Show Viewing Date: 6-23-2008 Show Title: 30 Days: Animal Rights
Network: FXHD Reviewed By: Mike Wilkerson - 2GuysTalking.Com
Intro:
I can remember the first time I heard the words "Animal Rights." I
was watching a news report on the evening news with my Dad and Bonus
Mom in their home in the outskirts of Milwaukee Wisconsin, and on came
one of the local news anchors talking about how someone had "thrown red
paint on people wearing furs in Beverly Hills to protest how animals
are treated." Having never "treated an animal badly" I had no idea
really why they had a problem with the fur. The people that could
afford the fur, bought it, because they could afford it, and that was
pretty much the end of it. As time wore on, and I became more socially
conscious as a teenageer, I began to understand their argument as the
fires of "human rights" became the topic of one of the many papers I
write in high school - but Animal Rights ? I just never got on board.
Whether it was from the political leanings I experienced in my home or
just the general nature of "a dog being something more than a pet" - an
animal rights activist I was not.
This week on 30 Days, Morgan Spurlock once again steps aside as
another human guinea pig is put in place and the show jumps even deeper
into the hot end of the socially political pool by taking a blue collar
life-long game hunter from the friendly confines of North Carolina and
having him live for 30 long and arduous days - with an Animal Rights
family.
Previews/Commercials Captioned: Yes
Opinion Review:
I have to tell you -straight up - I was ready to really hate this
episode. Television's general habit with topics like this one is to
show the completely extreme, the any, the stuff "that sells" and little
else. Now after watching this episode, I'm so very happy I stuck with
it, because not so strangely, "30 Days" brings together to polar
opposites and provides viable, reasonable and understandable viewpoints
for both sides.
There's the initial hate, the complete and utter "I don't know how
these people live the way they do" - and then it happens - Ah ha! The
crazy woman that wants you to "save a dog's life over a human life!"
Sooooo, the zany rears it's head! Killing a mock Colonel Sanders in
front of a KFC? Ok, but are we going to have the entire episode be like
this? The answer is no, though the tendency to showcase the outrageous,
the "memorable" the acts that "have impact" is still showcased - but
let's face it - would they ever NOT show something like that? Probably
not, but then the gloves of animal rights activism come off. We head
for a cattle farm, where one of the cattle, a young and clearly dying
male cow they've named "Sugar" becomes the surrogate son that the
hardened hunter from the great wild of North Carolina takes under his
proverbial chicken-suit wing and helps to nurse back to health.
Captioning in this episode is once again very solid, including the
atmospheric sounds during all kinds of appropriate moments. From the
crickets clicking during a middle-of-the-night rescue assault on an
apparently-ethicless cattle farm, to the bleats of every animal
imaginable, the captioning in this episodes allows you to collect data
from all sorts of input - which provides Deaf and Hard of Hearing users
with grea cues that make for an outstanding episode of 30 Days. It
really does give you a great step up in perspective in regard to the
lives of both the Animal Rights Activist, and those that might not yet
be "on-board" yet.
My conclusion, just like the rest of the episodes of this show is
simple: Total satisfaction. You get to taste both sides of the story,
you get to see people make informed (and in some cases in this episode,
not so informed) viewpoints, and then try to make the call that will
help you on your new, socially-acceptable and LIVEABLE path as you
continue your evening as a human being. I love that they take the time
to showcase BOTH, VIABLE sides of the Animal Rights condition, and let
you make your own call on just how fervent you want to be - regardless
of which stance you choose to take. That's rare, folks. In an age with
ridiculously slanted media (often times in both directions depending on
which network you're watching, by the way), it is truly great to see a
show like this in such a great slot in primetime. Kudos to Morgan and
his staff again.
So whether you're ready to slit the gullet of the Colonel, prepared
to push another pile of wings down your gullet, or somewhere in
between, this episode of 30 Days provides you with some great
perspective, education and viewpoint that you won't be sorry to have.
Do you have a viewpoint from either side? Let us know by using the contact form at 2GuysTalking.Com.
Special/Supplemental Features Captioned: Yes
Overall Caption Rating:: 5
Overall Show Rating: 5
Total Rating: 5
Do You Recommend This Show to Others Who Depend on Captioning? Yes
? Mike Wilkerson
Creator/Graphic Designer/Talk Show Host
- The 2GuysTalking Podcast
2GuysTalking Original Content Podcast Network
http://www.2guystalking.com
Mike@2guystalking.com ? 314-229-7683
[Mike is a professional entertainment critic and talk show host for
The 2GuysTalking Podcast Network, a multi-media podcasting company
specializing in the broadcast of opinion, thought and ideas. Be sure to
visit 2GuysTalking.Com for more information.]
