Piloto

Piloto is the first episode in the series. It translates to "Pilot."

Summary[]

On the streets of Sinaloa, Teresa Mendoza meets Güero, the man who will change her life forever.

Netflix Summary[]

Teresa, a money changer in Mexico, falls for drug dealer Güero, whose murder a year later forces her to flee from his enemies and lands her in Dallas.

Plot[]

Teresa is a money changer in Sinaloa. After her boss touches her one too many times, the handsome Güero steps in and defends her, causing her to lose her job. He offers her the chance to join him and his friends, Chino and Brenda.

Flash forward[]

It's Christmas, and Güero invites Teresa to the house of Don Epifanio, his godfather and mentor. Teresa accidentally hears a conversation between Epifanio and his wife, Camila. The drug lord has plans to become governor of Sinaloa, but his wife doesn’t want to leave the narco-business. Teresa and Don Epifanio meet in a hallway and for the first time she shakes the hand of a man who will impact her life forever.

Güero and Teresa have been together for a year, and life treats them well. However, he knows that happiness doesn’t last long for a mafioso, so he tells Teresa that if something happens to him, she must take a very important notebook to Don Epifanio, and give it to him in exchange for her life.

Flash forward[]

One day the phone rings, and a voice informs her that Güero is dead, and that she must leave home immediately. She finds out Chino will also be killed, and runs to his house to try to prevent it. She doesn’t make it in time, but she manages to rescue Brenda and her son, Tony. The three of them escape in an SUV. The assassins chase and corner them, but Teresa won’t give up. She crashes the SUV into their truck and escapes. Teresa takes one path, and Brenda and her child, another one.

Teresa knows her life is in danger, so she must find the notebook Güero told her about. She finds it in an old apartment, but she is soon found. Gato rapes her. All of a sudden something strange happens. Teresa sees her future self, the Queen of the South, and this apparition tells her to do something. Teresa gets the message, finds a gun, shoots her rapist in the face, and runs away.

Teresa meets with Don Epifanio and gives him the notebook. He refuses to help her but finally gives in to her pleas. Both of them get in a car driven by one of Epifanio’s men and take the road to an unknown destination. Suddenly they stop, and it happens again. Teresa sees the Queen of the South who tells her “something has changed” in the drug lord’s plans. Back on the road, she pulls out a gun and asks Don Epifanio to stop the vehicle. He tries violently to get the gun from Teresa, who shoots the driver in the back of his head. The car ends up upside down on the side of the road, and Teresa escapes, ignoring Epifanio, who is seriously wounded and asking for her help.

Teresa stops at a gas station to heal her wounds, but her pursuers find her and take her to see their boss –Don Epifanio’s wife, who takes Teresa’s hand and recognizes her. She asks “Why do you think my husband went as far as the desert to find you?" But Teresa doesn’t know what to say. Instead, she asks where she is. In Dallas, Texas, the woman says, and one more time the image of the Queen of the South appears to tell her: "America… You are gonna love it here."

Appearances[]

Notable Injuries[]

Chino gets his fingers chopped off.
Guero comes home from a run beaten up and shot.
Teresa is raped by Gato.
Epifaño and Teresa get into a car accident. They both injure their legs.

Quotes[]

Teresa, about Guero: "Shit, man. When I fell, I fell hard."
Teresa: The men I knew before treated me like shit, but Guero- I felt like he saw, me protected me. So what if he was a drug runner? If you came from where I come from, you'd have done the same thing.
Teresa to Guero, while smiling and holding a gun: "Teach me how to use this." -
Teresa: "When I was with Guero, I thought I was finally out of the cold. I've never been that wrong before."
The Queen: In this business, your shelf life is only so long.
Guero, to Teresa: So... Now that you're out of a job, you coming with us?

Notes[]

Teresa has her first interaction with Pote Galvez in this episode when she accidentally bumps into him at Don Epifaño's party. Gato tells Guero that Epifaño is looking for him.
Epifaño tells Batman that he will be taking over the day-to-day operations for him so that Epifaño can distance himself from the cartel before he runs for governor.
This is the first episode in which we hear Teresa's heart beating, happening when answers the call and is told that Guero is dead.
Pote and Gato are the people that kill Chino. Pote is the one to cut off his fingers.