#Queen Sugar Season 5 Episode 8 Review: June 3, 2020

Families fight, even from a distance, and the Bordelons were no exception on Queen Sugar Season 5 Episode 8 as Darla found out Darlene had plans for Blue. 

Darla and Aunt Vi may have gotten blindsided, but viewers saw this confrontation coming from a mile away. 

On the one hand, Darlene wasn’t wrong.

Blue is exceptional in many ways, and he needs a better education to reach his full potential. That she was willing to try and give that to Blue isn’t a bad thing.

Where the problem comes in is when Darlene decided that she knew best. There was no question in her mind that Blue should move to D.C. for this opportunity, and that Darla saw it differently was nonsense.

Darlene: So basically, he’s gifted, he’s black, and they need that.

Darla: I don’t want that life for him.

Darlene: Darla, don’t be dramatic. What are you even talking about?

Darla: That pressure, the tokenism, the lack of true connection. I know that life. I remember it.

Is that the life that led Darla to drugs and addiction? The life that had her estranged from her family for years?

It speaks to how far Darla and Violet have come in their relationship that Darla felt comfortable calling Vi for advice concerning her mother. It doesn’t seem all that long ago that Violet wouldn’t let Darla set foot in her house.

Thankfully, they have grown to where they really do feel like family now, and that’s all the better for them and Blue. 

Violet’s fight with Darlene via video had a visceral quality to it. Violet protects Blue like he’s her own because Vi was more parent than aunt to the boy for the first few years of his life.

If Vi had trouble letting go of Blue to let Ralph Angel and Darla step into their role as parents, and they are his parents, she’s not about to let Darlene overstep and take Blue away.

Darlene: Who are you to say this?

Violet: Who am I? I’m the woman who practically raised him when you didn’t or couldn’t or wouldn’t. You pick.

Darlene: I sent money.

Violet: Yes, and thank you for that. And I gave time. You can make more money, you can’t make more time.

That Darlene doesn’t even attempt to explain why she and her husband had no contact with their grandson for the first five years of his life says a lot. That the only thing she can fight Vi with is that she sent money, says the rest.

But is Hollywood right? Is there more going on here than Vi’s overactive mama bear instincts when it comes to Blue? 

With the pandemic, trying to hold onto the diner, Hollywood mourning his mother,  and all of the racial turmoil, it’s difficult to know if there was an underlying cause for Violet’s vitriol towards Darlene.

It was surprising that Ralph Angel was actually considering sending Blue away to school, but it seems Violet was correct. Ralph Angel likes to mull over all of the options before he makes a decision.

However, Ralph Angel was naive if he didn’t think Darlene could change Blue. The boy is still young, and Darlene’s constant influence could affect the way Blue views the world. 

Thankfully, Darla never wavered, and I was happy when she called Ralph Angel out when he said that the Sidwell Academy was better than any of the schools in New Orleans because President Barak Obama’s daughter’s had gone to school there.

Yes, there is some truth to that, but most of that type of thinking has to do with pride. Who wouldn’t want to say that their child attends such a prestigious school?

Although I don’t doubt that Darlene loves Blue and wants what she thinks is best for him, I’m sure that being able to boast to her friends and associates that her grandson attends the same school as the Obama girls tops the reasons she began this venture in the first place. 

Darla, Ralph Angel, and Blue have lost so much time together as a family; they need to cherish every minute they have together.

Elsewhere, Davis came to Charley’s rescue. 

Did it bother anyone else that it seemed remarkably easy to break into Charley’s home? And I kept wondering where Davis’ daughter, Tina, was while he was watching over Charley.

But Davis took charge of this situation, and that’s exactly what Charley needed.

Charley: There aren’t enough doctors and beds. There are people who are worse than me.

Davis: Like I said, we can keep monitoring you from here for now. I got three doctors on standby walking me through everything, remote monitoring as much as we can. You’re stable right now, Charley, but if anything slips, I will not hesitate to get you what you need if I have to build a damn bed myself.

Has Davis changed, grown-up? Does he realize what he threw away when he cheated on Charley? 

There’s no doubt that he took her love and commitment to him for granted for many years. Will his stepping up now lead to a new chapter in their relationship? 

That Charley was so dead set against letting anyone in her family know she was ill seemed odd. With Davis there, she could have assured them she was okay and insisted that they stay away. 

Is she that afraid of being seen as weak? I’m still trying to figure out what’s going through her mind, but I was appeased by Davis pointing out that she’d hate to have someone she cared about keep this type of information from her the way she’s withholding it from Micah.

If he had a choice, he’d be here with you. When you love someone, you show up. And he should have that choice, Charley. You wouldn’t want something like this kept from you if the shoe was on the other foot.


Davis

When Charley called, Davis didn’t hesitate to show up, even though he’s risking his own health in taking care of her. I’m not sure what that means, but it means something. 

I just hope that Davis doesn’t contract Covid and, heaven forbid, die from the virus. Not only don’t I want to see Davis die, but that kind of guilt could eat Charley alive. 

Finally, there was Nova and Calvin. 

Nova is so funny. She presses Calvin to continue their conversation about marriage, but then she looks nervous and can’t even seem to utter the word. 

When Calvin said they could be like Oprah and Stedman, I had to laugh. But Calvin isn’t trying to push Nova into anything. 

You and me have been together on and off for many years now. I think it’s time for us to make some choices. You want to be husband and wife? You want to be partners? Do I need to put a ring on it, like they say? You want paperwork, too? I’m ready for any of it and all of it.
Calvin

Calvin would like to define their commitment to one another, but he seems perfectly happy for Nova to take the lead on that. He just wants to know that they are together moving forward. 

So what do you think, TV Fanatics?

Is there the possibility of Charley and Davis rekindling their romance?

Why won’t Charley tell her family she’s ill?

Should Nova marry Calvin?

And will Darlene drop her campaign to have Blue move to D.C.?

Hit that big, blue, SHOW COMMENTS button down below and let me know your thoughts on Queen Sugar. Then check back in for our next Queen Sugar review.

C. Orlando is a TV Fanatic Staff Writer. Follow her on Twitter.