Black Lightning (2018–…): Season 4, Episode 1 - Episode #4.1 - full transcript

Last season
Black Lightning...

The Markovians now have
Freeland surrounded.

Listen up, everybody.

Tonight we stand
for the future of Freeland.

Freedom for Freeland!

Freedom for Freeland!

Make the cure
as fast as you can.

That was Gravedigger.

A meta-human with enhanced
strength and speed

with the power to push
whoever is in earshot.

-Kill her.



I'm so sorry.

We have to assume
that Gravedigger
is injecting himself

with whatever remains
of the meta-formula
you left in Markovia.

When I gave myself the shot,
the power lasted for an hour

because of my genetic makeup.

Get rid of your detail.

You have powers now?

Drop 'em.

No, no. Henderson!

I can't feel my legs.

Henderson, man,
you are my best friend.

Looks like it's time
for me to pack my bags.

Plus, I got a date with
a beautiful divorcee doctor.

She's gonna help me
get the crown of Freeland



that I am destined to wear.

You not gonna
say anything, son?

Nothing worth saying, Pop.

Miss this city.

So much a part of me.

Freeland,
she was frustrating.

And so much beauty
in the people.

Henderson, he loved Freeland.

It was all in his bones
and heart muscles.

That's why he fought
all of his life for her.

Fighting for
what he loved, son.

He died because I let him
into my world.

Into Black Lightning's world.

People dying like they ain't
never died before, son.

Not just in your world.

Not just
in Black Lightning's world.

Well, good thing
there's no more
Black Lightning's world.

Black Lightning's dead.

Yeah,
we've been here before, son.

You know this city needs you.

I don't know
what this city needs, Pop,

but it sure ain't me, though.

Son, from the moment
we come out of the womb,

the clock starts ticking.

So it ain't about the dying,
it's about the living.

How... How are we going
to live this life

to make our dying
something to celebrate,

and not mourn?

Freeland
continues to celebrate
the one-year anniversary

of the Markovian conflict
in a variety of festive ways.

For those of you who maybe
were living on another planet,

remember on this day last year
the Markovians were defeated,

the government's
ASA experiments were exposed

by Black Lightning
and shut down.

But, and there's always a but,
as the city celebrates,

there are still concerns
with the level of violence

due to the fact
that The One Hundred gang
and rival Kobra Cartel

continue to fight
over territory.

And it seems Freeland's mayor,
Billy Black,
and his police force

are unable to do anything
to put an end to the conflict.

Many are calling
for the mayor to resign,

even though
the mayoral election
is just months away.

Hey, where's the drugs?

-Hey!

- Come here.
- I didn't do anything!

Stay still, punk.

- Stop resisting!
Empty your pockets!
- I don't got none.

Stop! Stop moving.

Whoa, whoa, whoa! Hey, hey!
Is all that necessary?

Hey, get back in your car, sir.

Look, I know this kid.
He wouldn't hurt a fly.

So, what did he do
to deserve this?

This is your last warning, sir.
Get back into your vehicle.

Now!

No.

Get back in your vehicle now!

You gonna point a gun
at me now?

I told you
to get back in your car.

Do I look armed to you?

I'm so tired of this.

Anissa, can I say something
you might not like?

No.

It's been a year.

And you've been sitting
at Grace's bedside

on and off the whole time.
Mostly on.

Now, I love Grace
because you love Grace.

But maybe it's time
you move on with your life.

What, like how you did
with Khalil?

Girl, that boy had your nose
so wide open

that you were ready
to throw your life away

and leave the whole damn family
for him, so move on?

Anissa.

We're both stressed out
trying to help the city
recover from the war.

And every time
you leave this room,

you have tears in your eyes.

I'm sorry,
I'm just worried about you.

Well, I'm fine. Okay?

So you ain't gotta be worried
about me.

You're my sister.
You can't just tell me
not to worry about you.

That's not good en--

Hey, Mom. Any news?

It's the same, baby.
No change in her condition.

Unfortunately, the treatments
are being blocked
by her shapeshifter physiology.

But I have developed
a cocktail of drugs
that I think might work.

We'll see how it goes over
the next couple of days, okay?

Okay.

Sounds like good news.

