Each week, William Lee and Nina Metz recap and discuss the fourth season of “The Chi,” which airs at 8 p.m. Sundays on Showtime.
The theme this week is young romance, with a dash of inspiration from the classic 1997 Black romance “Love Jones” (written and directed by Columbia College alum Theodore Witcher, and based on some of his own bohemian-artistic experiences in Chicago).
What’s that, you say? Isn’t there a storyline this season about defunding the police? Yes, yes there is — and it’s missing in action once again this week. It’s baffling enough to make you wonder if skittish executives at the studio or network level are influencing some of these decisions.
But for this week at least, the show took a break from it’s typical high-octane plottiness in favor of showing us the many ways young love both flourishes and stalls.
Here’s more on Episode 8: “Love Jones.”
1. Kiesha’s date
Nina Metz: After weeks of late-night phone calls and flirtations at work, Christian’s gentle persistence wins the day. I like that their night had a ”Love Jones” flavor to it, as they browse through a record store and then go to hear a spoken word performance. This is a different sort of world for Kiesha, in terms of cultural touchstones. A different sort of guy, too. Clearly she’s intrigued. Cautious, but intrigued. So am I. He’s adorable — nerdy and smart, confident and sensitive.
Will, is Christian almost too perfect?
William Lee: Way too perfect, Nina. Understanding, sensible and overly accommodating? In other words, the kind of man that Kiesha had never been around. Thinking back to the earliest seasons, Kiesha was always the target of lecherous older men. Emmett was the most stable man in her life and he has numerous children (that we never see or hear about anymore).
But following the greatest trauma of her life and recent decision to keep her child, Kiesha meets a guy unbothered by it all who just wants to hug her. It’s the type of thing we would hope for her in life, but again, it feels done to layer her story arc.
2. Teenage drama
WL: Papa and Maisha’s faltering romance took center stage this week, with Papa hosting a party for Maisha despite their sort-of breakup. It never ceases to amaze me how these kids are able to find places to party without any adults lurking around.
NM: I’m pretty sure the party was at his father’s church. Unsupervised! I noticed that too.
WL: Anyway, we saw more of the Kevin-Jemma-Jake triangle, as Kevin tried to manage his feelings between wanting Jemma back and wanting to move on.
The kids’ segments are usually the best part of the show, but during this episode I found myself questioning the dialogue and the realizations made by the teens, wondering whether they were made to fit the episode’s relationship theme. Early on, Jemma tells Kevin she’s not interested in him. But after seeing him dance with a girl at the party, she gives him the third-degree? I mean, we’re talking about teenagers, who reserve the right, like all of us, to change their minds. But would she so easily show her jealousy to her old beau with her new one nearby?
I also wondered whether Papa would stick around while Maisha danced and talked to another guy?
I admit that I may be nitpicking, but I can’t help feeling that the dialogue was written to serve the episode’s theme and not necessarily the character’s natural progression. Am I overthinking it, Nina? What did you make of storyline?
NM: I was a sucker for that brief moment when Kevin and Jake made up because that relationship interests me far more than their romantic prospects. I just want their friendship to be OK.
Here’s a question for the peanut gallery: Did Kevin and Maisha date previously? I remember how much I hated their storyline in the first season, of him recoiling from her aggressive pursuit. But eventually, over the course of the show’s run, they became friends. Good friends. But here they are this week, at her kitchen table, talking as if they used to date. Is the show retconning this or is my memory flawed?
Either way, it’s a good scene. I like seeing the show’s characters just sit across from one another and talk. But I have questions. In previous seasons, Maisha was more or less looking after her younger siblings while her mom was at work. And that house was awfully quiet.
3. Emmett and Tiff come to a crossroads
NM: Kiesha and Christian weren’t the only ones having a “Love Jones”-inspired date. Emmett and Tiff put a little spice into their night by cosplaying Larenz Tate and Nia Long, but ultimately Emmett was hoping to convince Tiff to abandon their open marriage and make a return back to Monogamyland.
Let’s talk about why she might not be enthusiastic about that. This arrangement gives her more agency, knowing that he has a tendency to stray. But I also think it’s because she had their son when she was just a teenager — and was left to raise him on her own for a good chunk of that first year of EJ’s life — so she never had a chance to be young and single. She’s getting a taste of that and it’s fun. She may not want an open relationship forever, but for now? I can see why she’s reluctant to give it up.
Will, do you think this ultimatum from Emmett will be the end of their marriage?
WL: That’s a very good question. Your points on Tiff’s abbreviated childhood are valid, and she seems to enjoy her relationship with Dante, which looks like a fun romp from the outside. It wasn’t unforeseeable that Emmett would hate the open marriage, especially when he’s working constantly, coping with his mom’s illness and keeping to himself.
So it’s understandable that he wouldn’t want to see Tiff behaving like, well, how he used to. But I don’t think Tiffany would walk away from her marriage for a fling, no matter how passionate. It was a funny moment in the opener when Dante told Tiffany that he would have hung up on her too, after she called Emmett drunk. It was as if, even though he’s fussing with Emmett through the phone, he understood his anger.
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"The Chi" Season 4 Episode 8 recap: "Love Jones" - Chicago Tribune
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