As the episode begins, we see Li Yong (Joe Taslim) practicing. He doesn’t stop when Mai Ling (Dianne Doan) enters the room and strikes up a conversation. He believes she is trouble but she claims she is not. She knows he doesn’t approve of their alliance with the Fung Hai but it is necessary. Li wonders if Ah Sahm (Andrew Koji) is the one who is keeping her up tonight. He suspects she feels guilty about ordering her brother’s death and she believes he is judging her for it. Mai Ling reminds Li Yong that he has no idea what her brother did to her. She confesses she thinks about it over and over again. She sees him lying there bloody and beaten. She explains she sees him as a boy crying for his sister’s help. Li Yong wonders if Ah Sahm could ever forgive her. She admits she wouldn’t and hasn’t.

After the intro, Penelope Blake (Joanna Vanderham) looks through the rubble. When Jacob catches up with her, she asks him what that awful smell is. Jacob tells her it is opium and there were boxes of it hidden in the storeroom. Then, she learns about the bodies of the Hop Wei. Bill O’Hara (Kieran Bew) tells the other officers that the Fung Hai is back to business as usual. He explains that tonight is the night and everyone should stay behind after their shift. Bill wants to know the Chinese what happens when you mess with San Francisco cops. When Richard Lee (Tom Weston-Jones) steps through the door seconds late, Bill wants to know where he has been. Bill tells Lee that he looks awful before Lee asks Bill if he told the men why the Fung Hai attacked him.

Bill admits he hasn’t and he doesn’t see a reason to. Bill tells Richard to be his guest but he is confident it won’t make a big of a difference in the long run. Bill reminds Lee that they had a knife to his boy’s throat and that they won’t stop coming. He admits this is revenge. Richard blames everyone on Bill. Richard is told that they’re going and he needs to be sober. Ah Sahm goes to the factory and approaches Penny. She confronts him about the opium and lets him know that all of the opium is gone. Ah Sahm apologizes and says he didn’t have a choice. Penny is upset because she trusted him. She lets him know that his men are dead and Jacob got rid of them before the police arrived. Penny blames herself because she knew what he was before she hired him.

Ah Sahm asks what that means about her. She encourages him to leave because she will scream. Seconds later, Chief Flannagan approaches Dylan Leary (Dean Jagger) and asks him about Mercer Steel. Dylan finds it rotten that Mercer got the fat contract and he was the mayor’s father in law. The Chief says it struck someone because it encouraged them to go blow up the building. Then, he tells Dylan that it stops now and there will be no more bombings. He reminds him that nobody on his end is going to care about due process and they’ll be calling for his head. Dylan suggests they’re talking as two Irishman so he tells the Chief that his people at the City Hall created this mess. He suggests the city is going to burn and the blood will on the Chief’s hands as well as that of the politicians. Ah Toy (Olivia Cheng) rides in a carriage to Sonoma where she is greeted by Nellie Davenport (Miranda Raison).

Ah Toy tells Nellie that it is beautiful. Nuwa is ordered to help Ah Toy and her girls get settled. Nellie shows Ah Toy around and tells her about the work there before Toy is introduced to Fen Hau. Nellie tells Toy she found Fen Hau over a year ago in a crib brothel on the Barbary Coast living in the most awful conditions. Fen tried to make herself undesirable so her captors would release or kill her. Nellie goes on to tell Ah Toy how some of the girls are kept in cages. They chat about America and how it is supposed to give people hope. After that, Mayor Blake (Christian McKay) visits his wife’s factory. He finds out that the damage is extensive and finds it hard to believe anyone would buy Penny out at this point. Penny still has no intention of selling and she doesn’t want to hear him gloat. Samuel says the rift brings him no joy before he learns how long it’ll take to rebuild.

