Unplanned America is not your conventional reality series. We meet three Aussie blokes, Tim ‘Gonzo’ Ryan, Pawel ‘Parv’ Jarecki and Nick Maher, who have decided to take a break from their lives and go on an epic road trip across America to discover the weird and wonderful side of the Land of the Free; the sides that is not so well-known or publicised.
In Episode 1, ‘When Fantasy Meets Reality’, the guys visit Seattle and meet the Rain City Superheroes: a bunch of real life crime-fighters, complete with the costumes; If you’ve ever read the comic of or seen the film Kick Ass – it is literally that, in real life. A group of civilians who, tired of the increasing levels of crime in their city decided to don some costumes and take to vigilantism. Led by Phoenix Jones and his wife Purple Reign, each of the team have their own personal reasons for taking to the streets to fight crime, and out of all of them it’s Midnight Jack’s story that’s the most surprising. Openly admitting to previously being a petty criminal and drug abuser, after straightening out he decided it was necessary to right his wrongs and do some good, so he opted to be a superhero.
As we follow them whilst they patrol the streets a strangely familiar scenario crops up where a number of intoxicated people recently ejected from bars due to curfews spill out onto the streets. Unsurprisingly within moments an altercation breaks out between a man and a woman and the Rain City Superheroes leap into action only to cop a little friendly pepper spray fire from the local police. It’s not until Jones recounts the story of a much heavier incident – where a local woman was shot and killed and the team were within reach of apprehending the shooter but warned off by police and so they stopped pursuing only for him to get away and never be caught – that we get a sense of the gravity of what they do. He states “Being a superhero is about me choosing what’s right, about my own code” and makes it clear that it’s still about law enforcement but not being dictated to by politics or protocols.
Scarily the danger is all too real and close to home, they have been stabbed or shot at before, and it could be argued that these people are a bunch of adrenaline junkies looking for a fix of treacherous fun; but you could also say that what they do takes a lot of guts and courage. Even Purple Reign, who also runs a victims of domestic violence support group, suggests that it’s not necessary to don a mask, and that anybody can be an everyday hero by just standing up or speaking out against such behaviour. They might be considered strange or crazy but if at the end of each day they can inspire their fellow citizens to be better people, then it’s worth it.
The second half of the first episode sees the guys visit the Real Doll factory in Southern California, where they make anatomically correct, life-size, fully pose able, silicone sex dolls. Creator Kevin McMullen explains that it originated from the idea of having high end detailed mannequins but after several enquiries from interested parties who were keen to see if he could tweak his product for more ‘personal’ use, he then opted to go into the sex market. We’re given a tour of the factory floor and a basic step by step walk through of the process of making one of the dolls and it’s surprising to see how intricately detailed and how precise the development in itself is. McMullen comments that in the early days they had on occasion received complaints about their work but that it had over the years become more widely accepted. And nowadays that he had often received letters of thanks from customers who saw the dolls as more than just objects but as a companion. I immediately think of the movie Lars & The Real Girl and how it reminds us that there’s somebody out there for everybody, even if that special someone isn’t human or real. For most people having regular social contact is a simple or easy thing to achieve, but for others it might be more of a challenge and that something like the Real Dolls could fulfil that need, should not be criticised.
Eye-opening and incredibly interesting, Unplanned America takes the road less traveled both literally and metaphorically, daring to challenge the viewer with a blunt – but often colourful – dose of reality, with enough charm and personality emanating from our three journeymen to keep engagement at a nice high.
Review Score: THREE AND A HALF (OUT OF FIVE STARS)
Unplanned America airs at 9:30pm Monday nights on SBS2 or On Demand via the SBS website.
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