The season finale of Power was just as riveting and eye-popping as the penultimate episode in which we learnt that the person behind the hits on Ghost’s and Tommy’s drug operation was their own home boy, the imprisoned Kanan.

So well did Kanan play his hand that he had Ghost kill one of his good friends, Rolle, on the assumption that Rolle was the mastermind behind the attacks.

But the hit Kanan orders on Ghost goes awry in the season finale, as the pink-booted female Latino assassin hits Tommy’s thieving, conniving girlfriend Holly instead, inside Ghost’s nightclub, Truth.

The reality of the attempt on his life, plus the police’s notice to close down his cllub pull Ghost, who has been struggling with his drug-dealing life and his urge to go legit, back into the game, as the finale ends with him calling his supplier, Lobos, with a request for as much ‘product’ as he can send and with Ghost vowing to be “the biggest god-damn drug dealer in New York City”.

Given the jaw-dropping twists and turns in this Starz original series, it is not surprising that Nielsen reported that the first broadcast of last Saturday’s finale averaged 1.082 million viewers, compared to 754,000 the week before.

By the end of the weekend replays the finale recorded a total of near 2.5 million viewers, said to be the largest total audience for a Starz finale since the conclusion of Spartacus: War of the Damned in April 2013.

Power tells the story of James ‘Ghost’ St Patrick, who opens his nightclub, Truth, to wash the proceeds of his and Tommy Egan’s drug trade. The duo have been rolling ever since their childhood days to the point where Tommy — a white guy — regards Ghost and his wife, Tasha (a black couple), as family.

Tasha, of course, knows all about their drug business and revels in the life of luxury it offers her. As such, she can’t see beyond that life, even as Ghost tries to convince her that it offers no longevity.

Ghost’s conflicts are made even worse by his reunion with his school sweetheart, Angela Valdes, to whom he makes a commitment to leave his wife.

But Angela — a Federal agent — doesn’t yet know that James is the ‘Ghost’ whom she and her fellow agents are pursuing in an effort to nab Lobos.

Season one left us hanging on the edge of our seats with a number of questions that we hope will be answered in season two:

Will Ghost leave Tasha? Can Tashsa, who knows of her husband’s infidelity, but is an accomplice in his drug dealing, bring down his operation? What will Kanan do, now that he’s out of prison? How will Tommy react to Holly’s murder? Will Angela find out about Ghost and Tommy and if she does, how will she react, given her professed love for James?

Will Ghost and Tommy find out about Kanan’s deception?

Favourite Characters: Ghost, Tommy, and Lobos because he’s lethally eccentric.

Favourite Line: “You are married to a drug dealer, you have no legal claim to his illegal money” — Tasha’s mom driving some sense into her daughter’s head after Tasha, angered by her husband’s affair, entertains the thought of claiming half of his fortune.

Most memorable scene: Ghost fighting his obvious love for Rolle before killing him.

Rating: 4 stars

Addicted to Power

All those addicted to Power will be glad to know that it has been renewed for another season in 2015. It is a long wait, but the taste so far has been a satisfying one, albeit not mind blowing. The intrigue builds nicely from one episode to the next. Power started out feeling very familiar, and a bit predictable, but yet somehow adding its own flair that in some ways makes it standout and keeps us invested.

The finale although, not quite as explosive as I anticipated, still worked in many ways. Jaimie’s club, Truth, could no longer service his lies, exposing who he really was — the biggest drug dealer in the city. The closing of Truth’s doors indicates a shutting out of the above board business mogul as well as an exit sign above his relationship with Angie. The club was Ghost’s way out, and he sacrificed both friendship and marriage along the way, which makes it interesting to see where he goes from here.

Favourite Character: Tasha. My feelings grew from dislike, to sympathy and then respect. She did not implode into the stereotypical mad black woman, but instead dealt with her pain with grace.

Favorite Scene: Ghost’s appearance to Rolle.

Favorite line: “I am your friend” — Rolle to Ghost

Rating: 3.5 stars

More Power

Power is not the typical explosive, fast-paced series. The Starz hit is more of a brooding sea with few ebbs and flows. The plot lines, though predictable, are engagingly delivered by the adept cast. The entire season was good for the most part but felt like a day-in-the-life-of-Ghost video-game walkthrough — just interesting enough. The series finale is possibly the tamest I have seen; very underwhelming. There was no cliff hanger, no one event that ushers you to the next season. It was simply ordinary, but satisfactory. The casting is good, the dialogue is okay, the production value is good.

Of the main characters: Ghost comes across as a half-in, half-out gangsta — not quite sure where he fits in. His wife, Tasha is the most layered — you can never truly tag her. Tommy is a drug-using, erratic, street hustler whose current path should destroy the illicit empire.

Favourite character: Nomar – a scene stealer.

Favourite scene: Tasha seeing Angie for the first time.

Favourite line: Nothing stood out for me.

Season rating: 3/5