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Empire returned with a bang! After the cliff-hanging season finale (who would die–Anika or Rhonda?), fans have been waiting for Fox’s hit series to come back. Empire is a show full of high drama, stellar music, and ridiculously tantalizing characters so it’s no surprise that the writers have come up with a shocking way to set-up what is sure-to-be a roller coaster season 3. Let’s take a look at some highlights from Empire‘s season 3 premiere. (Note: If you haven’t watch the season premiere yet, stop reading right now. SPOILERS AHEAD.)

 

The first ten minutes of the episode. Holy cow. I mean, jaw-dropping gasps abounded in those first few minutes of the premiere. Honestly, I was hoping it would be #ByeAnika (Rhonda>Anika), but I get why the writers went this direction (two words: more drama). So, Rhonda (Kaitlin Doubleday) was pushed off the building. Then, not a full minute after that horrid scene, Anika’s water breaks, and she goes into labor. Of course, Lucius claims to be the baby’s father since he married Anika (Grace Gealey) earlier in the evening to throw off the Feds (Hakeem REALLY hates Lucius now), but Lucius (Terrence Howard) gets super pissed when it is announced it’s baby girl Bella (surprise! Anika lied about the gender to get into Lucius’s good graces). Did you follow all of that? I told you, the first ten minutes was nuts! Goodbye Rhonda and hello Bella.

 

Mama Lucius. Whoo-boy. Lucius’s mother, Leigh Walker (Leslie Uggams), had some fantastic lines this episode. At the hospital, she yelled, “We’re being punished. You’re all being punished!”  Then, when Anika moved back into Lucius’s mansion with baby Bella in tow, Mama Lucius greeted her with, “You about as trustworthy as a snake in a hamster cage.” *Praise hands* Someone in that family knows what’s up. I’m looking forward to seeing what else she has to say (even if her sanity is questionable).

 

Andre. By the end of season 3, Andre (Trai Byers) will have gone full Darth Vader. First, he lost his baby. Next, he lost his wife. Finally, he lost God. Look out, world! Andre is totally going to the dark side (which was confirmed in that creepy hallucination-of-Rhonda scene at the end).

 

Cookie. When isn’t she the best part of Empire?! Cookie (Taraji P. Henson) is the fierce lioness that has a fantastic wardrobe, and she consistently has some of the best one-liners. Her Achilles heel, though, is clearly Lucius. I’m hoping that she learns to really let go of that bad-news-bad-luck man, and she comes out on top of it all. (Side note: her flashback to when Cookie met Lucius whetted our appetites for more.)

 

We can’t wait to see how the rest of Empire‘s newest season unfolds. Tune in to Fox on Wednesdays to watch!

Photo Credit: Michael Lavine/FOX