Let’s do this.

Insecure As F**k

Youtube star and comedian Issa Rae brings us Insecure on HBO a highly enjoyable take on being young, black and a woman in this day and age.  One of the things that struck me about the pilot is how much it spoke to my personal experiences: being the only black girl in a room; catching it from both sides of the white/black divide: to ‘bougie’ and well educated for the black folks and not ‘ghetto’ enough to satisfy the white expectation and need to feel like they’re ‘helping’ you up. It’s a very raw take on the line that most of us have to walk yet it finds the humor in that line in new and unexpected ways.

Issa Rae herself is a delight. There’s a kind of wide eyed innocence to her acting that is adorably refreshing. No matter how much life throws at her she never loses hope and the expectation that things will be better dammit. The insecurity comes in knowing that she’s the key to making things better she’s just got to be brave enough to step out of her comfort zone, which is always easy in theory. Yvonne Orji, as Issa’s best friend Molly, is quietly grounding to the story. While on the surface she’s way more pulled together than Issa emotionally she’s possibly even more of a mess. Yet again Orji finds the humor in Molly’s life and her physicality is a thing of beauty. Seriously, there’s one scene where her reaction had me laughing so hard I had to stop my viewing and pull myself together.

Overall Insecure is worth checking into and I’m here for the journey of our two leading ladies.

5 out of 5 Open Mic Nights.