It's 1983 and the crack cocaine epidemic is in its infancy in Los Angeles. Ambitious Lucia -- the daughter of a Mexican crime lord who sells marijuana throughout the city -- sees the burgeoning cocaine business as a potential moneymaker, so she manipulates her family into entering the more dangerous and profitable territory than pot. Getting involved with the new drug is setting her on a violent collision course with the likes of Franklin, a young street entrepreneur on a quest for power, and former Mexican wrestler Gustavo, who is caught up in a power struggle within a crime family. Also getting involved in the cocaine trade is CIA operative Teddy, who is running from a dark past and begins an off-book operation to fund Nicaraguan Contras. Oscar-nominated director John Singleton (`Boyz N the Hood') co-created the drama series and says he drew inspiration from his own life for Franklin's story.