#micah bordelon

[trascapades]

👏🏿💐📺#ArtIsAWeapon After seven seasons of beautiful and impactful storytelling, the final episode of @queensugarown airs tonight, Nov. 29. #QueenSugar embodied #ArtIsAWeapon thoughtfully, authentically, perfectly! THANK YOU @ava @owntv and all the actors, directors, crew and staff who made this show possible, these stories relatable and these characters unforgettable!

Reposted from @arraynow For seven seasons, QUEEN SUGAR has delved deeply into the heart and soul of Black America through the saga of the Bordelon family. From #incarceration, #policebrutality and #gentrification to co-dependency, entrepreneurship, enslavement and identity, the drama series has boldly tackled narrative change with an eye toward true social impact.

Over the past two years, ARRAY’s Law Enforcement Accountability Project (@leapaction) has collaborated with artists of varying mediums to hold police officers accountable for the murder of Black people through art activism.

Not only has “Micah” (portrayed by @nckash) joined the LEAP effort, as revealed in last night’s penultimate episode of QUEEN SUGAR, but the brand-new QUEEN SUGAR 101 Learning Companion from #ARRAY101 invites everyone to dig deeper into activism.

Visit QueenSugar101.org to learn more, and view the complete catalog of learning companions at ARRAY101org.

Never Stop Learning.

#LEAPAction #BlackStories #SocialJustice #QueenSugar101 #ARRAY101 #Artivism #BlackStoryTelling #Art #SocialImpact #BlackArt #ColoredTV #BlackCreatives

[lesbianelsas]

I love what you said. That, like... You know, follow my feelings. Don't let them follow me.

Queen Sugar 6x09 “Tossing in the Meadows”

[youngerdrgrey]

Thanksgiving w/ the Bordelon (headcanons)

bc holidays are a time for reflection, family, and wondering how much stress  can be forgotten with good food, good drinks, and a few new memories.

it’s the week before Thanksgiving when Micah drums his thumbs on the counter, puffs his chest, and says, “I want to spend part of Thanksgiving with Dad.” barracks are normally pretty quiet, but he can hear the way his mom struggles to control her breathing. can hear her eyelids stick as she focuses away from the dishes in the sink and prepares to face him again.

Micah nods. “Yeah. Just the morning, and then I’ll head straight for Aunt Vi’s.”

Charley turns around, but she grips the sink behind her like a lifeline. She’s got that over enunciation thing she does when she’s flustered too. “Well, dinner’s at four, Micah. Maybe even earlier with all the extra hands this year. That’s hardly enough time to see your father.”

“Yeah, but--”

“He made a choice.” Charley blinks and starts again. “If he cared about traditions all that much, he --”

“It’s just for a few hours, Mom. I already told him I was coming.”

so, that’s how Thanksgiving kicks off for the year.

+

Originally, Charley was supposed to help with prep because she couldn’t be there in the morning on Thanksgiving. But once Micah changes the plan, she heads over in the morning and acts as designated runner in case they forget anything, or somebody (Blue) takes the rolls out the fridge and ruins the whole batch.

She mostly chops and peels. Blames the tears on the edge of her eyes on the onions and not on the way that this whole mourning thing never really ends.

Nova breezes through the kitchen to grab a carrot at one point. She notes the tears and bites off part of the carrot. “You know what’ll fix that?”

Charley makes a curious sound, but she keeps on chopping. Nova doesn’t say anything, so Charley has to look up to get an answer.

Nova smirks and lifts up the bottle of Hennessey in her hand. She starts saying, “Oh yes,” before Charley can even protest. “That wine’s not what you need on a day like this. Come on, just one. For Daddy.”

Charley points the knife at her sister when she glares. “That’s low, Nova.” But she lowers the knife and gives a little nod. “A short glass. Please. I’ve still got cutting to do.”

Nova pours and adds enough ginger ale that Charley can’t tell exactly how strong the drink is until she sips. Charley sputters a bit, which definitely doesn’t help the tears. But the light burn gives her something else to focus on.

She clinks her cup with Nova’s. “Thank you.”

“Mhm. Remember this kindness when we sit at that Spades table.” Nova turns to head back out the kitchen.

Charley calls out, “I thought we were partners.”

“That was just for that fight. Un-un, I’m back with Rah tonight. You can have Micah.”

“Micah can’t play!”

Nova laughs. “Now, whose fault is that?”

