The Mad Blogger: Remembering James Dante Midzi
I recently learnt about the death of a fellow blogger, James “Dante” Midzi, known to some as The Mad Blogger, who blogged at mydialectics.wordpress.com.
The Afrobloggers community would be familiar with his unconventional takes, particularly during our annual WinterABC blogging festival. It was for this unique perspective that I called him The Mad Blogger, and he took it up as his blogging pseudonym.
He had a gift for doing the unexpected. He would sometimes publish an entire post arguing why he would not write about a particular prompt or topic. Inevitably, by the end of the article, he had written exactly that. We would laugh at the irony, but beneath the humour was a writer who refused to engage with ideas in predictable ways.
He challenged prompts, challenged trends, and often challenged himself.
For the 2026 edition of WinterABC, I reached out to him personally and asked him to submit the kind of prompts that would move him to participate. He contributed a significant number of prompts that shaped WinterABC26 and he went on to complete all 22 posts of what will now be his final WinterABC.
In October, he would sometimes take on the 30 Days of Horror challenge, highlighting new and old horror films. He would rant about how remakes and reboots spoiled the cult classics, and about the sequels that no one asked for.
To him, most modern films were soulless attempts at money-grabbing, a sentiment he held not just about horror movies but about the entertainment world in general and authenticity in particular.
Capitalism prioritises profit over originality, passion and creativity.
Our last conversation was about Dark Matter Season 2, which he felt should never have been made, since Season 1 was a near-perfect adaptation of Blake Crouch’s book. Our Friday ritual ever since the new season began was to laugh about how each episode proved they should have quit while they were ahead.
And when I watch the season finale, it will be with a bittersweet poignancy.
Now, the sun has set on The Mad Blogger, and the African blogosphere feels just a little bit quieter without his signature wit and biting edge layered with equal parts passion and exasperation.
Rest easy Mad Blogger, may the connectivity in the great beyond be lightning-fast, and may there be no unasked-for sequels where you’re going.
You leave your words, thoughts, the ideas you sparked and for those of us who had the privilege of sharing this blogging journey, memories.
You will be remembered.
~B
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