It just... It just feels like
you've abandoned us.

Just left us
to do this on our own.

Abandoned.

You ever think
maybe you abandoned me?

You left me and the girls.

Okay? You're back now,
good for you.

But... But I lost my brother.

So where's the compassion?

The tenderness?
The understanding?

No, you just went
right back to the lab
like nothing happened.

Something happened, Lynn!

Anissa and Jennifer
are out there.

They need your help.
And they need your guidance.

Yeah, I tried
to give them guidance.

They never listen.

And when have I ever not
been there for my girls?

Don't bring them into this
just to make your point.

Lynn.

How is your sobriety?

It's great.
It's going really well.

Well, when you were
both here last time,

you spoke
of a lack of intimacy.

Has that improved?

In my opinion,
there is no intimacy.

We're on completely
separate pages.

Oh.

Yeah, if by intimacy,
you mean sex, there is none.

Whenever I want to,
she just shuts me down.

You know,
intimacy isn't just sex, Jeff.

You're completely
emotionally absent.

Well, intimacy comes down
to trust.

Trusting that the person
you love

can catch you
when you're falling.

Support you in your best times

and most certainly
in your worst.

'Cause in my notes,
I've written something.

"Intimacy can be rewarding.
And even deeper than before.

But the honesty
about what you're feeling,

it has to be there."

It has to be there first.

It's an outstanding opportunity

and an excellent company
to work for, Peter.

Monovista International
is spearheading

the rebuilding efforts
here in Freeland.

You mean fleecing,
not rebuilding.

Look, Lauren, if I'm even
gonna entertain this idea,

we have to speak honestly.

We're here to do good, Peter.

I just need
someone knowledgeable

who can oversee
and troubleshoot

our security systems,

protocols,
private human assets.

Is that what they're calling
corporate assassins these days?

Crazy, right? But yes.

Come on, Peter.

The job's lucrative and cushy.

You deserve a job like this.

With everything that
you sacrificed for this job

and for Freeland
and this country.

I'll pass.

But it was worth me listening
just to hear your voice again.

And to see you.

You know, I cried when they
told me you were dead.

So damn good
to know you're alive.

I'll be taking advantage
of that knowledge.

I hope so.

Hmm.

Say. Would you mind
turning that up, please?

Now, Bill Henderson
didn't lead from behind a desk.

He led by example.
From the frontline.

Which is why
we are all here today,

to pay respect and honor
to Mr. Bill Henderson.

Nobody knew him better
than his lifelong friend,

former Olympian,

principal of Garfield
High School,

Mr. Jefferson Pierce,
who I've asked here today
to say a few words.

Y'all, I think, uh,

Bill woulda found
all this kind of funny.

Over the top.

Henderson
loved Freeland.

It was all in his bones
and his heart muscles.

He spent his whole life
fighting for her.

And he died the way he lived,

fighting for the city
and the people that he loved.

Pierce,
one statement, please.

Now, I'd like to introduce you
to our new chief of police,

Chief Lopez.

Henderson would still be alive

if it wasn't for
the large amount
of undocumented metas

running rampant in Freeland.

It is because of them

that we need to rebuild
this city's trust
in the department.

I will make sure
that every meta in this city
is documented and tagged,

so that we know
their whereabouts

and power capacity
at all times.

I obviously have some
big footsteps to follow,

-but I think
we'll be up for the task.

In an exclusive interview
by reporter John Webb,

he talks with reclusive
business man Tobias Whale

about his philanthropy
and his commitment

to helping rebuild
the city of Freeland.

John, I love Freeland.
I always have.

And whatever it's gonna take
to get her back on her feet,

I'm gonna do it.

What does that mean, exactly?

Well, so far we've already
started working
with the mayor's office

and I've committed
a substantial amount of money

to help repair and rebuild
any public institutions

that were damaged
during the war.

That's a big commitment.

For some.

What the hell?

What...

I'm curious, what was
the mayor's reaction...

I thought he was dead?

And you think
it's a coincidence
that he shows up now?

...but once he saw my budget,

he knew that I was completely
committed and prepared

to make Freeland great again.

Happy anniversary.

Like, I can't even believe
this is a debate right now.
We don't have a choice.

Oh, we always
have a choice, Anissa.

