Marvel's Luke Cage

Bitch!

This ain't no social.

This is what we call a State of the Union.

Darrell, how we doing after Fort Knox?

Break it down and let it be broke.

Ain't nothing to let be.

You are broke.

Let me rephrase.

You got your real estate.

Mama Mabel left you the club.

You and Mariah share the deed on her old brownstone.

I know you got some cash, right?

I got at least... 250 laying around.

Well, Fort Knox is what hurts, baby.

You lost seven figures, seven times over.

All of your cash profits from the corners, stash houses, drops.

You still got stocks, the club profits, but...

But what?

The streets is talkin'.

And that dude with the hoodie, if he's still out there...

This nigga too scared to say his name.

Koko, this ain't PS 154. You ain't gotta raise your hand, man.

I been reading this book.

You readin' now?

Yeah. It's a... it's a book on politics

and the social conditions that created hip-hop.

The Dodgers left Brooklyn,

Robert Moses created the Cross Bronx Expressway,

and white folks went running for the suburbs.

This cat named Moynihan went and hollered at Nixon, and told the prez

that maybe the inner city could benefit from the benign neglect.

Benign what?

It's... it's the benign neglect.

What it means is this:

Maybe if we just leave that Luke Cage cat alone,

give him his side of the street, we take ours.

Benign neglect.

Yeah, okay.

The police sitting on my money.

So I'm gonna have to turn up my game.

Zip... I want you and the fellas to hit the streets.

Hit every business from 110 to 155th.

If they got a dime, I want at least a nickel.

Bring everything back by the end of the day.

You think you're gonna recoup $7 million, just like that?

I don't even know why you back here.

Look around.

You know damn well why Diamondback sent me.

Fort Knox?

This makes the junkyard rip...

look like Amateur Night at the Apollo.

This dishwasher... thinks he can prove Harlem don't need me.

Let's see how bad he really wants to wear the crown.

You hit the boulevard and squeeze 'em hard.

And when they start crying, talking about, "Why? Why?"

You tell them to go talk to Luke Cage down at the barber shop.

They're paying a Luke Cage stupidity tax.

What are you doing?

Time is precious!

Move!

Zip!

Call Mr. Spurlock.

Tell him we gonna need his services.

Get off!

-You got problems with the tax? -Holler at your man Luke Cage...

- Holler at Luke Cage... - At the barber shop.

Payday, Aisha.

We ain't got it this month, Zip.

Back off.

Give me that.

What the hell are you doing, Zip?

Ooh.

Didn't your old man come up on the Mets?

He got cut.

He played for the championship New York Nines team.

That's a Nine's ring?

Zip, please.

That's my father's!

Aw! Don't cry.

You mad?

Holler at Luke Cage.

He'll tell you why we doin' this.

-A tailor? -That ain't no tailor.

That's Dapper Dan himself.

Dapper Dan?

Said you needed a suit, that's why I had you come here.

And I figure...

Pop would want you to come to his memorial correct,

so I used a little bit of money to have my man Dap do you right.

Saw you on TV the other night. Buried alive.

Now that's what I call style.

- Lucky. - You ain't lucky. You blessed.

Hey. What was Mike Tyson like?

I know you're sick of telling that story.

He whooped Mitch Green's behind, didn't he?

Mike Tyson is a real nice guy, man.

But he hit like a beast.

Yeah, well there was beauty in that beast.

You can't control what people say. Just be the best man that you can be.

And always make sure they spell your name right.

Now, that's a dapper approach, man.

-Thanks, man. -Appreciate it.

Let's see here.

That ain't no smock.

-You ready for later? -All good.

Messages stacked up at the door.

Like everybody in Harlem looking for you after that building thing.

I'm strictly about Pop's memorial today.

Seating everyone at this thing

is gonna be the toughest move I've mastered

since the Blackmar-Diemer Gambit.

I mean...

I gotta put Estelle up front, 'cause she's been with him the longest,

at least as far as the neighborhood knows.

Keep her far away as hell from Charlene.

She's real sly. Moves like a bishop on the diagonal at all times.

Now, they both have to steer clear of Candy,

who they both think is his cousin.

Candy?

She rubs everyone the wrong way but Pop.

Who she rubs the right way, every Tuesday and Thursday at 9:45.

Looks like Shaft ain't had nothing on Henry Hunter.

Pop was a mack.

If that's what you wanna call it.

He would want you to have his apartment upstairs.

Especially since your crib blew up.

I'll earn my keep somehow.

Goddamn right you will.

We fix this place up, the doors gotta reopen.

-Talk for another day. -Cool.

-Luke Cage here yet? -Whoa, slow down, Aisha.

- What's wrong? - I'm Luke.

What you got to do with all this shit happening up and down Lenox Avenue?

What are you talking about?

Zip snatched my daddy's championship ring

and hit about 20 other spots all over uptown.

-Why? -I don't care why.

You need to get my daddy's ring back.

You remember what he was like before he got strung out?

Eddie's a good dude deep down.

To me, what's left of him is that ring.

The only reason why he didn't pawn it is because I took it away from him.

Somebody's gotta protect his legacy.

Even if he won't.

Let me get into this. See what the hell's going on.

Get into it? You need to check these dudes!

Everybody heard about what you did in the projects.

Don't be a punk and just stand by.

Different kind of chess gambit.

Cottonmouth figures if he can't drop you, he'll get Harlem to push you out.

Where you going?

To make sure Cottonmouth spells my name right.

They smashed all my displays!

Yo, they took my Les Paul. That's my life.

Jacked me for my tips!

- I'm on it! - I work hard for that money.

I'm on it!

Hey, you're late.

What? I got robbed.

Some guy stole my bag. I had to whoop his ass.

What were you thinking?

I was thinking that I wanted my bag back.

He could have killed you.

Mami, please. I grew up here.

If you don't fight back, they make you into a doormat.

You know who taught me that? You.

Things have changed up here, mija.

Things have changed everywhere.

Is...

Is why you came back home?

I wanted to come back where things made sense, yeah.

What the--

-Where is he? -Who?

Les Paul.

-Those two? -Yeah.

-Let's go talk to them. -Don't you need a gun?

I am the gun.

Yo, Plug One, Plug Two.

What is this? Your boyfriend?

You want some of this?

You know my name?

That's Luke Cage, asshole.

The next time you say my name... I'm coming for you.

Now, when you wake up,

I want you to tell everybody that you've been screwing with

that they got nothing to fear from Cottonmouth, you understand?

Wake up?

I can't believe that bitch shot me.

Got a name on that "bitch" who shot you?

I ain't say I got shot.

No snitching?

You remember me from Genghis Connie's?

Shit.

What happened? Who shot you?

I'm going back to Raleigh.

I've had enough of this shit.

You ain't moving fast enough.

Aisha ain't like the others.

She wants that ring back.

You gotta understand.