{"id":4167,"date":"2019-07-01T18:36:11","date_gmt":"2019-07-01T18:36:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/magazine.watchjaro.com\/?p=4167"},"modified":"2019-07-01T18:36:11","modified_gmt":"2019-07-01T18:36:11","slug":"queen-sugar-recap-what-the-hell-has-gotten-into-nova","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/magazine.watchjaro.com\/queen-sugar-recap-what-the-hell-has-gotten-into-nova\/","title":{"rendered":"‘Queen Sugar’ Recap: What The Hell Has Gotten Into Nova?"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/p>\n

Queen Sugar<\/i> has returned with a fourth season so ripe with drama its uncertain if the Bordelons will remain the tight-knit family we have grown to love.\u00a0 Most of the turmoil centers on eldest sister Nova\u2019s decision to write a tell-all memoir that not only reveals her truths but shouts what she calls the \u201csecrets\u201d of her brother, sister, nephews, and auntie; pretty much everybody.\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

In her chapter on her sister Charlie, she describes how her decision to pay off her ex-husband\u2019s mistress is a great example of women being complicit with toxic practices of patriarchy. Nova also takes it upon herself to write about her little brother Ralph Angel\u2019s struggle with learning and accepting that Blue is not his biological son.\u00a0 And in another section she uses her Aunt Vi\u2019s experience with domestic abuse as a way of exploring and challenging the \u201cstrong Black woman\u201d stereotype. <\/strong><\/p>\n

As Charlie points out when confronting her sister, it appears that Nova has used the personal struggles of her family as a case study, her blood as research subjects under the intangible, illusory goal that publicizing their personal business will somehow heal them and others.<\/strong><\/p>\n

What is most interesting about this season is the shift in objectivity that marks the show and made it such a rich exploration of relationships between friends, family, and foes.\u00a0 One of the things I appreciate about Queen Sugar<\/i><\/a> is that whenever there is a conflict between two characters, it is easy for viewers to understand both sides.\u00a0 <\/strong><\/p>\n

For example, in a previous season, Charlie was upset when her son Micah did not ask her permission before spending the night at his Auntie Nova\u2019s house.\u00a0 On one hand you can understand Charlie\u2019s feelings considering what she was going through at the time with her very public and very messy divorce; it is natural that she would want to keep her son close.\u00a0 <\/strong><\/p>\n

You can also see why Nova did not think to ask Charlie as in tight-knit families like theirs asking permission to go be with your aunt is not a common practice. While this example is only a minor conflict this pattern of seeing both sides has been a clear marker of the show.\u00a0 As such, despite her explanation that she is attempting to heal them of their wounds and in the process deliver others, we still don\u2019t see her side. Viewers are just as confused as her family. <\/strong><\/p>\n

No one understands why Nova would do this. The fact that she waited until two weeks before the book is released shows us that in her heart she knows she is wrong.\u00a0\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

Queen Sugar\u2019s <\/i>deviation from its clear cut objectivity is interesting but not necessarily problematic.\u00a0 And after Aunt Vi\u2019s simmering notice to her niece never to \u201cdarken her doorstep\u201d nor \u201cput flowers on her grave\u201d we can see that<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Queen Sugar has returned with a fourth season so ripe with drama its uncertain if the Bordelons will remain the tight-knit family we have grown to love.\u00a0 Most of the turmoil centers on eldest sister Nova\u2019s decision to write a tell-all memoir that not only reveals her truths but shouts what she calls the \u201csecrets\u201d […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":4168,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[173],"tags":[44,31,698,94],"class_list":["post-4167","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-film-tv","tag-ava-duvernay","tag-featured","tag-nova","tag-queen-sugar"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/magazine.watchjaro.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4167","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/magazine.watchjaro.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/magazine.watchjaro.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/magazine.watchjaro.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/magazine.watchjaro.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4167"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/magazine.watchjaro.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4167\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/magazine.watchjaro.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4168"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/magazine.watchjaro.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4167"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/magazine.watchjaro.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4167"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/magazine.watchjaro.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4167"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}