Meghan Markle is a beast. I say that with respect and admiration.

I enjoyed the new Harry & Meghan docuseries on Netflix, watching Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex, sticking it to the country that was once the world’s biggest colonizer. African ancestors enslaved by the British empire over the centuries are no doubt tickled by it as well.

Yeah, Meghan and Prince Harry are a little self-involved and incredibly privileged. But think about what Meghan has done. She got the keys to the castle — almost literally — and said, “No thanks.” She pretty much gave the stuffy British royals her middle finger, took their precious prince away, and moved him into Tyler Perry’s Los Angeles mansion.

Then, instead of quietly slinking off into the California sunset, she agreed to sit for an interview with Oprah Winfrey, then a greatly anticipated Netflix documentary, during which she puts the British royals and tabloids on blast.

That’s a beast move. I say that with respect and admiration.

» READ MORE: Harry and Meghan slam British tabloids in new Netflix series

The saga — I mean the six-part docuseries — streaming now on Netflix, is riveting. It’s messy, too.

As I binge-watched, I couldn’t help reflecting on how “the Firm” — as it is famously called — greatly underestimated Meghan when she married Harry and became part of their elite inner circle. I suspect that they assumed that she — a divorced, biracial American actress — would be grateful for their benevolence in allowing the marriage to happen and that she would go along with their rigid protocols.

But instead of obediently taking orders from the palace, she resisted — such as when the palace expected her to come out with her baby immediately after giving birth, as Kate, the Duchess of Cambridge, and Princess Diana had done. Meghan bucked tradition and strolled out to present him to the press when she got good and ready.

When she couldn’t take it any longer, Meghan did a major flex by hopping a plane ride back home, with Harry in tow. Now she’s spilling all the English tea, and I’m here for it. And she’s doing it with Harry by her side, cosigning her version of events and tossing in his own criticisms and observations, and making money in the process. (He makes it clear during the docuseries that it wasn’t just Meghan’s decision to leave — he wanted out as well.)

“Meghan did a major flex by hopping a plane ride back home, with Harry in tow.”

Meghan — a woman of color — basically turned her nose up at their way of life, and even has gone so far as to mock their “medieval” traditions such as curtsying in front of the queen. During one episode of the docuseries, she demonstrates how she did it by bending over dramatically at the waist and bowing deeply. As Harry watched with an inscrutable expression on his face, I couldn’t help but wonder if she’d gone too far, especially considering his beloved grandmother recently died. (Joking about your spouse’s relatives in front of a documentary film crew is a no-no.)

But even if Meghan does cross a proverbial line with that particular reenactment, many will never embrace her because of all that she represents. So much of their hatred of her is about race, class, and privilege all wrapped up in the survival of the British monarchy.

Eventually, the couple decided to leave it all behind.

As an African American, I’m incredibly proud of her. Not only did she nab a guy who had once been considered the world’s most eligible bachelor, but she refused to stick around and continue taking guff from his family and the British press. That’s gutsy on his part. Harry gave up everything.

Had I been in their place, I’d probably still be across the pond demanding retractions from the press and doing photo ops. I am not sure I would have had the courage to strike out on my own the way that they did, especially since it also meant losing their royal security. I applaud them for deciding to live life on their own terms, even if it now means earning their own money, estrangement from the Firm, and continued derision by many in the British press. They’re walking around barefoot, watching birds, and driving themselves around Santa Barbara, Calif., which is what they want to do.

I love how the docuseries shows never-before-scene footage of their everyday life celebrating birthdays and spending time with Meghan’s mother, who is relishing being a grandmother. In a world where women of color like her get a hard way to go, Meghan has managed to figure out how to live life on her own terms.

But I do hope the brothers will find a way to be close once again. Family matters. It’s painful when careers and other things come before that. I also hope that Harry and Meghan’s love story — which we now know hasn’t been the fairy tale it was portrayed to be — will have a happy ending, and that Meghan’s famous tagline “Love wins” will bear itself out. Because in the end, that’s all that matters — for any of us.