Lucy Lu, where are you?
Mrekza isn’t coping with his wife Lucy’s sudden vanishing act, but he’s not the only one falling apart…
Alexandra township hasn’t been the same without shebeen queen Lucy Diale (Manaka Ranaka) around. And we’re not alone in missing the fierce character – since Lucy left town in December last year, her husband Mrekza (Kope Makgae) has slowly been losing all hope of ever seeing his love again.
Lucy and Mrekza’s lives were turned upside down in November 2020 when Lucy’s former prison pallover Luthando (Khutjo Green) showed up after being released… and she wanted Lucy back. “She threatened Lucy’s family,” Kope reminds us. “She tried to poison them with that tripe, remember that?” Luthando placed an ultimatum before Lucy’s feet: stay with Mrekza and lose everything or leave town and cut all ties with your loved ones. Lucy opted for the latter.
SHEBEEN SHAMBLES
Mrekza is broken and struggling to come to terms with his Lucy-less existence. “He’s just not himself. He’s snappy with shebeen customers and even cries when he’s alone at night,” says Kope, adding that the shebeen is also looking a bit worse for wear without its boss lady. “The waiters are stealing stock, the glasses are dirty and the service is horrible. Mrekza put Lucy’s brother Cosmo (Ronnie Nyakale) in charge, but Mrekza is annoyed with Cosmo’s management,” admits Kope. Mrekza only sees one solution to his shebeen headache: closing its doors for good. “It is not a difficult decision for him since he thinks the shebeen is more trouble than it’s worth,” adds the actor.
FAMILY BUSINESS
But the shebeen is the least of Mrekza’s problems – waiting for him at home is Lucy and Mrekza’s fosterdaughter Mbali (Ditebogo Ledwaba). Worried that she will have to find a new family now that Lucy is MIA, Mrekza has to assure the teen that things will work out. “He tries to keep up appearances that all is well,” adds Kope, “but Mbali sees that Mrekza isn’t coping.”
Thankfully there will be help to stop Mrekza fading into misery. Seeing a devastated friend implode, Lucy’s best friend Fikile (Refilwe Madumo) steps in. “She starts by convincing Mrekza to reopen the shebeen – it was Lucy’s baby, they owe it to her to keep it afloat,” says Kope. But while Fikile is happy to play new shebeen queen, Mrekza comes to grips with the reality that Lucy may be lost for good…