"Kid Nation" starts out the story of the town of Bonzana and the bus comes into an empty town. When they arrive at 'the middle of nowhere,' the host welcomes them and then they have to carry wagons four miles to the town. One kid sprains their ankle and is carried to the town by two girls. They arrive to the town and find flat mattresses folded into chests in dusty and ratty rooms. Like any "Survivor" show, the contestants talk to the camera their inner thoughts and fight and argue with each other. They try to cook and the others just beg and beg for the food and when it comes, they complain. The four children chosen for the tribunal, their leaders, are criticized and put down. The younger kids (8-10) clash with the older kids (12-14). The tribunal split the 40 kids into four groups guided by colors. They are later pit in a combination harking back to Nickelodeon's "Double Dare" or FOX Kids' answer to "Survivor" called "Moolah Beach" with colored water. From that, the merchants, laborers and such are chosen. The host gives them a choice for their prize: seven Outhouses (they only had 1 so far) or a television. I admit that when I was a kid, I would have wanted a TV but now, I just gotta poop. 40 kids and 1 toliet? I don't think so! So they wisely chose the toilets. Conflict erupts when the younger kids are chosen to cook and don't clean up after themselves. They have a big town meeting and one of the kids leaves and another kid is awarded a golden star.
So far, so good start.
So far, so good start.
A lot of the kids stood out but these stood out for me. I didn't want to mention them all.
Mike, the lead boy, can be like the next Bill Gates, he does seem to have a genuine concern for his 'people.' He struggles to be taken seriously and stresses out about dynamic problems and structure.
This girl Laurel is awesome. On the website, she says somehting that makes me jump up and down: "I'm not sure if President Bush will read this (probably not) and I don't want to hurt his feelings but I am not to happy with his decisions. I believe he vetoed a bill that would allow children to get access to free health care. The whole War going on that he is in favor of and I am strongly not in favor of. There has been a lot of lying and deception with this President. He does not seem real bright like a president should be."
Sophia is 14 and so mature, she got the golden star first because of her initiative in cooking. She was criticized by other kids are being bossy about the plates, but someone had to lay down the law. There was a great tearful call between her and her mother. In another awesome scene, she danced for nickels to get a bike.
The oldest of the kids at 15, Greg strikes me as that blond kid from "Lord of the Flies," you know something is going to go down. I'm kidding. But there is certainly a lot of conflict between the younger and older kids that might come up again later. When he and Mike fought, they later apologized, which was great.
I left the best for last. Michael is the most articulate person I have heard of years, no matter the age. He is 14, I remember lots of articulate 14 years old back in High School so it's no surprise. But he, just, gives me hope for the future. "Our current president, George W Bush, because he has done more to damage relations with other countries than any other president." As for getting green, "I would more strongly support research and actions to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and have the US become a signatory nation of the Kyoto Protocol."
