The Netflix miniseries Griselda tells the (mostly) true story of cocaine trafficker Griselda Blanco (Sofia Vergara), a notorious drug lord from Colombia. The adrenaline-fueled Season 1 focuses on Griselda’s journey to becoming the ruthless female Narco known as the Godmother, who takes full control of Miami in the late 70s and 80s. It’s a detailed and complex depiction of her life story, which includes many double-crossings and bloody deaths. Here’s the full Season 1 recap of Griselda, detailing every major event from Episodes 1-6 of the limited series.
Griselda Season 1 Recap
Episode 1 – “Lady Comes to Town”
In Episode 1, Griselda escapes from Colombia with her three sons after shooting her husband Alberto dead. He had ordered her to sleep with his brother Fernando for financial reasons earlier that night. Griselda complied, but then an argument with Alberto afterward led to his death. Griselda hides out in Miami with her friend Carmen, where she hopes to sell her last kilo of coke.
After being double-crossed by Amilcar’s associate Johnny, Griselda demands to meet with a different drug dealer. Johnny sets up a meeting with Eddie. The kilo is sold, but rival dealer Amilcar sends in his team of thugs to shoot down their enemies. Griselda escapes with her life and the money. She then heads back to Amilcar, ready to make a new deal. Amilcar is happy for Griselda to be his new supplier if she can keep up with the demand.
Episode 2 – “Rich White People”
Wanting revenge for Alberto’s death, Fernando sends his associate Dario to find and kill Griselda in Episode 2. In the meantime, Griselda hopes to capitalize on her early success. She hires new female drug dealers to sell her product and they bring the coke over to America in their bras.
Griselda takes her suitcase full of cocaine to Amilcar, but he has used her once again. He rejects her offer, having played her to sweeten a deal with his current supplier Papo Mejia. Amilcar then blacklists her in the drug trade. No one will buy Griselda’s coke ever again.
Out of options, Griselda targets rich white people in Miami instead and lands German Panesso as her new partner. Papo tries to put a stop to their new operation, but German and Griselda stand their ground. Griselda finds Dario and Fernando at her motel. Fernando tries to strangle Griselda to death, but Dario saves her, shooting Fernando dead instead.
Episode 3 – “Mutiny”
Episode 3 picks up three months later. Griselda’s drug empire is growing fast and so is her wealth. Rival Colombian cartel the Ochoas, with the help of Rafa, try to buy Griselda’s business for $15 million, but she declines their offer. Griselda tries to convince all the other drug dealers to reject the Ochoas’ offers as well.
Amilcar is facing murder charges by the police though and has accepted the Ochoas’ generous offer. He wants to flee Miami to avoid a prison sentence. Griselda attempts to change his mind. She offers to kill the key eyewitness to get Amilcar out of trouble.
Dario and Chucho kill the witness and his wife, leaving behind an orphaned baby. Amilcar thanks Griselda for saving him. Amilcar promises to negotiate a deal with the Ochoas, but he is arrested first by June Hawkins. With Amilcar in jail, Griselda’s deal falls through and she is betrayed by those closest to her. German Panesso sides with Rafa and Papo instead.
Episode 4 – “Middle Management”
Griselda has lost her territory in Episode 4. She fights back though, joining forces with an army of Cuban immigrants. Dario and the immigrants kill German Panesso and blow up Papo’s home. Papo survives the blast though and hits back, killing three of Griselda’s friends. Rafa orders Griselda to leave town.
Griselda kills those who decapitated her friends, but she is spotted by an eyewitness entering the crime scene. June’s new task force now has Griselda’s identity. The drug lord targets all of the Ochoas’ drops, stealing all of their drugs.
Rafa offers Griselda her territory back in return for his drugs. Griselda burns all the drugs instead and then has Papo killed. Griselda then orders Rafa to organize a meeting with Fabio Ochoa. She wants full control of Miami now. Fabio accepts her request, but Rafa kills one of Griselda’s own (Arturo) as a warning.
Episode 5 – “Paradise Lost”
Episode 5 picks up three years later, Dario and Griselda are married with a child (Michael). Griselda is paranoid that she has an informant in her staff who is feeding intel to June’s task force. There is no informant, but June has managed to locate all of Griselda’s stash houses.
Griselda’s new hitman Rivi kills all the potential informants. June raids one of Griselda’s stash houses, fuelling Griselda’s paranoia further. At Dario’s birthday party, Griselda smokes far too much crack and starts to suspect everyone.
June finds out that the stash house is in Carmen’s name and questions her about it. Carmen warns Griselda, but her friend thinks she is the informant. Griselda strangles Carmen, nearly killing her, but Dario stops her. Griselda then orders Rivi to kill Chucho. Rivi misses and kills Chucho’s 2-year-old son instead. This prompts Carmen to change her mind and work with June.
Episode 6 – “Adios, Miami”
Marta Ochoa (Rafa’s girlfriend) overdoses and dies in Griselda’s presence. Panicked, Griselda and Rivi move the body and steal all of Rafa’s drugs. They go on the run, fleeing to California with Griselda’s three sons. Dario takes Michael and they run away from Griselda, back to Colombia.
Rafa finds out Griselda’s location and heads to Los Angeles to kill her. Rivi warns her to run away at the last minute. Griselda hands herself in to the police to avoid being assassinated by Rafa. Rivi and the sons continue to hide out. The police soon capture Rivi though and formulate a deal with the killer.
Griselda ends up only getting a 7-year sentence though as Rivi sabotages the case. Dario is killed and Michael is taken back to America. 7 years later, June informs Griselda that all three of her eldest sons have been killed by the Ochoas. Griselda is to be released, but all of her family are now dead, except for Michael. The Season 1 ending reveals Griselda is then killed in 2012 by an unknown assassin at the age of 69.
That is the full season recap of everything that happened in the Netflix series Griselda Season 1 (Episodes 1-6). What are your thoughts on the series? Please comment below.
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