Growing up, I watched a lot of nature shows on PBS, and they were largely upbeat and fun- so much so that there have been funny parodies made in its honor. A mere two(ish) decades later, and I find myself postponing watching the episodes of Nature on the PVR because they're so fracking depressing. The episode I watched tonight was on the decline of the horseshoe crab and potential extinction of the red knot. And my mind is still reeling from the butterfly effect described in the decline of the Steller's sea lions.
I'll reserve any social commentary, save that being a new parent makes me feel even more urgency, and anger, towards how humans are destroying the earth at breakneck pace.
Watching Mutual of Omaha's Wild Kingdom was a family event when I was growing up.
You might want to check out Orangutan Island: http://animal.discovery.com/tv/orangutan-island/orangutan-island.html It's more like a soap opera than a depressing tale of doom (well, if you ignore the whole reason why the island exists in the first place).
Posted by Skrocki on February 13, 2008 at 09:04 PM PST #