Black Lightning recap: Jefferson Pierce needs a re-charge

Black Lightning’s powers are out of control, leaving him at the worst times and causing him to black out. All the while Anissa is on the trail of a major conspiracy.

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Black Lightning isn’t the perfect super hero and, right now, even though his intentions are good, his own powers are failing him. There is more to Jefferson and Lynn’s split than her not wanting him to be Black Lightning.

There are many spouses who are married to law enforcement officials who deal with the worry that their significant other may not come home at their end of their shift. But what makes Jefferson Pierce Black Lightning doesn’t currently seem reliable – and that’s what worries Lynn deeply.

And it nearly happened when Black Lightning couldn’t defend himself against Joey Toledo. Black LIghtning’s his body was racked with pain and his powers wouldn’t work the way he needed. Toledo kicked and punched and gave Black Lightning a beating before running off.

So, what exactly is behind Jeff’s power issues? And where did they come from? We don’t know yet, but it seems the Pierce family is deeply involved in the mystery.

Anissa has begun to research her own powers. She came across a conspiracy video  dscussing missing children in Freeland, who had special powers. As one reporter from the Freeland Gazette worked on an exposé about the children was killed. That reporter – Alvin Pierce, Jeff’s father.

Anissa met up with her grandfather’s former editor who cryptically warns her to back off the story.  “They” are watching. However, knowing the Pierce family, he knew she wouldn’t listen and gave her all of her grandfather’s files. Now Anissa is armed with powerful information as she is still harnessing her new powers. Anissa also gave us a peek at her first costume.

But the question that remains is — when will Black Lightning and Anissa finally meet up, and will they recognize each other?

It seems right now that what each is lacking, the other has – Black Lightning needs stability and someone to watch his back while Jennifer needs training and guidance. The two are just playing on the edges of each other and are closer to danger because they haven’t been able to trust each other with the biggest secret.

Black Lightning also dug into Tobias Whale’s past, showing what makes this mastermind criminal tick. He isn’t a villain for the sake of being one. While he certainly wants power, Black Lightning showed us how he got on the path with having an abusive father figure who beat him down every chance he had.

Even when Tobias and his sister Tori showed up at Eldridge’s doorstep years later, he still scorned them. But Tobias got his revenge by breaking Eldridge’s back, giving him a slow and painful death. This was what he needed to focus on the current task – taking out Black Lightning.

Next: Will Khalil become the mole to flush out Black Lightning?

Runs in the Family

If special powers don’t necessarily run in the family (even though they do), it seems that Jeff has taught his children well. While at a roller rink, Jennifer was accosted by two rival teenage girls. They took the first swing, but Jennifer got the last, breaking one of the girl’s wrists in the process. And she didn’t even break a sweat.

Her defense was fluid and her attack was flawless. While she was still grounded for the incident, Jeff was definitely proud of his girl. But you have to wonder if this means Jennifer’s powers might be coming to the surface. Everyone in the Pierce family is dealing with a tremendous amount of stress, which could be a catalyst for powers to emerge.

This and That

• Gambi is hiding way too much from Jeff. Once Jeff learns that Tobias is still alive and Gambi knew, there are going to be major trust issues.
• Try a taser first!

Tune into Black Lightning on CW on Tuesdays at 9/8c.