Real queens fix each other’s crowns in Ma’Empress

“Real queens fix each other’s crowns” may as well be the tagline of Ma’Empress, the new comedy-drama series on Showmax that follows five women and the everyday struggles they face as they navigate through life, career, friendships, relationships and everything in between.

Produced by the power duo of Philip Karanja and Abel Mutua (Phil-It Productions) and directed by Kenji Gatheca, Ma’Empress hits close to home as it tackles various issues affecting women in modern society, like sexism, body shaming, marital struggles and infidelity, and even issues of identity and womanhood. All while maintaining a sense of humour that borrows from pop culture references and modern Kenyan slang – a signature style that Phil-It perfected even with its 2017 award-winning series Sue na Jonnie.

A truly outstanding female cast

It’s great to see Neomi Ng’ang’a back on our screens in a leading role, something she hasn’t done since she appeared in Dorothy Ghettuba’s Sumu La Penzi way back in 2013. Neomi plays the bubbly TV personality Renee, who’s dealing with childlessness in her marriage and a TV career that takes a turn for the worst in the first few episodes.

Catherine Kamau, also known as “Kate Actress” (Plan B, Sue na Jonnie), features as the naïve, humble housewife Eve, a biochemist who quit her job to take care of her husband and two kids. Kate’s in a new kind of role for her, proving the actress is moving away from the type-casting that has seen her play similar roles in movies like LowlaDee’s Plan B and Tosh Gitonga’s Disconnect.

Tahidi High’s alum Brenda Mwai plays Tasha, a socially-awkward IT geek with a penchant for waistcoats and bold lipsticks. She’s also the smartest one of the group and the one who struggles the most with getting into a relationship because she hasn’t yet invented an algorithm to make it easier for herself.

Let’s not neglect to mention the outstanding performance of Nyokabi Macharia, an actor who has honed her acting craft on stage in popular plays like Tinga Tinga Tales and Too Early For Birds. Her character Zawadi is an arty, straight-to-the-point painter-activist who refuses to conform to societal standards of what a woman should be. Other than her liking for one-night stands, Zawadi is a rebel who would rather spend her day protesting for women’s rights than with her new love interest Rio (Norman Abubakar “Abu Sense”).

To complete this quintet of strong, independent women tackling life and their problems head-on is Minne Kariuki’s Crystal, a socialite and social media influencer who falls from grace after a very public break-up. She believes in keeping up appearances on social media because, for an Instagram celebrity like herself, the sound of notifications is “music to her ears”, as she puts it.

You will spot other familiar faces like Brian Ogola (Lusala, Kati Kati), and along the way, Maryanne Nungo (Supa Modo). Nungo, a force to reckon with in the film/TV industry in Kenya plays the enigmatic Mrs Wawawawawa, a woman so intimidating that only a fool with a death wish would dare mess with her.

Female friendships, women empowerment and code names

Ma’Empress strikes a balance between humour and tackling serious issues, showing us what female friends who empower each other could be like.

These women have codes for everything. Every episode has a different code name; it’s how they summon each other for mini emergency meetings, how their bond of friendship is nurtured, how they pour their hearts out to each other as they share and find solutions to the various problem they face.

Code Adam’s Apple is used whenever they face issues of sexism, like when Eve is undermined by her daughter’s teacher and blamed for her disobedience at school (because apparently when children misbehave, it’s always the mother’s fault).

Or Code Blush where Ma’Empress really shows us the depth of the bond these women share and why a support system is necessary. Here we see Eve, who’s been in denial about her husband’s philandering ways, become vulnerable about her marriage. Even Zawadi, who’s been nothing but tough, drops her guard and opens up for a date with a guy she actually likes. It’s impressive to see Ma’Empress drop its comedy act and embrace its vulnerability.

These women need it, especially if they are truly going to tackle the issues they are going through, offer each other a shoulder to cry on and fix each other’s crowns because they are all “ma’empresses” as they continually reassure each other.

Ultimately, Ma’Empress is like fine wine. It gets even better with age, or rather as the show progresses. And in the very capable hands of writers like Bryan Ngartia and Queen Gathoni (who recently sold out Visa Oshwal Community Centre theatre with their iconic play Too Early For Birds – Tom Mboya Edition) what could possibly go wrong?

Ma’Empress is streaming now, with new episodes added weekly.