It seems that LK edits certain situations out. What was shown in the UK concerning Gizmo's death was different from what was shown in the US (according to the UK spoiler boards). I think that parents should supervise their children regarding their tv watching habits. Even some teenagers are not emotionally mature to deal with certain situations, or subjects. There might be some editing in OI as well. Escape To Chimp Eden is a little "dramatized" to become more "interesting".

Zettak: Good point! I have seen shows in the UK where basically anything goes compared to shows aired in the United States. I also believe that parents should keep their kids out of the tv from certain images, although I am glad that they do not show some of the images of the shows like, Gizmo's death, which was not to groosome, or Mozart's death. I would rather not see some of the images of these beautiful animals in the ways they had left us on this planet.

I wouldn't want to watch Gizmo's death. I wouldn't want to watch Flower's death either.

i agree, we don't need to see every gruesome death, just tell us, like they did with mozart. they show the disclaimor at the beginning of every show, and i think it all is a great idea.... real reality tv. survivor and big brother are not reality, sorry peeps. to me, what really happens is so much more compelling than something made up. the whole idea of several of these shows (mm, orang isl, chimp eden, big cat) on animal planet is that it is what really happened, or at least it was in the beginning. i absolutely love AP and i think they were on to something with this sort of programming. i fear they might be ruining it all in striving for short term ratings boosts.

YES, NDodo. I'm with you. MM is thrilling and compelling when it closely mirrors real life events (even when part of those events must be recreated using stock footage.) To me, it becomes much less so when it veers farther away from the truth into pure fantasy land -- even when it's a pleasant fantasy. I have a particular episode in mind when I say this, but the important thing is the general concept.

I know a certain segment of the audience loves the idealized fantasies. I do too, but in fiction, not in an animal docudrama.

To clarify: This does NOT mean that I want to see "the whole truth", complete with gruesome death scenes. There are many ways to tactfully convey the truth. My point is that for me, a big part of the emotional power of MM and similar animal documentaries comes from being grounded in reality. Once it becomes animal footage edited to match a fictional script written solely to boost ratings rather than to educate as it entertains, something very valuable will have been lost. I hope that doesn't happen. JMHO. Best Wishes, burrow mates!

"Once it becomes animal footage edited to match a fictional script written solely to boost ratings rather than to educate as it entertains, something very valuable will have been lost."

I agree.

As for some fictional episodes, one that comes to mind is "The Graduate". I doubt that Mozart had a fling with "Wilson". But viewers loved the idea of this doomed love affair.
And the ultimate is, of course, "JE", where Flower supposedly died fighting to protect her pups.

absolutely agree with the above 2 posts. in JE though, all the big wigs at AP and kmp have said that flower's death wasn't actually filmed as it happened, or i should say not the fatal bite. if that is true this has to be substuted footage, which i have no complaint with. the story might have been changed to suit the footage along with making it more dramatic. i think it could be footage from a former elveera DF's death (can't think of her name offhand). but zettak i 100% agree with the mozart/wilson thing and also in JE they showed flower spare axel's life and accept him into the group when it was really rocket dog and her half of the whiskers. would we love flower and her memory any less if they told us the truth about this event? if anything, it may have endeared viewers to her daughter, rocket dog.

Hi kach5503, zettak and Ndodo. I agree that there could be more truth. Knowing that kats rove, I really didn't have a huge problem with them having Wilson and Mozart meeting, it did depict the roving aspect of the kats. I do agree that with Flower, they should have been honest. That was not a depiction of "kat behavior". It was the story of a particular kat and did not need to be sensationalized. It would have been nice for them to show that it was RD that took in Axle, again, a true depiction of what happened. We all loved Flower enough without changing that one. I loved it when I found out it was RD that took in the pup, they want drama, what better drama than the truth here? I am afraid that we are in for soap opera meerkats.
Flotosbea

Flower did not need any help appearing more "heroic" with the way MM presented her death, and her adoption of Axel. I mentioned this in earlier posts. MM shouldn't deprive RD of the legacy of this noble act (Axel's adoption). I also said that I love RD, and one of the reasons is Axel's adoption.

