Is Nova Bordelon a Heroine or Foe?

Queen Sugar's Nova (Rutina Wesley) has come far-- far to become probably the most hated character on the show.

Nova Bordelon isn't an evil Black woman. Her intentions are not especially cruel or heinous. She, however, is a multifaceted character not original to Natalie Baszile’s Queen Sugar novel, a fine example of a layered, flawed addition. Sometimes this works. Other times not.

"Nova came directly from Ava DuVernay’s imagination. She was designed to be a reflection of the leaders of the Black Lives Matter (BLM) movement: black queer women. It was a subtle allusion to the movement that anyone familiar with its roots could know and appreciate. Generally speaking, the show’s has since stopped being so subtle."

In season four, seven women directed episodes chart the journey of Nova a fiction weaved into fiction, whose current actions are considered both hurtful and powerful. The hurtful elements are from Nova's newfound bestselling memoir, "Blessings and Blood." She has included much of her family's private traumas-- Aunt Vi's abusive relationship with Jimmy Dale, Blu not being Ralph Angel's biological son, Charlie's many schemes like paying off Davis's former prostitute, and Darla's drug addiction. Despite the little yet important triumphs Nova's family has overcome in their respective personal lives, at the end of it all, Nova had no permission to tell the world. In fact, she made sure to give Charlie, Ralph Angel, and Aunt Vi the manuscript well after her book was sent to print. Nothing, not even Charlie "Miss Connections" could not rescue the "dirty" laundry from airing.

Despite Nova's questionable actions, it is undeniable that Rutina Wesley was made for this complex role.

While Nova's intentions for "Blessings and Blood" might seem selfish and vindictive, she thought her family’s struggles could be a resourceful tool for those going through the same situations—domestic violence, drug abuse, coercion. The stories are not juicy tidbits that appeal to gossip rags. Nova's poignantly written novel is specifically directed for Black readers. She has already accumulated a glowing New York Times review and was shortlisted for the National Book Award. Yet simultaneously, however, perhaps Nova should have opted to write a creative fiction versus a memoir that puts the Bordelons in jeopardy. Everyone in town knows who these characters are-- even Darla isn't disguised cleverly enough. Only one person champions Nova’s book-- Micah, her nephew fresh from a vacation in Paris.

Chantal (Reagan Gomez-Preston) and Nova (Rutina Wesley) were once a solid (albeit short-lived) example of beautiful Black women falling in love, but it looks like the ship has sailed away once again.

Dr. Octavia Laurent (Cree Summer) started Nova (Rutina Wesley) on exploring her sexuality, but Octavia's dominance in Nova's personal life diffused the reunion.

Nova's book tour, which takes her away from the toxic environment that she herself is responsible for creating, began with old flame Chantal on her last night in Saint Jo. Although it appears that a flirtatious Chantal may want to pick up where they left off, Chantal is livid that Nova only wants a booty call (with Chantal coming over to Nova versus the opposite) and no emotional/mental healing. On the road, Nova eventually gets her physical needs met with her former college professor, Dr. Octavia Laurent, but quickly ends things when she's sabotaging future opportunities. In Philadelphia, Nova runs into Calvin-- the white former police officer that started it all-- "keep the colors in the lines" indeed. She lays down the law with him, stating that she wants a connection before the physical intimacy can resume between them (coughs for Chantal). Nova's treatment of brown/Black women mirrors Ralph Angel's disposability factor behavior of last season. Brown/Black women are sexual objects while the non-black figure is uplifted/wooed (Ralph Angel with Vivien Ngô's Trinh Phan and Nova with Greg Vaughan's Calvin).

"If Nova is truly chasing “freedom,” she had it and (more importantly) she KNEW she had it with Chantal. It’s these kind of missed moments of continuity that make me wonder if Queen Sugar’s rotation of writers and directors and, subsequently, showrunners, are impacting the characterizations we’re seeing on screen."

The overwhelming community displeasure for Nova definitely started back in season one-- Nova stealing money from Charley and simultaneously judging her sister's actions on broadcast radio. Nova would often depict herself as the good one, the one on high moral ground, the liberator of the Black community. Nova worsened in season three when she became involved with Remy, Charley's ex (a bad story line that took ample heat). Her queer identity was gradually lost, swept aside for another sister against sister parallel that reaches its boiling point in this current fourth season.

Back in the good ole days. Will these sisters ever be this close again?

Thus, Nova has made colossal mistakes, especially for "research." She isn't a villain. Yet her finding Jimmy Dale to "get his side of the story" breaks a feminist code, an unspoken rule that breaches believing women's abuse stories. Nova seeking out Aunt Vi's abuser explicitly conveys that Nova doesn't completely side with Aunt Vi's truth. That is huge. A writer's work shouldn't stand above family, above integrity. Nova comes from a well-loved family too-- a beautiful gift when many Black families are continuously healing from broken, scarred, and violent places. Nova's work essentially re-traumatizes Aunt Vi, Charley, Ralph Angel, and Darla-- these four people who are moving forward, staying strong and positive.

Nova's "Blessings and Blood" may be helping others see a mesmerizing light in her talented voice, but it certainly isn't understood through the bleeding hearts of her family.