Hiya Monday, (Goodbye, Issa and the Gang!)

IT'S OVERRRRRRR!!!!! AND I HAVE TO WRITE ABOUT IT!!

What a wonderful journey it has been! Before watching the series finale, I went back in time and re-watched the pilot episode. I really wanted to see the growth: a clear distinction between Issa five years ago and Issa now. And I’ am glad that I did because some of the easter eggs sprinkled throughout the finale would have been lost on me otherwise (more on that later).

Okay, so where did we begin? Issa, 29, awkward AF, but hella cute with her short fro and converse sneakers, working at We Got Ya’ll a non-profit organization aiming to help kids from the hood, despite Issa being the only Black employee, dealing with microaggressions on the reg while being both hyper-visual and invisible to her co-workers, feeling stuck in a 5-year-long stale ass relationship with Lawrence who has been “getting his shit together for four years”, and dealing with all of her anxiety and stress by rapping to herself in the mirror.

The journey from “Insecure As Fuck” to “Everything Gonna Be, Okay?!” has been messy, crazy, rewarding, stressful, emotional and hella FUN! From Issa cheating, to Lawrence's glow up (no more watching motivational videos while sitting on the couch all day in sweatpants), to Molly’s mess of a dating life, to getting high and messy with the ladies, to getting robbed, to Kelly “dying” and Tiffany having a baby, its been a rollercoaster ya’ll. But its led us all here, to the end. To everyone’s well deserved GLOW UP.

So, where are we now? Issa, 34?, a boss of her OWN company: The Blocc, where she helps Black businesses and artists get the recognition they deserve, she is no longer struggling to make ends meet, she’s in a solid relationship with Lawrence who has finally “got his shit together”. Our girl is content, happy, and fulfilled, so much so that while she is in the bathroom getting ready to go out with Lawrence, the anxious part of her is no longer spitting fear from the other side of the mirror. I was waiting for it, waiting for that voice in her head to say some shit to spoil the mood with some foolishness like: Ummm…that lip colour ain’t doing it. Are you really happy though? Girllllll…when you gunna have a baby, ya ain’t getting any younger, ya know? BUT instead of all of that foolish nonsense, she puts her lipstick on in silence and answers a call from Molly, who is finally having the well-deserved break she’s never given herself.

Let’s talk about Molly who was always too hard on herself, in her work, in her life decisions, and in her relationships. She was always giving too much and not stopping to ask if she was getting the same back. It all came crashing down on her in season 4 as she lashed out on Issa, losing herself in a relationship because damn she just wanted a WIN. A man. A husband. She came to a point where she was selling her soul just to keep a man. But this season, Molly put down the baggage, and said “what will be, will be”. And when she stopped agonizing over where her life was going, when she stopped searching high and low for a partner, something unexpected happened. Someone who was always there but was disregarded because they both seen the other as competition suddenly put his guard down, too. It came easy because they were both vulnerable and willing. And there it was, a match made in heaven. She now has the kind of man she can talk shop with, someone who isn’t afraid of her success because he’s got his own shit together, someone just as motivated and intelligent as she is, but also someone she could get high with, gorge on appetizers and have wild sex in a pantry with. He fell into her lap at a time she wasn’t even looking for anything serious. Ain’t that how it be sometimes? And now the bish is MARRIED Ya’ll! And if you remember first-episode Molly: depressed, and defeated, and struggling in her search for real love. Now, she’s happy, married and travelling with bae. GROWTH.

Kelly proves to us that life is unexpected. That we’re always growing, changing, and transforming. Kelly, who loudly and proudly recalled her sex-capades to anyone and I do mean ANYONE who would listen, Kelly who brought the drugs and fun to every gathering, Kelly who never wanted to settle down, found someone who made her change her mind. Now, Kelly’s a mother, and I only wish we could have seen it, because witnessing Kelly out in the world mothering would have been an absolute hoot to watch. (I mean she is one of the greatest, most hilarious, joyful parts of this show). Anyways, GROWTH.

