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 Life Is Wild

(October 2nd, 2007. - Editor)                Leah Pipes (Clubhouse), Brett Cullen (Friday Night Lights), Judith Hoag (Armageddon), Andrew St. John (General Hospital), K'sun Ray (Smith), Mary Matilyn Mouser (Eloise), David Butler, Calvin Goldspink, Tiffany Mulheron, Jeremy Sheffield and Atandwa Kani star in the one hour drama series Life Is Wild, airing Sundays on The CW network.

          A successful New York veterinarian decides to honor the work of his late wife and solve a problem with the domestic animal population in her home country at the same time by moving his entire family to live in a game preserve in South Africa. As the family struggles to adjust to life away from the Big Apple, they learn to appreciate the friendly locals, the breathtaking vistas and the wild animals that surround them. But there are also dangers. Both in the wilds of Africa and among the other tour operators, who would be happier if the family were not able to help the children's grandfather turn around his aging game preserve and once again make it a thriving operation. 

          This one hour drama is perfectly suited for the Sunday night time slot it has been given. The family audience for this show will be at its highest and the chances for success will be high too. The ensemble cast of relative newcomers are flying in the face of some very good advice offered by actor and comedian W.C. Fields more than a half century ago. Never work with children or animals. Neither can be contained for the lengthy process of filming and both will upstage you when they finally do get them to act out a scene. With a very healthy mix of both kids and animals in this effort, the adult cast members had better get used to being upstaged.

          There is a very good chance that the producers of this series will be faced with protests by several animal rights groups, as much to ensure there are now animals harmed in the making of this series than because there is any evidence of that in the pilot episode. There is a conflict with a lion depicted in the first episode, but I personally never thought for a moment that the animal used in the scenes was harmed in any way. Thanks to some creative camera angles and good story-telling, I was not so sure that the actors were being looked after at quite that same level. Again, no humans were harmed in the making of this teleplay, but I wonder if they were the ones who were put in the more dangerous situations.

          The young cast does a superb job of playing their characters. All four of the youths are very convincing in their roles and that talent should help this drama draw the all-ages audience they are hoping to attract. The background of South Africa and the wild animals featured in many of the shots give this drama a "National Geographic" look and feel to it, with spectacular scenery and all digital photography. When you put it all together, you get a beautiful television show that should appeal to its target audience.

-- Editor --

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