They discuss the factory’s ability to fulfill the city’s order and Samuel admits he is worried about that. Samuel wants to make sure there are no late deliveries because that could ruin the contract. Penny promises that they’ll deliver on time but Samuel doesn’t see how that will happen. Penelope begs Samuel before he says everyone can see this is where the road ends. Ah Sahm talks to Young Jun (Jason Tobin) about their problem and Young Jun says they should go dice those Mick guys right now. Ah Sahm says there are dozen of them so it would be suicide. Jun explodes in a rage and says they have an entire tong. Then, he admits he is worried about Father Jun taking their heads off but Ah Sahm reminds him that Father Jun doesn’t know anything yet and doesn’t have to ever. Young Jun believes they’re going to start missing delivers and his father will find out.

Ah Sahm says he’ll go see Happy Jack because they’re a good long-term prospect for him. Hong (Chen Tang) puts his drink on the table and counts himself in. Hong has heard everything and he knows what they’re trying to do. He goes on to say he wants to help because they stood up for him. We jump back to Ah Toy who finds out that the women share dinner together because it creates a sense of family. Nellie contemplates opening another winery and explains her husband left her a substantial fortune. The wine they make pays for some of it too. Ah Toy gets emotional and walks outside so Nellie follows her. Toy tells Nellie that this place reminds her of her grandmother. She had a beautiful garden in China but Toy hadn’t thought of her in a long time.

Nellie tells her she has found her favorite because this is where the transformation takes place. After a drink, Nellie asks Ah Toy who takes care of her before Ah Toy admits it is lonely sometimes. Nellie kisses her and Ah Toy repays the favor. Seconds later, Zing (Dustin Nguyen) finds out that Wang Chao (Hoon Lee) has decided to deliver. Wang explains he didn’t get them but instead had them made. Zing gives Wang more than what they initially agreed to so Zing says it is a down payment on their future endeavors. Wang doesn’t like that because he doesn’t hold money he doesn’t earn and his loyalty isn’t for sure. Zing asks what if that isn’t good enough for him. When Chao strikes back, Zing tries to teach him his place. Zing wonders if something is wrong while Chao’s men begin killing the others.

The disguise is removed and we see that one of the men is Li Yong. He tells the other man to hide the bodies. Zing asks if Chao wants to get something off of his chest. Chao admits he doesn’t like Zing or his tong. Zing’s men block Chao as he tries to leave. They grab him and place in him a chair. Zing approaches with a vase in his hand. The police officers wait outside. Bill says they will go in as soon as Chao comes out but it doesn’t look like Chao is going to be able to escape. Zing begins pouring a white liquid down Chao’s mouth while his men laugh. Then, Zing says they should toast their new brother. Chao’s other man gets caught with the bodies and has to fight back. Chao decides to toast the Fung Hai before the Long Zii man is brought out and Chao is attacked again. Li Yong sneaks through the building.

He climbs the stairs and places the sword nearby while Zing tells his men to hurt Chao. Richard Lee drinks outside while the other officers wait for word to storm the building. Chao tries to defend himself but he is overwhelmed by Zing’s soldiers. Li Yong begins fighting. Chao pulls a gun and shoots one of the men. That convinces Bill it is time to move in. Li Yong confronts Zing who says he will go see Mai Ling once he kills him. He claims he is going to have sex with her like never before. Then, they begin fighting. Bill and the police storm the building and take down Zing’s men. Bill finds Chao. He is alive but bloody. Bill orders an officer to get Chao outside while the fight between Zing and Li Yong continues. Li Yong takes Zing to the ground and tells him to be grateful for his pain because it means he is still alive.

Zing grabs a piece of glass and stabs Li Yong with it before the fight continues. Zing notices the blade and tries to use it against Yong. Bill sneaks up the stairs before pointing the gun at Zing and telling Li Yong not to move. Bill tells Zing to drop the sword before Li Yong makes a run for it. Zing tries to kill Bill with the sword but Richard shoots him and stops that. Richard tells Zing he knows him before Bill hurts him and tells him he is going to suffer. When the sun rises, the Chief arrives and checks out the scene. Bill and Richard tell him about the sword and the pocket watch which has VRT craved into it. This means it likely belonged to Victor Timmons. The Chief says that is enough evidence to do it. Richard wonders if they were lucky to come there for one reason and find the sword and watch.

