El Chapo

Two years after his arrest, Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman is transferred to Puente Grande, a prison where he is treated with more slack. After Amado’s death in Mexico City, the government is tasked with rearranging their peons to maintain their control over the drug-dealing business. Don Sol seeks out the Avendaño Brothers so that they take Amado’s place, but they are clearly out of control, and “El Chapo” sees this as the perfect opportunity to gain some advantage: with the presidential elections around the corner, he makes Don Sol an offer, he will make the Avendaño Brothers disappear and assume control of the drug trafficking operations in exchange for a guarantee of his freedom granted by the presidential candidate once he takes office. Don Sol gladly accepts but surprisingly, after 71 years, the party suffers a historic defeat; Don Sol loses his seat at Congress and Joaquin sees how his dreams of freedom vanish indefinitely.

With no support from the new government but living like a king in Puente Grande, “El Chapo” bribes the authorities to obtain his freedom the only way that seems possible: escaping. In 2011, after being locked up for 8 years, he escapes and his jailbreak triggers a media scandal that magnifies his myth even more. Under a veil of secrecy, eager to rebuild his empire, he summons all the current drug lords proposing The Federation, a unified front operating under his command. Unfortunately, his effort fails and the DEA take his brother “El Polo” under arrest. Don Sol seeking to gain back his post as a government official proposes an agreement: if “Chapo” helps him deliver the Avendaño Brothers, he can go back to Los Pinos with a triumph, and make sure that they stop persecuting him. In exchange Joaquin asks for the release of his brother but Don Sol denies his request. Joaquin must sacrifice his brother’s freedom for his own and for his ambition of one day becoming the absolute boss of the cartel world.

“El Chapo” orchestrates the fall of the Avendaño Brothers and keeps Don Sol in the loop regarding all his movements. Ramon is assassinated and Benjamin is delivered to the authorities. Getting a heads up on both events Don Sol informs the President beforehand and gains his trust, he is immediately named Operational Director of the Federal Police Force. In his personal life, he rekindles an old fling with Franco, a young and discreet “escort”, with who he maintains a secret relationship solely for business purposes. Joaquin now free of persecution initiates a pact collaborating with the government and DEA: he will deliver the heads of the rival organizations and they will let him carry on with his business freely. With this new governmental support, he once again summons the cartel bosses and The Federation is born. Nevertheless, not all of them join him: Raciel and the “Golfo Cartel” reject Joaquin’s idea, humiliating him and becoming his new enemies in his union towards ultimate power.

“El Chapo” executes a lethal attack against the “Golfo Cartel” to perfection: he brings Raciel to justice, and sends the Federation’s troops to take over Nuevo Laredo, the Cartel’s principal dealing territory. Nevertheless, a new obstacle arises on the way: el Cano and his “Emes”; a militarized wing operating along the gulf, a new breed of hitmen, ex-military elite and ready to take violence to a whole new level. The “Emes” react unpredictably, defending their grounds with ruthless success and triumphantly driving the Federation out of Nuevo Laredo. The failure of the operation causes a rupture within the Federation: Chente y Rodolfillo, Amado’s brothers and the bosses of Juarez, begin to doubt Joaquin’s leadership. Flying off the handle, Rodolfillo kills one of “El Chapo’s” chief bodyguards. Joaquin knows only one type of answer: the assassination of Rodolfillo. Clashes within the Federation have begun and there will be no way back.

“El Chapo” pressured by the government to stop from a new war from erupting, calls on el Chente proposing to leave their personal vendettas aside in favor of stable trafficking. El Chente accepts, but distrust between the two bosses is palpable. Don Sol having achieved a sense of stability within the government spends more time with Franco and begins to develop feelings for him. Being more open than ever Franco confesses his real name: Sebastian. But not wanting the relationship to get more personal, Don Sol shuts him down, preferring to continue with what they had. Meanwhile Joaquin takes a harsh blow: Chente contacts Raciel in prison after finding out that “el Pollo” is his cellmate, and coordinates the assassination of “El Chapo’s” younger brother. After this betrayal, Chente seeks out Joaquin and flips the initial agreement on him: now he must put business before family and sacrifice his desire for revenge if he doesn’t want a war to begin.

With an election year coming up, Don Sol must figure out how to fit in with the upcoming government. His attempts to infiltrate the ranks of the leading candidate fail miserably, so he decides to carry out a ploy that ensures the victory of his second choice: Felipe Alarcon, the candidate for the party that now holds office. For that he needs “El Chapo”: he needs his money and his incredible ability to intimidate opponents. Joaquin accepts with his sights set on a future government that honors their agreements and that will let him live in peace. Back in Canelas, Joaquin has met Elba, a 17-year-old teenager who steals his heart and who he tries to kiss. She asks him to wait until she is 18 and he accepts telling her that he will count the days. On election day, Don Sol’s ploy works like magic and Alarcon comes out victorious. Grateful the future President fulfills what he had promised to his accomplice, and names Don Sol: Minister of Public Safety.

