Last night, the first episode of the Big Brother Naija Reunion aired on Africa Magic, and it was every bit as uncomfortable as expected. The contestants present for the reunion included: Laycon, Ozo, TolaniBaj, Prince, Praise, Tochi, Lucy, Wathoni, Trickytee, Nengi, Kiddwaya, Dorothy, Vee, Neo, Brighto, Eric, Ka3na and Lilo. The host of the show was of course Ebuka Obi-Uchendu.

Kudos to the producers of the reunion show, who decided to give us a snippet of what the housemates have been up to since leaving the house. These short clips provided some context on the probable dynamics that exists between these ex-housemates since the end of the show.

To be more specific, while we harbor strange stereotypic narratives like, ‘all black people know each other.’ or ‘Igbo people like money,’ there is this lingering BBN narrative that all the contestants who go for a BBN season, must keep in touch with each other even after leaving the house. But seeing what everyone has been up to since the lock-down season came to an end, it gives you an idea that these ex-housemates are simply too busy building their brands to be buddying up to each other, or fix broken relationships.

With that said, it is fair to assume that since leaving the house, some of these housemates may have not settled some of the grievances that originated in the house. This fact was evident, while we watched 18 of the 20 ex-contestants reunite on the reunion show for the first time since the house. The demeanors of the housemates seemed tighter than the clothes they wore, and unlike the clothes they wore, their excitement to see each other didn’t glitter as much.

With air hugs, and fake smiles, and forced jokes, the first episode of the reunion show was a prelude to how dramatic subsequent episodes might be. I would say the elephant in the room needs to be addressed, but the question then would be, ‘which particular elephant?’ There is just too much tension between these successful individuals, and if it is any consolation, at least the potential drama of the reunion show might just make for premium content.

Chinedu Okafor

For Chinedu Okafor, its all about making an impact with words,  creating a profound impression on the audience with the intended narrative.