*Episode 3 spoilers.*
And already, we’re nearing the middle of season 2. I don’t know why, but it feels like this show is going by really fast for me. This is a good episode, and Diego Luna is incredible in it.
At the end of the last episode, the DEA got Zuno in custody on American soil, and now he’s ready to name names. As Zuno prepares to testify before a grand jury, Félix knows he’s in jeopardy, along with his government partners and his plan to put pressure on the Colombians. He takes a huge risk to try and protect his operation. Meanwhile, there’s a new tax on the Sinaloans for using Tijuana’s infrastructure, and Isabella has a proposition for Enedina.
I don’t think I’ve ever mentioned Chapo by name, but he’s been a part of the show since early in the first season. For much of the series, his part has benefited from dramatic irony, contrasting what we know about El Chapo with the eager-to-please narco who’s loyal to Félix but frequently the butt of the joke among his friends. But here, we get the start of Chapo making his mark. As I’ve said before, the Sinaloans have had to traffic their share of the cocaine through Tijuana because they’re not on the border, but with the prospect of the new tax cutting into their profits, Chapo brainstorms ways to get around it.
Isabella has been looking to strike out on her own ever since Félix dropped her near the end of season 1. She’s smart enough to know she needs a partner to do that, but so far, everyone is too afraid of retribution from Félix to work with her. It’s interesting to watch her approach Enedina, another woman who’s been tired of being underestimated and dismissed by the men around them. Despite their similar grievances, they’re such different characters, and Enedina isn’t an easy mark. “What’d you expect?” she asks. “Turn my back on our family because we’re both women?” Isabella, equal parts savvy, ambitious, and scorned, replies, “Why not?”
This is an excellent episode for Diego Luna. I feel like Félix is always the most fascinating when his feet are really held to the fire, and with Zuno’s testimony hanging over his head, he’s determined to find a way out. We see him visiting Don Neto in prison, but he’s less than forthcoming with the advice. He tells Félix, “You’ve got all these people around you, but the truth is, you’ve got no one. ‘Cause you chose a bunch of dirtbag lawyers and politicians over your friends.”
I like watching Félix navigate this situation, reaching out to someone he betrayed last season. It feels like a no-brainer that Neto wouldn’t be in a forgiving mood, but for Félix, it kind of makes sense. He’s still working with the government, even though they threw him under the bus with Kiki’s abduction; he hasn’t forgiven them for that, not by any stretch, but he prioritizes what the business needs and puts that over his own anger. One of Félix’s recurring flaws is that he tends to think others will do the same when they frequently don’t.
So without Neto’s help, he’s left to find a solution on his own. Félix is a smart guy, but the Americans are about to have him dead to rights, and it’s going to take a masterful play to get out of that. He comes up with a plan that involves enormous risk and zero room for error. The scenes where he meets with CIA operative Bill Stechner are far and away the strongest in the episode.
A few weeks ago, I talked about Luna’s performance in the season finale and mentioned an earlier post I’d written that goes into his scene with Calderoni in more detail. This is the other big scene included in that post, another instance where Félix backed against the corner with only one card left. I just love watching these scenes, seeing him frantically make his move when there’s no guarantee it’ll work and the consequences of a miscalculation are dire. If anything, he's even more desperate here than he was in the season one finale, in part because Stechner enjoys using his lack of English against him; Stechner provides an interpreter for their conversation but withholds translation at critical moments just to watch Félix squirm. Luna plays this so well, Félix’s fear and panic warring with his determination to make his play.
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