Oh, God. Here we go.

Yeah, and the choice
in this situation
is to kill his ass.

-Language.
-Just stay out of it.

Look, killing Tobias
will not bring back Bill

or my father
or anyone else he's killed.

Okay, look.
With all due respect, Dad,

I'm personally not concerned
with bringing anyone back.

I'm concerned with the living.
You, me, Mom, Jennifer.

Where is Jennifer?

I don't know. She's probably
outside, flying around again.

Listen. Tobias ain't just
pop up out of nowhere

handing out millions like
he's Santa Claus for no reason.

He's got a plan
and it's not gonna be good
for any of us.

Dad, come on,
he knows who we are.

The information that he has
is way too dangerous

for him to be walking around,
pretending to be
some kind of philanthropist.

She's right, Jefferson.

So, you're okay
with murder now?

In this instance, yes.

If it protects my family,
absolutely.

Look, and I don't see this
as murder, okay?

It's survival. Justice.

This conversation is over.

I will not encourage any member
of this family

to go out and become murderers.

Okay. Uh, the reality
is that me, Mom, Jennifer,

we've already taken lives, Dad.

And that doesn't
make us murderers.

All we were trying to do
was protect ourselves
and protect Freeland.

We'll talk about this later.
I have to go.

Just because you're shutting
the conversation down,

it doesn't mean
the problem will go away.

He is going to come after us,
sooner or later.

And we need
to play offense or defense.

Okay, look, Tobias Whale
is off limits to anyone but me!

Period.

When you see Jennifer,
tell her I need to talk
to her ASAP.

She's not taking
this flying thing seriously.

-Like, what? Huh?
-I... I know. I know.

Hey, J. You good?

Hey, what's up, Gambi?

Good to see you, man.

J's right over there, brother.

And the celebration continues.

Been trying to reach you
the past couple of days.

I know.

I'm not even gonna ask
what's going on,

because I already know.

You do?

You're not the only person
who's been in battle
and lost someone.

That...
That's what you got?

And that's supposed
to make me feel better?

No. It's supposed
to give you some perspective.

"What I got" is that
the bottom of that glass

is not going to make you
feel any better.

It's just making you reckless.

You're taking your frustrations
out on cops now?

You're lucky they didn't die.

They were going to kill
that kid.

Would have just been
another Black boy dead.

I'm not gonna let that happen.

Then at least wear
the damn Black Lightning suit

so you don't run the chance
of being identified.

But... But Black Lightning
didn't save that kid.

Jefferson Pierce
saved that kid.
There's a difference.

Well, well,
can you explain it to me?
Because I'm confused.

Simple.

Black Lightning was trying
to save the world.

I'm just trying
to save my family.

And the kid?

A reflex.

Besides, I, uh... I fried
the dash and the body cams

and wiped their memories
of what happened, so...

They caught a part
of your license plate number.

There were street cams as well.

They caught everything.

But I took care of it.

Thank you.

Using your powers
without the suit

is not great
for your nervous system, Jeff.

I'm not putting on the suit.

None of us
should be putting on suits.

Yeah, we've been here before.

Everybody keeps saying that.

It's never been like this.

Not like this.

Henderson is dead.

Both of my girls
have killed people.

Hell, even my wife has killed.

And you want to know
what the scary thing is?

They just...

They think it's okay.

They don't respect anything
I say anymore, so...

I doubt that you've lost
their respect, Jefferson.

They're scared.

And as difficult as it is
for you to let them
see you like this,

they should see
that their father is human.

That his heart can hurt.
That he can fall down.

It will be one
of the best lessons
they can ever learn.

But they have to see you
get back up.

And I promise you,
you will get back up.

Look at that.

Tobias' lawyers

and his money have just
cleaned up all his dirt.

He's reinvented himself.

He is a hero now.

The world's upside down, Gambi.
It...

It's upside down.

My plan is to clean up
the drug activity
on the streets

starting with the Green Light.

I want to get rid of any gangs
that are controlling the drugs,

as well as any
meta-human activity

that has plagued Freeland
for so many years.

This Day-Glo bitch

comes back in town
and everybody thinking

that he Crispus Attucks
or something.

