SERIES REVIEW: Zuba Season 5

RATING ® 6.5/10

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Note: this article is not sponsored. Everything written here has been written of our own accord.

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Zuba, an actual light in the darkness…

Zuba is the first and arguably the biggest Telenovela in the Southern African region. It’s produced on behalf of Zambezi Magic TV, a subsidiary of MNET and Multichoice, by Elixur Integrated Media (seasons 3,4 & 5) and before it JAM PRODUCTIONS (seasons 1 & 2).

Over the last one year or so, for some strange reason, there has been reports that it lost nearly half of it’s fan base and the other half that kept on watching couldn’t stop complaining about the unprecedented decline of the show. It seems however, that most of those complaints have been rectified in a 5th season that not only looks more cinematic, but according to some, is less confusing than the last 2 seasons.

This article was written to help you understand why…

The rise of the fall…

It’s not a secret that Zuba is not an original Zambian story but rather an adaptation of an indian Telenovela. So in early 2017, it was surprising to see Zambezi Magic take interest in making a surprise move that would bring it to the Zambian market for the locals to consume. Needless to say, the adaption to Zuba became a huge successful, and the rest as they say is history.

Sometimes failure is the answer…

The first season was a marvel, it signalled a big bald step in what direction the visual industry in zambia would take, and since then, everything miraculously started to get better for the rest of the industry at large. The writing efforts of Becky Ngoma brought Zuba’s first season to life, and to nearly every extent, things started looking up. Untill the show was passed on to a different production company in early 2019.

That, and the rise of the rival Mpali created by Frank Sibukku, would go on to turn people’s mouths sour upon hearing anything Zuba related. This would go on for another 260 episodes, until early 2021 when the show was renewed for a 5th season. After that, Zuba started showing everyone why it occupies the channel’s prime time slot.

Season 5 has showed lots of new improvements, but the most notable ones are cinematography, the new story arcs and the ever expanding efforts by actors to improve upon themselves despite the odds.

The industry is evolving…

As an emerging industry, we often never understood that film is a collaborative process until now. Most Producers are now open to working with creatives from other productions and this has proven to be a key factor in making our work look and feel alot better.

We’ve seen this on Mungoma S1, where the vibrant Director Sam SK Kanyama was brought on to give the show direction alongside Maynard Muchangwe, and the show became an instant hit. We also saw it on Amooye S2, where Maynard Muchangwe was brought on to direct alongside the astounding Tozyah Botah, and the show turned out alot better than it’s first season. This has become a growing trend, and not just in Director roles. It’s been happening in DOP roles and other key crew roles as well. We’re looking forward to a crossover with actors too. We’re pretty certain the Zambian audience will appreciate a good actor-crossover.

Needless to say, collaboration is on it’s A game, and in our personal opinion, might have just saved the entire Zuba franchise. Most notably the introduction of Jones Nasilele as Series Director. The Cinematographer turned Director has proven key in nearly all cinematic and directional aspects that the show has been lacking the last two seasons. And this is in no way an insult to the other hardworking Directors who have dedicated their sweat and blood to make the show work.

And so, like a wounded savior trapped in a stone tomb, Zuba is back looking better than ever in it’s 5th chilling season and doesn’t look like it’ll be leaving our screens anytime soon. Our recommendation is that, if you haven’t seen Zuba in a while, turn on your television on any given weekday and tune into Zambezi Magic at 8 o’clock in the PM. Then brace yourself, you’re not ready for the visual spectacle you’re about to set your eyes on. Evidently, the steering wheel to our industry is in safe hands.

Ciao.