Picture-perfect, bougie ass Tiffany…finally peeled back the thick, velvety curtains last season and let us truly see her. Tiffany who never has a single strand of hair out of place, who insults you with a whole ass smile on her face, who appears as if nothing can faze her, finally took the shades off and showed us what was lurking beneath. Motherhood was not as easy for Tiffany as she thought it would be. Tiffany was too afraid to admit that she was struggling, too deep in the depression of postpartum, causing her to run away, worrying her husband and friends. After nearly a whole episode of searching LA, they finally locate her at a hotel where she opens the door in a towel, no make-up on, and her hair au natural. In this moment she completely let her guard down and welcomed the support from her husband and girlfriends. This season, Tiffany and her husband make the decision to move to Denver, and although Tiffany keeps a smile on her face, and appears as if “everything is fine”, she finally opens up when the girls come to visit her for her birthday. She admits that she “fucking hates Denver”. She is not okay, everything is not okay, and sometimes you just need to let that out so you aren’t letting it weigh you down. She may never get used to Denver or maybe she will slowly learn to love it, either way she let go of the façade and spoke her truth. GROWTH.

And so, it ends as it began, Issa on her birthday, still in a relationship with Lawrence. But this time he is taking her out for her birthday, got a babysitter and everything, because new Lawrence plans ahead. I am SO HAPPY that they figured their shit out. But I ain’t too caught up to admit that I (and everyone else who was rooting for Lawrence over Nathan) ain’t messy as hell for wanting it to end this way. Nathan literally took the words out of my mouth when he said their shit was "messy and toxic". I mean the back and forth, the cheating, the baby mama drama. Their relationship was unstable AF. And if this were the real world, all of us Issa and Lawrence shippers, would instead be telling our friend to LET IT GO, rather than rooting for them to get back together…again. But this is a show. And I am convinced that the only reason Lawrence was given as much airtime throughout the series, after their first break-up, was because the fans practically petitioned for it. And ya gotta give the fans what they want, right?

Regardless, I have faith in them making it work. Lawrence got his life together, Issa is a boss lady, Lawrence is a great father, and Issa is step-mommy-ing like a G. GROWTH! It all came full circle. With so many easter eggs shown throughout the episode to prove to us just how much things have changed. Married Molly proving she doesn’t have a “broken pussy” (referring to the rap song Issa sang in the first episode about Molly having a “broken pussy” and that’s why she can’t keep a man). Well, she’s married now, sis! Issa driving by We Got Ya’ll witnessing her old co-worker outside with a group of kids, seemingly running the show now, Issa driving by The Dunes (the apartment where it all began), by the Rite-Aid where she literally used to buy panties (lol), and finally by a look-alike of Lawrence in a Best Buy t-shirt (blue really was his colour, though). And then she arrives to her new classy AF home, where her boo is waiting for her with a delicious cake and his adorable son (who attempted to scribble her name on the cake, ADORABLE)! And ya’ll, she’s got a ring on her finger!!!! See? Shit can be figured out; it doesn’t have to be so messy after all. What’s that saying: if you love something let it go and if it comes back to you, it was always yours. Issa and Lawrence just needed to grow apart from each other before they could grow together. And I had a blast watching them do so.

It is only fitting to mention that the first song to play in the pilot episode was Kendrick Lamar’s song “Alright”. He spoke it into existence. Yes, shit got hard, and stressful, and heartbreaking at times, but Issa and the Gang made it through all the obstacles together. Just like Kendrick Lamar predicted: We Gun Be Alright!!

It’s over, but there are always reruns. I admire this show for what it brought us, not since Girlfriends has there been a show that brought me so much joy. In some of the characters, I saw myself, in others, I saw my girlfriends, and therefore I connected to this show on a deeply personal level. Black women struggling, and living, and thriving, while listening to dope music (I mean the soundtrack every season was FIRE), rocking outfits that I literally drooled over, and hairstyles that I wanted to emulate (Issa was always killing the natural hair game). I appreciate what the show gave to Black culture. I appreciate what it emphasized, what it revealed, what it highlighted about being a Black woman out in the world. I loved all the antics, the girlfriend bonding, the heartbreak, the breakdowns, the get-ups, the break-ups, the make-ups, the hook-ups, the mess-arounds, the go-getting, and the glow-ups. It was fun, ya’ll. But now I’m gunna speak something into existence:

WE WANT AN “INSECURE” MOVIE, ISSA!

Until next time,

With love,

Teya