When I'm the one
that's been keeping
the people of Freeland fed

and working during the war.

Me!

And The One Hundred,
they've been battling

in them streets like
the soldiers that they are.

Boss.

What?

We need to focus
on the shipment coming in.

You giving me
orders now, Devonte?

Come on, OG, you know
it ain't even like that.

I'm just trying
to make sure we're good.

When it gets here,
I want it packed up

and shipped out
on them streets by tomorrow.

I need you
to separate the product
from the meta weapons.

Make sure that you pick up
them weapons somewhere
away from the product drop.

And bring them here.

For sure.

Stand still and let her go!

Go. Go now, run!

Yo, man. What the hell's
wrong with you?

Well, I guess
you're either going
to take her place or die.

Knock him out.

Huh?

You will never traffic
another girl again.

And you will go down
to the police station

and tell them everything
about your friend.

Yes, ma'am.

And stop calling me ma'am!

Yes, ma'am.

It's been over 48-hour period

since I injected myself
with Gravedigger's push powers.

Last night and tonight
has proven that I've managed

to extend those powers
beyond the desired effect.

My goal is to isolate
the meta gene

to the point where I can
use it against any attack
against Freeland.

Including Gravedigger.

My blood sample said
these powers will wear away
in 12 hours.

I'm going to try
a different meta gene
next week.

Why didn't the subject
respond to the command?

Jeff,

I need your help.

I need your help.

Who is this? Where did
you get this phone?

He gave it to me.

Yeah, I doubt that.

I'm not someone
to be played with.

I guess not. But neither am I.

What do you want?

The docks. Tonight. 11:00 p.m.

You know where.

When you get there,
you'll find an envelope.

That was way too easy.

Yeah, okay. Slow your ass down.

I know you're here.

Been here for awhile.

Making sure I'm by myself.

You read the letter?

How do I know
you didn't write it yourself?

You don't.

It's been a year. Why now?

Because I needed time to grieve

the loss of my friend
and mentor.

I needed time to decide
if it was better

just to kill your ass
for getting him murdered

or trust and help you

like Henderson asked me to.

What did you decide?

I don't know.

Weighing my options.

But I at least wanted
to try and honor

his request
the best I could.

Sounds like you have a thing
against metas.

Maybe.

But I definitely have an issue
with you.

Oh, yeah? What's that?

Bill said you'd never give up
on Freeland.

Looks to me like
that's exactly what you did.

So maybe you're not the

whatever the hell you are
that he thought you were.

Give me a call.

Let me know when you grow
your balls back.

Yo, what the hell
is he doing?

He's deciding which one
of y'all he's about to kill.

Yo, man. Who sings this song?

Really, man?
Are you serious right now?

I'm just asking.

Dumbass.

I was sitting in there
and thinking

about which one
of your dumbasses
I'm getting ready to kill.

But I'm trying
to be a different man.

So I've decided I'm not going
to kill nobody tonight.

This bitch Lightning
and Thunder

stole two months'
worth of profit!

I want y'all to set up
a fake buy.

Tell everybody and their mama.

'Cause somebody's snitching.

Davonte,

give them the guns.

If they show up,

kill Lightning.

She's the strongest one.

Or I'mma kill you...

and you.

You.

Well,
Negro, if you're reading this,

it means I am no longer
with the living.

It was a pleasure
the entire time, brother,
knowing you.

I'm not going to get
too damn mushy in this thing,

I just wanted
to let you know this.

Brother Hassan is a man
you can trust,
the way you trusted me.

His IQ is off the charts

and he's former special ops.
So he's a bit crazy.

Just kidding.

That's it, man. Take care.

Love you, bruh.
Hope to see you
on the other side,

but not too damn soon.

Yeah, Tanya.

Uh, yeah, yeah,

I'm... I'm free.
Coincidentally.

Ah, Chief Lopez.

Pleasure to see you again.
I hope.

Oh, pleasure to see you again
as well.

Yeah, yeah. So, um,

does this visit have to do
with one of my students?

No, sir. This is
Detective Hassan Shakur.

And he's working a case.

Something came up.

He knew that you and Bill
were good friends

so he brought it to me
and we're bringing it to you.

Okay. What is it?

