The Other Black Girl

A quintessential black horror TV show set in the corporate world

BY VISHALLI ALAGAPPAN

I’ve heard the term black horror thrown about, but “The Other Black Girl” on Hulu was my first foray into the genre. Black horror captures the Black American experience with horror, when their mere proximity produces terror in others. The distinction between black horror and conventional horror is the type of monsters: a demon mutilating a girl from within vs. being followed/ haunted by the Klansmen. It centers the all-too-real fears of being Black in America.

“The Other Black Girl” follows Nella Rogers, a nerdy black girl with dreams of becoming an editor, at the publishing company Wagner Books. Wagner Books has only ever had one black editor, Kendra Rae Phillips, who edited the book Burning Heart, the book that made Nella want to tell black stories to make the next generation of black kids feel less alone. Burning Heart was written by Diana Gordon, Kendra’s childhood friend. Kendra is believed to be “off grid.” In the beginning, the show explores Nella’s own experience in corporate America. Nella forms a relationship with Hazel May McCall, the new black addition to Wagner. Hazel acts really weird, backstabbing Nella and going out of her way to reconcile the relationship. All the while, Nella experiences hallucinations and ringing in her ears, foreshadowing something sinister at play. I want to say more, but I’m afraid I’ll say too much. The entire show examines the different schools of thought in regards to black success: Do you sell your compromise and accommodate to the white world or stick to your ideals and let your pain inform your story? Grab a blanket and a couple friends, binge the show, and find out.