NazarethDodo

Eleusine, the previous Elveera DF was bitten by a cape cobra.
Flower was bitten underground, so there was no footage (I thought that they were some cameras in the burrows, but probably not exactly where Flower was).
I said that JE was a "fictional" episode, because in reality Flower was bitten by a snake, she aborted, and died because she was too weak (it was during the drought), and pregnant; MM's writers didn't like this version, and decided to make the story more dramatic, by changing it into Flower fighting to save her children from the snake, being bitten, dying, and the pups surviving. Not to forget the Axel/RD episode, that was attributed to Flower.

Flower was the leader of the biggest (and I guess most successful group) in the KMP at the time of her death. The Whiskers had a few members when she became the DF. This is her legacy.

Zettak, I agree with you about RD and Axel. Flower indeed did not need any help to look more heroic, that she is and more...

RD did a very character defining act by adapting Axel, that they really should have show cased it. It is such an exceptional act for meerkat behavior. I already loved her, but that really cemented her character for me.

Axel is more than twice beloved to me - for his bond with RD, and for being the son of my beloved Asterix and Alexander. And now the Young Ones are gone as a mob and Axel is one of the very few survivors

And such a handsome little guy he is too, I forgot to say

How many Young Ones are left after Asterix, and Alexander died?
Philippe is still in the area, Axel is with the Whiskers, Teabag is the DM of the Elveera, after he displaced his brother Habusu, who dispersed after this (lone kats are not followed, but I would like to know where he is), Lotte the last YO DF, a couple of pups, and another female (Scrutny Gippo?) left the monitored area. What happened to Biltong that was in the December 07 name list? Did he die?

I thought the Young Ones group just left the research area, when was the information mentioned that most had passed?

zettak, biltong is still with the group as of the march report, so he is still accounted for. it is sad to see such a long followed group with so few left. also biltong (ym114) is on the march name list.

NazarethDodo

Thank you. I just checked the March name list. He is with the Elveera, I see. Did he join with a roving group from the Young Ones (Habusu, Teabag)?

Philmeerkat

Lotte, the last DF of the Young Ones, another YO female (Scrutny Gippo?), a few YO pups, and four wild males left the monitored area. These are the last remaining members of the group, except for another four that we mentioned; they are in other groups (Teabag, Biltong, Axel), or alone (Philippe). The rest of the group died of TB. Homestar Runner passed away recently, his mother Asterix, and father Alexander, the long standing dominant couple of the YO, and other members of the group late last year.

happy to help with the confusion, zettak biltong has been with elveera since the kmp monthly reports started. at the time habuso was still DM, so i would think he immigrated with them. biltong has roved alot in the last several months as would be expected for an adult subordinate male.

thank you very much for the info on the remaining young ones when they left the study area. i wasn't really sure who was left with the group besides lotte. seems like they just had a rover group take over and moved a little ways (hopefully) and maybe we might hear from them again. obviously the demise of asterix and alexander was very hard for all of us, but their bloodline lives on thru axel and the others and the newest members of the elveera!

After Asterix died (disappeared, but she was sick), and Alexander had just recovered from a snake bite, a group of wild rovers took over the YO, and ousted him, and his sons (I assume that Lotte was the DF by then looking for a mate). Alexander had to rove with his sons, HR, and Philippe, but he was too sick with TB to keep up with them. He was found dead. I'm not even sure if the tiny YO group was rehabituated when it left the monitored area. The group was monitored with a radio collar.
It's terrible but in a year many of the old (and not so old) groups disappeared, including their beloved dominants:
The Vivian, and Rhian and Jim Bob, the Gattaca, and Risca, the Balrog (even Stinker was the DM for a few days), the Starsky, and almost the Young Ones, and Asterix, and Alexander.

I was mentioning in the other thread about RD's death that we were paying a tribute to her a couple of days ago without knowing it (she was already dead).

her time at the top was much too brief. i think she was just starting to really come into her own as a leader, and this is a very sad day for all of us.

so was there really a zaphod i have only found out that MM has change names so houndini was called somethink else and was flower's real name flower omg how confused

Yo Z4Life

Zaphod is real. Flower was real.

They just subsitute other meerkats to get the movie clips they need to fill in.

Zaphod will be 10 in December and so far is doing well.

Pronker