Fast and Furious 4 takes place five years after the events of Fast and Furious 1.

Dom is hiding out in the Dominican Republic after having been let go by Brian at the end of The Fast and The Furious. It’s here that he meets Han.

Meanwhile, Brian is in prison in Arizona. But wait, there’s a twist — Brian is undercover for the feds, and after completing his assignment, he’s back out on the streets.

So what’s happened to Letty, Dom’s girlfriend? She’s been trying to keep the crew from going under in his absence. This includes running drugs via their soup up cars for notorious South American drug dealer Antonio Braga, a man no one has ever seen. After one of her runs for Braga, Letty is killed, presumably by Braga enforcer Fenix.

Dom is told about Letty’s death from Mia (his sister) via a phone call. He returns to America to attend her funeral. Brian is also there, and fills him in. Brian tells Dom he’s going after Braga. That makes two of them.

And that is your set up for Fast and Furious 4. The Latino Review reviewer calls it the best FF story he’s read in the whole franchise. I’m not sure about that. Just make sure the hot babes and hot cars keep coming, and everything will be alright.