TV Underdogs: What could ‘Empire’ season 2 do next with Trai Byers’ Andre?

The bad news for all fans of “Empire” is pretty easy to identify: You’re still waiting until the end of March for new episodes to air on Fox!

As we wait, we wanted to put the focus on Andre in the latest entry of our TV Underdogs series, someone who we’d wager is one of the more complex, complicated members of the Lyon clan. He has clear flaws, but also a big heart and a desire to have a better tomorrow. Also, going into the second half of this season we’re not sure anyone is poised to have a bigger, better storyline.

Why he’s an underdog – Because despite his many misgivings, he is someone you do want to root for and someone whose heart is in the right place most of the time. He wants to do good by Rhonda, and he wants to find a place in the world. The trouble he faces is that he is the least-talented musically of the Lyon sons, and he has to find his own way to go about life without some of the attention, the spotlight, or the love of his father much of the time. That is no easy task.

Why we don’t see more of him – There’s a lot for this show to focus on! You do see a good deal of him in terms of him being a part of every episode, but it’s harder for him to be a focal point in musical numbers or in other storylines when he’s been busy trying to find religion and turn some of his life around. These are good things for him as a man, but when it comes to a show where many bad things do happen, it makes his inclusion difficult.

Ways to see more of him – Trai Byers does have some great material ahead, given what happened to Rhonda in the midseason finale. We’d love to see him take an active role in getting Empire back, maybe figuring out ways to help Lucious and Jamal that they don’t expect. Also, we’d love to see a deeper exploration of his faith than what we’ve seen so far, and the further inner workings of his career and battling bipolar disorder. He has so many different things that make him stand out from the crowd, so why not play into this more? Andre has some of the best dramatic material on the show, so we always want to see him receive more recognition.

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