+

Since Nova’s free of her sous chef duties, she hangs out with all the boys. Plays Uno with Blue and keeps him distracted from the hushed conversation Rah and ‘Wood are having about Darla.

He hears it though. Keeps his voice pretty steady as he lays down a blue six and says, “Mommy’s taking me shopping tonight.”

Nova sifts out a red six and tops his. “I heard. You excited?”

He shrugs. “She hasn’t been to any of the stuff this year. We had a potluck.” He draws until he gets a red four. “But only Pops and Auntie Vi went to that.”

Nova lays down a red skip, and Blue barely even groans. She drops a red three. “Now you know that Auntie Vi made the best mac and cheese for your potluck.”

“Of course she did, but I wanted Mommy to see the turkey I drew. It’s only in the gym ‘cause we can’t take them home yet. It’s got every color in the rainbow on it.” He shuffles his cards in his hands. “Even though, they said turkeys can’t be all the colors. I said, ‘it’s my special turkey,’ and Nick laughed at me.”

“Nick? Where have I heard that name?”

Blue glances down at his cards. “Nick didn’t want to come to my birthday.”

She sucks her teeth. That little brat. “And you thought your mom could make him like it?”

Blue shakes his head. “I just thought that she would like it. But she’s not around like she used to be.”

Nova taps his cards so he’ll play one. It’s a wild he finds, and his eyes light up for a second. 

“Auntie Nova,” he whispers, “you wanna know a secret?”

She whispers too, even levels her face with the table like he does. “If you got one!”

He scrambles out of his seat to be that much closer to her, then he says, “I already know what I’m asking Santa for.” He wiggles his eyebrows and that joy charges forward onto his face. “For Mommy and Daddy to get married again.”

Her face goes stiff. Wooden smile, frozen eyes, and that laugh that comes out of her is nothing but air. “Y-you sure about that, Blue?”

He nods. “That’s what I want.” He slips back into his seat. “It’s your turn. Color’s green.”

Color’s surprised, but okay. She’s got a reverse that she casts like a spell.

+

more, eventually.

hope y’all are finding the light and joy, even if night comes so early these days.

[purpleplaid17]

Something has come up in the friendship that’s been unexpected. It’s… intimacy. Y’ know, not like sex or romance, just intimacy of… emotion. I want to tell him everything. I want to hang with him all the time. I just feel genuinely connected to him, y’know? And some people have noticed that, and I let that change the relationship because-- Because you wonder what the intimacy means.

Queen Sugar 6x09 - Micah West

Bonus Nova:

[idealuk]

I’m not sure you guys get how truly funny this is.

Cocoa said that she doesn’t see Buddie coming in the same video that she said that she didn’t see Micah West being queer coming on “Queen Sugar” and commended Ava Duvernay for ‘not shoving it in the audience’s faces on a black show’🙄 (I’m paraphrasing her words).🤣🤣🤣 How hilariously ironic?

Some context: Nicholas Ashe, who plays Micah, is queer and very publicly came out last year (Cocoa was shocked to find this out in real time from a commenter on the video). Rutina Wesley has always played, and has been written as, her character, Nova Bordelon, who’s canonically bi/pan, having a special kinship with both of her nephews, Micah West and Blue Bordelon, juxtaposing with how she treats canonically straight characters as ‘the others’ in scenes with her nephews. Blue Bordelon’s life on the show has spanned from ages ~3-4 to ~10 so far and his soft heart and love for his once-favourite doll, Kenya, being nurtured and cherished has been a consistent plot point throughout the show’s six seasons and that’s with having an especially proud father in Ralph Angel Bordelon, who’s seen hard time, and is actually the most advocating of Blue’s “genderbending tendencies”. This is a beautifully, and thoughtfully, written show, like “9-1-1,” and the writers definitely know how to weave in context clues as to where a storyline is going for considerate audiences members. Micah is now a Sophomore in college and has recently become very close with one of his fraternity brothers. Him questioning his sexuality now makes perfect sense and I, for one, have actually been expecting it for years.

As I’ve said before, I’m kicking myself for not saying it sooner, but Micah talking about his feelings for Isaiah sounds a lot like Buddie (all of this would have been moot if I had and I would’ve looked like some sort of prophet) and here’s a GIFSet of it to prove it. Tell me that I’m wrong.

