In this week's episode we're back with our recaps of The Handmaid's Tale. In its final season, we will recap each and every episode.

Based on the best-selling novel by Margaret Atwood, this series is set in Gilead, a totalitarian society in what used to be part of the United States. Gilead is ruled by a fundamentalist regime that treats women as property of the state, and is faced with environmental disasters and a plummeting birth rate. In a desperate attempt to repopulate a devastated world, the few remaining fertile women are forced into sexual servitude. One of these women, Offred, is determined to survive the terrifying world she lives in, and find the daughter that was taken from her.

Now in its 6th and final season, BGN breaks down in weekly recaps, our thoughts behind this provocative series.

Hosts: Angelica Monk and Stacey Yvonne 

Music by: Sammus

Edited by: Jamie Broadnax

In this week's episode of the Black Girl Nerds podcast, we chat with Genneya Walton, who plays BB Urich in Daredevil: Born Again.

Genneya starred as a series regular on Kenya Barris and Rashida Jones’ Netflix series #BlackAF and was a series regular on Netflix’s Project Mc². She also had the lead role in the Storm Reid produced feature film Darby and the Dead for Disney/Hulu, and had major recurring guest star appearances on Netflix’s Never Have I Ever, Steven Spielberg’s Extant with Halle Berry, and 9-1-1 opposite Angela Bassett. Most recently, she starred in Amazon’s holiday comedy film Candy Cane Lane alongside Eddie Murphy and Tracee Ellis Ross.

Host: Jamie

Music by: Sammus

Edited by: Jamie Broadnax

In this week's episode of the Black Girl Nerds podcast, we speak with renowned psychologist and New York Times best-selling author Dr. Thema Bryant.

Dr. Thema made history in 2023 as the first Black female President of the American Psychological Association. She has a new book, 'Matters of the Heart: Healing Your Relationship with Yourself and Those You Love’, out now. 

Matters of the Heart combines the wisdom of science, spirituality, and real-life experience to help readers tend to their emotional well-being and build meaningful connections. Dr. Thema provides evidence-based practices, essential relationship skills, and strategies to address common relational struggles.

Host: Jamie

Music by: Sammus

Edited by: Jamie Broadnax

In this week's episode of the Black Girl Nerds podcast, we welcome actor Aja Naomi King of the NBC series Grosse Pointe Garden Society.

Grosse Pointe Garden Society centers a wealthy suburb where everything appears to be perfect on the surface, four members of the local garden club get entangled in a scandalous murder. Teacher and aspiring writer Alice, real estate agent Catherine, father of two Brett and socialite Birdie come together on the night of the garden club's annual gala to bury the body in their own garden -- and get rid of the evidence. But with mysteries, drama and deceit growing like weeds in each of their personal lives, this secret may not stay undiscovered for long. Aja Naomi King plays Catherine on the new NBC drama. King co-starred for six seasons on the hit ABC drama How to Get Away with Murder and received a nomination for Best Supporting Actress in a Drama Series at the NAACP Image Awards.

King recently received an Emmy Award nomination for her role in the limited series Lessons in Chemistry as well as nominations at both the Critics Choice Awards and NAACP Image Awards. Other recent work includes the feature film The Knife, opposite Melissa Leo, the romantic comedy “Boxing Day and the hit narrative podcast Blackout for Qcode.

Other projects on King’s resume include Sylvie’s Love, The 24th, A White Little Lie, The Upside, A Girl from Mogadishu, and more!

Grosse Pointe Garden Society airs Sunday nights at 10/9c on NBC

Host: Jamie

Music by: SkyBlew, Sammus

Edited by: Jamie Broadnax

In this week's episode of the Black Girl Nerds podcast, we chat with Marissa Thomas.

Marissa Thomas is a patient advocate and breast cancer thriver who was diagnosed in 2015 at the age of 35 with stage II breast cancer. She is the CoFounder and CEO of For the Breast of Us, an inclusive community for Women of Color impacted by breast cancer. As a woman of color diagnosed with early-stage breast cancer, Marissa co- founded 'For the Breast of Us' to provide women of color with a resource tailored to us and personal accounts expressed by us. Marissa's passion is to educate women on how to navigate the healthcare system to make it work for them. 

She also wants women to know they can continue living their best life, regardless of the circumstance by advocating for themselves, embracing their community and expanding their education on the disease. Marissa holds a BS in Healthcare Administration, serves on the board of Living Beyond Breast Cancer, is a certified Living Beyond Breast Cancer Young Advocate and NBCC Project Lead graduate.

