Queen Sugar Season 6 Episode 5 Review: Moving So Easily Through That Common Depth
Christine Orlando
at
.
Updated at
.
There's a bible verse that says, "Pride goeth before destruction."
Well, after Queen Sugar Season 6 Episode 5, it doesn't take a prophet to predict where Ralph Angel's pride is leading him.
It's going to destroy everything he's worked so hard to build.
I want to say that it makes no sense. Ralph Angel is a smart man. He's a good man. He knows the difference between right and wrong.
Why would he ever agree to steal from the Landrys?
Yet, when you look at where Ralph Angel was five years ago, it's both shocking and easy to see how he's ended up back in this place.
Ralph Angel was in prison for committing armed robbery. Remember when he left Blue on a park bench so he could try and rob a convenience store?
Yeah, Ralph Angel has a history of making poor choices with the best of intentions but watching him go down this dark path once again is maddening.
I know what I’m doing tonight is wrong, even though it’s for the right reasons. It’s wrong. And I probably shouldn’t ask you this, but keep me safe tonight, please. I promise from here on out I’m going to do right. I’m going to be the type of man my family can be proud of. That’s my word.
Ralph Angel
Ralph Angel knows darn well what he's doing is wrong, and he knows the risks. He could end up back in prison, and with his history of incarceration, there's little doubt he could do serious time.
He could lose the farm. And more importantly, he could lose years with Darla and his kids.
What's most frustrating is that none of this is necessary. There are people in this world who have no options. People who have no money and no one who can help them. That's not Ralph Angel.
Darla has the money from her parents. She wants to contribute. She's begging Ralph Angel to let her help, but his pride won't allow it.
What male chauvinistic crap is that? Ralph Angel and Darla are supposed to be partners, yet he's not allowing her to help. Then he's going behind her back and making decisions that could destroy their family.
He doesn't seem to understand that shutting Darla out is only stressing her out more. She needs to feel a part of the solution. Ralph Angel thinks he's protecting her, but he's only causing her more fear and anxiety, only he doesn't see it that way.
Instead, he's listening to Theo.
Ralph Angel: I got family now. Kids. I need them to be proud of me.
Theo: Families respect men who provide. They don’t give a damn how you do it as long as you do it. You feel me.
I can't believe Ralph Angel is buying this load of bull. Ralph Angel's family respects him. They respect him because of how he's turned his life around. They wouldn't lose an ounce of respect for him if he asked for help.
And that's all he has to do. Charley has more money than she knows what to do with, and she would gladly help. She knows the Black Farmers Alliance money is tied up in court. She'd be furious to know that someone poisoned the farm with pesticides to ruin the crops.
The farm is part of the family's legacy. Ernest was Charley's father too. She'd want to save it. All Ralph Angel has to do is ask.
Ralph Angel: I got some pickup work with my boy, Theo.
Darla: Theo from prison.
Ralph Angel: I used to be Ralph Angel from prison.
If Ralph Angel continues with this pig-headed lunacy and doesn't course correct soon, he's going to be "Ralph Angel from prison" once again.
Worst of all, he's not even keeping his word in that prayer to God. Ralph Angel got away with the crime. He was kept safe. You'd think he'd be grateful and stand by his vow never to do this again, but it doesn't sound like that's his intention.
Ralph Angel is flat broke. He's got payday loans coming due. He's stealing to make his bills, and now he's planning to risk his freedom once again so he can take Darla on a babymoon! What is the matter with this man?
Okay, my Ralph Angel rant is over. I'll move on for now.
Nova and Billie continued to put the past behind them and rebuild their friendship, so much so that Nova gave Billie a sneak peek at her next article.
What flummoxed me was that Nova has been so paranoid lately, and rightfully so, about backlash over her articles that she had a security system installed on her home. Yet she just told Dominic to come in because her front door was open.
A security system isn't going to save you if you can't be bothered to lock your door.
Micah continued his meditation and his friendship with Isaiah and came to some new realizations about coping with the world.
I’ve been thinking a lot about Mr. Prosper and my own experience with police abuse and what I realize, and have to remind myself, that I can’t control any of that. The only thing I can control is how I respond to it.
Micah
Grasping the concept that your only real power is over how you respond to a situation is something most people struggle with their entire lives.
And I love that he came home and shared that realization with Charley. I'm enjoying their mother/son bond as Micah continues to become his own man.
Charley could learn a thing or two from her son.
Nova: You’re famous.
Charley: Infamous is more like it. Black Twitter is letting me have it.
Nova: Black Twitter ain’t no joke.
If Charley runs for political office, her rekindled relationship with Davis will eventually be made public, so I understand her wanting to take control of the story and get ahead of that.
But Aunt Vi is right. How the public feels about who she loves shouldn't mean so much to her.
Charley: Social media is going crazy and…
Violet: Oh, Charley. Social media. Why do you care so much about what folks think about who you are in a relationship with? Most of those folks you don’t know from a can of paint.
Charley: Good question and good point.
Violet may not want to borrow trouble, but she sees it creeping up on her marriage. She's not blind to how Hollywood has bonded with Gabriel, and it worries her.
Violet: You’re still okay with that? Without passing on your last name or your legacy?
Hollywood: Vi, legacy is about more than just kids.
Will Vi and Hollywood eventually get custody of Gabriel if something happens to his mother? Will they decide to foster a child of their own. I'm not sure where this storyline is headed, but I am intrigued.
But the most heartfelt moments went to Prosper and Billie.
Billie had her reason to be gone for so many years, but she's trying hard to help take care of her father now, and as much as I love Prosper, he hasn't made it easy.
Prosper doesn't realize how much he criticizes Billie.
The food she buys, the gifts she gives him. He won't even accept a coffee pot. He calls her taking a cookie when she was six years old shoplifting. I don't think he realizes how negative he is towards her.
But this is an opportunity for both of them to get past all of it, and that hug they shared at the end was everything.
Prosper: You were always your own person, Billie. And sometimes that didn’t fit in with what I wanted you to be, and I was wrong for that. I hope you can forgive me for all of the times that I failed you.
Billie: I love you so much, and I’m sorry for anything I ever did that embarrassed you or made you feel like I wasn’t worthy of your love.
Prosper: You were always worthy, and I love you so much.
So, what did you think, Queen Sugar fans?
Is Ralph Angel destined to get busted with Theo? Does it make sense that he's headed down this road once again?
Is Nova too trusting when it comes to Dominic?
Will Charley's relationship with Davis affect her political aspirations?
And do you hope that Billie sticks around St. Jo's?
Hit that big, blue, SHOW COMMENTS button down below to let us know, and then check back in for our next Queen Sugar review.
C. Orlando was a TV Fanatic Staff Writer. Follow her on Twitter.
