If you are looking to watch something equal parts entertaining, crazy, and just plain ridiculous, well Tiger King is absolutely for you. This show had me saying “What the…” probably every 5 minutes, and it kept me absolutely hooked until the very end. I could not believe these were real people, and that these were real problems that they had while running some of the most exotic and crazy private zoos in the US.
As I am sure you must have watched this show already, (and if you haven’t, what are you waiting for?? Seriously!), you know that the story has a totally unexpected ending, which you may or may not agree with. But here are some fun facts that I learned as a result of this show going viral. First, they are re-opening the case of the disappearance of Carol Baskin’s first husband. Second, the creators of this show actually meant to trace the underground world of the snake trade, but just stumbled upon the man in the first scene who had a tiger in a cage in the back of his truck and decided to change their show’s trajectory. And third, which I think is the most crazy, is that the filmmakers were actually filming as the whole story unfolded, and were following the trials and sueings in live time, so they could not have predicted how the show was going to end either!
My favorite part about this mini-series was definitely all of the crazy characters. I could not believe how ridiculous some of them were, from the girl who continued to work at the zoo after her arm was bitten off by a tiger (and went back after only 5 days in the hospital!) to the man who willingly admitted, on camera, that he had been asked and had agreed to assassinate one of the zoo owners’ rivals. I could not believe some of the side stories and anecdotes they were telling with an absolutely straight face, and I was aghast at some of the goings-on at these zoos that was not good for the animals or the people working there. However it is amazing the kind of power that several of the zoo owners seemed to hold over their employees that just kept them working there even though it sounded like an absolute madhouse or sounded like there was no way it could be enjoyable.
Despite all of the human drama, the tigers were absolutely beautiful and majestic. I especially loved the shots of the little ones, who were so cute just scampering around and being played with by the people on screen. I was amazed at how calm some of the zoo workers were around these giant beasts which sometimes were much larger than their handlers. I also loved all of the other animals featured, including lions, elephants, apes, and monkeys.
While I would not recommend this show to anyone who is an absolute animal lover, because there is some very sad animal abuse, I would say this was one of the most intriguing shows I have watched in a while. And now that the show has been released, even more fantastic and wild information is being uncovered about the people who star in it and their lives now. So its like the tv show never ends, which is both a little scary and very exciting to follow!
