Who's Gonna Take the Weight?

Who's Gonna Take the Weight? is the third episode of the first season of the television series Luke Cage.
==Synopsis==
In the aftermath of a chaotic event at a favorite Harlem hangout, Luke Cage heeds the call to action and hits Cottonmouth where he'll feel it most.
==Plot==
The entirety of Harlem mourns the tragic death of Pop, while the tensions between the Stokes Crime Family and the Colon Crime Family continue to escalate. During the preparation for Pop's funeral, Luke Cage confronts Cottonmouth, blaming him and his men for Pop's death, but Stokes warns him to back off before he gets hurt. Bobby Fish tells Cage that Pop's Barber Shop is facing closure due to unpaid bills, so Cage decides to target Stokes' business, to take a swing at him as well.
Misty Knight and Rafael Scarfe investigate the junkyard robbery and the attack on Pop, questioning Chico Diaz at the hospital. Diaz admits that Dante Chapman was killed by Shameek Smith but backtracks on his statement, being scared of Stokes' vengeance. Knight tries to convince Diaz to testify against Stokes to get him in jail for his crimes, which cost Pop his life but he still refuses. Cage goes to see Diaz as well, however, he is stopped by Knight who suspects Cage for being in the center of their investigation.
Cage then asks Diaz for information about Stokes' operation to find a way to hurt him and Diaz tells him about Stokes' gun business and numerous stashes in the city where Stokes keeps his money. Diaz also tells Cage that in case of a threat, all of Stokes' money would be transferred to the fortified vault at the Crispus Attucks Complex. In an attempt to disrupt Stokes' business, Cage targets several stashes in Harlem, leaving the money to be confiscated by the New York City Police Department.
Aware of the attacks on his business, Stokes orders to transfer all money to the Crispus Attucks Complex, as a safety insurance. Mariah Dillard doubts his decision, as the complex was meant to be the start of the new Harlem community, not another part of his criminal business. Dillard and Stokes discuss their further plans on Harlem, and while Dillard wants to rebuild the neighborhood by legal means, Stokes insists that the crime has been keeping Harlem going for decades. Stokes is later visited by Domingo Colon whom Stokes accuses of being behind the hits on his business but Colon dismisses his claims. However, he expresses hostility towards Stokes for the failed weapons deal, which Stokes considers a declaration of war.
As all of Stokes' money were taken to the vault, Cage raids the Crispus Attucks Complex, taking down all of Stokes' men and leaving money for the NYPD, while Knight and Scarfe investigate the attack. Scarfe then leaves to pick up Diaz who finally agreed to testify, but Scarfe suddenly murders Diaz and informs Stokes that Cage was behind the attack on his business. Cage gives Fish a part of Stokes' money to pay Pop's bills to keep the barbershop open and goes to Genghis Connie's to eat. Following Scarfe's lead, Stokes fires a missile at the restaurant, demolishing the building and burying Cage under the rumbles.
==Cast==
Main Cast:
*Mike Colter as Luke Cage
*Mahershala Ali as Cornell Stokes/Cottonmouth
*Simone Missick as Misty Knight
*Alfre Woodard as Mariah Dillard
Guest Stars:
*Frank Whaley as Detective Rafael Scarfe
*Dawn-Lyen Gardner as Megan McLaren
*Ron Cephas Jones as Bobby Fish
*Jacob Vargas as Domingo Colon
*Jaiden Kaine as Zip
*Brian 'Sene' Marc as Chico Diaz
*Jade Wu as Connie Lin
*Sedly Bloomfield as Joel Spurlock
*Jason Altman as Police Officer
*Darik Bernard as Crispus Thug
*Tationna Bosier as Strung Out Girl
*Gabe Bettio as Detective
*Charles Bradley as Himself
*Roger Brenner as FDNY / EMT (uncredited)
*Gerard Cordero as Puerto Rican Thug #2 (uncredited)
*Gina Diaz as Neighbor (uncredited)
*Masen Faison as Duty Nurse (uncredited)
*Decater James as Henchman (uncredited)
*Mariel King as Scarfe's Girl (uncredited)
*Lynn Marocola as FDNY Paramedic (uncredited)
*Nicholas Marocola as FDNY Paramedic (uncredited)
*Scott Martin as Mariah Dillard's Henchmen (uncredited)
*Brandon McClary as Thug #2 (uncredited)
*Phil Oddo as Reporter (uncredited)
*Ron Rivera as Domingo's Boy (uncredited)
*Jeremy Sample as Machine Gun Guy (uncredited)
*Rasheme Watson as Club Patron (uncredited)
*Duwaun White as Thug (uncredited)
*Leroy Phillips Jr. as Onlooker (uncredited)
*Unknown Actor as Tony (uncredited)
==Appearances==
===Locations===
*New York City, New York
**Crispus Attucks Complex
**Harlem's Paradise
**Genghis Connie's
**Pop's Barber Shop
**Spurlock's Mortuary
**29th Precinct Police Station
** (mentioned)
===Events===
*Raid of the Crispus Attucks Complex
*Assassination of Chico Diaz
*Destruction of Genghis Connie's
*Attack on Pop's Barber Shop (mentioned)
*Ambush at the Harlem Junkyard (mentioned)
*Battle of New York (mentioned)
===Items===
*Hammer Industries Rocket Launcher
*Mjølnir (mentioned)
===Vehicles===
To be added
===Creatures===
* (mentioned)
* (mentioned)
===Organizations===
*New York City Police Department
*Stokes Crime Family
*Colon Crime Family
*WJBP-TV
*Fire Department of New York City
* (mentioned)
* (mentioned)
===Mentioned===
*Pop
*Reva Connors
*Tone
*Shameek Smith
*Dante Chapman
*Mama Mabel
*Kelly Knight
*Diamondback
*New Harlem Renaissance
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==Trivia==
*Who's Gonna Take the Weight? is a song of the album of the hip-pop duo Gang Starr.
*Misty Knight chastises Rafael Scarfe for breaking her concentration, which is a reference to a scene in , in which Brett (portrayed by Frank Whaley, who plays Scarfe) is sarcastically asked by Jules Winnfield (portrayed by Samuel L. Jackson) if he broke his concentration by firing a gun close to him.
==Music==
Song title 	Artist 	Location(s)
(Black Sabbath cover)	Charles Bradley 	
Luke Cage asks Chico Diaz if knows where Cottonmouth's stash houses are; Cornell drinks at his club as he watches Charles Bradley perform; Luke attacks a stash house of Cornell and Mariah Dillard's.
Bring Da Ruckus 	Wu-Tang Clan 	
Luke Cage places in his headphones then proceeds to attack Crispus Attucks Complex, attacking all thugs inside until he makes it to Cottonmouth's Fort Knox in the center of the building.
Ain't It a Sin 	Charles Bradley 	
Cottonmouth continues to watch Charles Bradley perform; the NYPD arrive at the stash house and find the cash still in the safe untouched; Luke Cage arrives at another stash house.
Enemies All Around Me	Ghostface Killah & Adrian Younge	
Domingo Colon arrives for a meeting with Cottonmouth; Stokes accuses Colon and his gang of hitting his stash houses which he refutes then asks for money back or refill on the supply that was stolen which Stokes refuses to do; Stokes and Colon part was with Colon declaring war.
==References==
==External Links==
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Category:Luke Cage (TV series) Episodes