Summer is indisputably a season tailor-made for black joy. Tis the season of cookouts, stoop-sitting, rooftop bars, music and food festivals, block parties, hand fans, summer jams and all-white affairs (Diner en Blanc, if youre bougie).

And for fans of Issa Rae, it is now also the season to welcome with open and sun-kissed arms the return of her hit series Insecure (which merited a block party of its own last Saturday).

Frankly, with the level of excitement and anticipation generated by the release of the trailer alone, I was mildly surprised that the promotional campaign didnt adopt the tagline Summer Is Coming (shoutout to another HBO fave, Game of Thrones). Because while this years Emmy-nominating committee may not have felt the love (clearly, it didnt get the memo from the Golden Globes), come Sunday night, a huge swath of black America will be eagerly settling into our respective bouches to see whats new and next with Issa and Co.which is exactly what I did on my summer vacation.

Spoiler alert: This season is hella fun to watch. Malibu. (Yes, theyre actually trying to make Malibu happen. Get with the program.)

That said, I approached my second Insecure review with equal parts anticipation and trepidation. After all, last season, I garnered a substantial amount of shade for daring to express the unpopular opinion that HBOs freshest show was perhaps a bit too heavy-handed in perpetuating stale stereotypes of single, successful black womennamely, that were too thirsty to consider ourselves complete without a man in the picture. (Fun fact: You can think something is great without thinking its perfect.) With season 1 ending with both Issa and Molly unwillingly alone, would there be more self-flagellation on the menu?

But if season 2 reunites us with the crew almost exactly where we left them last fall, it now handles its heroines with a both gentler and defter hand, adding significant self-awareness to its sophomore stride.

Expectedly, our eternally awkward black girl is now trying to navigate life after Lawrence (Jay Ellis), grappling with both a broken pussy and a broken heart after her dalliance with Daniel (Ylan Noel) has effectively destroyed their five-year relationship. Its a reckoning rarely explored from a womans perspective, and the results are simultaneously heart-wrenching and hilarious.

Meanwhile, Mollyeasily the best-written best friend currently on TVis taking a more compartmentalized approach to life after her series of disappointments in season 1, opting to focus on her career rather than her relationship status. Its an extremist approach, but one that most career-driven women can relate to after weathering enough romantic disappointments. And yet, even without men in the picture, life aint automatically no crystal stair. As Mollys new therapista rare maternal figure in Insecures sea of black millennial angstacknowledges:

[A]s black women, it can feel like theres a lot of things stacked against us: We feel invisible at work; we feel the need to have the perfect relationship; its a lot. But if your shoulds didnt come to fruition, would you be open to your life looking a different way?

And its the shoulds that take center stage this season as our cast continues to struggle with insecurities and expectations about where they should be as they approach their 30s (a struggle that I can personally confirm doesnt end with your 30s). And thankfully, those insecurities remain equal opportunity; Lawrence may no longer be Issas other halfor the dude best known for his presence on the couchbut hes still got his own identity issues to deal with; namely, what really constitutes being a good dude. (Hint: It doesnt just entail having a job, a functioning penis and a basic grasp of monogamy.)

Insecures stellar supporting cast is back for more, tooalong with some fun guest appearancesand given ample opportunity to shine. The cohesion and chemistry have only become more solid this season, to hilarious effect. In particular, Natasha Rothwells standout return as Kelli (as well as a writer for the show) sets this season off with consistent and impeccable comedic timing, stoking this writers excitement for how her own HBO development deal might pan out.

Even four episodes in, its fair to say that along with the sophistiratchetry weve come to know and love from this crew, theres also plenty of self-reflection to look forward to this season. Balancing the need for independence with the need for intimacy; working out our own racial hypocrisies under the earnest and oft-patronizing gaze of white allyship; sex for sexualitys sake (as opposed to a vehicle to relationships); the inequities that often accompany being black and female at work; the reality that theres no reliable route to a happy ending; and the disappointment that sometimes comes with getting exactly what we want are all up for analysis, and the result is ... refreshing.

And as for my prior unease about the story Insecure might be telling about single black women? Well, perhaps that concern is best addressed by Molly:

Damn. I was out there like that?

Clearly, just like the rest of us, shes learning from her mistakes. Because whats the point of admitting our insecurities if theres no evolution?

Insecures second season premieres Sunday, July 23, on HBO at 10:30 p.m.

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Hella Homecoming: The Evolution of Insecure - The Root