Queen Sugar Season 1 Episode 8 Review: Where With All
Christine Orlando
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I just love a good storm episode and Queen Sugar Season 1 Episode 8 didn’t disappoint. It threw everyone together and, with no where to run, it forced them to confront their feelings about one another.
The best part? No one held back.
Let’s start with Charley. She’s in such a difficult spot right now. She’s having to let go of everything she thought she had and figure out how to move forward. She’s also the fish out of water in St. Josephine, despite having grown up here.
When Charley forced the workers to head back out to the field, I couldn’t quite figure out if she realized the danger she was putting them in. Once again, she dismissed Remy when he told her that the weather can change quickly, and once again, he was right. A tropical storm became a category 2 hurricane within a matter of hours.
Were those men able to make it home? Did they end up at a shelter? I wish they had followed up on the consequences of Charley’s actions.
The one thing I completely agreed with Charley on was not allowing Micah to live with Nova during the week. I’d like to say that Nova overstepped simply because she’s not a mother, but I think she was using Micah to cause problems with Charley.
I want to like Nova but she’s such a hypocrite, and at times, downright mean. She took $10,000 without asking, or even bothering to tell her sister after the fact, and then she won’t even apologize for it. Nova’s very good at making excuses that sound noble or self sacrificing and it grates on my nerves as much as it does Charley’s.
Also, Charley’s right to try and keep Micah out of the ninth. He’s 15 years old. It’s still Charley’s job to protect him and to put it bluntly, Nova is a drug dealer living in a bad part of town. It’s an area where people – specifically young, black men – are shot, killed, or arrested.
Nova may not want to admit it, but she could be arrested for growing and selling weed. Family or not, Charley is right to keep her son away from that life.
But when Nova continued to push, Charley brought out Nova’s other poor decisions in this Queen Sugar quote…
I actually value marriage even if no one else in my life does and I'm not gonna have my son be stuck again in a house with people who claim to love one another, disrespect each other and break their promises. You want to live foul? Okay, you do you but you leave my son the hell out of it!
Charley
No one can say that Nova didn’t ask for it, and Charley certainly didn’t hold back.
Then there was the conversation between Nova and Aunt Vi that left me with far more questions than answers. Did Ernest have an affair? How did things end up with Nova’s mother? With Charley’s? Oh, there’s definitely a story there, and we’ve barely scratched the surface of it. I can’t wait to find out more.
Violet was being put through the emotional ringer with this storm. First she was terrified about Nova being out in it and not answering her phone. Once again, Nova was more worried about her community than her family.
Then Hollywood tried to act like everything was fine between them.
No, you never hit me, but you sure knocked the hell out of me.
Vi
Hollywood never hit her, but not telling Vi the truth hurt her badly. In the end, he let his fear override his respect for her, and I’m not sure that’s something she can forgive. Plus, is Vi willing to be in a relationship with a man who is legally married to someone else, no matter what the circumstances?
On top of all that, Darla showed up.
I can see both sides of this one. Darla’s addiction put Blue in danger, and Vi will never forget that. But Darla is Blue’s mother, and he loves her. If she can truly get clean and change her life, perhaps mother and child both deserve a second chance.
I was very impressed with Darla, both with her story to Blue, which showed that she understood both what went wrong in her life and why, and when she told Vi and Hollywood thank you for saving and caring for her son. Her words showed a lot of maturity.
I want to payback my debts and bring goodness to where I once brought discord. That's all I'm trying to do and I hope that some day you'll see fit to let me.
Darla
Ralph Angel was right to, respectfully, stand up to Aunt Vi. If he and Darla can turn their lives around, all the better for their son, and it was hard not to see how happy it made Blue to be with both his parents during the storm. That child deserves to have that kind of love in his life, if it’s possible.
Finally, we get to Charley and Remy…
When two people want to get together can't nothing hold that back, not even themselves.
Remy
I know Remy was talking about Vi and Hollywood, but I think the words apply to him and Charley, too.
Unfortunately, as huge a step as it was taking off her wedding ring, I don’t think Charley is anywhere near ready for a new relationship. Not to mention that Charley and Remy have very different personalities. They could eventually be good together, but I suspect there will be plenty of obstacles along the way.
So glad that everyone made it through the storm in one piece. Now I’m off to Google what the heck “bijou bitch” means, because that’s a new one on me.
Check back in on Monday to see what our Queen Sugar round table has to say about the hurricane, and if you can’t wait for more, you can watch Queen Sugar online here at TV Fanatic.
C. Orlando was a TV Fanatic Staff Writer. Follow her on Twitter.
