The Waterfront – Season 1 Episode 2 'Taking Control' Recap & Review

Taking Control
Episode 2 of The Waterfront begins with authorities finding Curtis and Troy's bodies in the water. While the authorities chalk this up to a freak accident – including the DEA agents in the area – Clyde takes Cane and Harlan aside to talk about their next run.
Even with the DEA still in town, things are hot and the Buckleys want to wait before running more drugs. Unfortunately, Porter isn't taking no for an answer and they don't have much of a choice but to go ahead as scheduled.
Speaking to Belle about their financial issues, Harlan learns they're four months behind on both mortgages and two months behind on the loan. They really are up shit's creek given their debts amount to about 6.8 million.
Willis at National has given them a three-month extension to prevent them defaulting, but they need to find about $2 million to keep afloat. Harlan though believes they can make it work by cutting Porter out of this and going right to the source. Harlan wants to negotiate with the buyer and have their own supply line.
Belle though, has another idea. She wants to partner with a developer called Wes Larsen to expand and invest in building out the beachfront. This would eventually solve all their financial issues, but Harlan is adamant that the land isn't to be worked on.
As we soon find out, Belle has already gone ahead with this and spoken to Wes in private behind her husband's back.
An ongoing issue here stems from Bree, who works in the restaurant. She has an estranged relationship with her son, Diller, and Harlan wants to help try and patch things up between them. That's difficult to do given there's a restraining order in place for her, but Diller is offered a job working at the fish shop.
Bree has been hitting the booze hard and has been in and out of rehab, where she met Marcus, the DEA agent. He's also an ex addict so the pair have a lot in common. It seems the apple doesn't fall far from the tree, does it?
Bree meets with Marcus at a motel and after destroying the dresser together in a fit of passion, they talk about the case. Marcus doesn't see this going anywhere but Bree is adamant they're onto something. She wants to expose and get Cane out the business, whom she has a grudge with. She's okay with Belle and Harlan though, but the reason for her resentment toward her brother is still unclear.
Bree breaks into Cane's office while he's out doing his drug run, intending to take incriminating documents or evidence of wrongdoing. This includes the deed for the boat changing hands.
Harlan and Cane work together to do their drug run, unaware of what's going on back at shore. Harlan is taking absolutely no chances though, handing over guns and deciding they need to be ready. Unfortunately, they're ten kilos under the scheduled weight and things look set to kick off. That is, until Cane convinces them to ring Owen and smooth things over.
Instead of ringing Porter though, they call a guy called Grady, and he allows them to leave unharmed. It seems like he's the one who's really pulling the strings here.
We soon learn that this definitely was a stick-up, and when Harlan finds out, he's pissed. He confronts Porter about it and smacks him across the mouth. Sporting a bloodied mouth, he admits he likes to see the Buckleys struggling like this and talks a big game. That is, until Harlan mentions Grady's name. Harlan wants to meet with him and refuses to do more runs with Porter until he organizes this.
That night, Cane meets with Jenna ready for dinner with their partners. Both are nervous and decide to do some shots and eat a gummy to loosen up. Unfortunately, they loosen a bit too much, making things super uncomfortable for their prospective partners.
Less uncomfortable though is the meeting with West and Belle. They wind up kissing outside in a it of passion as the development deal looks set to go ahead. When Belle heads back inside, composing herself, she finds Shawn, the new bartender, in a heated conversation with someone on the phone.
Belle has been suspicious of him all episode, given he's new in town and clearly doesn't know how to pour drinks properly. His CV also has glaring holes too. When Belle confronts him about this, she demands answers. Well, it turns out Shawn is actually the estranged son of Harlan.
That night, Harlan and Cane hash out their issues together. While Harlan sees his son as a fool for running his mouth, Cane believes honesty, or at least honour among thieves, is their best policy. The pair clearly don't see eye to eye and their chat doesn't go well, especially when Cane admits he's glad he's not like his pa.
As the episode closes out, Bree shows up to see Marcus and hands over the USB drive that has evidence of wrongdoing from her brother. At the same time, Peyton is approached by a couple of masked figures who douse her in gasoline with a trail heading off to the road and they light a match.
The Episode Review
Alas, the plot thickens! It's clear now that Grady is the one in charge and it could well be his men that have shown up and threatened Peyton. It's a harsh reminder of who's in charge and Harlan is right in one respect – being a snitch in this line of work is going to end badly.
The drama involving the family is starting to get interesting though, with Belle's ties with Wes, Bree's relationship with Marcus and the ongoing sexual tension between Jenna and Cane, looking set to cause big drama going forward and completely implode the family dynamics.
Everything here is set up on a precarious knife-edge – roll on the next episode!
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