Release date: August 27, 2021 (Netflix)

Starring: Sola Sobowale, Toni Tones, Nse Ikpe Etim, December Okanlanwo, Efa Iwara, Charly Boy, Reminiscence, Ill Bliss, Titi Kuti, Ajai Taiwo-Lycett, et al.

The King of Boys has finally returned! It's been 3 years since Sola Sobowale and Kemi Adetiba teamed up to rule the Nigeria box office with the remarkable rendition of Eniola Salami's story, the eponymous King of Boys. Now, they've returned with the highly anticipated sequel and the hope of doing same to Netflix and all of its existing records in this part of the world.

Like many others, I stayed up all night on the day of its release to catch up on all 7 episodes of the limited series. And while I consider this a win for Nollywood (thank God it is, because I prayed so hard for this), I have some more specific thoughts on the movie, where I highlight its highs and lows.

To make it faster to read and understand, I've compiled these thoughts into bullet points. Read on, then share with me in the comments what your full thoughts on The King of Boys: The Return of the King and my review are.

What worked

  • The story.
  • The depiction of internal conflict as seen through Eniola. It was beautiful watching her unravel in private and struggling to maintain composure in public even with her failing reputation. This has to be one of the best takeaways from the series, it's what makes Eniola such an interesting character to watch.
  • A better insight into how politics in Nigeria works. It's a deadly, bloody, cold game. Yes, it is a game for the players involved.
  • Eniola Salami's dresses. It's hard to sit through the series without being wowed everytime Eniola shows up in a new dropdead gorgeous outfit. Beautiful stuff. This magic was also extended to other characters, with Mrs. Randle, Makanaki, Odogwu Malay, and Odudubarirba easily coming to mind as stand outs.
  • The soundtrack, sound effects, and cinematography.
  • Solid acting performances. Even in the first 3 episodes that had more fluff than was necessary, the acting performances served as glue to hold things together and keep the party going.
  • The parables, one of Eniola Salami's biggest idiosyncrasies, were a delight to listen to. I found myself always looking forward to the next one.
  • RMD's character's makeup.

What didn't work?

  • The pacing, especially with the first three episodes. There were just so much fluffs, and scenes that dragged out longer than they should've.
  • The retconing of how characters who died in the KoB universe can come back to life, diabolically. The explanation was lacking in quality, especially as it concerns Makanaki's brutal killing at the hands of Odogwu Malay at the end of the first movie.
  • The creative decision to leave some things up in the air for viewers to piece together. The details of how much Eniola Salami knew about the Ade-Boxer betrayal fiasco is one, and the decision to not show how Eniola and Makanaki called a truce is another. An even bigger one knowing how much Makanaki hated Eniola and what he'd sacrificed to get his revenge earlier in the series. I know the latter served as a deus ex machina, but it made absolutely no sense to do it that way when a flashback could've easily solved its cheap shock value feel.
  • The lack of character development for supporting characters like Makanaki. Save for Eniola (and depending on how you look at it, Ade Tiger), no other character got a worthy screentime of development. The best shows and movie are those that invest in supporting characters as well as their lead. KoB2 fails in this department. Makanaki's reconciliation with Eniola would've made multi-episode storyline of character development but thwt opportunity was squandered on the alter of shock value. I understand that Kemi Adetiba understands her chief market and sought to play it safe with the average moviegoer, which is the larger population of Nigerian filmlovers, but this still needed to be said. What makes Eniola Salami so memorable is her journey as a character, which viewers have been opportune to go on with her. It'd have been great if such an opportunity was granted to some more characters.
  • Eniola's campaign manager. The cartoonish portrayal of a character with such an important responsibility was a no, no for me. It was really painful to watch.
Official poster

Standout characters

  • Eniola freak'n Salami (Sola Sobowale). Always, Team Oba! 🙌🏽👑
  • Aare (Akin Lewis)
  • Chief Mrs. Randle (Ajai Taiwo-Lycett)
  • Mrs. Randle (Nse Ikpe Etim)

Disappointing characters
These characters held much promise, but were greatly underutilized:

  • Pastor Ifeanyi (RMD)
  • Banjo (Efa Iwara's journalist)
  • Odudubariba (Charly Boy)
  • Makanaki (I know this one would be controversial, but refer to the point in What Didn't Work above for clarification)

Disappointing Acting Performances

  • Ade Tiger's actor. Don't come for my head yet. The character turned out to be interesting, but imagine a more seasoned actor played him. Just imagine it first.
  • The basic actors playing nameless Elders at The Table. They were all too basic.

Questions that needed resolution:

  • Who was Eniola's househelp really working for, and what was her fate?
  • The very last post credit scene. What's the need of such a scene if it leaves viewers in more confusion than with a desire to ask relevant questions? It was pointless, in my opinion.

Random Thoughts

  • At first, I was confused if Eniola's relationship with Ade Tiger was a sexual one, or if it was the mother and son kind. Glad this was cleared up when it was.
  • It's remarkable how there wasn't a single sex scene in this thriller, even though it was going straight to Netflix. One would've thought the opportunity would've been seized to get creative. Mrs. Randle and Dapo Banjo should've done it, that would've added more tension and spice to their story arc.
  • Nigerians would never behave that way around a dead snake.
  • Iyaloja's return after Eniola became Governor is a reminder of just how shameless ambitious and shameless human beings can be to get what they want.
  • Ade Tiger's look at many times in the show reminded me heavily of The Twins in The Matrix Reloaded. I'm sure that was deliberate, though.

Which other pop-culture reference did you catch in King of Boys: The Return of the King? Let me know in the comments.

Directed by: Kemi Adetiba

Rinzy's Rating: 3/5

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