4 TV Shows That Are Love Letters To Black Sisterhood And Style

TV is like a portal to other places and times. It gives us a front-row seat into other people’s lives. When I turn on my TV these days, I can be quickly transported back in time to the 1950s, seeing Deborah Ayorinde as Livia ‘Lucky’ Emory in a bold lip and vibrant mod dress as she combats racism and horror in THEM. A quick channel flip brings me to present-day London, where Michaela Coel’s ‘Arabella’ stays wrapped in oversized cardigans while sporting a bright pink wig in I May Destroy You. A button push on my remote thrusts me back in time to the ballrooms of 1980s New York City in Pose, where Black transgender women like Blanca (Mj Rodriguez), Angel (Indya Moore), and Elektra (Dominique Jackson) turn acid wash jeans, tulle, and satin into breathtaking high-glam moments. With Starz’s recently premiered show Run The World, we’re introduced to four new characters with effortless style who represent the modern day Black woman’s desired to slay, get paid and party with her gals. Run The World is a fashion party every Sunday night at 8:30pm EST (or turn up after the after party on the Starz App where you can catch the replay).

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The Women Of 'Black Lightning' On Being Badass, Embracing Their Powers In The 'High Stakes' Season 2

The second season of The CW’s impactful superhero series, Black Lightning is well underway. This season, the women who have stood behind, Jefferson Pierce (Cress Williams) as he reluctantly resumed his role as the vigilante, Black Lightning, are about to be front and center. During Season 1, the audience watched as Jefferson’s ex-wife Lynn (Christine Adams) voiced her concern and disdain about Jeff putting his superhero suit back on. Now, Lynn is ready to take matters into her own hands, using her own superpowers – her role as a doctor and scientist—to save the children of Freeland who have succumbed to the volatile Green Light drug. 

Jeff and Lynn’s daughters Anissa (Nafessa Williams) and Jennifer (China Anne McClain) are also finding their footing as superheroes in their own right. During Black Lightning's inaugural season we watched the young women grapple with the knowledge of their father’s true identity, as well as the revelation of their own powers. While Anissa is keen to work alongside her father as the superhero Thunder, Jennifer is uncomfortable with her new abilities and her inability to control them. 

Reluctant as they may have been, as Salim Akil, Black Lightning's creator/showrunner, told Shadow and Act, the women of Black Lightning will spend season 2 following in Jeff's footsteps and coming into their own. 

Shadow and Act recently traveled to Decatur, Georgia, where Black Lightning is filmed to speak with Christine Adams, Nafessa Williams, and China Anne McClain about Season 2 and why their characters will be the focal points as we move forward. 

"I think I've been so lucky to play this kind of character in this kind of show," Adams said of Lynn, who is the only person in the Pierce household without superhuman abilities. "There was always the discussion of her not having superpowers --how that feels, and how she would navigate this chapter. Lynn has evolved. She's a protective mother, that's always first and foremost. But also at the end of season one, she killed someone. There's no going back from that," she said. "In season two, she goes on this unbelievable journey, which is not just about the family but it's about her as a doctor, as a mother, a woman, and a wife. Killing someone has tapped into something very primal to Lynn." 

Continue reading at Shadow and Act.