This post is in partnership with HBO. As always, thoughts and opinions are my own.
Make it Work - Issa meets up with Lawrence. He got the job in San Francisco. He is going to get an assistant, corner office and a team. Relocation fee. So, what about them? He asks if it’s a deal breaker and she says it’s not, because SF ain’t that far away. She said maybe she could move one day. What about her friends? Well, she might need to make new ones. She wants to surround herself with what brings her joy. “If we want this to work, it will work.”
Andrew and Molly are at a work happy hour. He points out Torian in the sea of bougie Black dudes based on how she’s described him. One of her coworkers (PJ) walks up and she introduces him to Andrew. PJ invites them to some post-work event, but Andrew doesn’t want to go, so she says what if the DJ plays one of his artists? Aight fine, he’ll go. He is not excited about it though.
Accommodations - Issa shows up at Nathan’s barbershop and they go to the back, where he shows her a space that might be right for her next event. He has plans for the space to make it a shop and give back to those who might not have jobs. Well done. Nathan then apologizes for how he reacted to her when she said her and Lawrence are getting back together. She wants to just be friends and hopes it ain’t awkward, but he assures her, it ain’t.
Andrew and Molly are back at her place, and she says she needs a nap. He’s not pleased, because it seems that he’s always the one making room and accommodating her, and never the opposite. She doesn’t know what he’s talking about and he’s feeling unheard. Her phone keeps ringing and when she finally picks up, it’s Kelli.
Finding Tiffany - At the DuBois house, Derek is on the phone because Tiffany has been missing for a day. Her phone is off, after saying she was going to a hotel. Cops are not helping, so they all decide to go to the station themselves. Issa and Molly have to now talk because of the mission, but even then, they decide to divide and conquer to look for her.
At the bar, they said she drank four margaritas. She took a Lyft after that. But to where? Last time she got that wasted, she ended up at a Mexican restaurant. Based on how much the Lyft fee was, they figure out the exact restaurant she might have gone to. They show her picture, but they don’t remember seeing her. So, they convince them to show them security footage. They see she was there, and they see her leave. Where to now? She gets on a bus just before 10PM. Last time Derek heard from her was at 10:15PM.
Emergency Exit - Derek knew she wasn’t okay, but he didn’t know what to do or how to handle it all. How did it get this bad? He is feeling shame from not being able to help her. Issa and Molly both tell him he is doing what he can. Kelli’s making calls and it seems she’s at the Sheraton, which they just passed. The douche ass bus driver won’t let them stop, so at a red light, Kelli presses the emergency exit button.
They walk off the bus and the driver flags down police, who Kelli basically ends up cussing out til they let them go about their business.
Tiffany is supposed to be in room 505, so they roll up to it. Derek nervously knocks on the door and hears her voice. When he asks her to open up, she’s in a towel, looking dejected. She apologizes and says she doesn’t know what else to do. The girls are trying to give the DuBois privacy, but they’re listening.
Good Match - At Andrew’s apartment, Molly updates him on Tiffany. Molly wants them to talk about how they left off. He says they don’t seem to be on the same page. She apologizes for not going to the game with him and his brother. “What if we’re not a good match?” She wants to work at them and is willing to do what she can, but he asks what they’re even fighting for. The tears well up in her eyes before she can even do anything.
Issa opens her door, and it’s Lawrence, who sees her exhausted. She’s talking, when she notices him looking grim. Condola came over to his house the night before because she’s been saying they need to talk. She is pregnant. AW SH*T.
When? How? He says it was before they reconnected. Is she keeping the baby? Yes, she is. Is he getting back with Condola? No. He wants Issa. But he has a baby on the way. Condola told him she doesn’t expect anything from him. Her decision is clear, and she doesn’t need him. Issa says this is “too much.” Damn.
She lights up a joint on her deck when she leaves. Cause lawd knows she needs to mellow out.
Issa and Molly meet up at their favorite Ethiopian restaurant. Molly called this time.
As we leave them, they look to be talking for real for the first time in a long time, brought together by losing love.
Well sh*t.
And that is how we end season 4 of Insecure.
This one stings. This is a straight body blow, what we just saw go down with Issa and Lawrence. They are finally on one accord, communicating openly and honestly, being vulnerable and growing. Finally, they are modeling what a healthy relationship between two people, and then life dropkicks them both in the face. Condola being pregnant is a joy because: hey, kids are good things. But that is one surprise that is truly an anchor. Will he take this San Francisco job now or choose to stay behind to be physically present for Condola, even if they aren’t together?
For Issa, she’s been having so many good things happen, from her new cultural curating title to growing enough to be real with Lawrence. This was a hatchet in all the plans. I’m hurt for our girl. She hasn’t self-sabotaged lately and has really been a grown up. This one wasn’t her fault.
Molly losing Andrew should shock no one because her selfishness and self-centered ways keep isolating her from people. What Andrew told her was he wasn’t feeling considered, but she didn’t truly receive it. Her and Dr. Rhonda need to have some more sessions, because Molly, girl. A mess.
And Tiffany. We’ve seen her all season, struggling with motherhood. She hasn’t seemed happy about this baby, but none of her friends realized it. It can be easy to miss the cues, even when we are close with people. Even her husband didn’t know the depth of her postpartum depression. One thing is clear, she is loved.
The only good thing that came out of this, is that these friends are talking again. But, is it good if the only reason they’re communing is from their microtraumas? We can’t just be great friends in times of tragedy, because all we’d do is perpetuate that whole “misery loves company” thing.
Whew, I’m actually salty that season 4 is already over. Those 10 episodes RAN by. I gotta say, this has been my fav season yet. The clothes, the story, the layers: elevated! The squad is growing up, and of course, still stumbling along the way. But they’re better than they used to be. I want them all to win, but life seems to have other plans for them as they do.
I’m already thirsty for season 5. Parched, even.