Cocoa clearly has difficulty picking up on nuances of storytelling, has felt the effects of multiple forms of bigotry (her thinking that only hetero black people watch such a great show as “Queen Sugar” is just wrong), and her non-apology video from today just proves that she learned nothing from Ryan and Chrysti’s whole debacle last year (having friends from the community giving you cover does not make what you did okay and I’m not even going to get in to how she took yet an other opportunity to defend GW in it).

We also have to remember that actors who are in only one or two scenes of an episode receive just their pages and aren’t at table readings. She just doesn’t see the full story that’s being told. It’s that simple.

E.T.A.: The prequels to this post are here and here.

[cowboybuckleys]

[queensugardaily]

-Go on. Say what's on your mind. I know you're disappointed. -Ah, it's none of my business. -But you're feeling some type of way about it. Tell me. Radical truth.

[shaloved30]

Charley & Micah vs The St. Josephine Sheriff's Department- 2.01 // 4.13

[antiphon]

Charley telling Micah “you have to celebrate your wins” is so in the spirit of this show

[bonniebirdjournal]

Micah being there for Blue

[r-oving]

I messed up.

[lesbianelsas]

I hear you. It’s a confusing time for you. But… you don’t have to let it be a distressing time. As in, you don’t have to pin this down or define yourself forever right now. Or any time soon. Or maybe you’re putting too much stress on the question right now. Maybe think of this time as not a question at all. Maybe think of this time - as a discovery. Just continue following your feelings. Don’t lead your feelings. Let your feelings lead you. See where they take you. Don’t stress. Don’t plan. Don’t anticipate. I find that that kind of clutter in your mind produces - false results, you know?

Queen Sugar 6x09 “Tossing in the Meadows”

[youngerdrgrey]

initial Queen Sugar 2x01/2x02 thoughts

spoilers ahead (and hints at the moments I’ll probably be continuing/exploring from these initial premiere episodes)

first off, I have to applaud and appreciate that we start this season on Nova again. close on her but not just on the locs but also on her face, on her in an already settled place as opposed to the purely naked and vulnerable of season one. we don’t find her with a lover and open, but rather channeling her energy and her light into gifts for someone else and dismissing a person who attempts to get closer to her.

.

shoutout also to the scene in 2x01 after Micah’s time in holding where it’s close on him in the bed as Charley tries talking to him and bringing him out of it. beautiful parallel to the moment in the pilot where Micah tries to get Charley to talk to him and come with him after the news about Davis initially breaks.

.

I loved other moments in 2x01, but I’m gonna jump to 2x02 solely because I took more notes and watched 2x02 alone as opposed to with people. (I’ll go back to 2x01 again some time this weekend probably.)

.

I have three (potentially four) scenes I want to write out of 2x02. I’m considering just having a series on ao3 for specific moments in s2/episodes

there’s Micah and Nova, either throughout the day or at the end of the night when Nova undoubtedly brings him home. (could be her home, could be his, I don’t care.) It’d probably include bits of notes from his phone, little unfinished thoughts about everything he’s dealing with between skipping summer school and wandering through a city that he might be ill-equipped to handle and, well, everything else he’s dealing with.

+

Micah and Charley, during the car ride to his school. might be in the same fic/moment or might be a separate one. I just think there’s a lot of half conversations in the car with them that morning, and it’s still so fascinating to me that she’s riding in her Range Rover while her son’s nice new car is sitting in the drive, untouched for fear of what perception might do

+

Remy said, “Your sister and me -- look, it’s just about the mill. It’s about that mill and getting through the harvest. That’s all.”

and I’ll come back to my thoughts on Remy and his mourning and everything else, but he said the above to Ralph Angel and I clearly imagined Ralph Angel messaging Nova like, so Remy and Charley not a thing no more? and having this interlude of interaction that takes place between Remy leaving the High Yellow and Nova arriving.

+

biggest ups and screams and excited hand rubbing to the fact that they’re narratively calling for Charley’s mom. I have been waiting to see what they do with her in canon and to see how that whole thing plays out. and even from that voicemail -- from the fact that Lorna (if they keep her name the same) doesn’t even have a personalized voicemail -- and the way that Charley starts to drift into a moment but so quickly brings herself back ‘round and is like, I thought you would’ve answered, and just lets the moment go.

fas cin a ting

+

y e s to getting more of Remy as a person and separate from Charley. I mean, I obviously love Remy and Charley together; I’ve written a shit ton of words about them; but I think one of the greatest things that can happen is getting to know more about Remy and who he is and what he’s gone through with his past wife.

