5 Reasons This Is The Best Week Ever For Black Women + Primetime TV!

Black women are really getting a chance to shine on network primetime TV this fall! Check the scoreboard…or your local listings.

Representation matters, it’s gratifying to see that we’re becoming a bigger presence on the primetime landscape. That’s not just because Black women are starring in so many shows, it’s the fact that we get to play so many different types of characters. We’re no longer just filling the role of the sassy Black friend, or the ratchet, or the mammie! Check out who’s heading up some of the shows you need to be watching this week!

Nicole Beharie – Sleepy Hollow, Mondays @9 PM on Fox

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Season 2 of “Sleepy Hollow” returned last night, and Nicole Beharie was there to serve up everything that we loved about her last season. While she may not know all of the answers just yet, she’s clever, and she’s got deep moral convictions. Not to mention she gets to be a hero and central to the storyline! She’s basically one of the only people standing between the status quo and a monster attack of Biblical proportions. How cool is that?

Her sister, who shares her powers of spiritual perception, has also become a huge part of the plot. On the dark side of things, John Cho is batting for the bad guys. I wish I could say that such a diverse cast was standard in sci-fi, but it’s not. For that reason, I’ve really got to give the producers of “Sleepy Hollow” a huge round of applause.

UP NEXT: Tracee Ellis Ross

Tracee Ellis Ross – Black-ish, ABC @ 9:30 pm Wednesdays

Just from the promos alone, there are already plenty of reasons to love “black-ish.” Another would be the fact that Tracee Ellis Ross has found her way back to network TV playing a wife and mother in a functional and loving—if quirky family. It seems like she might be the voice of reason to counterbalance Anthony Anderson in his frantic, sometimes incorrectly played attempts to make sure his kids maintain a sense of their identity as African Americans.

UP NEXT: Viola Davis

Viola Davis – How To Get Away With Murder, ABC @ 10 pm Thursdays

Shonda Rhimes has pretty much collected Hollywood’s edges with “Grey’s Anatomy” and “Scandal;” now she’s coming for everyone’s wig as she debuts “How To Get Away With Murder,” starring Viola Davis. Viola’s character might not be the warm, informative college professor of your dreams, but her students are going to get a practical education in her course! The series will also feature Aja Naomi King, as one of her shrewdest students.

UP NEXT: Kerry Washington

Kerry Washington – Scandal, ABC @ 9 pm Thursdays

It’s been a long summer without “Scandal,” but Kerry Washington is finally coming back on Thursday to reveal what happened to Olivia Pope after she flew off into the sunset at the end season 3! What we do know so far is that she’s somewhere on a beach with a glass of wine and ignoring all of Fitz’s calls! Even a fixer needs a break. Olivia’s been so busy mopping up everyone else’s messes (while sorting out her own incredibly complicated life), that she’s really in need of some chill time.

UP NEXT: Jada Pinkett Smith

Jada Pinkett Smith – Gotham, FOX @ 8 pm Mondays

So here’s the thing: Not every Black woman can be the good girl. If one of us to be a villain, Jada Pinkett Smith is filling out the role very well on “Gotham.” The series, which is really the origin story of Batman and the bad guys he faces, debuted last night on FOX. Let’s just say that Jada’s fierce and fearsome character Fish Mooney is not to be crossed.