Music by: Sammus

Edited by: Jamie Broadnax

In this week's episode of the Black Girl Nerds podcast, we chat with actor Carl Lumbly of 'Captain America: Brave New World'.

Carl has also appeared in such notable TV and film projects as Cagney & Lacey, Justice League, Supergirl, Doctor Sleep, This Is Us, Alias and The Fall of the House of Usher. He was the first Black superhero on prime-time TV, as the titular character in the short-lived 90s Fox series M.A.N.T.I.S.

Host: Jamie

Music by: Sammus

Edited by: Jamie Broadnax

In this week's episode of the Black Girl Nerds podcast,  we have a 2-part episode about all things Sundance 2025.

Segment 1: We chat with directors: Anas Saeed, Rawia Alhag, Ibrahim Snoopy and Timeea M. Ahmed about their documentary film Khartoum that screened at the 2025 Sundance Film Festival. Forced to leave Sudan for East Africa following the outbreak of war, five citizens of Khartoum — a civil servant, a tea lady, a resistance committee volunteer, and two young bottle collectors — reenact their stories of survival and freedom through dreams, revolution, and civil war.

Segment 2: Travis Hopson, of Punch Drunk Critics, joins us to chat about the films we loved and didn't love at Sundance 2025. This was recorded during the middle of festival, so not all films were screened at the time of the discussion.

Music by: Sammus

Edited by: Jamie Broadnax

In this week's episode of the Black Girl Nerds podcast, we welcome Oscar-nominated actor Margaret Avery.

'A Man on the Inside' which premiered on November 21st features Margaret Avery, a Hollywood mainstay with decades of screen and stage experience. She brings an unforgettable warmth to the show.  Known for her Oscar-nominated performance in The Color Purple, Avery now charms as Florence, a spirited, poetry-loving resident in a retirement community that’s anything but typical. Avery’s portrayal highlights her enduring talent, blending humor and depth. This role not only reaffirms her versatility but positions her as a powerful presence in comedy.

Host: Jamie 

Edited by: Jamie Broadnax

Music by: Sammus

In this week's episode of the Black Girl Nerds podcast, we have a 2-part episode welcoming comic book creators Denys Cowan and Michael Stradford and cast members from Dune: Prophecy.  The featured cast are: Jessica Barden, Aoife Hinds, Edward Davis and Mark Addy.

Segment 1: Graphic Samurai: The Art of Denys Cowan is the first comprehensive celebration of the work of this groundbreaking comic book artist. Cowan has left an indelible mark on characters like Batman, The Question, Black Panther, and Deathlok, and co-founded Milestone Media, introducing  Hardware, Icon, Rocket and the comic and character that inspired the hit television show he would produce; Static Shock. These beloved characters would eventually find their way back into the DC Universe. Author and Gizmoe co-founder Michael Stradford joins us on the podcast.

Host: Jamie

Segment 2: Interviews featuring: Aoife Hinds (“Sister Emeline”), Jessica Barden (“Young Valya Harkonnen”), Edward Davis (“Harrow Harkonnen”) and Mark Addy (“Evgeny Harkonnen”) are conducted in this segment for the HBO series Dune: Prophecy. 10,000 years before the ascension of Paul Atreides, following two Harkonnen sisters as they combat forces that threaten the future of humankind and establish the fabled sect that will become known as the Bene Gesserit.

Host: Stacey Yvonne

Music by: Sammus

Edited by: Jamie Broadnax

In this week's episode of the Black Girl Nerds podcast, we welcome in this 2-part segment filmmaker Raoul Peck of Ernest Cole: Lost and Found and actor Emma Canning of Dune: Prophecy.

Segment 1: Oscar-nominated filmmaker Raoul Peck’s Ernest Cole: Lost and Found  is a new documentary chronicling the life and work of Ernest Cole, one of the first Black freelance photographers in South Africa, whose early pictures, shocking at the time of their first publication, revealed to the world Black life under apartheid.

Host: Jamie

Segment 2: Emma Canning plays the young Tula Harkonnen in the HBO series Dune: Prophecy. Following a tragedy, young Valya Harkonnen flees her home planet to join the Sisterhood, but struggles with the decision to take her vows. Her younger sister Tula is carving out a new life for herself, but worries about being accepted for her family name.

Host: Jamie

Music by: Sammus

Edited by: Jamie Broadnax