Following the big cliffhanger in the second season finale, one of Anika and Rhonda falls to her death in the first episode of the new season.
- Sep 22, 2016
AceShowbiz - It's inevitable. The tension between Anika and Rhonda that culminated with their physical argument in the second season finale of "Empire" leads to the demise of one of them, and that person is revealed in the third season premiere on Wednesday, September 21.
[SPOILER ALERT!] Just as Hakeem is going to leave after he was left at the altar by Laura, Rhonda's body falls from above and slams onto the roof of his car, right in front of Jamal and Lucious who try to stop Hakeem. A furious Andre starts to choke Anika and screams at her, and that's when her water breaks.
Hakeem shows up at Tiana's place drunkenly saying he's always loved her, but Tiana's not having it. Cookie rushes to the hospital to be by Andre's side, while Hakeem passes out and misses the birth of his child. Lucious accompanies Anika in the delivery room, posing as the daddy. Instead of comforting her, he threatens Anika's life because she "lied" to him.
Following the tragedy, the Lyons are back to business with Lucious gearing up to launch Empire's streaming service. Jamal is set to perform at the event, but on the D-Day he has a panic attack. After he's rushed off the stage, Nessa steps up and slays a song that Jamal had wanted to sing. Lucious is angry because Shyne's lady is now the face of Empire X Stream.
Meanwhile, Lucious' half-brother Tariq is trying to take Lucious down by proving his marriage to Anika is fake. He brings Anika and her daughter Bella to Lucious' mansion and later joins the family's dinner. He taunts Cookie for losing her place and calls Anika a "mulatto b***h."
Later, Lucious has a one-on-one time with Bella. He admits that he's scamming Tariq and that he did everything to protect his legacy. Unfortunately for him, Tariq is watching the whole thing through a camera in one of Bella's teddy bears.
So what comes next after the deadly premiere? In a preview for the next episode, Mariah Carey's Kitty makes her debut appearance and records a song with Jamal. Jamal apparently tries to handle his problem with drugs.
Lucious tries to win Cookie back, but she says she's done with him. They meet Angelo Dubois (Taye Diggs). Seeing the new guy as a potential love rival, Lucious tells Angelo that he and Cookie always belong together no matter what happens. Meanwhile, Anika makes it clear to Lucious that he's the one who needs the marriage and she's basically saving him.
"Sin That Amends" airs Wednesday, September 28 at 9/8c on FOX. According to the synopsis, "in an attempt to cope with life after being shot, Jamal teams up with businessman Angelo Dubois, to talk about gun violence and host a summit for awareness. When he tries to perform again, things don't go as planned. Meanwhile, Lucious attempts to win over Cookie, Hakeem starts to record new songs with Shine, and Andre runs into some trouble with the police."
