How poetic that Pretty – the unloved daughter – should grab the spotlight as Gomora reached its season finale. Exactly a year has passed – 260 spellbinding episodes of Gomora – since Jomo bewitched us with his spine tingling laugh in season one. Jomo – whose real name is Fortune Thobejane and a rapper in real life, stage name Mr Dangerous – transitioned to the afterlife, murdered by Mam Sonto, but his eerie laughter remains imprinted on our minds and the last thing you on the theme song. It seemed that Jomo’s death would be forgotten, like morning dew evaporating at sunrise. But the Lord works in mysterious ways and nobody can predict the future… except his prophets.
Nomsa’s prophecy comes true
Nomsa arrived in Alex Township to investigate her son, Jomo’s death. Because of her prophetic powers, Nomsa had a vision of Thathi with blood on her hands, a revelation which Thathi laughed off. But one person in the Molefe household took Nomsa seriously; Pretty. Thathi dismissed her as a lunatic and Sonto eventually began to see her as a threat to her freedom.
When the grieving Nomsa found Jomo’s written confession – penned on his behalf by a prison cellmate – she confronted Sonto about the murder of her son and gave her an ultimatum; turn yourself into the police or I will.
Sonto tore up Jomo’s confession letter, thinking that if she destroyed the evidence, there would be no case against her. But it was merely a copy and Nomsa had anticipated this and kept the original hidden away. When Sonto told Mazet about the ultimatum, she had already resigned herself to a future behind bars. But Thathi wasn’t going to stand by. She tried to make Nomsa see reason. But the two women argued and the altercation became physical. Thathi pushed Nomsa onto the sofa before doing to her what Sonto did this time last year to Jomo; she smothered Nomsa with a sofa cushion… until her legs stopped kicking. By the time Mazet pulled Thathi off her, Nomsa was dead. If she predicted blood on Thathi’s hands, it was her own.
Pretty sweats over Nomsa’s disappearance
Thathi disposed of Nomsa’s body but her crime scene cleanup was amateurish, as time will reveal. Pretty who had grown rather fond of Nomsa began to worry about her absence. To put a lid on Pretty’s suspicion, Sonto told her that Nomsa had phoned her to tell her that she went back home to KZN. Pretty almost believed Sonto until she found Nomsa’s Church shawl. To Pretty, it did not add up that a praying woman like Nomsa would leave behind something to special to her religious life.
As Sonto tried to throw Pretty off the trail, the God whom Nomsa served intervened. The sound of a ringing phone filled the room. It was Nomsa’s cellphone and Pretty became even more suspicious. How did Nomsa call Mam Sonto if she had left her phone in Alex? Sonto explained this by saying Nomsa rang from a phone booth. But God who loves Nomsa stepped in again. The caller was Nomsa’s grandchild who told Pretty that her grandmother had never returned home.
As worry took over Pretty’s mind, she reported Nomsa’s disappearance to the police. Sonto, who happened to be in the room – at the tavern – raised doubts in officer Nabe’s mind by saying that Nomsa was “eccentric”, a grownup way of saying nutjob. Officer Nabe (real name Lebogang Mphahlele) asked to see a picture of Nomsa and when Pretty showed it to him, the policeman recognized her. She had visited the police station to make a hypothetical inquiry about “a friend” who had a written testimony about a crime. Mazet and Sonto’s ears both pricked up like airport sniffer dogs, because they knew it was the letter written by Jomo’s prison buddy detailing the carjacking and murder of Mbongeni Ndaba.
Melusi welcomes Langa to the family
After Gladys discovered that Langa is Melusi’s son, she and Thathi had agreed to keep this secret to themselves. But Gladys, driven by guilt, had a change of heart. As she and Thathi argued about telling Melusi, Ntokozo overheard them. When he demanded that they tell Melusi, both women began to play delaying tactics like Kaiser Chiefs winning 1-0 with minutes before the final whistle. But Ntokozo wasn’t going to play their waiting game, perhaps he is not a Chiefs fan. Since it’s snitch on your mother season, Ntokozo told Melusi. After several days of weirdness between Melusi and Gladys, he finally came out of his shell. He wanted to be a part of his son’s life. But Thathi denied that he was the father.
Melusi sat Langa down and told him the truth like Darth Vader in Star Wars;
“Luke Langa, I am your father!”
At first, Langa was stunned into denial. Seventeen years of his life had been one long lie. He went home to his mother who still stuck to her story; Melusi is not your father.
Finally Thathi folded under questioning by Langa. She admitted that she chose comfort over love. Without the euphemisms, Thathi chose Mbongeni’s money over Melusi’s love. Mama ke gold digger, basically.
Eager to make up for 17 lost years, Melusi requested Mam Sonto’s permission to hold imbelekho for the welcome of Langa to the Dlamini family. After negotiating with the Ndaba family, Sonto gave her approval. Which is bad news for goats, because you know something has to be slaughtered.
Pretty snitches on Sonto as Jomo laughs
Sonto’s family was invited to Langa’s pre-imbelekho dinner. But at the last minute, Pretty was suddenly taken ill by an upset stomach; God intervenes when he’s tired of seeing good people suffer. Pretty was home alone when a chill entered her. She began to search for an extra blanket and in the hunt, she knocked over a metal jar which fell to the floor; the sound of God intervening. As Pretty gathered the fallen tin, she spotted a folded document. It was Jomo’s written confession. Pretty was horrified.
The following day, the rest of the family went to the Dlaminis for Langa’s imbelekho. Pretty, with Sbonga trying to talk her out of it, went to the police station, Jomo’s letter in her hand. Despite Sbonga’s best efforts, Pretty still handed over the letter that could destroy several families.
Langa Ndaba had just met the underground gang and become Langa Dlamini when the police, led by Officer Nabe descended on the Dlamini home. Nabe announced the arrest of Sonto Molefe, Ntokozo Dlamini and – shock, horror – Zanele Jubilee Thwala. Everyone watched in shock – shocked that Sonto had killed her own son in law, Mbongeni, shocked that Ntokozo was involved in crime and mortified that Mazet kept a driver’s license that reads Zanele Jubilee Thwala!
Gomora season one ended, exactly a year after we first heard Jomo’s creepy laugh. As Sonto was marched out by the police, everyone eyed Pretty with the disapproval accorded to snitches in the township. But, in contrast to the human displeasure on her family’s faces, God who loves Nomsa must have smiled and Jomo surely must have laughed from the afterlife. Gomora, hahahaha!
Till next week, my pen is capped
Gomora airs weekdays at 7:30pm on Mzansi Magic.
Images from Twitter, videos from YouTube
You can listen to Jomo – Mr Dangerous here
Connect with the author on Twitter @RewindMzansi
