- "My anger is real. But if I can use that anger for intimidation and fear to do work, then so be it. If I have to speak the language of those who would do others harm to make them stop, then so be it."
"But that's not you! Yeah, you can use anger as a tool. But you disable yourself when you use it as a crutch." - ―Luke Cage and Claire Temple
Wig Out is the third episode of the second season of the television series Luke Cage.
Synopsis[]
Worried Luke is headed down a dark path, Claire pays a visit to his father. Bushmaster makes a bid for Mariah's guns.
Plot[]
Claire Temple comes to treat to Cockroach Hamilton's injuries, after he was brutally attacked and nearly killed by Luke Cage. Cage explains that with Arturo Rey III dead, he needs someone to take down the Stokes Crime Family, but Temple says that he had crossed the line. Misty Knight assures him that she will make sure that Cage will not be arrested but notes that the incident with Hamilton could be used by Tom Ridenhour to shut down his vigilantism. Cage argues that he would not have to do that if the NYPD did their job right and goes after his last lead: Nigel Garrison of the Yardies.
Bushmaster and Sheldon discuss their next move against the Stokes family, as Sheldon informs Bushmaster that Rey III is dead and Cage just took Hamilton down. Bushmaster concludes that although he and Cage are both against Mariah Dillard, Harlem will never be his, as long as Cage is around. Sheldon notes that without Rey III and Hamilton, Dillard will come to the Yardies to make a deal, so Bushmaster decides to give her the money, so she would be ripe for him to kill.
Dillard spends more time with Tilda Johnson at her brownstone and notices her musical talent, when Johnson plays on Cornell Stokes' keyboard. Johnson recalls her memories with the family and the darkness of Mama Mabel's criminal business, while Dillard assures her that together, they can move on. Shades informs Dillard that Hamilton is down, so the Yardies were the only option for the deal. Dillard sends Shades to Brooklyn to finish the deal to carry out their plan, but Shades does not appreciate the way Dillard treats him.
Knight visits injured Hamilton in hospital, talking about how he abused Drea Powell and their son, as well as his altercation with Cage. Hamilton refuses to speak without a lawyer, but Knight tells him that the NYPD discovered the shotgun he bought from Dillard, although Hamilton continues to deny everything. Hamilton then provokes Knight by mentioning Rafael Scarfe, but before Knight lashes out on him, Nandi Tyler stops her. Tyler and Mark Bailey tell Knight that it was their investigation, but she does not take them seriously.
Cage continues to investigate the Yardies, as Bobby Fish notices the growing tension between Cage and Temple. Cage is upset that Temple called the police on him, but Temple argues that she only called for Knight and an ambulance for Hamilton, after he was nearly killed. Temple is concerned that Cage's unleashed rage could be a serious danger, but Cage replies that sometimes brutality is required.
Tom Ridenhour reprimands Knight for tampering with an ongoing investigation and letting Cage leave the crime scene without authorization, but Knight objects that Cage does what the police cannot to take Dillard down. Ridenhour reminds her that without evidence, they cannot do anything and considers to suspend Knight from duty, but realizes that he cannot make such a decision.
Searching for Garrison, Cage comes to Brooklyn and visits the Gwen's to gather information, but no one wants to talk to him. However, Cage notices that one man rushed to leave as soon as he mentioned the Yardies, so he decides to follow him. Meanwhile, Shades also comes to Brooklyn to finish the deal, meeting Bushmaster who recently took over the Yardies. Bushmaster gives money for the gun business to Shades, but he discovers Garrison's severed head in the bag, realizing that Bushmaster was the one who killed him.
Dillard organizes a fundraiser event in support of the Family First Initiative, inviting numerous Harlem's prominent figures and Johnson to attend. Alex Wesley informs Dillard that Stephanie Miller got close enough to Mark Higgins, so they can execute their plan soon enough. Dillard then gives a speech, presenting her Shirley Chisholm Complex and talking about the family before mentioning her late husband Jackson Dillard. Dillard tells how Mabel let her back in the family after Jackson's death and Johnson's birth, hence she wants to give the second chance to all struggling mothers in Harlem.
