There is a new genre within reality television and The Law of the Jungle review explores whether it was done well or not. Also known as La ley de la selva, this reality television show is hosted by Yolanda Andrade and features 12 contestants from different walks of life competing for the grand prize of 2,000,000 Pesos. However, the show also gives contestants the opportunity to throw in the towel and make their teams lose in order to win special prizes deducted from the total pot.
-The Law of the Jungle Review Does Not Contain Spoilers-
This writer expected the reality television show to mimic the ultimate shock value and disastrous nature of the Indian adventure-reality television show titled Fear Factor: Khatron Ke Khiladi. However, to everyone’s surprise, this show is surprisingly tame and focuses on skills involving physical and mental acuity. Swimming, carrying weights, making good aim and learning to work within a team were some of the important skills tested.
Furthermore, The Law of the Jungle focused on the actual troubles of being in the jungle, of working with a group of people who may or may not like each other. It provided realistic expectations for people to see and gave them the opportunity to take a look at the kind of people they would be if they were stuck in a situation like this.
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The best part about this show is that every contestant is an archetype of the kind of people we will get to see in the real world. The jungle is just a conducive place for their true colours to be shown. Every contestant was given a difficult choice that they would be allowed to carry for their own benefit over others. Apart from being great insights for the people in the world, it also gave their own teammates an idea of who they were competing with.
Additionally, their elimination rounds are fantastic to witness; based on common childhood games, these games give the contestants an opportunity to truly change their fate with nothing but some simple luck and a little bit of pizzazz to win. The drama and tension this creates among the audience, and the contestants are striking. It emulates the energy of Squid Game but is wildly subdued and only threatens a loss of money and not their lives.
The host is also fantastic at being stoic at the right time but making her mark as an authority figure for all. As the game progressed and the format changed, the host continues to give the same energy to the contestants. She has made every single one of the players feel confident, and when she asked them questions during eliminations, they were always well-framed and put across.
Interestingly, the drama and tension in The Law of the Jungle were high but not in an off-putting way. It was dramatic in that most characters were regularly dealing with betrayal from people within their own cohort who were aware of their struggles going in. There wasn’t much crying in the show that was cringe or secret romance storylines that changed the way the game was played.
Although, it was entirely possible to root for a few characters and hate some others. A reality show’s value is completely determined by whether audiences can make their own alliances and biases for the contestants. If the producers and writers managed to do so, the show would have achieved its purpose of providing people with entertainment.
The Law of the Jungle Review: Final Thoughts
There are many reality television shows on multiple streaming platforms, yet there are a few of them that start off controversial or tense and end with enough wholesome energy that we feel for the players we didn’t even enjoy seeing before. This writer enjoyed watching The Law of the Jungle as much as one enjoys watching something while doing work or listening to white noise.
While there are some moments where the characters say something sexist, it has more to do with the male characters feeling threatened by the female characters than anything else. Seeing them squirm was perhaps one of the highlights of watching this show. It is funny, adventurous, and has enough drama and conflict to keep viewers on their toes. The contestants are amazingly diverse and have their own take on how they will approach the prize.
The Law of the Jungle is available to stream on Netflix. Who was your favourite contestant from this show? Let us know in the comments below.