In Week 4 of our Black Coming-of-Age in the 1990s series, we examine Above the Rim (1994), a Harlem-set sports drama that explores ambition, masculinity, mentorship, and the pressure placed on young Black men to see athletics as the only path out. Through Kyle’s hubris and Shepard’s cautionary arc, the film questions whether redemption is earned, or simply granted.
Episode 5 of A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, “In the Name of the Mother,” delivers brutal action, emotional fallout, and the true cost of honor. As Dunk survives the Trial of Seven, Baelor’s fate shifts the balance of power in Westeros and proves that doing the right thing carries consequences far beyond the tourney grounds.
In Week 3 of our Black Coming-of-Age in the 1990s series, we revisit Crooklyn, Spike Lee’s semi-autobiographical portrait of childhood in 1970s Brooklyn. Through sibling rivalry, gender dynamics, colorism, community life, and sudden maturity, the film captures how memory, family, and neighborhood shape identity long before adolescence fully arrives.
