Fall Preview: Life Is Wild
Life Is Wild is primed to be The CW’s family show, taking 7th Heaven’s timeslot (and hopefully, some of its loyal audience). The premise is a little different, though. Instead of Camden Christianity in California, it’s about an unhappy blended family abruptly relocated to South Africa. The move's ostensibly for Dad’s job… well, and more importantly, it's done in hopes that the 12-month experiment will bring everyone closer together. Will living thisclose to giraffes and lions spur some major family bonding?
Okay, we fully expected this show to be a giant ball of cheese. It had all the prerequisites: angsty multi-generational drama, parents that just don't understand, and people saying things about a late parent like, "I can feel Mom here with us."
And yet…. it's got potential. In fact, the premiere is pretty good. Hold on – hear us out!
For starters, it's shot on location in South Africa, which lends the show a Discovery/Travel Channel feel. Those safari landscapes couldn't be duplicated on a New York or LA set, and it's a good thing, because they're stunning. The landscape is as much a character on this show as anyone else. That, and the wild animals. Even the most hard-hearted viewer will have a tough time turning away from the sheer adorableness of an orphaned lion cub. See?
All this natural spectacle provides a magnificent backdrop for some good old-fashioned family drama. Teenaged Katie (Leah Pipes) is less than thrilled that she's being uprooted from her happy New York life and boyfriend Tim. Her troubled stepbrother, Jesse (Andrew St. John), is the bane of her existence… but maybe this trip will change all that (you think?). Since the premiere we saw was shot, the parents have been recast, and we can't wait to see what D.W. Moffet, who we adored as the steadfast dad on Hidden Palms, and Stephanie Niznik, who rocked the role of Nina on Everwood, bring to the table.
We could do without Katie's voiceovers (after SATC and Grey's, we're a bit voice-overed out). Also, we know it's a premiere, so there's a lot of ground to cover, but we would have liked to see more of the family's New York life – and why they don't get along so well. As it is, the Clarkes end up in South Africa during the first five minutes, so we don't get a lot of time to see what they're like on more familiar terrain. It all comes out later, but it might've been good to include some flashbacks or at least a few more minutes in New York so we could see what they're up against.
But those are just some minor quibbles with an otherwise solid first episode. We cared about the family, there's decent character development, and the setting's pretty awesome. It'll be interesting to see how the rest of the season goes.
Life Is Wild premieres Sunday, October 7 at 8/7c.
Comments
I would like to know which episode of 7th Heaven an actor named Thomas (Tommy) Boyd appeared in??
Posted by: Lori | January 11, 2008 10:45 PM
I love this show! i dont think they should cancel it. It's a great show which educates you while entertaining you. Right now i am more looking forward to it than smallville which i love. It started off slow but got really interesting especially with the awaiting romance between Jesse & Mbali.
Posted by: chinna | November 16, 2007 8:37 PM
I was also a fan of 7th Heaven but it's gone now.
This new show Life Is Wild is great in my opinion so far. Let's give it a shot so we can enjoy good clean family oriented television. i'm here for the duration of this show.
Posted by: dee | October 14, 2007 8:03 PM
Nothing is as good as 7th Heaven!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
7th Heaven should still be on!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Posted by: Ashlee Chilton | October 13, 2007 5:49 PM