“The Mis-Adventures of Awkward Black Girl” served as Issa Rae’s calling card in the industry, but it’s “Insecure” that launched her into another stratosphere. Now approaching household name status, the six-time Emmy nominee has an eight-figure overall deal with WarnerMedia and a slew of projects in the pipeline, including “Nice White Parents,” an adaptation of the popular podcast examining the influence of resourced white parents on Black and brown students within the New York public school system, and “The Vanishing Half,” an adaptation of Brit Bennett’s novel about estranged Black identical twin sisters.
“Insecure’s” fifth and final season premieres on HBO Sunday night, but the end of the South LA comedy is just the beginning of the next chapter of what promises to be a long and storied career for the multi-hyphenate. As happy as I am to follow Rae on her journey to mogul-dom, I’m going to miss “Insecure.” But I’m also relieved that I’m going to miss it — so many series outstay their welcome, and “Insecure” is concluding its run feeling just as fresh and relevant as when it premiered in 2016. It has only improved, growing deeper and more ambitious with time.
The final season kicks off on a nostalgic note. Issa (Rae), Molly (Yvonne Orji), Kelli (Natasha Rothwell), and Tiffany (Amanda Seales) attend their 10-year college reunion at Stanford, where Issa is speaking on a panel comprised of alumni entrepreneurs. Feeling “super official” thanks to the school providing her with airfare and a handler, Issa finds herself struggling when it comes to offering words of wisdom about the panel’s subject matter, finding your path. She’s proud of her work with BLOCC, the community org she founded, but she admits that she still isn’t sure that she’s on the right path. “To be honest, there’s no way to be sure you’ve made the right choice,” she tells the audience. “Maybe I’ll wake up tomorrow and realize that I’ve wasted all my time and that’s time I can’t really get back.”
Issa’s personal life is similarly unstable. She’s working on mending things with Molly, but things are still awkward between the BFFs.
As funny, warm, and relatable as ever, “Insecure” remains a gem, and watching its newest season feels like reuniting with a friend. While Rae is the co-creator, star, and exec producer of the show, it’s always felt like she made it a mission to share her spotlight with other women, and especially Black women, both on-screen and behind the scenes. Women have written and directed the majority of “Insecure’s” episodes, an important part of the show’s legacy that doesn’t get nearly enough attention.
Season 5 of “Insecure” premieres October 24 on HBO.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kBb2Pbh20m4
