Baller Alert Entertainment & Lifestyle
The season finale of HBO’s Insecure had social media in a frenzy; a timeline divided. Most were #TeamLawrence, happy that he finally “bossed up on that b*tch,” as some said. Others were #TeamIssa, while the rest were #TeamBankBae. But, what is the real reason Insecure’s “Broken as F*ck” episode had people up in arms?
Now that we’ve all had a chance to digest, let’s break down season one of HBO’s “Insecure” (if you aren’t caught up, don’t read further if you want to avoid spoilers)…
In episode 1, “Insecure as F*ck,” the show opens up with a rough introduction to Issa, her life and the non-profit that she works for, We Got Y’all. Also it’s her birthday. Immediately afterwards, before we meet Issa’s boyfriend Lawrence, we are introduced to Daniel (Issa’s ex-beau). Although she goes on and on about wanting to give Lawrence the boot, she stays in the relationship and decides to entertain her ex. Fast forward to the end of the episode, Issa ends up at Daniel’s house. He gets in her car and they kiss. Issa tells Daniel that she just got out of a relationship (meanwhile she never officially broke up with Lawrence) and he tells her he isn’t looking for a relationship and leaves her car. At the end, Issa ends up at her best friend Molly’s house for the night.
Episode 2 “Messy as F*ck”: Issa is still at Molly’s house, ignoring Lawrence’s calls. She goes to Rite Aid to pick up a few things, then she runs into Lawrence. At this point Lawrence is caught completely off guard. He has no idea why Issa is upset or what her problem is. He thinks it’s because he ruined her birthday, however, it’s really because he’s complacent in his lack of employment and drive. After their little spat at Rite Aid, Issa is still crashing at Molly’s house. In the meantime, Lawrence tries to turn things around for himself and Issa.
Episode 3, “Racist as F*ck”: Issa finally goes back home. She expresses her frustration about work and her white co-workers to Lawrence, who in turn, understands, comforts and encourages her. However, when Lawrence tries to talk to Issa about his day, she remains cold and distant. Fast forward a few scenes, Lawrence goes to pick up his unemployment check and that’s when we are introduced to Bank Bae, otherwise known as Tasha. She encourages him, tells him he is smart and to keep his head up in his search for a job, which motivates him to keep going. At the end, Lawrence gets a job at Best Buy in an effort to make things right with Issa. “I’m in this, are you?” Lawrence asks, to which Issa responds, “I’m in this.”
Episode 4, “Thirsty as F*ck”: Issa and Lawrence are finally moving forward in a positive direction. They are having sex more, shopping for new furniture and communicating. However, things take a turn when Daniel shows up at Issa’s job. He apologizes for the way things went down in the car, but Issa tells him that she is back with Lawrence (who she never broke up with). Shortly after, Issa’s co-worker asks her to invite Daniel to career day, to which Issa obliges. The next day, Lawrence is on break from his job at Best Buy. Tasha joins him and continues to be encouraging and uplifting. In the meantime, Issa hosts career day, Daniel shows up and tells the kids that Issa raps. Issa explains to Molly that Daniel knows that she has a boyfriend, but Molly asks, “do you?” At the end, the kids find Issa’s “Broken P*ssy” video.
Episode 5 “Shady as F*ck”: Issa complains about the video to Lawrence, Molly and Daniel. While with Daniel, she gets worked up into a frenzy over the video so he invites her inside of his music studio. There, the two vibe out and record music. Meanwhile, Lawrence is at work, blowing off Tasha who keeps shooting her shot. In the end, Issa and Daniel end up having sex in the studio.