Yesterday, two Freeland cops
were brutally attacked
and sent to the ICU.

Wow. That's horrible.

Yeah, it is.

All their cameras
were burnt to hell

but one of them managed
to get a partial plate number.

There are only six people
in Freeland

with their plate ending
in that number.

One of them's yours.

Okay?

We checked them out.
Everyone has an alibi.

So now you're here.

Were you anywhere near

Fifteenth and Magnolia
yesterday?

Yes. Yes, I... uh,
visited Bill's grave

and from there,

I went to a, uh,
couple's counseling session
with my wife.

Nothing else?

Um, nothing else.

How would you explain
the partial plate number?

Okay, look, with, um,
all due respect, Chief,

that's for you to figure out.

I mean, I have
no idea how to explain that.

Thank you for your time.

Yeah. No problem.

All right. Take it easy.

He's lying.

I know.

DEG!

Jen. Come on, Jen.

Jennifer, get up.

Come on. I need you to get up.
I need you.

Come on. Get up.
Are you okay?

How is she?

She's sleeping
in the next room,

but she's already healing.

I... it's amazing.

I've never seen
anything like this.

Thank God.

Well, Uncle Gambi did say
that if she worked

on mastering her powers,
not even a DEG would hurt her.

-Is that right?
-Yeah.

Well, clearly
this wasn't planned,

otherwise she wouldn't be here
having to heal.

So what happened?

Look, we hit
another drug buy.

It was our third one this week.
But this one, I don't know,

it felt like a setup,
like they were expecting us.

Everything happened
so fast, I...

Yeah, of course it was a setup.

You hit two, they knew
you'd come for the third.

See, that's why you shouldn't
even be out there.
You two are too overzealous.

Well, if, maybe
if you were out there
with them, Jeff, I...

Lynn. Don't.

Now's not the time.

Show me Jen's body cam footage.

-Jeff, she's going to be--
-Just do it.

Please.

Did she get the shooter?

Yeah. It's clear to me that
she was specifically targeted.

Zoom in on his face.

Run it through the facial
recognition database.

What the hell?

Who was that?

Oh, God. Oh!

Are you right-handed
or left-handed?

Doesn't matter.

Hey.

Hey.

I wanted to apologize
about earlier.

I was scared.

And, well, now Jen's back
to normal and she's gonna
hang with Anissa tonight, so.

You insinuated
that if I had been there,
Jen wouldn't have been shot.

Made it sound like
I was a neglectful father.

Did it ever occur to you
that if you supported me

in my attempt to keep them
from going out at all,

that Jen wouldn't have
been shot?

I didn't come down here
to argue, Jeff.

Yeah.

I was concerned about Jen

and now I'm concerned
about you.

Well, you don't have to,
I'm fine.

I see that you're hurting.

I guess I had a vision
of how you would handle
all of this.

With the girls being
who they are,

Henderson's death.

But then I had to check myself

and see it
from your point of view.

And I'm so sorry.

You've been in pain much longer
than I accounted for.

I'm fine.

I'm going to go up to bed.

Will you come with me?

No, you go on ahead. I'll...

I'll be up
in a little while. Okay?

Okay.

Good night.

Good night.

What are you thinking?

He's back.

First the cops.
He beat this boy,

then shocked him
within an inch of his life.

Strange thing
is that Black Lightning

has never intentionally
crippled anyone like this.

Dr. Stewart!

Dr. Stewart,

I'm so glad we ran into you.

We just finished giving a tour
of our lab to Mr. Whale.

Mr. Whale, this is
our star research scientist,
Dr. Lynn Stewart.

Lynn, this is Mr. Whale.

It's a pleasure to meet you,
Dr. Stewart.

I've heard so many
great things about you.

But no one told me
that your beauty
matches your genius.

It's a pleasure
to meet you as well.

Mr. Whale has joined
our board of directors

and made a very generous
donation to our facility.

Thank you.

No. Thank you.

The work you're doing here
is very interesting
to me personally.

And I just wanted to make sure
you had all the resources

you need to complete your work.

Oh,
and we do appreciate it.

Uh, let me show you
the reservoir facility.

Yes. It was wonderful
meeting you.

I'm sure we'll be seeing
more and more of each other
as time progresses.