‘Mayans M.C.’: Miguel Galindo Sports New Look in Season 3 Premiere

Season 3 of Mayans M.C. premiered on Tuesday with back-to-back episodes. There were several intense moments that sparked comments on social media, but some viewers specifically focused on Miguel Galindo (Danny Pino). The reason is that he showed off a clean-shaven face.

The first two seasons of Mayans M.C. featured Galindo with a beard, but the whiskers were nowhere to be seen during the Season 3 premiere. There wasn’t a specific reason given for the change, but certain lines of dialogue did provide some context. The episodes reveal that Galindo is cheating on Emily (Sarah Bolger) with Mexican governor Sederica Palomo (Mia Maestro), leading to a moment where she thanks Galindo for shaving.

“I think that’s the one area of solace that Miguel has, that he’s found a place where he can let his guard down,” Pino told Entertainment Weekly during a recent interview. “It is kind of a hedonistic sanctuary for him, having an extramarital affair. I think Miguel needed to find refuge in a relationship with somebody else. Politics and crime breed strange bedfellows.

“[Montserrat] is this incredibly strong, powerful, and thoughtful woman and someone who is Miguel’s equal, if not surpasses his capacities,” the actor continued. “At the most basic level, he just needs somewhere to not hide from himself and someone with whom he can share things.”

The affair with Palomo is only the latest example of Galindo’s change since his mother Dita’s death. He struggled to deal with his grief during the first two episodes and blamed several people. He shot Dita’s former driver, Paco (Joe Ordaz), several times with a gold-plated handgun, leaving his body in the wilderness.

Prior to the violent death, Galindo tasked Paco and Nestor (Gino Vento) with a special message. He sent them to murder Dita’s former therapist after she refused to break confidentiality agreements. The henchmen shot her in the street and threw her body in a vehicle while her dog stood in the street.

“There’s this overarching sense of lack of control of his own business, his own life, and his own marriage,” Pino explained to EW. “The way he tries to regain control and to show people that he’s in control is through violence. A way to elicit loyalty is through fear, which Miguel learned from his father and is something that has been reinforced as the head of the cartel. A lot of the violence that Miguel propagates is to make people fear him and to keep those who might stray loyal to him. Miguel is always worried about loyalty.”

Season 3 of Mayans M.C. is currently airing on FX. New episodes debut every Tuesday and become available on Hulu the next day. The first two seasons of the Sons of Anarchy spin-off are also currently available on the streaming service.