Looking back in time, you would realize Nollywood really has evolved. With this evolution comes the good, the bad and unfortunately the ugly. Starting from today we are throwing way back to those days when we looked forward to going home to enlightening and funny TV series, and not having to worry endlessly about what the kids are watching (considering the fact that our parents were experts at locking the TV with keys, I mean who does that?)
Today we are shining the spotlight on Checkmate, a favourite of many Nigerians in the 90s, which was the creative work of Amaka Igwe. Checkmate was such a popular soap opera that not only catapulted her to national renown but was also ranked among the standard-setting works for Nollywood productions. It starred Richard Mofe-Damijo, Ego Boyo, and Francis Agu amongst others.
Checkmate featured varying families with one interesting thing in common: disharmony. With families such as the Edems, the Kadris, The Fujis, the Haastrups, the Ola-Daniels etc, all dealing with several family issues ranging from a drunken dad to the absentee wife and mother, this movie depicts excellently the scenario in a typical Nigerian polygamous home. Ann Haastrup was a particularly memorable character for me; she was arrogant, and full of feminist venom. Each character was unique in his/her own way and the storyline was relatable and beautifully gripping. What was there not to love about this awesome series? Nothing.
When I look at sitcoms such as “Fuji House of Commotion,” they just seem like funny versions of Checkmate (awesome and funny stuff). In this era of DSTV and all other cable TVs, there just seems to be so much going on, it really would be nice for our Nigerian movie industry to create a classic TV series like Checkmate again. But while we wait for that to happen, let’s celebrate the era of technology and not having to endure a locked TV, and not having to strive to have a coloured TV by using Lucozade nylon to cover our TVs … lol.
What throwback show did you grew up with? Share with us in the comment section below or any of our social media platforms: @ConnectNigeria.
About the Writer: Eniola Adeniji is a woman after God’s own heart, a motivational Writer, Speaker, Fashion and Photography addict. She is also a Business Developer, Social Media Manager and the founder of Woman Of Value. She blogs at ennmae.wordpress.com