seeing his place (decor hasn’t changed much in four years, he leads us to believe, but he also still distinctly knows and wants us to know where the house and the decor comes from. wants us to know how he crafted this design with his wife whose name I’m not typing rn because I can’t remember how it’s spelled)

hearing him talk about his wife and his time with her and how important Ernest was to him through that time of grieving and mourning (+ him saying “your daddy” will probably always be one of my favorite things bc it’s so southern and familiar but it’s also how Charley refers to her dad and idk it just reminds me of the fact that these two have very separate connections to the same person and didn’t know each other when those connections were with a living man)

(+ how he shifts away from the first attempt she makes at physical comfort because that’s not what he needs/wants to accept & he just wants to be with his sadness but still be with it in her company and with someone who he can share these memories while he’s working on letting them go back to their place inside him)

(+ that apology. my god. my writers. my dudes. him apologizing for pushing her to choose because he felt like he had four years to make up for but he knows it wasn’t right of him to do that because of the pressure it put on her. + her not accepting the apology because she doesn’t feel like he was in the wrong to do that + him insisting and owning up to the fact that he did sort of try to make her choose quick w/o giving her that time to mourn -- once he realized he was deeply interested obvs)

and, y’all, hearing him say -- and yes, here’s where all my shipper intentions and need for quotes as summaries poked back through -- “You are the first woman that I wanted to know since my wife, Charley.”

“You are the first woman that I wanted to know since my wife, Charley. But before that can happen, you need to mourn the loss of your marriage. You need to push pass the anger and allow yourself to grieve.”

aaaand having that gorgeous pull back shot, just them on his couch with the space there between their bodies (bc y’all know they forgot about personal space the second they realized they were both feeling this) but their bodies still angled at each other (hers a bit more forward and out of reach, but his arm along the back serving as a bridge)

y’all. 

that’s the beginnings of a moment I’ll write, but also a clear roadmap for Charley’s season two emotional journey when it comes to Remy. further Charley journeys include the road to letting Micah have space, even if it means crying in the fetal position next to her Range in the parking lot of his school, or agreeing to give Davis some sort of custody before Davis swoops in and fights her for full. + the road to maybe acknowledging Ralph Angel as a good farmer. the road to her mill being functional and not hurting all of these nice black farmers who are gonna work with her. + the road to dealing with her grief when it comes to her dad and whatever it is that her relationship with her mom, and furthermore connecting with family truly is.

.

quick passing moment of endless love to auntie’s boy Micah at the event. Nova rushing off the stage to him. Micah saying he didn’t know where to go but he ended up here.

Nova might not’ve been there for Ralph Angel when Ra was going through stuff with the system, but she’s gonna be there for every single other person including Micah

[purpleplaid17]

Queen Sugar 6x07 - Hugs

[idealuk]

Nope, I’m not going to be over it for a while, and I have regrets.

I can’t get over how Cocoa thinking that Buddie isn’t happening comes hand-in-hand with her thinking that Eddie x Carla will happen first, and that she ships it, as well as that she didn’t see Micah West questioning his sexuality coming and thinks that it’s a daring move for Ava Duvernay to make on “Queen Sugar”. Micah West who’s played by out-and-proud actor, Nicholas Ashe (her not knowing that shows that she knows nothing about queer social media), Micah West who’s repeatedly grouped in with his canonically bi/pan aunt, Nova Bordelon, and, queercoded from Season 1: Episode 1, little cousin, Blue Bordelon, on the show that had Brian M. Smith playing a trans cop four years ago who was friends with Micah’s uncle/Blue’s father (fuck biology) who has advocated for Blue’s “genderbending tendencies” from the start is not, in fact, some thing that comes out of left field/risqué for the show to do and it’s actually some thing that I’ve been waiting for them to do. (Important? Yes. Coming out of no where? Not at all.) She clearly can’t be an authority on Buddie happening if she didn’t see this coming.

My regrets you ask? Just the other day, I almost made a post that would have been me pointing out how Micah talking about new best friend, Isaiah, sounds a lot like Buck or Eddie talking about the other (Nova got Micah to more-deeply confide in her in this week’s episode and he’d already been vaguely up front about developments between them with his mother, Charley, a few episodes ago) if any one were to ask Buck or Eddie about the other, and all of this would have been moot (and I would have looked like a fucking prophet).

This 👆🏻 is the prospective that this fandom needs. Some one who calls the queer community “the alphabet people” has no acceptable say on our representation.

E.T.A.: The prequel to this post is here and the sequel to it is here.

[cptrs]