Trama

Kiesha wrestles with a decision that will affect the life of her unborn child. A run in with police leaves Kevin, Jake and Papa reeling. Douda tries to walk the line between gangster and mayor. Season premiere.

Alex R. Hibbert: "Previously on The Chi:"

Repeat of Jada Washington putting up a "Missing" poster for Kiesha Williams.

Repeat of Kiesha's brother, Kevin Williams, confronting a gangster who pulls a gun on him, and saying, "I'm not leaving without my sister."

Repeat of Keisha's abortive call to Kevin while she was in captivity.

Repeat of Nina Williams saying, "Now make a wish," as her son, Kevin, blows out the candles on a cake.

Repeat of Ronnie Davis breaking into a house to release Kiesha, saying, "I'm gonna get you home." Repeat of Ronnie being tackled by her captor, Omari Dresden. Repeat of Kiesha beating Omari to death with Ronnie's tire iron.

Repeat of Jada's son, Emmett Washington, cutting the ribbon at the grand opening of Smokey's BBQ restaurant. Repeat of Emmett asking Tiffany to marry him, and her saying, "Yes."

Repeat of Tiffany suspecting Emmett of cheating on her, and Emmett denying it. Repeat of Emmett cheating on Tiffany with his cook, Dom.

Repeat of Emmett's father, Darnell, flirting with Dom.

Repeat of Nina telling Kevin's girlfriend, Jemma St. John, that she likes her, and Kevin saying, "Me too."

Repeat of Jemma telling Kevin she wants him to be her first. Repeat of Jemma and Kevin getting closer.

Repeat of Maisha putting a gold chain around Stanley "Papa" Jackson's neck to let the world know they're together, and of Papa putting a gold chain around Maisha's neck.

Repeat of Jemma's father, Marcus St. John, telling Otis "Douda" Perry and Camille Hallaway that he's backing Otis in the upcoming Chicago mayoral race.

Repeat of Douda beating an underling up while Jake Taylor looks on.

Repeat of Douda telling Jake's older brother, Trig Taylor, he wants Trig to run his street business for him, and for Trig to make sure he has everything he needs to work for Douda.

Repeat of Jake shooting and killing Ronnie for killing Coogie Johnson.

Repeat of Nina telling Kevin that Kiesha's been through a lot. Repeat of Kiesha waiting for an abortion. Repeat of Kiesha telling her family she's pregnant. Repeat of Kevin saying Kiesha shouldn't keep the baby. Repeat of Kiesha burning her captivity clothes. Repeat of Kiesha saying she can't go through with the abortion.



Montage of Kevin in formal attire trying to get to a fancy dance / Kiesha giving birth / Emmett looking in a bathroom mirror as someone tries to get in the room / Kevin seeing Jake kissing Jemma / Douda(?) dancing with Tracy Roxboro(?) at the fancy dance / Tiffany confronting Dom / An agile couple dancing at the fancy dance / Nina's wife, Dre, holding Kiesha's hand as Nina enters / Imani getting mad at Jake / An unseen assailant shooting Douda.

Title card: "One month earlier"

Jemma asks Kevin what time is it as the two lie in bed. Suddenly they realize it's full daylight, and that her father may catch them together. Kevin throws his clothes out her bedroom window and follows after.

Nina discovers Kevin's not home.

Marcus watches surveillance footage of Kevin getting dressed outside Jemma's bedroom window. Kevin comes around to the front door, and Marcus greets him.

A newscaster on a TV at Smokey's BBQ asks whether Otis Perry is "Gangster or mayor?" Customers watching think Douda runs the 63rd Street Mob and killed Coogie's older brother, Brandon Johnson. Emmett gives Papa his first paycheck from Smokey's. Papa asks for free meals for himself and Maisha.

Marcus asks Kevin if he reads the paper. Kevin says no, he gets his news from The Shade Room. As they make breakfast, Marcus argues for respectability politics so that white folks feel safe and Chicago gets the Olympics. Jemma asks why they should care about what white folks think, and who cares about the Olympics. Marcus says everyone likes the Olympics. Then they argue about the police and capitalism.

Tiffany comes to Smokey's. Emmett teases her. Tiffany tells Dom that her supplier for marijuana edibles has run out, and can Dom hook her up. Dom says she's not that kind of cook, but she might know someone who can teach her how to make them. Emmett is uncomfortable seeing them talking together.

Imani cuts a customer's hair at a salon. Jake sweeps up while Trig goes over some papers. Man Man comes in wanting to earn some money, so Jake hands him the broom. Douda comes in. Trig echoes the newscaster's question, "Gangster or mayor?" Douda makes it clear that Trig works for him, and hands him Jake's private school tuition money. Douda says he'll take Jake to school, but Trig intervenes and says he'll take Jake instead. Douda tells Imani he's glad that the salon is working out, and to let him know if she needs anything in addition to the help he's already supplied. She tries to graciously decline.

Darnell comes into Smokey's looking for Dom, and telling someone on the phone that he's on his way to them right now with some jumper cables.

Tiffany and Kiesha quibble over what Kiesha should wear to meet her baby's upscale prospective adoptive parents.

Dom tells Darnell that she fucked his son, Emmett. Darnell's not jealous, but he can't resist telling Emmett that he knows now.

