Our favorite besties – Issa and Molly are back at it again in the third season of Insecure. Molly is still getting hot and heavy with her childhood friend, Dro, who is in an open marriage. And Issa is sleeping on Daniel’s couch, until she can get her money together and get a new place. We learn that despite being hella close, Issa refuses to crash with Molly due to some past incident that involved a vase that Molly insists Issa broke; Issa denies it. While this offers an explanation of why Issa chose to stay with Daniel, it feels weak or at the very least odd; but then again, Issa is awkward, and like Molly so eloquently states, “She be lying.” Molly seems to offer a fair assessment. Daniel actually calls Issa out by questioning her motives to stay at his place, as if she had no other options. And true to form, Issa refuses to acknowledge that she may have underlying motives.
While we are meant to relate to Issa and find her deviation from the strong black woman archetype prevalent in our contemporary media, watching her stumble can sometimes be frustrating. Unpacking my annoyance with her character led me to questions about my own expectations about the show and what I wanted to see on television more broadly. Did I have a bias where I only wanted to see women of power prevail and overcome? Was I unreasonable in my desires of Issa? Or was I just aggravated with her character? I then discovered that while it may be a combination of all these things that fuel my frustrations, a friend explained it quite simply. We have been watching Issa flail for like two whole seasons. It’s not crazy that we are ready to see the come up. We watched as Issa destroyed her relationship with Lawrence by cheating on him with Daniel. We watched her make unethical decisions at work that eventually resulted in her demotion. And we watched her burn down, tear up, and move out of the apartment and, of course, onto Daniel’s couch. When will sis finally get it together? We are ready to celebrate!
However, there seems to be hope for our girl yet. She applied for another job, is diligently looking for apartments, and is trying to make peace with her boss and improve the problematic nonprofit We Got Y’all. So while sometimes I just want her to do more – to be more direct about her feelings, take a risk, be honest with herself – she is doing something, and that counts.
Issa’s storyline is not the only thing that caught our attention, but as always we have more questions than answers. What do you think?
Is Daniel wrong for having sex in his house while Issa sleeps on the couch?
Are you proud that Molly is setting boundaries with Dro, or do you think she should it end it altogether? Or do something else entirely?
Is Kelly towing the line of character and caricature?
Where the heck is Lawrence????
