Death of a Queen seems to be one of those shows that does not want to disappoint and it doesn’t . The intrigue, conniving and the drama continue to unfold with every episode. Last night episode was a joy to watch as we finally see Maloro ( Putla Sehlapelo) finally stepping out of Grace ( Shoki’s) shadow and showing that he is also very deceitful, conniving and murderous soul leaving poor Puno (Nteseng Kwedi) with a very uncertain future. That the two are real perfect match made in baddie tv-land
All along Shoki is been very entertaining as the “evil’’, sexy vamp wife of Maloro who had to do all the dog work for a timid husband. But last night episode we saw Maloro’s true colours come out as he showed that he too is very capable of morally debase acts, of conniving and being deceitful. We saw the façade of the all round good guy start to slowly fade away being replaced by a man whose lust for power and recognition knows no bound. You could even see poor Grace was turned on and scared by this new look Maloro.
Shoki is been very dynamic in the show and continues to be but it was nice to see Sehlapelo finaly been given more meat to show off his acting muscles. From his crocodile tears at the press conference, to his insincere calls of unity to his interaction with Grace and Puno, the man is able to pitch his performances at different ranges and levels. A true marker of a good performance. The man has been a joy and a new acting discovery for me.
The young Nteseng Kwedi who plays Puno is also stacking up nicely. She’s able to convey Puno’s fears, intuition and frailty with a seasons professional ability. Her character comes off as a character and not some kid trying to act scared. The nice thing about last nights episode it seems to set up a showdown between Maloro and Grace with Puno and all those who care about her.Which will be interesting to see how it unfolds.
Aside from the brilliant production design, production quality, shots and cast I’m still in love with how the guys keep using local superstition, ritual and myths in their story. These not only act as an insight to our own folklore but work well within the story. Tha act to drive the story forward and to add an extra layer of meaning. The idea of “Diphiri” or jackals taking away people ,instead of just letting the kids know that their parents is dead is very well established in Sotho-Tswana cultures. I like the insight they gave us into rituals such as how a burial of a queen is carried out. That mainly the women are responsible for the burial and not the men, and that the queen is buried in a cave.I didn’t know that. The crowning and other rituals that been displayed has been a joy tow watch. It’s a delight to have something talking to us in our own understanding,using our own codes and modes and not an import of ideas from somewhere else.
So the king is crowned the question now is, what is the king willing to do to secure his throne? I’ll be watching next week for more,…..