The previous episode of MAYANS features some of the most shocking violence you will ever see on television. And it's only natural that this episode mostly deals with the aftermath. Nevertheless, it's a classic in its own right. Tough biker, (and Iraq War vet) Johnny "Coco" Cruz has a speech that lasts for a good five minutes where he literally explains the entire meaning of life to Club Prospect Ezekiel "EZ" Reyes. And he does it while sitting over the corpse of his own murdered mother. This should be a joke on so many levels, but the writers nailed the dialogue and the guy who plays Coco completely sells it as hard-won wisdom instead of cheap serial-killer rationalizations. If only the episode could have ended there!
Unfortunately, the weakest character in all of Season One, Super Duper Secret Agent Lincoln Potter, hogs up most of the rest of the episode. This Ray McKinnon guy is a terrible actor -- it's like's channeling a smarmy, precious Donald Sutherland trying to play a corrupt bureaucrat who thinks he's Oscar Wilde. Sooo many witticisms that just fall flat. And the WASP mannerisms that are so broad and so patronizing. At one point Danny Pino, as Galindo the tough drug lord, literally looks at him and says, "yes, uh, that's very profound. Could we move on now?" And it doesn't feel like the character is annoyed, it's the actor showing annoyance with the other guy's mannered performance.
But still . . . that speech about the meaning of life. Coco for President!!
