I have grown a love and appreciation for true crime tv shows. The first true-crime/documentary style show I discovered was Making a Murderer. Although it was a little biased, there was always something about it that was truly gripping. After finishing Tiger King, I can say with confidence that this had a similar effect.
After the series aired on March 20th, 2020, it seemed like it didn’t take too long before it gained a lot of traction. But I didn’t think it would be as popular as it is now. Everyone I came in contact with had seen the show or at least heard about it. It without a doubt took Netflix by storm. So it was only a matter of time before I decided to check it out myself.
Tiger King documents the true story of Zookeeper Joe Exotic. A pretty cut and dry premise at first glance, but the series reveals it to be so much more. We learn about the criminal underworld of the exotic animal breeding and the people behind these popular animal parks. It’s not only Joe Exotic who is interesting to watch and learn about. But also Carole Baskin, Bhagavan Antle, Jeff Lowe, and a handful of others.
This show is ridiculously entertaining. This is an extremely watchable series. Even if you were to remove all the lawsuits, the hire-for-murder plot, and any of the juicy details, this is still a pretty engaging watch. The lifestyle, personality, and history of some these people are just incredible. It’s as if they are playing characters in a movie, especially Joe. What Joe does through out this for himself is so hard for one to fathom. Each episode, we are presented with something new about these people, and it always ends on a cliffhanger.
My one stipulation is the ending. Not that it was bad. You see before the credits roll as documentaries go something is said in text to give you background on what is happening currently. But there was a sort of call to action that regarded tigers, a specific number of tigers in captivity in the US. This didn’t feel like a poignant ending.
Nevertheless, this is very entertaining show that is worth checking out. Heavily reccomended.
Cedric Cinema 