Telenovelas make it easier
NO CROCODILE TEARS FOR THIS FAN FAVOURITE While the popular e.tv show is ending next month, there’s actually reason to celebrate after the last episode airs.
hanks to telenovelas, it’s easier than ever to say goodbye to a series. Not because the show, the story or the actors are bad, but simply because our TVtime investments are maturing faster than ever.
While soapies have always been at the top of the South African TV food chain – the sluggish character development and constant open-ended storytelling has made these shows addictive, but difficult to compete with the quick pay-off of international fare.
Soaps rely on storylines that drag out for years, while traditional serials get to the point every episode, relying on multi-episode or seasonal arcs for white-knuckling drama. But soaps remain in prime-time slots on South African TV screens. Giving up the daily addiction is hard.
Back in 2012, Mzanzi Magic pioneered something new on our screens when they aired iNkaba – the first South African telenova on many accounts. The show was cooked up from the same recipe of Spanish telenovelas – it wrapped up in just more than 200 episodes (for comparison, tonight Isidingo will air its 4 488th episode), and it had a core family story, with smaller stories to add to the drama.
It offered compelling viewing, thanks to soap archetype characters, but had the same feel as traditional serials.
iNkaba opened the floodgate of what was to become local TV’s greatest asset. The success of telenovelas on the pay channel Mzanzi Magic ensured the public broadcaster and free-to-air channel e.tv quickly penned and produced their telenovelas, adding another layer to our weekly TV schedule.
Next month we say goodbye to a defining South African telenovela, e.tv’s Umlilo. But what set Umlilo apart?
The show had a fully realised plot, that was centered around a polygamous marriage, and the filthy rich Simelanes. That in itself made it compulsory viewing when the first episode aired last year, but the show has a list of story-lines that had the country on the edge of their seats every Monday night.
Some of the most compelling moments involved Nomzamo Mbatha’s character Thembi/Khwesi. Who can forget her first steamy kiss with Palesa (played by Khanyi Mbau)?
One of the biggest reveals in the show’s run also included Thembi, when she was still known as Khwesi. During the show’s third season Khwesi revealed she’s actually Thembi Kumkani during the season finale. It set up the final season in such a way that you had to return to the Simelane-clan.
Goodbye Umlilo, I can’t wait to see what e.tv cooks up next.