The new President comes in with the mission to take control over the Cartels, seeing this Don Sol offers the best ally: “El Chapo”. A new agreement of collaboration is established between them, this time granting Joaquin full disposal of the Mexican army. “El Chapo”, believing he has everything to reign supreme over all the cartels, proposes his boldest move yet: go after el Chente and el Cano, snatch Juarez and Nuevo Laredo from under their feet, gaining absolute power over the business and the country. Don Sol facing intense pressure from the public, supports Joaquin’s proposal and starts the so called “Narco War”: a silkscreen under which the forces of order and the Sinaloa Cartel will fight hand in hand against “El Chapo’s” enemies over control of the business and at the same time legitimizing the government. The darkest stage in the history of drug dealing in Mexico begins, giving rise to a living hell that no one could’ve foreseen.

A downwards spiral of intense violence spins out of control, taking the lives of thousands of innocent people around the country. Juan and Zenaida, two farmers working the fields in the Golden Triangle, risk their lives to escape abuse as a child orphaned by the army unexpectedly falls under their care. Evelina, a humble mother suffers from the laziness of corrupt cops in Culiacan and decides to take things into her own hands as she looks for her daughter who was kidnapped by the Sinaloa Cartel never to be seen again. Omar, a teen from Nuevo Laredo is kidnapped, addicted to drugs and forced to kill by the “Emes”, facing cruel and inhumane conditions every day. The steep escalation of violence has no end and attempting to stop the horrendous approval rate that the President and his government are facing, Don Sol draws on his infamous ally “El Chapo”. Amid his wedding celebration to Elba, who just turned 18, the sly politician offers to change strategies completely: if war did not work, he will now try peace.

Arturo Bernal Leyda, one of Joaquin’s primary associates within the Federation takes on the challenge of negotiating with his fiercest rivals, Chente and el Cano, gaining their trust quickly and establishing himself as the architect behind this new established peace. “El Chapo”, takes advantage of the situation, expands the reach of the Sinaloa Cartel, and welcomes his sons’ intent, Quino and el Moreno, to join the family business. But Arturo Bernal Leyda and his brother, el Arriero, demand greater weight in the organization’s decisions, something that Joaquin refuses to concede: the ambition that the brothers show, awaken his distrust. When Quino is arrested for recklessness, Joaquin must negotiate his release with Don Sol: he offers to deliver the Bernal Leyda brothers to calm the press, in exchange for his son’s freedom. El Arriero is arrested but Arturo escapes, and it won’t take long for him to figure out what happened: “El Chapo” betrayed them showing no remorse. After many years of loyalty, now nothing will get in the way of his vengeance.

Arturo Bernal Leyda seeks out Chente and el Cano, to bring them together under a new objective, eliminate Joaquin: the frail moment of peace come to an end. They come at him from every front, and Arturo makes sure that his presence is noted, assassinating and leaving violent messages all over Culiacan, Joaquin’s territory is in peril. Once again, the extreme violence on the streets destabilizes the government, and Don Sol gives “Chapo” an ultimatum: he either regains the control that he promised or they will pull their support and that will be his end. Joaquin mandates a curfew in Culiacan and the immediate hunt for Arturo. One small detail however, is out of his control: his son, el Moreno, disobeys his father’s orders and leaves the city to celebrate his first successful drug deal across the border with his friend, Arturo Meza. In a tragic and unexpected turn of events, Joaquin’s own assassins confuse Arturo Meza with Arturo Bernal Leyda, and end up brutally murdering his own son and his friend.

After identifying his own son's body, Joaquin, completely devastated seeks refuge in his mother's ranch while fighting his own demons. In the city, his enemies don't show mercy and the war against him continues. Don Sol urges his presence on the battlefield but no one can get him back on his feet. Meanwhile, in his personal life, Don Sol comes to terms with his feelings for Sebastian and begins to share his life with him; but we come to find out that they are being watched, and they have been for a long time. After a life changing catharsis, Joaquin realizes that he doesn't regret anything, and that if he was given the opportunity to choose, he would have chosen the same path. Anything, even death, would be better to dying anonymously like his father. Joaquin asserts his destiny, and on the contrary to what his enemies thought, the pain caused by the loss of his son did not drown him, it has only awakened his appetite and ambition. Joaquin gets his loyal men together and assures them that he is back and that he is stronger than ever.

In memory of his brother and son, Joaquin promises to win the war. With Don Sol's support and the armed forces behind him, he eliminates his enemies one by one. El Cano is forced to abandon his own territory, Nuevo Laredo. Arturo Bernal Leyda is intercepted by the Marines and assassinated on the spot. And Chente, a legend of the “narco” underworld, is delivered to the authorities as Juarez is stripped from his domain, Amado's old stomping grounds finally taken triumphantly by Joaquin over his fallen brother. Don Sol is enjoying the recent spike in approval ratings after the fall of the three very powerful drug lords. He is congratulated by the now Ex-President 62, who offers him the ultimate dream: being the next presidential candidate for the party. Nevertheless, the offer comes with one condition: his fling with Sebastian must come to an end. Joaquin finally consolidates himself as the ultimate king of all the drug lords, and establishing the Sinaloa Cartel as the most powerful organization in Mexico, he makes a promise in front of his son's gravestone: becoming the world's most powerful drug lord.