Reviews

I watched all of the episodes in this Netflix Series and two of them really touched me beyond mere words-Bravo Zeus and Ice. I can't tell you how many times I've returned to the part where Zeus and his owner finally reunite. The sheer, unbridled joy expressed by Zeus had me laughing and crying at the same time. He was so excited to finally see the man who cared for him as a pup until he had to run for his life and entrust Zeus to a friend until he could settle into a new life and smuggle Zeus out of Syria. Zeus could not be contained! He jumped, chirped, whined, barked and was all over his best pal. Ironically, one friend helping with the smuggling operation worried that Zeus wouldn't remember the man since it had been two years and Zeus was very young when he had to leave. He believed it was going to take a long time for Zeus to settle in and for them to rebuild their relationship. No problem on that score. This episode is also remarkable as to what so many people can and will do to reunite a man and his dog. In addition to the story of Zeus, it also shows life in bombed out Syria and young men not wanting to die in an endless war, so they choose to leave their homeland forever using a coyote to smuggle him into Lebanon.

The story of Ice is a tale of love and being in total synch and harmony. The dog is a member of the family and is treated as such, even sitting at the dining table. Sadly, dogs age so quickly and then people have to face the prospect of losing that family member way before they're ready to. The tale of the restaurant owner/fisherman and his family (Ice included) is a way to look at a rapidly declining way of life. A very solid and emotional show-I got a bit teary-eyed each time I watched it.

I highly recommend both of these episodes.

Thankfully I've never been a victim of rape (although I did come close in my teen years from some very drunk, longtime male friends). When I saw how the Philadelphia PD was downgrading sexual assault felonies to generic misdemeanors, that pissed me off. Then, when the women representatives from Ft. Collins, CO talked about how surprising it was to have a suspected rapist who was "married, having normal sexual relationships" and was "not someone you would normally think of as a serial rapist and murderer" I was screaming at the TV and utter stupidity of the people discussing the case (except for the victims).

Look at what history has shown us-Russell Williams, Joseph DeAngelo, Gary Ridgway-etc., all with stable, long term relationships, one (at a minimum) holding down a job with a high security clearance, no real red flags; but to factor in the "married, having normal sexual relationships" into deciding whether or not someone was a candidate as a rapist is ludicrous! Rape is about power and control, not about getting it at home! How asinine these women sounded! Are these the women in charge or did the men in charge decide that putting a woman's face in front of the camera might make the script they read from seem less pathetic? And I don't have enough rage and contempt within me to say what I truly think/feel about Philadelphia's PD and the way they decided to downplay the rapes that were taking place in the late 1990s so that their crime rate wouldn't look so bad. Unfortunately, they did nothing to attempt to solve the crimes since they were mere "misdemeanors". I sure as hell hope the victims (or should I call them survivors) sued the PD.

Also, it really galled me when the main male representative from Philadelphia (Det. Chuck Boyle (Ret.) got so choked up talking about his partner who almost lost his mind trying to solve the case once the perp halted his activity in Philadelphia and before they knew he had moved on to other hunting grounds. I give him credit for caring about his partner, but what about all the victims. Maybe I'm coming down too hard on him because he's just a cog in the wheel and they have to obey their higher ups, but it just added to all the other BS and sent me over the edge.

I rarely write reviews although I will give movies a stars rating. For me to get hot enough under the collar (t-shirt) for me to write a review is a true rarity. I don't know that this review actually helps anyone in deciding whether or not it's worth watching (doubtful), but I really needed to vent and my boyfriend hates that I watch these kind of shows, so nobody to complain to there! I truly hope Philadelphia HAS learned a lesson from these horrific crimes. I don't believe any of us can really understand just how devastating these attacks are let alone the long-lasting impact they have on the individual as well as the families involved.

Eh! That's all I wanted to say but I received a message saying my review was too short, so I'm explaining why I'm writing all these extra words just to say, "Eh!".