Animal Planet
When I was a child, my family would argue about which show to watch on the three major networks. Fast forward to today and the choices have expanded a hundred-fold. Oh, maybe a ten-thousand-fold. But discussing or reviewing shows way back in the Dark Ages was a lot more simplistic. Sure, nowadays all of the major shows get some face time on blogs. But there are hundreds more shows out there which might not rate a weekly review, but certainly could be of interest for discussion every now and then.
Yep. I’m Jackie and I watch odd television shows. I know you do, too. Today I want to take a look-see at The Grizzly Man Diaries on Animal Planet. Get your comfy slippers on and join in. Um, you might want to grab your rifle, too.
I’m of two minds about this mini-series. On one hand, the scenery is stunning and I’ve always been one to become mesmerized by wildlife shows. On the other hand, Timothy Treadwell definitely is not your normal kind of guy. Looking into his background pre-bear doings, he had drug and psychiatric issues. And, what he did in his bear days actually isn’t good for either the bears or, as we know the result, for himself. During one episode Treadwell asked, “I wonder what will become of me?”
Well, dude. You got eaten by a bear. I mean, this could have been predicted. They’re wild animals and huge ones at that. It’s not like befriending your local squirrels or even deer. Grizzly bears have been known to kill people and they’re not all that loyal to humans or bear “friends.” Getting the bears he did to trust a human isn’t a good thing either. Humans can’t be trusted by bears any more than bears can be trusted by humans. Heck, the humans are probably less predictable.
Just watching Treadwell interact with the animals (bears and foxes) got a bit creepy at times when he went into a high-pitched feminine-sounding singsong kind of voice. He didn’t have to do that. Maybe it warded off his being eaten for a while, but in my own personal dealings with animals, sing-song voices aren’t really needed.
But, casting aside all of the Timothy Treadwell oddities, I find the show fascinating. Throughout the show a melancholy guitar plays a sad tune and we get snippets of his diary in both handwriting and a jagged Courier News font. Both set the atmosphere for the stunning close-up video footage of the bears, foxes, and other wildlife. Even more breathtaking are some of the still shots shown on the show’s website I linked above. Here I am taking macro shots of bugs in my life and Treadwell captured breathtaking and amazing shots of the grizzlies. Ah, but I won’t get eaten, will I?
The mini-series is just about finished as I write this. But Animal Planet will most likely keep airing it anyway. (Have you ever noticed some of those year dates on the Animal Cops shows?) If you’re into wildlife, The Grizzly Man Diaries is definitely worth the look-see. But it’s a bit unsettling as well.
Clacked by Jackie Schnoop 
on Sep 26, 2008 @ 18:31 EST5EDT
