FX’s Mayans M.C.
3×01: “Pap Struggles with the Death Angel”
Directed by Michael Dinner
Written by Elgin James

* For a recap & review of the Season 2 finale, click here.
* For a recap & review of 3×02, click here.
EZ’s beating a man down while some other guys watch and Gilly watches over everything. Just Mayans business as usual. But it’s not so easy for everybody, like Adelita, who’s chained to a pipe somewhere barely able to settle on her tippy toes and tortured with audio of her baby crying. Coco’s not in a great headspace following his injury. Bishop seems to be spending a lot of time alone, too. Not to mention Taza’s feeling guilt for what he’s done. Yet all the Mayans keep moving forward because what else is there to do? Great use of “Slippin’ Into Darkness” by War in this montage, ending as EZ sees I.C.E. on the move rounding people up, the continuing war on immigrants in America. Love the opening credits here, steeping Mayans M.C. in all sorts of significant history. EZ later goes to check on his dad and Felipe’s not well, either.

Life for Emily, though still bourgeois, isn’t so great. She gets a visit from Antonia, and it isn’t a nice one. Antonia is angry about the fallout after dealing with Emily and Miguel, especially considering she knows all about the Galindo business. Elsewhere, EZ and Angel are headed to the border tunnel where Gilly and Coco are coming up. Everybody’s worried about Coco; he can barely work in his condition. And then there are light shipments of product because I.C.E. and various agencies are cracking down hard at the behest of Potter. A border shutdown. They’re even filling whatever tunnels they find, which will just make the Mayans’ business that much more difficult. “Luckily crime pays,” even during the worst of times.
Gilly and Coco get into an argument while they’re at the bar. Gilly punches Coco, who falls into a couple soldiers playing pool, then the Mayans wind up throwing fists with a bunch of soldiers, meaning EZ and Angel have to get up off their barstools to join in. Ah, the thin line between family and foe! While the lads are fighting at the bar, their girl Alicia with the product loses her cool and leads officers on a short chase before she’s cut off with road spikes and arrested. Oh, shit. Bishop is unhappy about the fighting and the problems with Alicia. They have no product for their meet tonight. Taza’s also still worried about El Palo with all this new shit, though Bishop firmly insists: “It‘s over.” He knows Palo is a vicious man and won’t let things go as easily as everyone else seems to think.
At the same time, Montez from the Sons is in contact with Palo. Hmm.

Galindo goes to see Dr. Luna. He wants more answers about his mother, even if the doc’s bound by doctor-patient confidentiality. He goes on talking emotionally about his mother and the pain of having lost her. He insists on knowing what his mother talked about with the doctor. “Does she blame me?” he asks. Galindo wonders if his mother died to punish him. But Dr. Luna’s unable to offer any answers.
EZ goes out to see Gaby. He’s falling for her, telling his brother that she’s “special.” Not quite a romantic walk through the city when there are soldiers posted all over the place watching anyone with non-white skin suspiciously. EZ and Gaby also talk about the differences between their upbringings, given that EZ is a second-generation Mexican-American; he didn’t learn Spanish at home, but rather at school and with friends.
Bishop and his boys go to see Ramos and the others. His club are being blamed for fucking up their gun business. Ramos and Canche want the heroin doubled for the next few months to make up. Bishop calls it “an impossible fucking ask,” then he only further divides the Mayans into chapters as he throws that to the wayside and claims the Mayans can’t survive without them. True or not, it isn’t a great move to keep dividing themselves because of money.
Of course Galindo wasn’t going to walk away from Dr. Luna and we all knew it, which is why Alvarez sends a couple of men, including the devious Nestor, to go murder the doctor while she’s walking her dog. A nasty execution scene mixed in with the mundane, as Nestor’s partner steps in dog shit along the way while running his mouth.

Everybody in the club’s trying to get by the best way they know how, from Angel’s random hookups to Coco’s addictive behaviour. Someone like Adelita has little choice of how to live right now, a bargaining chip caught between Mexico and the American government. Then there’s Galindo, off somewhere with Sederica while Emily tries to take care of their child and cope with her own stresses. At home, Felipe keeps drowning in his memories and his perceived failures. And EZ tries to burn away whatever he can of the past.
That night, Taza’s caught by a U.S. Customs agent in the desert. He cuts the agent’s achilles tendon then grabs the guy’s gun. After that, Taza repeatedly runs the agent over with his own government vehicle. Then he’s gone into the night somewhere.