La tribu

I have to say I always had a soft spot for these "kidsshows". Sometimes it's so bad it's good, but they are fun and relaxing to watch anyway. I watching through season 2 now and are amazed over how a show for kids can involve so much sex, teen-pregnancies violence and death. It's like a soap for grown people.

The acting are in some cases not so impressive. In other cases some of these kids are brilliant. Caleb Ross and Beth Allen comes to mind. I do hope those two continue working with acting because it would be a waste otherwise. Caleb Ross drinking scenes in season 2 are my favorite part of all the plot lines.

Give this a shot. It really is captivating, after you watched it for a while.

I happened upon this Kiwi gem one lonely night while flipping through my new digital cable. It's basically a teenage soap opera set some years after a virus has wiped out the adult population. Following a small group (or "tribe") of kids who live in an abandoned shopping mall, the show is deceptively simple and silly. It is, in fact, epic in scope and deep in emotion. It even throws in the occasional religious allegory for good measure. Like all soap operas, the dialogue can be trite and the stories melodramatic and overly concerned with sex (yes, teen sex), but it is also one of the most addictive television shows I've ever encountered, capable of being funny, poignant, gut-wrenching and thought-provoking all at the same time. With, I might add, more inventive hairstyles, makeup and costumes than any you'll see on American television.

I came across this show during insomnia around 2 in the morning, and fell for it. This is an interesting premise that could have really blown, but they handle it so well, and its very interesting seeing teenagers and younger being forced to act like adults (getting married, arranging governments, and yes, having babies) so the world can carry on. It's absolutely addicting and I have often turned down plans to watch it if it rarely comes on.

This is a fascinating look into a world where all the adults have died from a mysterious virus, and the kids are left to fend for themselves. The remaining teens and pre-teens have formed tribes in order to survive. They must forage for whatever food and medicine they can find, and form new relationships both for protection and companionship. The Tribe focuses on a group that has settled in the local mall, and have come to call themselves the "Mall Rats". They hide out in the mall, hoping to avoid the violence of the other tribes such as the Demon Dogs, and the Locusts. Eventually their dream of building a new world where the tribes can work together in peace, force them out of the safety of their hiding place.

For being a such a futuristic sort of show, The Tribe is surprisingly able to address current issues that face today's young people. Bulimia, teen pregnancy, peer pressure, and alcoholism are all subjects that some of the characters of this new world must face.

The Tribe is extremely well done. The story is fascinating, the acting is first rate, and the young cast is destined for great things. I fell in love with The Tribe from the very first episode, and it continues to get better and better.

If I started watching this show today, as an adult, I would most likely consider it total trash. The acting is incredibly hard to bear at times (there are a few exceptions of course, but most of the actors could have used some serious acting classes); costumes, hair and make-up are insane (for lack of a better word); the music borders on annoying and the plot holes are big enough to swallow a fully grown person. Thankfully, there aren't any of those left in the world of The Tribe.

Eight-year-old me however could not have cared any less about all this. The show is a part of my childhood that still gives me this weirdly fuzzy, nostalgic feeling to this day. I remember re-enacting the show on the schoolyard with my friends and always being excited to come home after school to watch the latest episode. So, try as I might, I cannot bring myself to rate this any lower than 8/10. Doing so would be a betrayal of all these great memories I associate with The Tribe. This is eight-year-old me taking a stand.