Have you ever imagined what would have happen if your strictest teacher had quit teaching in the middle of the term— chaos right?
Kids smoking weed in class, fights during break time and the school in a general state of chaos.
Thathi turns criminal
Thathi is a law-abiding citizen. It must have horrified her to learn that her late husband had swindled working class citizens. It horrified her even more when she learned that her mother is a criminal. But she has debts to pay and a lawyer who has his eyes on her. “Sleep with me and your legal fees are deleted”.
You don’t really know who you are until you are at your lowest. Faced with bankruptcy and yet another man demanding sex for money, Thathi made a choice that she might not have opted for six months ago.
Chaos at Gomora Secondary
Remember that old saying about mice playing when the cat goes on holiday? Well, the rats at Gomora Secondary aren’t just playing, they have descended into anarchy. As soon as Melusi Dlamini’s iron fisted rule was replaced by the corrupt Ngoveni, the kids began a #PrincipalPunchChallenge in imitation of the scuffle that occurred between Lindokuhle and Principal Dlamini. The well-behaved Tshiamo received a punch in the face that left her bleeding from the mouth.
Bring back Principal Dlamini
One of life’s greatest ironies is that school children hate a strict teacher yet, once removed from the heel of their authoritarian mentor, they quickly want him back. After the beatings he has received both at home and at school, one would expect that Ntokozo would have popped champagne after his father resigned as Principal. But it was Ntokozo who took up a clip board and organised a petition demanding Mr Dlamini’s reinstatement. Sadly, Ntokozo’s well intentioned efforts would result in more chaos.
Lindokuhle, who helped Ngoveni oust Dlamini, confronted Teddy and Ntokozo as they went about collecting signatures. Lindokuhle only managed to get in one slap on Teddy’s cheek. The two soccer mad friends played diski on him as he lay curled up in the foetal position. Violence is bad. Very bad. Then why did I cheer them on as they beat the dreadlocks off his head.
Sins of the father
During the fight with Lindokuhle, someone stabbed Ntokozo in the hand. Gladys and Zodwa laid siege on Ngoveni’s office, demanding answers about safety of children on school premises. Ngoveni’s solution? Suspend Ntokozo, Yellow Mellow Two, for “taking matters into his own hands”. For the power hungry acting Principal, this was just another opportunity to fix Melusi, Yellow Mellow One, according to the acting Principal.
Melusi confronted the district manager, Tau, together with his co-conspirator, Ngoveni, and demanded his son’s immediate return to school. Because Ngoveni had not followed procedure, Tau had no option but to side with Dlamini.
Thathi goes car robbing
Thathi was left traumatised by the carjacking which resulted in her husband’s death. Despite agreeing to rob motorists, she did not want the raids to become violent. So Thathi and Sonto reached a compromise; they would steal valuables such as laptops, cell phones and money from unoccupied vehicles. Thathi met resistance from Mazet who would much rather steal a whole car than the Mickey Mouse cell phone and laptop racket. On their second mission, the headstrong Mazet left Thathi in their getaway vehicle under the pretext of going to ransack an unguarded car. The target was Lorraine, Thathi’s friend from her rich days. While Mazet was rummaging through the car, Lorraine, who is married, was doing unspeakable things with her landscaper inside his car, parked close by. All of a sudden, Mazet hopped into the driver’s seat and drove away with a whole Jeep Grand Cherokee leaving Thathi fuming. Lorraine, with untidy, post-coital hair, ran out from her lover’s vehicle, screaming “my car, my car, my car!” By then, all she could see was brake lights disappearing into the horizon.
Later, at Mam Sonto’s office, there was almost chaos between Thathi and Mazet as the pair argued over the car theft. Although Sonto sided with Thathi, she congratulated Mazet on the big steal. Having received a brand new replacement – a Mercedes SUV – Lorraine looks set to provide Sonto with repeat business.
Mam Sonto steps in
Despite being Gomora’s biggest criminal, Sonto showed her love for the community. When her granddaughter Tshiamo came home bloody mouthed after getting punched at school, Sonto did not react. But when she heard that Melusi Dlamini had been pushed into resigning from his position as School Principal, Sonto was livid! Dlamini is responsible for the transformation of Gomora Secondary into an institution that routinely produces excellent Matric examination results.
Sonto paid acting Principal Ngoveni and district manager Tau a visit. But they must have thought she was just another little old lady because they hardly gave her a second glance. Sonto phoned for backup. Two beefy enforcers arrived. Fast forward a few minutes and district manager Tau is on his knees begging for mercy. Sonto demanded the expulsion of Lindokuhle and reinstatement of Melusi Dlamini. For good measure, she locked up Tau in the cold room. Eish, just when Tau thought Jozi couldn’t get any colder!
Later, when Tau had defrosted himself, he personally went to the Dlamini home and asked Melusi to retake his old job. But Dlamini declined the offer. It was only after Mam Sonto reminded Melusi of his value to the community that he changed his mind.
Pretty fails the test
When Pretty noticed the covert meetings between Mam Sonto, Thathi and Mazet, she went into jealousy mode. Having no idea about the nature of her mother’s business, Pretty stormed into Sonto’s office and demanded “a seat at the table.” Initially, Sonto kept Pretty at arm’s length and denied the accusation of secret business dealings. But when Pretty persisted, Sonto capitulated. Sonto unlocked her safe and took out a gun. When she offered the weapon to Pretty, her daughter was visibly scared. Next, Sonto took Pretty on a drive. She stopped the car at an intersection and announced the mission; “we are going to carjack someone.”
Pretty’s eyes bulged and she stopped breathing. Before Pretty could resume breathing, Sonto spotted a target and cut off the car before ordering Pretty to go and rob the two occupants of the vehicle. Pretty froze. She pretty much flunked the test. What did you think your mum did for a living, moghel? You thought she was selling amagwinya at the corner, shem.
Chaos in the Gomora plot
Perhaps the producers of Gomora had not expected the show to run beyond 13 episodes. While the storyline is riveting, I get the feeling that the character development for Sbonga, Mazet and Sonto was a little rushed. One of the chief rules of writing is “show, don’t tell.” Sonto is a tough woman, you can’t steal cars without having a rock in your chest in place of a heart. But the writers have not done enough to show Sonto’s toughness. When you look at iconic screen villains – think Jack Mabaso of Generations, or Sledge from Zone 14 – you feel the danger radiating from them. Watching Sonto play the villain, one doesn’t quite feel intimidated by her, even when she’s got a gun in her hand. There was a scene where someone knocked on the door and Sonto slipped a kitchen knife into her sleeve before opening the door. It all just seems too sudden and almost like… I don’t know…. an afterthought on the part of the screenwriters. Sbonga, who usually hangs in the shadows was suddenly thrust into the spotlight as chairman of school governing body. Why wasn’t this revealed to viewers before? It almost seems suddenly improvised.
Till next week, my pen is capped
Jerà
Images from Twitter
Gomora airs weekdays at 7:30pm, Mzansi Magic