And it was during one of these very group chats that one of my close friends suggested I start watching Lena Waithe‘s Showtime series The Chi.

(Photo by Tasia Wells/Getty Images for MACRO Lodge)

READ MORE: Lena Waithe breaks silence on Jason Mitchell scandal: ‘I don’t have the power to fire anybody’

All I knew of the show was the drama surrounding Jason Mitchell, a story that most Black journalists found nearly impossible to avoid in 2019.

Black stories (and Black joy) minus the heavy focus on police

Right now police brutality is at the front of all our minds in the wake of George Floyd‘s death with heartbreaking stories about brutalized men and women filling up timelines and newsfeeds at record speed.

(Photo by Daniel Boczarski/Getty Images for Showtime)

READ MORE: Jacob Latimore says ‘The Chi’ season 3 will not have any police characters

The opening scenes of season three starts off with a beautiful wedding that instantly makes you feel like you’re about to watch your favorite auntie get married to the love of her life.

The women of the show, be they big, small, or somewhere in between, simply just exist within the narrative in the same way that they do in real life.