[Warning: The below contains MAJOR spoilers for Power Book II: Ghost Season 4 Episode 2 “To Thine Ownself.”]
There are Power(ful) shifts happening in the next episode of Power Book II: Ghost. Since we met Effie in Season 5 of the original Power series, she’s become a key power player. When Alix Lapri debuted as Effie Morales, she was the love interest of Tariq St. Patrick (Michael Rainey Jr.) who ends up anonymously tipping off the Choate administration to his drug dealing, leading to his expulsion.
When we meet her again, Tariq and Brayden (Gianni Paolo) are trying to expand their business to other Ivy Leagues, but the relationship has always been complicated—and for good reason. Effie has a knack for going into self-preservation mode when things go haywire, making her resourcefulness her ultimate weapon.
“Effie likes to pride herself as the one that never needs saving, like, I can do this on my own. I’ve always been by myself, I don’t need anyone. But sometimes you do need someone,” Lapri tells TV Insider.
We see Tariq and Brayden temporarily out of the drug game, Cane (Woody McClain) along with his siblings hunting for who shot Monet (Mary J. Blige), and Noma eyeing the Russians to help expand territory, leaving Effie figuring out what her next move is. With a chance at power and a position unclaimed, Effie makes her move. “There’s definitely a power dynamic going on there. Because we’re used to seeing Effie dominant, large, and in charge. And with Noma, she really can’t do that,” explains Lapri.
Just because Effie knows to “get in where she can fit in,” it doesn’t mean her main goal isn’t pursuing an engineering education. Lapri explains, “She wants to give her all to school. But she can’t do that right now, because she actively currently is in the streets.” Cane became a form of support, wanting to help her achieve her dream of getting into Stanford, but that could change because there were “too many people for her liking.” Effie becomes the Russians’ main point of contact for Noma, making it that much harder for her to live between two different lives because “you can’t do both. So as soon as possible, you’re gonna have to exit.”
Even with all the turmoil, regardless of where their relationship is, Tariq is the one constant in her life. Her loyalty and love for him saved his life, whether he appreciated it or not. “I don’t even think she understands how much she misses Tariq and how much she loves Tariq,” said Lapri. As everyone fights for survival in the final season, Effie is going to have to make a major decision that will determine her future.
As the season goes on, “she’s gonna have to choose. Being in cahoots with the Russians and Noma and everybody that’s involved like that is a very dangerous world to be in,” according to Lapri. “Ultimately what it is going to come down to is picking a side because everybody knows you can’t play both sides forever.”
Watch the full video interview above for more.
Power Book II: Ghost, Fridays, 8/7c, Starz