He can’t understand why the Fung Hai would’ve gone after McCormick and Timmons. Bill tries to convince him that they’ve won since they got their man. Richard eventually listens to him and says they won. Li Yong returns and works on his wounds. Mai Ling approaches, asks what happened, and helps him. Li tells her about Zing being arrested and the cops raiding the Fung Hai headquarters. Mai wonders if Chao put him up to this but Li says Chao can’t tell him what to do. Mai reminds him that Zing was their ally and the Fung Hai were the only thing stopping a war between them and the Hop Wei but Li says Zing was out of control and ordered the death of a police sergeant and his family. He explains that the ducks have their killer so the raids will end and they’ll leave them alone.

Mai Ling doesn’t think they’ll ever be left alone and she isn’t happy that Li Yong moved without her. He says he tried to warn her about Zing and she wouldn’t listen but Mai Ling says he should’ve spoken louder. Ah Sahm returns to Young Jun and admits his meeting with Jack didn’t go well. Ah Sahm sees Ah Toy and believes he might have another option. Chao takes the little girl and says she belongs with someone who can take care of her. Ah Sahm tells Ah Toy about their problem but she doesn’t want to start a war because of Ah Sahm’s misguided need for revenge. Ah Sahm explains that Father Jun is letting Mai Ling become more and more powerful and Ah Toy has said that Mai Ling is a danger to Chinatown. She admits it but says Ah Sahm is a danger too since he is trying Father Jun and hitting him against his son.

They argue about not standing up to Mai Ling and Ah Toy wonders if Young Jun would be any better. Ah Toy says it is more about Ah Sahm than Young Jun and that he is more like Mai Ling than he could ever realize. She warns him that he needs to stop this right now because he cannot cross Father Jun. He realizes that means no on his request for a loan. Chao meets with Nellie who tells him she agreed to help because they’re friends. Chao tells Nellie about the kid’s parents. Her mother is a loose woman and Chao is her father. He nearly died last night. He goes on to say that the country wants to kill them. Chao believes the beautiful little white girl has a better chance than he ever had. He hopes nobody ever finds out what the girl really is. She believes she knows a couple that might take the girl because they’re desperate for a child of their own.

She is confident that they would be good to her. Then, she learns that the girl’s name is Hannah. After that, Ah Sahm takes another fight in the pit. When the fight is over, Ah Sahm finds out that Mai Ling is there waiting for him. He sits down with her before she says she wants her brother back but Ah Sahm says her brother died when she ordered him to be killed. And, that was just a few days after he saved her life. Mai Ling admits she made a terrible mistake and hasn’t slept well since. She wants to fix things between them but Ah Sahm isn’t willing to allow it. Mai Ling says his side will lose if the tongs go to war. Ah Sahm tells her she should worry less about what is going to happen to him and more about what he is going to do to her. Mai Ling doesn’t think killing her is going to satisfy him but Ah Sahm says he is not going to kill her.

He claims he is going to destroy the Long Zii and everything she cares about. He will leave her alive so she can watch it all burn. When that conversation ends, Rosalita Vega (Maria-Elena Laas) approaches Ah Sahm and asks if it is a lover’s quarrel but he denies it and says Mai Ling is nothing. Ah Sahm asks about the tournament and if there is still room for another fighter.

 

Warrior Review

Although I don’t think this season is as good as the first, I am still enjoying Warrior. This episode was one of the best since the scope was narrowed and it focused more on a handful of characters. This was better because there wasn’t so much necessary stuff going on at once. And, I sincerely believe it pushed the story forward a lot.

Zing has been taken care of, Bill has his swordsman, and things are spiraling out of control for Ah Sahm and Young Jun. The episode did a better job of focusing on stories that mattered so I think it was one of the best episodes this season. I’d give the episode an 8 out of 10. You can find previous recaps of Warrior on Reel Mockery.