Y'all. Y'ALL. Queen Sugar was not playing with us this week. From the very beginning of the episode, they sucked us right back in, with not just a Violet and Hollywood reunion, but a Violet and Hollywood reunion in bed. As in, lounging around in a hotel room after sex, making plenty of inappropriate innuendoes about chocolate and berries that I watched through my fingers because I seriously feel like Violet and Hollywood are my aunt and uncle. Still, I watched, because I appreciate the series featuring a sexy scene between these two. Mama — or in this case, Aunty — has gotta get hers too, amiright?!
AdvertisementADVERTISEMENT
Their reverie is short lived, though: Hollywood gets a call and finds out that he's shipping out to the rig again in 48 hours...for five months. The duo decides to make the most of the rest of their time together, watching Iyanla and Oprah on Super Soul Sunday (I see you OWN with the promo!), drinking wine coolers in the hot tub, and enjoying a candlelight dinner by the hotel pool. It's there that Hollywood tells Violet he's decided he's going to quit the rig job so he can be with Violet full-time in St. Josephine. When Violet asks if he's sure, he re-assures her that she's what matters most in his life; he'll figure the rest out later. I definitely teared up a little bit here. Is there anything more satisfying than Black love?
Back in New Orleans, Charley comes to Nova's house to pick up Micah, who spent the night there after the fundraiser. Nova mentions she's headed to a symposium in Atlanta to speak about mass incarceration, sponsored by the National Association of Black Journalists. (Nice shoutout to NABJ there!) But first and foremost, she tells Charley she's worried about Micah, who's been sleeping a lot and not eating. Charley tries to talk to him in the car on the ride back to St. Josephine, asking if he told his dad he wants him to have shared custody. Micah confirms that while he does want to see his dad more, he never specifically said he wants him to have joint custody. Uh oh.
AdvertisementADVERTISEMENT
Charley storms into Davis's apartment to confront him for twisting Micah's words. And then Davis drops a bomb: That he knows she signed his name on the loan for her mill. Double uh oh. As predicted, Davis proceeds to blackmail her, saying that if he doesn't get joint custody of Micah, he'll expose her. But Charley being Charley, she's always one step ahead, so she calls his bluff, reminding him that she has a lot more dirt on him than he does on her, and that won't play out too well in court.
Ralph Angel calls to tell Charley he's bene approved for a mico loan for the soy bean crop, but she still isn't interested.
Back at the farm, Ralph Angel shows his parole officer the more recent will and testament that he found from his father; the PO tells him that while he's not a lawyer, he thinks it's legit and would stand up in court should his sisters try to sue him. Ralph has a decision on his hands: Should he bring the will to light, or keep it to himself?
In the backyard, Ralph hears Blue playing with a toy that's buzzing — and suddenly crashes. He runs outside to check on Blue and sees that he was chasing a drone with a camera attached. It doesn't take him long to figure out who has a drone flying over his property, so he heads straight to Jacob Boudreaux's office to confront him. And then Boudreaux threatens Blue, and Ralph Angel almost beats the living daylight out of him — until Jacob reminds Ralph that beating him up would send him, a convicted felon, straight back to prison. But Ralph Angel ain't too worried about that — he tells Boudreaux that if he even looks Blue's way, "It ain't no jail big enough or bad enough to keep me me from hurting you. Watch yourself."
AdvertisementADVERTISEMENT
Over at the Atlanta symposium, Nova meets Robert DuBois, an epidemiologist and fellow panelist. I immediately get excited to see her talking to a Black man again (sorry, Calvin). The two have some good banter, and we learn a little bit more about Nova's mom, whom she mentions in past tense during the conversation and says never got to see much outside of Louisiana. So Nova and Ralph's mom is deceased, then? Hmmm...
On the panel, Nova and Robert disagree over the semantics of the word genocide as it applies to mass incarceration. You can feel the tension between these two, and after the panel, they admit they were both pretty tough on one another, and start to talk about how they can actually work together toward the same goal. And then they take a walk outside the conference, talking about their passions, and it all begins to feel a little romantic — just as Robert grabs Nova's hand. And she lets him. Awwwww, shucks now!
At the farm, Ralph Angel and Blue are sleeping peacefully when RA hears some disturbance outside. There's someone out there stealing crops, and I assume it's going to be one of the Boudreaux or the Landrys — but when one of the men gets left behind by the getaway car, Ralph Angel sees that it's Henry Lee, one of the local Black farmers. In the kitchen with Prosper and Charley, he apologizes to the trio, explaining that he needed extra money, so he decided to be a snitch for the Landrys by an eye on the Bordelon's farm and stealing some of their cane for the Landrys/Boudreaux to check out. Charley threatens to call the police, but Ralph Angel stops her, saying he can relate to a man doing bad things because he needs something and can't figure out any possible way to get it.
AdvertisementADVERTISEMENT
Charley is generally pretty hard on Ralph, but when she wakes up the morning after the incident to the sound of Blue and Ralph giggling in bed, she visibly softens a little. Finally, the siblings decide to actually team up, and they go to pay Boudreaux and Sam Landry a visit in person. "Do you really think you can beat us at this game?" Landry asks. Charley — who keeps calling them "Boys" in a boss b-word voice that makes me chuckle — says they should be asking themselves that very same question.
Back with Violet and Hollywood, the newly reunited couple return home to St. Josephine to find their family at the door to surprise them. They have a little reunion celebration with drinks and music, and Charley looks over to see Micah smiling again for the first time in awhile. After Ralph says some kind words to him, she softens toward him even more, telling him that she understands he wants to use the farm to stand on his own two feet and encouraging him to do so. I wonder if this means Ralph won't do anything with that will after all?
Charley and Micah then leave with their suitcases, joking that they don't want to hear all the noise of Violet and Hollywood's reunion — plus, it's probably time they find a place of their own, anyway. And so the two are off...surprisingly, to Davis's place, where Charley drops off Micah. Davis promises to do right by their son, and Charley leaves with an "I hope so." I don't trust that SOB, but I guess every son does need a father figure, so I also hope he keeps his word.
We end on Nova checking out of her Atlanta hotel to head home. DuBois is, sweetly, waiting in the lobby with a cup of coffee and his sexy ass glasses. (I mean, he's chocolate and smart...!) The two have some more banter before Nova says goodbye and heads to the airport, telling him that if he's ever in New Orleans, he should call her up. Nova gets into the back of the cab with that sparkly I've-Got-A-Crush smile we all know so well, and I can't help but smile back at her on the screen. Nova is happy! She has a crush! And she's back to Black men! (Sorry, white dudes, but, I am so happy for her.)
At the end of this episode, my heart felt happy and light for the whole Bordelon clan. Things seem to be going their way, at least temporarily. Let's hope it stays that way next week!