Knight goes to a training with Colleen Wing to deal with her frustraition and anger that was piling up inside of her. Wing is concerned that Knight refuses to accept help from anyone, including Danny Rand, and pushes everyone away. Wing suggests Knight to practice a Chi channeling to help her but Knight is too frustrated because of her losing an arm and constantly feeling powerless. Wing reminds Knight how she saved her and Temple from Bakuto at Midland Circle, and no matter what she feels, she is not powerless. Afterwards, they go to a bar where they get confrotned by Mortimer Norris who wanted to get revenge from Knight, but both Knight and Wing subdue Norris and his friends.
Temple meets with James Lucas at the church to talk about Cage being distant from her and she cannot do anything to help him. Lucas soon realizes that Temple was talking about his son, so he tells her that she needs to figure herself out before trying to help Cage.
Following Mouse through the Brooklyn streets, Cage founds the Yardies' Hideout, where he confronts Bushmaster and his subordinates. Bushmaster tells Cage that they both have the Stokes family as their mutual enemy and suggests him to work together, but Cage says that Bushmaster is a danger to Harlem and he needs to be stopped. Bushmaster orders his subordinates to attack Cage and watches him easily withstanding their attacks before giving Bushmaster a final warning and leaving. Afterwards, Bushmaster watches the footage and studies Cage's fighting style, while taking another dose of the Nightshade.
Dillard meets with Higgins at Harlem's Paradise and blackmails with an evidence of Higgins cheating on his wife. Higgins asks if Dillard wanted money from him, but Dillard replies that she wants him to approve the merger of the Atreus Plastics and Glenn Industries, and resign as the CEO. Higgins is against selling his complany to Glenn Industries, but Dillard reminds him of the consequences if the photos she took would be exposed.
Johnson then comes to Dillard to talk about what happened at the event and apologizes for not believing that she was sincere. Dillard has to send her way, as Shades brings her the money he got from Bushmaster, enough to buy the Atreus' stock and finish their plan. Meanwhile, Miller to talk with Sheldon and infroms him about Dillard's plans of the company merger.
Back at their apartment, Temple tells Cage that she worries that he loses control of himself while Cage argues that no matter what he do, people will always be afraid of him. Temple is concerned that Cage might be enjoying hurting people in the name of his heroism, but Cage says that he never wanted any of that to happen, and when Temple mentions his father, Cage lashes out and punches the wall, scaring Temple. Cage realizes what he just did and apologizes, but Temple decides that she needs to distance herself from Cage and tells him to leave.
Cage walks through the Harlem streets until he gets ambushed by Bushmaster who knocks him out with a punch in the face. Cage is shocked that someone was able to hurt him, as Bushmaster tells him that no matter what Cage does, Harlem belongs to him.
