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Keeping up with the lavish lives of the rich and famous can make for amazing reality television but is the latest season of The Real Housewives of Johannesburg worth the watch?
The Real Housewives of Johannesburg
1Magic (DStv channel 103)
Fridays, 7pm
2/5
We were all on the fence when we heard that our fave madam, Evodia Mogase, and her sidekick and daughter, Mercy Mogase, would not be gracing our screens for the second season of The Real Housewives of Johannesburg.
Evodia had become a central character of the reality TV show, keeping us glued to our screens. Let’s face it, Evodia and Mercy made season 1 and the show doesn’t seem to gather as much traction as it did when madam was still calling the shots.
New sheriffs in town, Lethabo “Lejoy” Mathatho (TV presenter and founder of LeJoy foundation) and Nompumelelo “Mrs Mops” Mophatlane (married to IT mogul Isaac Mophatlane), have added some much-needed sparkle, with their designer clothing and strong personalities, to what so far seems like a boring cast.
That cast includes actress and businessperson Tarina Patel, South Africa’s youngest publisher Lebo Jojo Gunguluza (wife to businessman Lebo Gunguluza) and Mpho Merriweather (Afropunk project manager and jewellery designer, who we don’t see much of during the show), who don’t resonate as much.
Even returning housewife Brinnette Seopela’s bark is not as entertaining as her bite, although this might have a lot to do with her recent divorce from her husband, following a star-studded wedding that was aired on the previous season of the show. The antics of Christall Kay, who is also returning, have become predictable and unnecessary.
Apart from a good lace wig here and there, and some cute manis and pedis, there isn’t much glitz, glam and opulence being served to us basic working class folk. In the third episode of this season, the cast go to Cape Town on a trip sponsored by the Gunguluzas, which raised expectations of splendour but all of this fell flat. The trip seemed boring and bland with wine tasting, hiking and DIY sushi sessions being the highlight of it all.
This season promised more sparkle, drama, over-the-top parties, expensive shoes and even bigger handbags, but, three episodes in and I’m already yawning. Perhaps over the course of the show clashes between strong personalities like Lethabo, Mrs Mops, Brinnette and Christall could salvage this sinking ship, as brawls between the clinking of glasses by the rich and famous are what reality TV shows like The Real Housewives of Johannesburg are notorious for.
It should, however, be noted that Lethabo’s back probably hurts from carrying the entire show thus far. In the past three episodes, she has managed to rile many cast members because she simply tells it like it is. She even sparked an unexpected friendship with Mrs Mops, united by all things designer.
Mrs Mops doesn’t seem to have taken a liking to Brinnette and this could brew into a brawl that could carry the show for the next couple of episodes, along with a sprinkle of Christall’s desperate attempts for attention.
Given the resonance Evodia had with the viewers, the show does have its work cut out for it in trying to introduce the new season to fans. If the first couple of episodes are anything to go by, Lethabo and Mrs Mops will have the daunting task of having to compensate for the snooze fest that is the other cast members.
