(WARNING: Spoilers for this week’s episode of Snowfall will be found below.)
There have been several points of no return throughout Snowfall. There was Franklin’s entrance into the game and his infatuation with making money and having a chance to become something in his Los Angeles hometown. There was Jerome and Louie’s involvement in Franklin’s drug empire, followed by the entrance of Franklin’s parents Cissy and Alton. Franklin getting shot is also a point of no return, as is Jerome and Louie’s decision to branch out from Franklin and flap their own wings in the drug game. We can’t forget Alton’s presumed death and Franklin’s unconfirmed realization that Teddy killed him. Of course, there’s Teddy’s robbery of Franklin’s $73 million dollars and every point-of-no-return decision that came after that, all of which we’ve seen go down so far this season. Throughout season six of Snowfall, you just hoped that Franklin and everyone in his world would get it together and somehow stop each other from tearing each other down. Unfortunately, as season six, episode six shows us, that did not turn out to be the case.
For the sixth episode in the latest season of Snowfall, titled “Concrete Jungle,” we pick things up in the immediate aftermath of the events in episode five. Veronique and Cassandra are shaken, the latter more than the former, at Franklin’s decision to kill Teddy’s father. Cassandra begs Veronique to make a run for it with her and avoid the slippery slope of chaos that will certainly follow the murder of Teddy’s father. However, Veronique’s entire childhood was lived on the run, and now that she has someone who will provide and fight for stability, she has no plans to leave. So she splits with her mother for the umpteenth time in her life. Moments later, we return to Jerome and Louie’s world to see that Jerome wants to exit from the drug game. Though his announcement occurs during a drunken rant, Jerome couldn’t be more serious as he reconfirms the following morning. Louie isn’t ready to leave the game yet, but that doesn’t matter to Jerome. However, because of his love for her, he commits to handling one last drop for Louie and it quite literally cost him his life. Louie gets kidnapped, Franklin and Jerome devise a plan to save her, and well, if you watched you know the tragic ending that concluded this episode.
Here are some of the biggest takeaways that we have after season six’s sixth episode: “Concrete Jungle,”
Veronique May Have Earned Our Trust
There’s a really big emphasis on “may” here but look, I was pretty convinced that Veronique was heading on that plane to who knows where with Cassandra after Franklin killed Teddy’s father. I mean, the look on their faces in that living room screamed that they were unprepared for this gruesome turn of events. Both in a slightly surprising and character-confirming turn of events, Veronique stands beside Franklin despite it all while opening the door for her mother to once again abandon her as she’s done throughout her life. The thing with Veronique’s character is because of her mysterious demeanor at times, and lack of a backstory, she’s been incredibly hard to trust. We have to give credit where credit is due though, she did stand beside Franklin in his time of need while also providing a brutally honest reason for doing so. This reason is delivered with almost a slap of the face to Cassandra, and despite all of that, you have to wonder (and hope) that Veronique’s reasons for sticking beside Franklin were indeed for the sake of their soon-to-be-family and her love for him and not some hidden reason. For now though, it’s fair to trust her a bit more.
Jerome’s Achilles Heel Was Louie
In “Concrete Jungle,” Jerome joined Leon as the only people within the Saint family circle to realize that enough was enough. For both, their realizations came at respective lows rather than through the satisfaction of their earnings. Jerome, fed up with a family at war willing to kill to survive and come out on top, arrived at his breaking point in last week’s episode. This week, came his decision to walk away, but he couldn’t do it without telling Louie and giving her the opportunity to depart the game with him and the madness that came with it — madness that normalized attempts to kill family members. Jerome had a limited amount of weaknesses in Snowfall. Sure, he was a bit quick to anger and took things to a level that was sometimes a bit much as the group’s enforcer, but there was little that could knock Jerome and keep him down. With his death in episode six, we see learn of the one thing that’s always been his Achilles heel: Louie. Her desires and dreams and his love for her often had him make decisions that may have been different if it were just up to him. Your wife being your kryptonite isn’t a bad thing at all, in fact, it’s quite admirable if we’re being honest. However, for a man who wanted to be free and out of a war with his family, it’s sad to see that he was also the first to be taken out because of it this season. Everyone has a weakness and Jerome’s became more obvious than ever as he took a gunshot to the chest and fell to the ground.
Franklin Can’t Save Everyone
Alton, Melody, Black Diamond, Fatback, and others. They’re all people that Franklin was unable to save from life-altering scenarios, which was death more times than not, and with the ending of “Concrete Jungle,” we can add Jerome’s name to that list. The events of Snowfall season six prove that the demise of an empire is in store, and with four episodes left in the season, things are only ramping up. Before the end of season five, Franklin had the option to save his close friends and family from complete demise, but with their war, the compassion and consideration to do so has gone out the window. Though you can commend him for making a last-minute attempt, with help from Jerome and company, to save Louie after she’s kidnapped by Jerome, you can’t help but think that maybe they wouldn’t have been in this position if they didn’t turn on each other. As for Franklin, the attacks against him and his people won’t stop especially with Teddy on the hunt for him now. Maybe it’s karma, maybe it’s a series of unfortunate events, or maybe it’s something else, but the worst has yet to come for Franklin. He’s the target for many, which makes people around him at risk of being collateral damage in the mess. To make a long point short, Franklin Saint simply can’t save everyone, but nonetheless, with the losses he’s experienced, he should at least try.
Louie’s Guilt Will Eat At Her For Life
A few scenes before Louie watched Jerome get shot and killed, her last moments with him came during a conversation in the living room of their home. Jerome confirmed that his drunken rant from the previous night about wanting to exit the drug game was as sober of a thought that he’s ever had. In fact, he called it “the realest” thing he’s ever told her. While Louie doesn’t try to change Jerome’s mind, she does explain her choice to remain in the drug game despite all the money they’ve made. In addition to more money, Louie is also in search of respect and appreciation. Jerome has long been the face of their business, both as a result of him being the muscle and a man, and it’s something that bothered Louie over time. She’s contributed heavily to the success they’ve had and it wasn’t until recently that she’s begun to earn that respect. While Jerome somewhat understands her reasoning, he also asks at what cost? Lives have been lost and their family will never be same, and with the end of “Concrete Jungle,” that statement only becomes truer. If a search for more respect and acknowledgment is what kept Louie in the game, then you can absolutely believe that pain, guilt, and revenge will keep her there too. It will be a long time before Louie is truly happy and satisfied enough to walk away, and with four episodes left in the season, it won’t be long until we see how things turn out.
New episodes of ‘Snowfall’ are available on FX on Wednesdays at 10pm EST/ PST.