Since 2015, there has been one constant, Wednesday nights are must-see television. However, FOX no longer has the best show on Wednesdays and that’s no knock at “Star.” Even when “Empire” comes on, it will be the second-best show on Wednesdays.
BET has gotten into the Wednesday night race with “The Quad” and they have put together a winner. Starring Anika Noni Rose, previously known for playing Jukebox on “Power,” “The Quad” is about the college life. It is a perfect blend of the students, teachers, and school execs.
Familiar faces are present in the show, as it deals with real-life issues that aren’t spoken on. Infidelity is used so much in television that it’s become cliche, but “The Quad” still goes there. However, “The Quad” tackles the older woman/younger man romances, where many married and bored women are turning to.
Dr. Eva Fletcher (Rose) is the main protagonist on “The Quad” and she had an affair with Jason (Redaric Williams, best-known to daytime soap fans for “The Young and the Restless”), a student. This affair cost Eva her marriage, leading her to take a job as the dean of GAMU, Georgia A&M University. Here, she has found a friend and possibly more in football coach, Eugene Hardwick (Sean Blakemore, best-known to daytime fans for “General Hospital).”
Taking over at GAMU, Eva immediately runs into a brick wall in Cecil Diamond (Ruben Santiago-Hudson), who has no regard for the new dean, primarily due to her gender. With help from Eugene (Blakemore), Eva now has to find donors to aid her in keeping the school afloat. Help comes in the form of Mr. Briggs (Coby Bell, BET legend for his role as Jason Pitts on “The Game), who may want some help from Eva, in the future.
Additional friends come in Grace Caldwell (Jasmine Guy), although Eva’s latest decisions may have them not as good of friends as they could of been. Then, Eva’s personal decisions are coming back to bite her, as her daughter, Sydney (Jazz Raycole, the first Clair on “My Wife and Kids”) is treating her horribly. Then, making matters worse, Jason (Williams) is making moves on her, since Eva is trying to win her husband back.
Outside of Eva and her drama, elsewhere, a student named Cecil (Payton Alex Smith) was arrested for the murder of his girlfriend, Chantel (Candace B. Harris). While his mom (Demetria McKinney) bailed him out, he resents her for making him stay at GAMU. Clearly, he is innocent, but that’s only evident to the visitor, as he is beginning to be mistreated by the outsiders, but his retribution is coming.
“The Quad” is everything, and then some, when it comes to the drama, and it’s hard to stop watching. The show airs on Wednesdays at 10 pm on BET.
