Last week, we saw Mary Jane (Gabrielle Union) power through her struggles like the badass she is and now she’s finally getting the one thing that’s eluded her for years: love. But the fire to her matchstick, Justin Talbot (Michael Ealy), is up against her best friend Kara (Lisa Vidal) for a huge promotion. Executive producer...huge. And who would be the deciding vote? Mary Jane herself. Let the drama begin.
When we last left the Atlanta Patterson’s, Patrick (Richard Brooks) had finally forgiven Paul (Richard Roundtree) for raising him as his own. Niecy (Raven Goodwin) had to give Amika the boot after finding out she was leaving the kids with a stranger. As for Helen Patterson (Margaret Avery), we’re not sure where she’s been since their trip to NYC, but we can be certain that it’s not New Orleans and it’s not with Frank.
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The shows kicks off with a dreamy newsroom. MJ’s wig is beautiful, bouncy, and curly. Plus, she’s apparently married to Justin! He’s the executive producer and she’s head anchor. They’re romantic and in love and it’s everything MJ could possibly want. There’s even an imaginary son named Jay. Everything is great until the whole family sees Kara on the street. Now she’s “just somebody [MJ] used to know.”
She startles awake and her day begins. Justin booked Prince Harry and Meghan Markle on the show to guarantee himself the executive producer job. Kara, on the other hand, has cooked up a new segment – it’s basically the primetime special, but this time it’ll be in front of all of Good Day, USA’s viewers.
Forever the troublemaker, Dani (Victoria Staley) is being physically stalked by her crazy fans. Kara is already thinking up new ways to solve Dani’s problem since she’s the miracle worker we’ve all come to know.
In Atlanta, Paul is already being approached by women. Patrick thinks that Paul will end up taking Helen back, but at this point, who knows?
Mary Jane gets help from a few of her friends: Aaliyah (Raney Branch), Ty (Julian Walker), and a little marijuana. I’ve spent four seasons waiting for this MJ + MJ joke! But the scene is bummed out with a little bad news: Apparently, Kara took a meeting at Ronda Sales’s (Valarie Pettiford) new talk show!
Justin is crazy confident that he’s gonna get the job. He’s won over Aaron (Paul Rolfes), Garrett (Ashton Holmes), and the Prince Harry segment will do great. Still, he’s put out feelers elsewhere. What he doesn’t know is that Mary Jane is the deciding vote. If she votes for Kara, there’s no way he’s getting the gig. It looks like there’s no win for Mary Jane. Even if they maintain their relationships, either Kara or Justin will end up working somewhere else.
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Meanwhile, Kara got a conservative pundit to defend Dani and take some of the flack off of her. The woman’s a saint! In the same breath, she creates the entire segment and reveals that if she gets the job, she’s going to move her ex and her kids to NYC. Then, she would have it all. That perfect life includes her retiring baseball player boyfriend, Orlando (Nicholas Gonzalez). As she plans his retirement party, he worries that his new co-worker doesn’t like him. Of course, Kara comforts him because the girl is on fire!
In the pitch meeting, Aaron and Garrett start to take down Kara’s pitch about women, but guess who steps in to save the day? Justin! So sweet. Garrett buys in, but not before praising Justin’s “sound and rational” argument. Boy, bye! Despite the help, Kara worries that Justin is working some kind of angle. Later, he reveals that he actually really like the pitch.
He reveals that he was offered a job in Los Angeles to executive producer a political talkshow for Vice. But he does not want to be put in the position of considering the job.
After the break, MJ has another dream where Kara is the executive producer and GDU is winning award after award. As she steps into her limo, she sees Justin and his little boy. But they don’t speak. When she wakes up, Justin reveals that he just bought a condo in Necker Island, the dream vacation MJ begged for before. Now they can go whenever they want.
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At work, she’s floating on thin air! It only takes Dani to bring her mood down. Dani doesn’t want to let go of her journalistic integrity and MJ admires this. So she lets her join the women’s panel of her segment. In classic Dani fashion, she blurts that she heard Justin and Aaron talking about how MJ has the deciding vote. Is Justin trying to bribe her?
The women’s panel is full of colour and smart ideas about women and marriage. Not only is this a conversation about marriage, but it’s also about economic stability and government aid. It leaves everyone wondering if women are enough to create and maintain a family. But Justin doesn’t mind that Dani mentioned him on-air. In fact, he loves it! And after he spills that he loves her, MJ confronts him about knowing about her vote. Now, he’s pissed that she kept a secret from him and flips it on her. Ugh, this relationship can be so volatile. He isn’t even concerned that it’s a huge burden for Mary Jane to carry. They argue calmly with harsh words, which makes the situation even more sad and awkward. You can feel the dream slipping out of the air. And if Justin didn’t know, what was Dani talking about?
The next day, MJ goes in to make her vote. After the show airs, Garrett announces who the next executive producer will be. Drumroll, please...it’s Kara! Justin looks at Mary Jane in shock, but she goes to congratulate Kara. When she turns around, he’s gone. I wish he would be a little more understanding, but I get that this was his dream job. In the end, Kara will “take this show to new heights.” Mary Jane doesn’t want their relationship to be based off of what they do for one another. It should be able to stand the test of time. But Justin vaguely replies “You made your decision. Now, I’m gonna live up to your expectations.”
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Down South, Helen Patterson sneaks into the house and is caught by Niecy. She’s worried that he’s not taking his medicine, but Miss Niecy has it covered. When the doorbell rings, she’s greeted by a church lady with a big ol’ cake. She tells the woman off – complete with an insult to her cake. Then she gets ready to make her man some real food.
Kara, on the other hand, is having the opposite of a man problem. She found a diamond ring in Orlando’s bag when she was doing laundry and is nervous that he’s going to propose at the party. Even though it’s a big night, she lets Mary Jane off the hook for coming to the party.
There, Orlando and his new co-worker are fast friends and Orlando gives a special speech for Kara. He’s so proud of her. It’s adorable! But when he pulls out the jewellery box, it’s a name plate! Not a huge diamond ring! Sweet, but not exactly the romantic gesture she was looking for.
After an undisclosed amount of time, Kara calls Mary Jane’s apartment, but there’s no answer. The TV news anchor is looking at two embryos in a microscope before getting them implanted. That means MJ found a sperm donor and is ready to get pregnant, all without Justin.
When Paul returns, Helen feeds him and asks for forgiveness. But he’s not having it. He pulls out divorce papers and reassures her that he wants the transition to be easy for everyone.
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In New York, MJ returns from implantation. The apartment is covered in flowers and twinkle lights. Justin stands in the centre of it all. He apologises for his emotionally manipulative behaviour. But says that he’s realised what he wants: Mary Jane. He gets down on one knee and proposes! It’s everything Mary Jane has ever wanted and she can’t answer.
Although the ending to the fourth season of Being Mary Jane wasn’t as scary or gut-punching as others have been, it’s arguably the most important of them all. We’re finally seeing our girl get what she wants and it’s still the toughest decision of her life. Hopefully, we'll see her living happily in season five.
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