Stream It Or Skip It: ‘Magic Of Disney’s Animal Kingdom’ On Disney+, A Docuseries That Takes A Backstage Look At The Wildlife Theme Park

One of the things we enjoy about the various behind-the-scenes shows about the Disney theme parks that are on Disney+ is that we see all the people who use creativity, ingenuity and an overall positive outlook to make the magic possible. Yes, these docuseries can be promotional in nature, but let’s face it; you want to know who makes the various parks go, don’t you? A new series, Magic of Disney’s Animal Kingdom, examines the animals in the sprawling Florida safari theme park, and the people who keep them happy and healthy.

MAGIC OF DISNEY’S ANIMAL KINGDOM: STREAM IT OR SKIP IT?

Opening Shot: We see an overhead shot of Disney’s Animal Kingdom. As we pan in, we hear Josh Gad say, “The sun shines down on the Harambe Wildlife Reserve.” Animals are relaxing, a lion is bathing himself.

The Gist: Gad narrates this eight-episode docuseries that goes behind the scenes of the massive Animal Kingdom theme park in central Florida. What the program, created under Disney’s National Geographic rubric, will show is how the animals in the park are cared for on a daily basis, and how the extensive staff of keepers, veterinarians, species experts and Imagineers make sure that the animals are healthy and happy and live in an environment that’s healthy for them as well as the guests that ride through on open safari vehicles.

The first episode is entitled “Kenya, the Gutsy Giraffe”. Why is she so gutsy? Because she is being used to try out a new system that the keepers and doctors have devised to scrape her hooves without having to sedate her, which is the norm when giraffes have to have their hooves scraped for one reason or another. After an attempt where she doesn’t move, they try again another day, with one of the keepers hopping up on a piece of scaffold to bring the food to her and get her moving.

We also get to know Mac, an African bull elephant that is the undisputed leader of his pack. He goes in for a routine exam — he readily responds to the handler’s commands to stick an ear out or raise a foot — and the doctor sees a little hole in his upper palate. After further examination and a cleaning, the doctor thinks that it’s ok if it’s not bothering him. Mac goes back to eating hay and making sure the younger elephants don’t kill each other.

One of the things the Imagineers are doing is creating a palm-tree-looking light pole to light up the elephant habitat for night tours. They want the tree to look as natural looking as possible, as well as shine with just enough intensity so as not to bother the elephants.

Finally, there’s Popcorn, a Frizzle chicken that lives in the Affection Section (i.e. petting zoo). She’s a rescue that was in rough shape, but has thrived at the Kingdom. But she has an egg stuck in her reproductive tract. Delicate surgery is performed to remove her reproductive organs; she may not be able to lay eggs again, but when she returns to the coop she feels a whole lot better.

What Shows Will It Remind You Of? Pretty much any of the BTS series that Disney+ has put out about the operations of their parks, most notably The Imagineering Story.

Our Take: When you ride through Animal Kingdom or any open safari-like theme park (there’s one not far from our NJ home, in fact), or even go to a zoo, you just see animals lounging about or running around. But there’s hundreds of people helping keep these animals happy and healthy, promoting breeding, and making sure their habitats are appropriate. That’s the fun of Magic of Disney’s Animal Kingdom. You not only get to see the breadth of different species that inhabits the sprawling theme park, but the people who work hard at making sure the place doesn’t become the Tiger King zoo.

Yes, seeing animals in any sort of captivity might be tough for some people. But Disney is trying to show the positive side of this, especially for at-risk species like the African elephants, whose environment back on their home continent are disappearing by the day and they’re still hunted for their tusks. In fact, we see Mac, after his exam, get romanced by a younger female elephant named Kianga, with the hope that at some point they’re going to procreate; Mac already has 4 offspring either at the park or back in Kenya.

Gad’s narration is… there. Listen, your appreciation of Josh Gad, especially in a kids’ show context, all depends on how tired you are of hearing him as Olaf from the Frozen franchise. He sounds Olaf-esque during his narration, more lilting and high-pitched than he usually is. And that voice can get a little irritating, but the kids will absolutely love it.

But for those who love these behind-the-scenes looks, or just people who love seeing animals and the people who take care of them, this show checks off all the boxes.

What Age Group Is This For?: It’s rated TV-PG, we’re assuming because we see some elephants battle it out, albeit playfully, and we see a hen hysterectomy. But this show is pretty much appropriate for kids about 3 and up, or anyone who’s a big fan of different animals.

Parting Shot: Mac and Kianga do their mating dance, looking like they’re on a pretty successful first date.

Sleeper Star: We’ll give this to Popcorn, who seems to take her surgery like a champ, which makes sense considering what kind of shape she was in when she came in. Apparently she was an abandoned pet, which is pretty sad. We blame Friends for promoting the idea that you could raise a duck and a chick in a West Village apartment.

Most Pilot-y Line: Not sure why, but Disney decided to release these episodes once per week. I know if my daughter watched one of these, she’d want to watch all of them.

Our Call: STREAM IT. Despite Gad’s semi-irritating narration, Magic of Disney’s Animal Kingdom is a fun look at how the massive safari theme park runs and how the people at the park are trying to help different species survive while taking care of them.

Joel Keller (@joelkeller) writes about food, entertainment, parenting and tech, but he doesn’t kid himself: he’s a TV junkie. His writing has appeared in the New York Times, Slate, Salon, RollingStone.com, VanityFair.com, Fast Company and elsewhere.

Stream Magic Of Disney's Animal Kingdom On Disney+