Dear White People is an drama-comedy on Netflix starring Logan Browning. Dear White People is based off a 2014 movie by the same name. The first season premiered on April 28, 2017 and the second season premiered on May 4, 2018.

I never watched the Tessa Thompson 2014 movie, I knew that some of actors were in both the movie and the show, but I didn’t have interest in watching it. When the first season premiered, I just wanted to judge the show on it’s own merits and I did and really enjoyed it. It touched on many racial issues in today’s society in a genuine believable way. The second season did the same, I even preferred the second season to the first as three of my favorite episodes of the show happened in that season. Those three episodes were Coco’s episode (2×04), Gabe’s episode (2×08), and Sam’s episode (2×09).

None the less I was excited for season three, but the actual season fell below my expectations. There’s some good stuff in this season, but I don’t think it compares to the first two seasons. I read a review say that this season felt more like a gap year than a return to form and I agree. I don’t think this season is as good of a follow up as it probably should be to the fantastic second season.

This season doesn’t necessarily feel like anything really happens until the end of the season. For the first 7 episodes I was like where is this going? I mean the show ditched the cliffhanger from season 2 within the first few minutes of the show. And it didn’t come back up until the end of the season when it was brought back into the focus.

Everyone had their own thing going on and there was no cohesive overarching storyline that brought all the characters together until the end. Also what happened to the episodes just mainly focused on one character and some appearances by the other characters? That was one of my favorite things about the show, it was unique and made you have to watch every episode. I feel like the show lost some of it’s spark this season. I still enjoyed watching the show because of the characters, cinematography, acting, and the soundtrack. However, I won’t lie that this season felt underwhelming compared to the first two.

Favorite Episode: Chapter VIII (3×08)

If I would pick any episode from this season to be in my top ten episodes of the show, this would be it. I enjoyed the debate between the gang about sexual assault allegations, even if I was frustrated at times about it (Muffy didn’t want to go forward with the allegations and having the gang talk about without her involved put me a bit off). Still this was my favorite episode of the season because it felt current, real, and thought provoking, all the emotions I want to feel when I watch the show.

Honorable Mentions:

Chapter II – (3×02)

Chapter V – (3×05)

Chapter IX – (3×09)

Favorite Character: Coco

Coco was my favorite the first two seasons, so this wasn’t a surprise to me that she was my favorite again this season. She’s amazing, she’s always amazing. I will say that my runner up would be Joelle. I always liked Joelle and she was good this season, but I was hoping she would get her own storyline this season other than dating Reggie. But alas, we didn’t so hopefully we’ll get that next season.

Favorite Line:

This show has some really fantastic dialogue, so I think it’s fitting that I point out my favorite piece of dialogue from this season. Which is…“When did we decide that paying old people to beat us up emotionally was called “college“? – Coco. Once again she’s amazing and right. Imagine anyone else being your favorite character, you can’t when Coco is right there.

Do I Recommend It?

If you’re a fan of the show, of course you should watch it. Just be prepared not to like it as much as season 1 and season 2. It’s not as focused as the last seasons, but if you’re a fan I’m sure you’ll find plenty to enjoy. Newcomers? I doubt anyone is going to jump into the third season of a show that they haven’t seen before. But, if you haven’t seen the show, I recommend it. The first two seasons are fantastic, the third not as much, but the show is worth it. I still really love the show and am looking forward to the fourth season (if we get one, look at The OA). If we do get a fourth season hopefully it’ll be worth it, so this third season doesn’t feel like a complete waste as it does now.