Insecure's Series Finale Proves That Growth Can Be Messy

From Awkward Black Girl(2011) to Insecure(2016), Issa Rae has stunned white-washed Hollywood and awe-inspired Millennials as well as the Black community with her brilliant writing command and directorial craft. We’ve laughed, cried, and gotten outright enraged as we witnessed Issa(played by self) and best friend Molly(Yvonne Orji) navigate the complexities of Blackness and womanhood. Reflected on their struggle with maintaining consistent, healthy relationships, the friends reach a somewhat fitting conclusion in the show’s series finale. 

Throughout the show’s five seasons, Rae has dropped heavy realities about the outliers and obscured discussions around incompatible relationships(intimate or relational). Issa’s character presented a balance between the harshness of breakups, loneliness, reclusion, and hesitance toward certain changes alongside the highs of joy and acceptance. 

There are notions of unconditional love knowing no bounds, even in the aftermath of betrayals and disappointments. Rae highlights the intricacies of stepping into your own power and having the space for healthy introspection. 

The series’ end encapsulates that old adage of time flying by with an apparently rushed chronicle of each characters’ storybook ending. 

There are tons of missing explicit details like Molly’s grieving stage after her mother’s passing with a bittersweet life event of marriage to Tauren(Leonard Robinson), and Issa ultimately ending up back in the arms of her ex-fiancee Lawrence(Jay Ellis). The speed establishes a resounding truth that life just happens sometimes, whether within our control or not. And when life happens it hits hard or ushers you on with grace. The show has done so much social and cultural uplifting for Black and Brown folks who needed a shimmering light during these darkening times. And Insecure sought to maintain genuine relatability with humanness, raw moments of fuck ups, and lessons learned. 

The series finale may not have been the typical ending so many fans craved, but it’s important to note that Issa needed to make the choices right for herself and her specific healing/growth journey. There’s no one right way to achieve some sort of inner peace or stability. Such a lesson we should start applying to our own life journeys. 

You can watch the series now streaming on HBO Max.