what Isaac asked of her and now she wants him to return Hope to her.
Oh sweet summer child.
Needless to say, Isaac refuses and basically laughs in Letty’s face for believing she would get Hope back and he also admonishes her for betraying the Broken Saints for the sake of saving one person. It’s the same kind of betrayal that Coco enacted when he stormed onto Meth Mountain to retrieve Hope once upon a time, which ignited Isaac’s thirst for revenge against the Mayans.
“You chose a sister over the sisterhood. You should be proud. You’re more like Coco than I thought. Whatever happens next is your fault.”
~ Isaac
Letty screams for Hope as the gate closes in her face and she’s left on the outside.
As for Hope, she’s being held without any food or water but a plate filled with drugs — it seems Isaac wants her back under his thumb and the only way he can guarantee that is if she’s an addict again. Hope refuses and tells him repeatedly that Letty will come for her — and then Isaac warns her about what will happen if she does.
“I’ll tear off her wings in front of you. I’ll set her on fire and hold your hair back while you watch. You can deny gravity but momentum always brings you back to me.”
~ Isaac
Isaac continues to spout off his usual insanity before telling Terry — the San Bernardino vice president — to watch over Hope while he carries out a mission with the rest of the Sons of Anarchy.
That night, Terry brings Hope some soup while telling her not to say that she’s eaten when he hears gunshots ring out through the clubhouse. A moment later, Letty busts open the door with a knife to the throat of one of the crow eaters while demanding that Hope is set free.
Rather than shoot Letty dead, Terry turns the gun on the crow eater and kills her instead. Terry then tells Hope to run away with Letty — and he executes the rest of the crow eaters to cover their tracks.
As Letty and Hope escape, Terry points the gun at his own shoulder and pulls the trigger to cover his involvement when Isaac finally returns.
In the car, Letty tells Hope that they can leave California and perhaps head to Ohio where they could be reunited with Chucky — it’s nice he got a mention in this final season — and get jobs far away from the drama they’ve now survived. Hope breaks down in tears and demands that Letty pull the car over on the side of the highway.
As she gets out of the car, Hope tells Letty that they’ll never get away from Isaac — he will keep coming and won’t stop until he eventually finds her. Hope knows that she’ll only continue putting Letty in danger while staying by her side.
She then thanks Letty for these past few months — it’s been the best time of her entire life — but she can’t stay and allow Isaac to come for them.
“I love you. Now I have to set you free.”
~ Hope
With that, Hope steps into traffic as a tractor trailer plows her down as Letty unleashes a guttural scream watching her friend die a horrific death. All along it appeared that Isaac’s demise would come at EZ’s hands or perhaps even a member of SAMCRO finally fed up with his war against the Mayans but now it seems like Letty might want him dead even more than both of them.
Back at the Mayans’ clubhouse, Bottles and Guero hop in a van bound for the Broken Saints’ compound after partying at Creeper’s memorial. Guero is convinced one of the Broken Saints has a crush on him while Bottles has proof that the same girl just sent him a text telling him to get there as quickly as possible.
Along the way, Bottles makes the ill-fated mistake of dropping a few mom jokes, which only enrages Guero.
The end up stopping for gas before arriving at the Broken Saints’ compound but neither one wants to get out of the van out of fear that the other will drive off and leave them behind. Bottles does get a couple of punches for his jokes but in the end, both men refuse to pump the gas so they continue forward towards the Broken Saints’ home.
As expected, the van runs out of gas just before they arrive at the compound but as angry as Guero might be at the situation, Bottles soon turns his attention to a fire just over the horizon. The pair jet out of the van and run towards the Broken Saints’ compound where they find members pulling each other out of the burning building — the same place that housed the Mayans’ drug operation.
A huge explosion rocks the compound as Bottles and Guero watch the Mayans’ entire future go up in flames.
Isaac got what he wanted because he’s struck a blow to the Mayans that may put a target on their heads, especially after striking a deal with the soldiers of fortune that gave them control over the prison drug trade at a 50 percent split in profits. There will be no more money rolling in now with the drug production destroyed thanks to the Sons of Anarchy.
Only two episodes remain in the final season of “Mayans M.C.” so make sure to return next Tuesday night at 10 p.m. ET for the penultimate episode!
