SPOILER ALERT: The following contains spoilers for Power Book IV: Force Season 3, Episode 9.

The next-to-last episode of Power Book IV: Force feels impossible. “War Requiem” starts off slow, and ends in a spot that Starz viewers won’t believe. It makes complete sense when one looks at the complete arc of Season 3, but it’s a terrible pill to swallow. Every TV show amps up the tension before a season (or in this case series) finale, but Force does that with its trademark fearlessness.

The first portion of the episode feels like an extension of Episode 8: more posturing on all sides and more threats about who’s going to do what to whom. The only interesting bit here is Jenard’s half-cocked plan that CBI change their allegiance to the Marquez cartel, because of how bad of an idea that is. Power Book IV: Force viewers know that won’t end well. But this is another example of what’s been the theme of the season: Jenard getting into Diamond’s head, and when Jenard’s own head is clouded by arrogance and addiction, that spells disaster.

Taken in slow motion, “War Requiem” is a tragedy. Diamond continues to let Jenard, and his love for Jenard, dictate his choices. He goes so far as to meet with Tommy to try and broker peace, but the only thing Tommy asks for is Jenard—a completely understandable demand since Jenard murdered Tommy’s brother JP. Yet Diamond can’t do it. He can’t even turn on Jenard when he learns that Jenard tried to kill Tommy’s mom Kate. Power Book IV: Force reveals why when Diamond explains to Jenard, appropriately in a church, his thoughts and feelings back at the beginning of everything. Some viewers may think he’s foolish, but it comes down to Diamond acting out of love. And ultimately, that love leads to his death. He takes Tommy’s bullets meant for Jenard and dies on the floor of the church.

The second half of the episode features some great final moments for Isaac Keys with both Joseph Sikora and Kris D. Lofton. These are goodbye scenes, even though the audience doesn’t realize it yet. To hear Diamond wonder out loud how he and Tommy got to this point is almost a sendoff for the whole series. Viewers got behind Diamond and Tommy like they did Tommy and Ghost in the original Power, and so it’s nice to give the ex-partners a more quiet scene respecting that instead of them just spitting venom at each other. It also gives them a chance to try and patch things up, and a satisfactory explanation why they can’t. Fans can’t fault either one of them in that moment. But the fact that they attempt to shows the depth of their relationship.

Aside from Tommy and Diamond, though, “War Requiem” starts to wrap up the storylines of other characters. Miguel Garcia finds himself in an odd position as Che temporarily holds him hostage, and it’s interesting to see Miguel on the back foot after he’s usually the one giving orders. Manuel Eduardo Ramirez has done a wonderful job showing that under his own ego, Miguel is just like Tommy and Diamond: he has people he cares about and wants the best for. The fact that Tommy has Shanti rush getting the money to Che in order to free Miguel is a sign of the growing (if begrudging) respect between Tommy and Miguel.

Speaking of Shanti, Adrienne Walker has gotten some of her best material in the last few episodes now that Shanti is on her own. The scene in which Shanti meets Che, and Che disrespects her because she’s a woman, is fantastic work by Walker. Shanti could clearly upend that whole situation but she doesn’t. The episode also features the return of Tommy’s mom Kate, in as close to Power Book IV: Force gets to comic relief. When Kate tells Tommy he needs to “feel your feelings,” it’s a laugh-out-loud line even though she means well, and Sikora’s reaction seals it. It’s a horribly awkward family moment in the middle of all the bloodshed and arguing. But it’s a nice break from all that, too.

Vic Flynn gets on a plane for parts unknown with his new girlfriend Rae, which is a middling ending for him. On one hand, if Shane Harper isn’t in the last episode, that’s disappointing because of how much Harper has brought to the show. And Force without a Flynn in it will be weird. On the other hand, Vic on an island somewhere with Rae is better than Vic as a would-be crime boss. Plus, it’s nice that somebody, somewhere in all of this chaos gets a reasonably happy ending. (Vic just needs to be seen in a post-credits shot on a beach complaining about a margarita.)

Of course, with the Power Book IV: Force series finale being next, everything is on the table. Will D-Mac survive being wounded in the shootout that killed Jenard? Why was Mireya trying to book a one-way ticket to Mexico? (This is the least believable of all the plot twists, after all the time this season Mireya has spent saying that she’s at peace with Tommy’s career, including in this episode. But it’s left vague, so maybe there’s more to that story.) And since Tommy versus Jenard is the new endgame, how far off the rails will actor Kris D. Lofton get to go?

Jenard being the final obstacle for Tommy is an honest surprise, but his living while Diamond dies fits the larger story. To a person, all the characters’ loyalties have gone up in flames, so of course choosing to be loyal now would lead to death. JP was loyal to D-Mac and died for it, and Diamond has died for his brother. “War Requiem” boils everything down not to drugs, not to power, but to family. And that’s what Power Book IV: Force hasn’t gotten enough credit for. Yes, it’s a crime drama and viewers enjoy the gangster stories, but Gary Lennon and the cast have always been great at maintaining those human moments amidst the mayhem. There’s a heart to this show that similar ones don’t have, even if Episode 9 just ripped it out again and stomped on it.

Power Book IV: Force airs Fridays at 8:00 p.m. ET/PT on Starz. Photo Credit: Courtesy of Starz.

Article content is (c)2020-2026 Brittany Frederick and may not be excerpted or reproduced without express written permission by the author. Follow me on Twitter at @BFTVTwtr and on Instagram at @BFTVGram. For story pitches, contact me at tvbrittanyf@yahoo.com.