Tyrant 2.5: The Caliphate

Well, Tyrant finally got down to cutting-edge current-development brass tacks last night, in an episode, 3.5, which put the Caliphate aka ISIS front and center in the action.  Not quite as currently relevant as a storyline about Iran, but pretty spot-on ripped-from-the-headlines nonetheless.

And the Caliphate serves the crucial purpose of getting Barry to stay in Abbudin to defend his country and the Al-Fayeed family, which the Caliphate is bent on destroying. Given that Jamal all but killed Barry, who now correctly thinks he's an "enemy of the state," it  could only take a threat as great the Caliphate to get Barry to stay.

Jamal will of course be glad to see Barry when the two eventually meet again, and glad he resisted everyone other than his mother's advice to kill his brother.   And Jamal will need all the help he can get.  Certainly his uncle will be no match for the Caliphate, persisting in his old-fashioned belief that Abbudin's military might is enough to crush any enemy in the country.  That might have worked for Jamal and Barry's father, but times and military threats are a little different these days.

And just to sweeten the narrative pot, Barry's family is on their way back to Abbudin, to support Sammy's contested claim to his inheritance.   Presumably the family will be thrilled when they find Barry's alive, but Sammy's shown a real love for that money, and a tiny or bigger part of him will no doubt regret now losing it.

More important, Molly, Emma, and Sammy will once again be in mortal danger, presumably not from Jamal, but from the Caliphate, who would just love to kidnap and behead them were they to discover Jamal's sister-in-law, niece, and nephew anywhere in Abbudin.

The stage is now well set for an exciting rest of the season, which I'm looking forward to seeing.

See also: Tyrant 2.1: The Tyrant's Character

And see also: Tyrant: Compelling Debut ... Tyrant 1.2: The Brother's Speech and His Wife ... Tyrant 1.3: A New Leaf? ... Tyrant 1.4: Close to the Bone ...Tyrant 1.6: Don't Mess with Jamal ... Tyrant 1.7-8: Coup ... Tyrant 1.9: Tariq ... Tyrant Season 1 Finale: The Truest Tyrant

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