Once again, writer, director, actor and producer Tyler Perry has taken a streaming service by storm. This time I’m talking about Tyler Perry's Beauty in Black on Netflix.
The new drama follows two women living in two different worlds who ultimately are caught in the same chaotic web of lies, betrayal and danger. On one hand, you have Kimmie (Taylor Polidore Williams), who is being forced to work in a strip club and be a sex worker to pay her alleged debt to a man named Jules (Charles Malik Whitfield). On the other hand, you have Mallory (Crystle Stewart), who rose from a difficult childhood to become a corporate powerhouse helping to run her father-in-law’s beauty business. With each episode that goes by, it becomes clear that the pair of women are tied to a ruthless and criminal family that has plenty of secrets and is willing to do nearly anything to protect them and the beloved wealth they hold dear.
If you’ve already powered through the first eight episodes of Beauty in Black, you probably find yourself clamoring for more. And with part two of the debut season not scheduled to premiere until spring 2025, you have quite a bit of time before you see what happens next with Kimmie and Mallory in this saga. With that being said, allow me to suggest a similar series to dive into while you wait… the Starz drama P-Valley.
P-Valley centers around the fictional strip club The Pynk, which is in the heart of the Mississippi Delta and a hotbed of mayhem and intrigue. The owner, Uncle Clifford (Nicco Annan), tries to keep the popular club open, which isn’t easy to do when faced with a corrupt police force, even more criminal politicians and overall moral outrage. I haven’t even mentioned the fact that each of the dancers, and some of the patrons, also have their own personal drama that often spills into The Pynk.
Comparing the two shows, I tend to prefer P-Valley. The characters are a bit more complex and the dialogue strikes a stronger chord. P-Valley also offers grittier storylines, which is often nice to have in dark dramas. Plus, P-Valley has two seasons under its belt with a third season on the way.
Are you ready to give P-Valley a shot? P-Valley seasons 1-2 are currently available to watch on the Starz App in the US, which you can get a subscription to as low as $2.99/month. In the UK, episodes are available for purchase on services like Prime Video.