Cast[]
Main Cast:
- Mike Colter as Luke Cage
- Simone Missick as Misty Knight
- Theo Rossi as Hernan Alvarez/Shades
- Gabrielle Dennis as Tilda Johnson
- Mustafa Shakir as John McIver/Bushmaster
- Jessica Henwick as Colleen Wing
- Alfre Woodard as Mariah Dillard
Special Guest Stars:
- Rosario Dawson as Claire Temple
- Reg E. Cathey as Reverend James Lucas
Guest Stars:
- Ron Cephas Jones as Bobby Fish
- Peter Jay Fernandez as Captain Tom Ridenhour
- Dorian Crossmond Missick as Cockroach Hamilton
- Kevin Mambo as Sheldon
- Chaz Lamar Shepherd as Piranha Jones
- Hakim Callender as Mortimer Norris
- Antonique Smith as Detective Nandi Tyler
- Justin Swain as Detective Mark Bailey
- Tarah Rodgers as Stephanie Miller
- Michelle Beck as Drea Powell
- Christopher King as C.J. Powell
- Heather Alicia Simms as Ingrid Mackintosh
- John Clarence Stewart as Alex Wesley
- Jeorge Watson as Mark Higgins
- Stefan Holdbrook as Mouse
- Harold Surratt as Robert
- Ivan Moore as Joe
- Thomas Silcott as Larry
- Derrick Simmons as EMT #1
- Alyma Dorsey as EMT #2
- Steven Cachie Brown as Yardie
- Geoffrey Canada as Himself
- Alexander Smalls as Himself
- Esperanza Spalding as Herself
- Reg Clinton Brown as Bushmaster's Yardie (uncredited)
- Justin Clarke as Yardie (uncredited)
- Thali Georges as Pedestrian (uncredited)
- Charmar Jeter as Pedestrian (uncredited)
- Leroy Phillips Jr. as Pedestrian (uncredited)
- Justin Michael Woods as Army Veteran (uncredited)
Appearances[]
Locations[]
- New York City, New York
- Seagate Penitentiary, Georgia (mentioned)
- Jamaica (mentioned)
- Nicaragua (mentioned)
- Havana, Cuba (mentioned)
- British Library (mentioned)
- Library of Congress (mentioned)
- Dannemora Penitentiary (mentioned)
Events[]
- Attack on Yardies' Hideout
- Attack on Misty Knight
- War for Harlem
- Chase of Cockroach Hamilton (mentioned)
- Assassination of Nigel Garrison (mentioned)
- Murder of Arturo Rey III (mentioned)
Items[]
- Nightshade
- Bulletproof Vests
- Josh (mentioned)
- iPod Classic (mentioned)
Vehicles[]
- Ford Mustang (mentioned)
Organizations[]
- New York City Police Department
- Stokes Crime Family
- Stylers
- Atreus Plastics
- New York Bulletin
- Yardies (mentioned)
- Glenn Industries (mentioned)
- Nike, Inc. (mentioned)
- Contras (mentioned)
Mentioned[]
- Chi
- Arturo Rey III
- Nigel Garrison
- Jackson Dillard
- Cornell Stokes
- Mama Mabel
- Joi
- Big Gipp
- Rafael Scarfe
- Barack Obama
- Danny Rand
- Bakuto
- Bill Norris
- Cindy Higgins
- Pop
- Soledad Temple
- Claire Temple's Grandmother
- Claire Temple's Father
- Eric Benét
- Usain Bolt
- Thomas Hardy
- Geoffrey Chaucer
- Media Take Out
- WorldStarHipHop
- Jesus Christ
- Shirley Chisholm
- Thelma Golden
- Jomo Kenyatta
- Saving Private Ryan
- Titanic
Trivia[]
- Wig Out is a song from the album Mecca and the Soul Brother of the hip-pop duo Pete Rock & CL Smooth.
Music[]
| Song title | Artist | Location(s) |
|---|---|---|
| Western Riddim | Adrian Younge & Ali Shaheed Muhammad |
|
| Family First (Instrumental) | Adrian Younge & Ali Shaheed Muhammad feat. Gabrielle Dennis |
|
| Luke Barbershop | Adrian Younge & Ali Shaheed Muhammad |
|
| World a Music | Ini Kamoze | |
| Under My Sensi | Barrington Levy |
|
| I Know You Know | Esperanza Spalding |
|
| Luke Fight | Adrian Younge & Ali Shaheed Muhammad |
|
| Gwen's Restaurant | Adrian Younge & Ali Shaheed Muhammad |
|
| Trip Into the Light | Jeremy & The Harlequins |
|
| Atropa Belladonna Blues | majestico |
|
| Chase the Devil | Max Romeo & The Upsetters |
|
| You Can Leave, But It's Going to Cost You | Marvin Gaye |
|
