TV viewing on Thursday evenings has become more competitive with popular channels pulling all the stops to attract more viewers. It seems channels and programmes have spoken to their writers about coming up with more gripping and engrossing storylines to ensure channel hoppers forget they have a remote, sending families into an argument mode.
First up is Sokhulu & Partners which is back by popular demand. Back by popular demand doesn't refer to SABC1's deranged understading of "popular demand" which to them means repeating shows till they beat the life out of them. Back by popular demand means bringing us a new season of our fave show, SABC1, lol.
Set against the backdrop of the law and legal firm, Sokhulu & Parnters brings us real life stories about the law, it's perceived and sometimes real unfairness and how people access justice in a constitutional democracy. SABC 1 website says the show "explores all aspects of the South African Constitution and Bill of Rights and how they apply in practice. The series aims to popularise constitutionality and the workings of the Constitutional Court by giving the law a human face. Viewers [are] enticed to enter into the corridors of justice and democracy in a compelling way.
The show also explores personal lives of the firm's legal eagles and brothers Mabutho and Zweli are going to find themselves in a love triangle over Pam, who is their learn-ed colleague. The tvplus magazine (6 - 19 April 2011) reports that Pam is caught between Zweli and Mabutho.
While it is Mabutho she had a fling with at varsity, Zweli is the kind of guys she would like to be with. "Zweli is a nice guy: He's intelligemt, hardworking, succesful and good-looking. Pam and Zweli could have made an ideal match. The only problem is Pam has blinkers on, and all she can see is Mabuto. But if she knew about Zweli's feelings, Pam might just take a chance on him," Linda Sokhulu told the magazine. However, be warned. "This season is going to be exciting. There are twists and turns everywhere and you think you know what is going to happen, but it will surprise you," Linda told the Drum magazine (24 March 2011).
This show airs at 20:30 until 21:30 which conflicts with other popular show, namely, Headlines and Muvhango.
Each Thursday evening, I ask myself whether I should miss Headlines but I just go hell no. Headlines is a great entertainment and gossip show set against the backdrop of the South African entertainment scene. Hosted by Kuli Roberts the show has only one subject: the celebrities and wannabe schlebs who take up vast amounts of space in the country's media.
Headline offers "an intimate and close-up look at the lives of celebrities" and viewers can carry on the discussion after the show through Kuli's Facebook and Twitter pages. The channel itself says Kuli will be "walking the fine line between humorous gossip and tactless trash, the way only Kuli can do," reported TVSA Newsdesk last year.
Of course, this is one great show and Kuli's punchlines make it worth missing the first half of Sokhulu & Partners.
At 21:00, I have another dillema. This will be more so from this week as schools are reopening and I will be going to class on Saturdays and I will not have time to watch Muvhango omnibus forcing me to choose between the remaining 30 minutes of Sokhulu & Partners and Muvhango. Muvhango has upped its ante these days and the show is repositioning itself as a show that is modern yet embracing South African culture, norms and traditions.
Muvhango's website says the show reflects township, [rural] and Sowetan life. Two branches of the same family are at conflict, torn apart by the clash between the urban and rural communities. In their battle to find a unified answer they're divided by juicy betrayals, jelousies and revenge.
The tvplus megazine reports that Meme and KK's relationship is set to tackle the issue of emotional abuse in relationships. "We wanted to explore the issue of emotional abuse in relationships. Meme, who is a powerful businesswoman, breaks stereotypes that it's only marginalised women who fall victim to emotional abuse, Muvhango's head writer Phathu Makwarela told the magazine (6 - 19 April 2011).
Add to the mix the likes of Thandaza's love triangle which kept viewers at the edge of the seats for the past two months 'till today, and KK who is in love with Meme, you get one hell of a good show, way better than South Africa's number one show in terms of ARs. The current storylining saw the show moving from the damps of obscurity right onto SABC2's number 1 show. I guess Baba Duma Ndlovu got an altimatum from SABC 2 bosses to do something about its ARs which were dwindling and have since came back to power.
I think I'm going to have to buy, I think they call it HD PVR decorder, which costs a cool R2 000.00 and allows you to record a show on a different channel while you are watching another channel. I am still not sure whether I should spend that kind of money plus installation fees just to enrich my TV viewing experince. But I am thinking long and hard about it because I love all these three shows and it's unfair that I have to choose. I should just get the PVR now that I am still talking about it. Besides, it's made for all of us lol.
I must express my sincere gratitude to Carino who nicely wrote Monday World last week while I was on sick leave. Thanks Cariri for filling in for me at such a short notice. I know Monday World ideas require the entire week.
Pictures through the lens of various websites on the net and TV channels. Makisto sends out his love to various web content managers for programming the pictures in such a way that I can copy them.