“Sarah Palin’s Alaska” is the former Alaskan Governor and Vice-Presidential nominee’s love letter to her home state. Mrs. Palin and family invite the cameras into the Palin home and with them as they explore the state, doing many activities unique to Alaska.The show features Sarah Palin, her husband “the First Dude” Todd, and the Palin children: Track, 21; Bristol, 20; Willow, 16; Piper, 9; Trig, 2; and Bristol’s son, Tripp, 2.
In the series premiere, Mrs. Palin introduces the audience to her neck of the woods. The Palins reside in Wasilla, Alaska, in a beautiful McMansion situated on the shore of Lake Lucille’s strikingly pristine environ. Indeed, as Mrs. Palin gives the cameras a tour of the property, she shows off a separate structure that serves as her remote satellite television studio, which boasts arguably the most beautiful natural backdrop in the country.
Also in the episode, Sarah and Todd take Piper and niece McKenzie salmon fishing on Big River Lake, about two hours southwest, via a ubiquitous Alaskan airplane. Later, the Parents Palin went mountaineering in Denali National Park, where Mrs. Palin had to overcome a fear of heights; she humorously “swore,” exasperatedly exclaiming “flippin'” a handful of times during the ascent.
In one unfortunate scene, Willow’s male peer Andy is told to stay out of the “boy-free zone,” the house’s second floor, demarked with a doggy gate at the foot of the stairs. Anyone with knowledge of the Palins knows that this is a reaction to Bristol’s teenage pregnancy with the current and future loser of the Wasilla Mayoral Race, Levi Johnston.
Willow goes upstairs, leaving Andy looking bored on the living room couch. In what may have been at the Producer’s prodding, Andy leaves the couch, hops the gate, soft foots up the stairs, and disappears into Willow’s bedroom, thus creating a tense moment in which one could imagine the teenage boy taking off his pants. During this time, Mrs. Palin is seen working on a desktop PC on the chef’s desk behind the staircase. After a pregnant pause, Palin snaps to and yells at her daughter. If this was a manufactured conceit, then this corrects the Parents Palin’s previous failing of one daughter by challenging the honor of another daughter. This wouldn’t seem to be congruent with Conservative family values.
The show itself is billed as part travelogue, part documentary, but is undoubtedly a reality show; the series executive producer is Mark Burnett of “Survivor” and “The Apprentice” fame. Starring in a reality show may seem risky, but, throughout every stage of her political career, whether taking on the entrenched Alaskan political machine or quitting the Governorship, Palin has been a maverick.
Some see the program as an extended political ad, but Palin has visibly compromised aspects of her image. Palin appears with little makeup and in duds obviously not bought with National Republican Party funds. The Palins also drive around the state in an RV that is opulent enough to be a rock star’s tour bus, not exactly slumming it in this recession.
In one scene, Mrs. Palin tells the audience that the past months are the longest she and Todd have spent together since the beginning of their marriage. Todd Palin had worked in the oil industry, on Alaska’s Northern Slope for six or seven months per annum. After hearing this, one can’t help but observe that the Palins are engaged in the tenuous process of reconnecting.
Overall, watching the show is a must, as Palin is destined to run for President. Her supporters may not like her role as a public personality, but they like her for the potential threat she represents to their political opponents. The activities the Palins undertake are interesting, and the photography of natural Alaska is breathtakingly beautiful. The Right, probably, although not uniformly, already like Sarah Palin; the Left may watch and root against the “Half-Governor,” as she puts herself in staggeringly dangerous situations-whether she is feet away from a duo of fighting wild bears or straddling a thousand-foot deep crevasse while climbing a glacier. One has never had this type of access to one of America’s top politicians. All should watch and try to better understand the riddle wrapped in an enigma that is Sarah Palin.
New episodes of Sarah Palin’s Alaska premiere Sundays, at 9 p.m. on TLC, and repeat throughout the week. Check your local listings.