I stumbled upon this show one night thanks to Ray and Ricky. I heard about it before and heard a bit of controversy about it, but it hadn’t peaked my interested. Truth be told, I was never that big a fan of Gabrielle Union. I always thought she looked mean and angry and she always played mean characters, it is silly to judge an actress by the roles she plays, I know.

However, they were watching an episode as I came home from work one day and I was instantly intrigued. I discovered it was on Netflix and sat down and watched the first season. I fell in love with the show instantly for several reasons.

First, I love  Gabrielle Union as Mary Jane. I couldn’t see another actress in the role. To her credit, I only watcher her earlier teen roles, and then Deliver Us From Eva, and wasn’t aware of the great range of emotions she can give to a role. Mary Jane is strong and successful but also vulnerable and, at times, less than smart. I love the complexity of the character.

Second, I love, love, LOVE Mara Brock Akil, the series creator. For those who don’t know, she also created Girlfriends and The Game. Girlfriends was everything to me. It was the black LA answer to Sex and the City. I watched the first three seasons of The Game, all that Netflix has to this day, but wasn’t as big a fan of it as Girlfriends. I love that her shows are about successful black men and women and she weaves in discussions about race and other important social issues in all of her shows.

Third, the show inspires me, just as Girlfriends inspired me. When Mary Jane is helping her niece to eat better and lose weight, it made me think more about the food I put into my body. Seeing Mary Jane bust her ass for her job and her career makes me want to give my all to my writing and the pursuit of my career.

Now, Mary Jane is a bit messy; too messy for some people, but it just makes me love her even more. Even the most put together people, even the most successful, have shit to deal with in their lives. Everyone has issues. It is all about how we work through them.