Jemma, Kevin, and Jake walk from school arguing about a teacher and politics. Jemma doesn't think Kevin or Ms. Cranston is on the right side of history, but she and Kevin kiss and make up. Jake dismisses her. Kevin tells Jemma he loves her, but ditches a meeting of B.A.M.N. with her to go to a basketball game with Jake.

Douda and his wife, Roselyn Perry, come up on Tracy Roxboro, mother of slain child Jason Roxboro, as she's fixing up a meeting room for her community organization, R.O.C.K. (Remembering Our Chicago Kids). He wants to help her, but Tracy sees him as a gangster. With charm and a hint of menace, he says Tracy's got him all wrong, and asks her to come to an event with other community organizers.

Going to the basketball game on an L train, Jake changes out of his school uniform and gives Kevin a hard time for telling Jemma he loves her.

As they approach the basketball game, a young man named Bakari gives Kevin a hard time for having his bougie shirt and tie on from school. When Jake tries to defend Kevin, Bakari tells him he could end up like his dead brother, Reg Taylor. Jake and Kevin start to move on. Nearby white Chicago Police Officer Reeves, asks to see Jake's ID. Jake starts to walk away, but Reeves throws him to the ground, starts hitting him, and says, "Stop resisting!" The crowd of people around them are aghast and tell Reeves to stop. Papa and Maisha come running up. Maisha starts recording the incident with her phone. Reeves' partner, Chicago Police Officer Vaughn, pulls a gun on Kevin and orders him to the ground. Kevin complies. Reeves hits Jake some more, handcuffs him, then stands him up. Kevin gets up and yells, "What'd he do?" Reeves loads the bloodied Jake into the back of a police car, and the officers drive off with him.

When they get back to Smokey's, Kevin, Papa, and Maisha are still stunned.

Nina and Kiesha meet with upscale prospective adoptive parents, Octavia and Mark. Kiesha senses tension between the two.

Maisha and Papa think she should post the video of Jake and Kevin encountering police brutality online. Kevin says to delete it because Jake wouldn't want the world to see the police getting the better of him. Papa tells Maisha that posting the video would be "good trouble."

Kevin goes off, rides his bike, smokes some weed, and drinks some booze. He can't shake the images of the brutality. He ignores a call from Jemma.

Imani and Trig are disturbed that Jake missed dinner. Jake calls, but can't get out more than "Trig."

Tracy, Jada, and Dre go to Douda's shindig at a nice restaurant, but still express skepticism at his motives.

Dom and Tiffany are making dinner, including edibles, for movie night. Darnell shows up with a VHS tape of the 1997 movie "Soul Food" and a VCR to play it. Emmett gets nervous about Dom and Tiffany talking together and Darnell knowing his secret.

Tracy approaches Douda and Roselyn's table at the restaurant. Jada and Dre look on with skepticism from their own table. Jada's masseur, Suede, who's working as a waiter at the restaurant, hooks her up with a free drink. Douda takes a phone call and excuses himself. Roselyn tells Tracy she doesn't mind sharing her husband with Tracy.

First Trig, then Douda shows up at a hospital room where Jake is sitting up in a bed that the cops have handcuffed him to. Jake says he doesn't need Douda's help, but Trig wants blood. Douda orders the black police officer standing guard outside the room to uncuff Jake. After giving Douda lip, the officer complies. Trig says he wants the charges dropped, and Douda reassures him he can make it happen. Trig is not reassured, and wonders why the mayor can't keep this shit from happening in the first place.

Kiesha expresses her doubts about Octavia and Mark to Dre and Nina as they play Monopoly. Nina and Dre try to explain that family life is a crap shoot. A drained Kevin comes home, and they ask him what happened. All he says is, "Police." Nina follows him up to his room, but he can't shake the trauma and doesn't want to talk about it. She hugs him.

Darnell and Tiffany recite lines along with the characters in "Soul Food." Emmett starts sweating when the characters in the movie start talking about infidelity. Tiffany chalks it up to the edible he ate. When Darnell and Emmett fall asleep afterwards, Dom proposes to Tiffany that edibles could be their new side hustle, and Tiffany says she's willing to drop her current supplier in favor of Dom.

In the morning, Kiesha tells Kevin he should open up about what happened. He doesn't want to. She says that if he doesn't talk to somebody, he could end up like she was: traumatized and not moving forward. She goes downstairs to answer the doorbell.

Octavia has come to confess to Kiesha that she and Mark are getting a divorce. Kiesha thanks her for being honest, but says she wants a two-parent household for her baby.

Jake is listening to a newscast about Maisha's video going viral when Kevin comes to visit him at the hospital. Jake is mad that Kevin didn't have his back. Kevin's about to go when Papa shows up smiling and being cheerful.

Suede comes over to Jada's and says that instead of massage, he's going to take her out to dinner.

Jake, Kevin, and Papa watch Maisha's video.

Douda approaches Tracy as she's painting her organization's room, and says he wants to help. She says he's overdressed. He strips down to his undershirt and grabs a paintbrush. She asks him what he's going to do about the kids who got brutalized. He says he's going to handle it. He expresses sympathy for what happened to her son. He says it feels like they're living in a police state. She says they are.

Imani sits in a car near an overpass and tells Trig over the phone, "He's coming. Get ready." Standing under the overpass, Trig puts his phone away, pulls a mask on, and takes out a gun. When Officer Reeves comes jogging by, Trig knocks him over and starts pistol-whipping him.