'Empire' Finale Plot Recap, News: Drama Draws 17.6 Million Viewers, Provides Cliffhangers Galore

The second hour of the two-hour "Empire" finale last March 19 was seen by 17.6 million viewers while the first hour was seen by 15.8 million people, the Nielsen global marketing research firm announced.

According to a Nielsen rep, not since 2005 has a television drama reached so many people for the last episode of its premiere season, and this was for "Grey's Anatomy." The viewership figure still doesn't take into account those people who will watch the episode via other means—Internet streams, video on demand, DVR, etc.

When "Empire" debuted in January, it did fairly well, but its viewership multiplied with every succeeding episode right up to the 12th and final one.

So what happened in the finale? Music family patriarch Lucious Lyon (Terrence Howard) discovered he didn't actually have amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, or ALS, also known as Lou Gehrig's Disease. He named Jamal, his middle son, as the heir to the family business, and this angered his other sons, Andre and Hakeem.

And the cliffhangers? Lucious was sent to prison. Hakeem hooked up with Anika. Business partners were murdered, and there were pregnant daughter-in-laws in the house.

And let's not forget about the other star of the show, the music. The finale was packed with big-name recording artist guest stars like Snoop Dogg, Juicy J, Rita Ora and Patti Labelle, who appeared as themselves and performed new songs as part of the Empire showcases.

And while everyone waits with bated breath for Season 2 to air—not confirmed whether it would be in the Fall or Winter—later this year, let's look back at some of the things that made "Empire" the hit show that it deserves to be.

Cookie Lyon, played by Taraji P. Henson, was larger-than-life as she returned from a 17-year prison sentence to take back what was hers. Henson's acting chops and even superstar potential are at the fore with her take on Cookie, and people just can't get enough of her.

Jennifer Hudson and Courtney Love starred as fictional characters and both performed well. The show became a launching pad for original songs and even new singles, as Snoop did during the finale. Jussie Smollett (Jamal) was signed by Columbia Records just last month, and it was due to his exposure in the show. The show might just become a site for music promotion and discovery.

Empire consists of a predominantly black cast, but it is not watched "only" by the expected niche audience. It has gone mainstream, which proves that a show doesn't have to have a white star to make it a hit.

Each family member in the show potentially has the capacity for much hate and destruction and it is just makes for great soap operatic drama all around.