Episode 6 “Guilty as F*ck” : Issa wakes up and immediately regrets her decision. She gets home to Lawrence who tells her he got the “Broken P*ssy” video removed from the internet and her emotions get the best of her. She tries to get in the mood with Lawrence, except she keeps having flashbacks of Daniel. The next morning, she wakes up and cooks her man a big guilty breakfast with “real bacon, blueberry waffles, eggs lightly scrambled, plus strawberries and pineapples.” Now Issa is ignoring Daniel and swiping left on his messages. She and Lawrence go on a date and he takes her to look at engagement rings. However, that moment triggers another flashback of Daniel and Issa rushes out. At the end of the episode, Lawrence sees a text message from Daniel on Issa’s phone and that’s when sh*t gets real.
Episode 7, “Real as F*ck”: Lawrence has a big interview and gets the job on the spot. However when he’s giving Issa the big news, he realizes he’s ready to get his app off the ground, instead of taking the job. Issa talks him out of it, asking if he wants things to go back to the way they were. Fast forward to Issa’s fundraiser for We Got Y’all. To Issa’s surprise, Daniel shows up to the fundraiser, claiming he was invited by the group after his career day presentation. Molly tries to shoo him away, however it doesn’t work. So, Issa handles it on her own. Problem is, Lawrence notices the two arguing. When Daniel leaves the fundraiser, Lawrence follows to ask him what his connection is to We Got Y’all. To which he responds, “I don’t have one anymore.” At the end of the fundraiser, Lawrence goes home while Issa cleans up. When she gets home, she’s greeted by an angry Lawrence. He asks her, “Who is Daniel?” She tells him that they went to high school together and that he worked at career day for the kids. So, he asks, “Did you f*ck him?” She said, “Why would you ask me that?” To which, he asks again. Lawrence sees the look on Issa’s face and goes off. She says it was just a mistake and Lawrence responds, “oh, so you f*cked up our shit for some nigga who’s a gotdamn mistake.” The two argue, Issa cries and Lawrence leaves.
Episode 8 “Broken as F*ck”: Issa is still trying to get in touch with Lawrence. At this point, the tables have completely turned. Lawrence, who has spent seven episodes trying to fix things for himself and make things better for Issa, is staying with a friend. Issa is begging to speak to him. Until she shows up to his new job. There, Lawrence tells her to stop calling. Afterwards, Issa goes on a girl’s trip for her friends birthday. Meanwhile, Lawrence is out with his friends, throwing his new money at strippers. He goes in a backroom with a stripper, who then offers sexual favors for a price. Immediately after, Lawrence calls Issa to tell her that he misses her and that he would like to talk. Issa leaves the girl’s trip and Molly drives her home. There, she finds Lawrence’s keys, an empty room and his Best Buy uniform. At the end of the episode, Lawrence is knocking boots with Tasha, the Bank Bae.
So….here we are. Still wondering what had everyone on edge about the season finale.
All I can come up with is that, we are all a little Insecure. The show is so relatable that we are all acting off of the emotions of past experiences. Everyone’s been cheated on and we’ve all been hurt. So when we see people going through it on television, it’s triggering.
Insecure teaches us that the grass isn’t always greener on the other side, which is a lesson that some of us have learned the hard way, as did Issa. Then, she lost her man to a bank teller who was waiting to take her spot the whole time.
Those who are Team Issa are angry, holding on to the fact that they’ve been hurt. In Insecure, Issa was the dog, the cheater, the manipulator who wants her cake and to eat it too. Lawrence was the one hurt, sticking around trying to fix the relationship. In a way, it is a role reversal. All of the men on social media were rooting for Lawrence to get his groove back. While some women were wondering why he couldn’t work it out with Issa, as many woman have done in their life time. But that’s not how it works in the eyes of society. If a man cheats, for whatever reason it is almost normal for a woman to hold it down and stick through it. However, if a woman cheats, it’s over for good. All because men cheat for ego and woman cheat for emo, as a wise man once said. Basically, a woman cheats with her heart, while a man cheats just to say he did it. It’s all dumb if you ask me, but it is what it is.
In any case, I think Lawrence and Issa will work it out next season. We will just have to wait and see.
What are your thoughts on Issa Rae’s HBO debut?
