Life is Wild
Creator: Michael Rauch
Starring: Leah Pipes, D.W. Moffett, K’Sun ray, Stephanie Niznik, Andrew St. John, Mary Matilyn Mouser, David Butler, Calvin Goldspink, Tiffany Mulheron, Jeremy Sheffield and Atandwa Kani
Premieres: Sunday, October 7th at 8pm on The CW
Remember back in the “good old days” when a family could gather together on Sunday nights and watch TV? Nowadays, the only really family-friendly option on Sunday nights for parents with kids of all ages is Extreme Makeover: Home Edition. Sure, that’s a great show but honestly, how many times can you hear Ty Pennington say “C’mon! Let’s go to Sears!” without wishing there was something else you could watch with the kids? The CW is offering an alternative with their new family drama series, Life Is Wild.
Based on the British drama series, Wild at Heart, Life is Wild centers on a family that moves to South Africa to run a lodge. That’s the short synopsis. There’s obviously much more to it than that. For one thing, the Clarkes are a blended family. Jo Clarke is a divorcee with a teenaged son, Jesse and a 7-year-old daughter, Mia. Jo married veterinarian, Danny, a widower with a teenage daughter, Katie and a young son, Chase. The Clarkes might look like the Brady’s at first glance but the truth is, they’re anything but.
Jo and Danny are happily married but their kids haven’t adjusted to the union. None of the kids get along and after Jesse is expelled from school, Danny decides to pack up their life in New York and move the family to South Africa to help his deceased wife’s estranged father, Art run his beaten up lodge. Jo is prepared to leave her career as a divorce attorney behind in order to help Art get the Blue Antelope up and running but upon arrival, she realizes she’s really got her work cut out. Meanwhile, Danny gets to work helping sick animals, ranging from goats to lions. Katie and Jesse manage to make some friends, including Oliver (Calvin Goldspink) and Tumelo (Atandwa Kani). Oliver is just as reckless as Jesse while Tumelo is motivated and aspires to become a veterinarian.
When it comes to family-dramas, there have been so many of them that the story-lines tend to blend together. Over the decades of television, just about every family-related scenario has been addressed at least once in a TV show. So it makes sense that this new show would be set in an unfamiliar (at least, to most of us) environment. The Clarkes aren't very different from any other dysfunctional blended family on television. What will set Life Is Wild apart from the rest is the South African setting. Instead of fighting over what to name the dog, the young Clarke kids bicker over what to name the lion cub they found. And while normal teenagers are aware of the social politics among their age-bracket, Jesse and Katie will have to adjust to the rules that apply to teen life in South Africa. Fortunately, they're both good-looking and that's pretty much a universal foot-in-the-door no matter what part of the world you're trying to be cool in.
There are two things that really work for this show. For one thing, the Clarkes are likable people. Even Jesse, who is a trouble maker, shows the potential to be a good person (if he can get over his anger). The other thing that I think people will love is the remarkable abundance of animal-life in the pilot episode. This is something that I really hope will continue throughout the series. Considering Danny's a vet, I think thats probably pretty likely.
Family dramas are an endangered species in television. Some might consider it too mild in terms of the drama and the lack of a dark-and-twisty factor but I do believe there is an audience for this. In terms of family-friendly programming, Life is Wild is a spark of hope in a dying genre so hopefully, for the sake of the families who actually like watching TV together, The CW will give the show a chance to grow on the viewers. I’m guessing that based on the subject matter, in terms of kids, the series will probably appeal most to families with kids ranging from ages 8 to about 15 (maybe older, depending on how clean your teenage kids like their TV shows).
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