Hear ye, Hear ye: Queen Sugar on OWN and Atlanta on FX are the best new shows on TV this fall, and I WRITE for a show new to TV this fall (I selfishly and affectionately declare This is Us third best.) Exceptional tone, writing, acting, beautiful landscapes in each. Atlanta makes me laugh and squirm in a way I think I forgot how to. Queen Sugar is the first TV show to make me cry in, maybe ever. I don’t think it’s any coincidence that both were created by black writers and feature mostly black casts. Culturally, we need both shows, so badly. They reveal truth behind cliche and public perception. They are gritty and real, they are at once specific and UNIVERSAL. If, as a white writer, this means I need to step aside for a minute, I will step aside and aside and aside, and happily watch from said side as these shows change TV for the better.
