MTV SHUGA DOWN SOUTH 2: FULL SEASON RECAP (PART 2)

After sharing part 1 of her season recap last week, Adebola Aduwo is back with part 2 of the full review of #MTVShugaDS Season 2. Find out what she thought of Q, Lemo, Ipeleng and Sol's adventures this season.

In this season of MTV Shuga Down South, Q was madly in love with Dineo. They shared a common interest – their love for basketball!. Although he did not quite understand how she lived her life, he wanted badly to be a part of it. As a young girl who needed to fend for her family and sponsor herself through school, Dineo was involved in a transactional relationship. She wasn’t satisfied with that kind of life but having been presented with limited options, she had no choice. I admire her courage and liked that she had a clear head and knew what she wanted.

Q's fragile masculinity has gotten the better of him in the last two episodes 🤦‍♀️😓…Do you think there's anything he can do to save his relationship with Dineo at this point?? 💭 @jezzyskei#MTVShugaDS pic.twitter.com/stXxn5vYTk

— MTV Shuga: Down South (@MTVShugaDS) April 8, 2019

Q, on the other hand, was a confused fellow this season. He tried to impress Dineo with money that he could not spare, which was something she was not down for. Eventually, his fragile masculinity got the better of him, leading to him ruining both his college scholarship and relationship. It was good seeing him trying to recover from this in the end and I hope he’s wiser now. In the first part of my recap, I gave a pep talk on the importance of having a circle of people who are always available to provide you with support, emotionally and otherwise. It is unlikely that you’ll have everything figured out on your own, hence the need to ask for help from peers.

We also saw how Ipeleng had Daniel in her corner. Shuga Fam, Daniel is the perfect gentleman. He was always there to listen and lend a helping hand. He was also prepared to do anything to make Ipeleng comfortable. When it came to her taking a stance on getting intimate, for example, he understood. They even went as far as getting tested for HIV together using a self-testing kit. Look, I’m just putting this out there – if your relationship is in troubled waters because your partner has put you under unnecessary pressure, please do a quick catwalk and sashay out the door. With Daniel by her side, Ipeleng got all the support she did not even know she needed, especially when Lemo was attacked and hospitalized.

On the topic of Lemo, in this season, he showed us one of the many ways young people unknowingly fall prey to dangerous traps – a recurrent theme in MTV Shuga that cannot be overemphasized. He was coerced into selling drugs. Young and enthralled by the idea of doing something mischievous, Lemo lost himself in this new ‘business’. He forgot who he was, where he came from and what was important. In the long run, he got in trouble and almost lost his life in the process.

I blame Sol for this entire situation, who got out of jail and selfishly resorted to manipulating a child. Sol was in need of intense therapy in this season, but I still do not understand why he was in denial of this. Growing up in a home where toxic masculinity was the order of the day completely messed up his psyche. His father, Mthunzi, was used to having his way forcibly. The power imbalance in Sol’s home was a cause for alarm but his mother, Amahle, did everything in her power to find excuses for her husband’s actions. In the middle of blows, punches and hurtful words, Amahle’s façade grew to the point where Mthunzi became the cause of her untimely death. In my heart, I had hoped it wouldn’t end up this way and that she would eventually muster up the courage to leave that marriage. Typically, men who are staunch believers in gender roles exert some form of control over women, knowingly or not. These men are also likely to use violence to get whatever it is they want. What do you think we can do to bring an end to gender-based violence?

We had hoped that jail would’ve changed Sol @AyandaMcKayi.

But ever since his return, he’s been causing havoc and now, Thuli and Little Lemo are tied up in his mess 😪.

Looks like it’s going to take way more than Tsholo’s ghost to get him to change his toxic ways…#MTVShugaDS pic.twitter.com/sOgG4oDjX1

— MTV Shuga: Down South (@MTVShugaDS) April 3, 2019

We, at MTV Shuga, are going above and beyond to create awareness on these issues but it does not have to stop with us. You can raise your voice and shed more light on these complexities that can be fixed. We all have a voice; the only difference is the size of our platform. We are all essentially the mouthpiece of our generation. What are you doing in your own corner to spread the word?

If you want to relive the drama, the magic, the pain and the joy of #MTVShugaDS (or if you haven’t already seen it) why not start from the very beginning of the journey by watching Episodes 1-10 here?