If you've been on any form of social media over the past couple of weeks, you'll have seen people talking about and referencing a show called Tiger King, whether you knew it or not. It's completely inescapable.
One of many in the long line of Netflix true crime documentaries, it's not my usual thing (I prefer fictional shows and usually of the sci-fi/fantasy variety) but I just had to see what the worldwide fuss is about.
The result is quite simply the most bonkers, barmy, bizarre and very occasionally brilliant show I've ever seen.
Tiger King is named after its main subject, self-proclaimed 'Tiger King' Joseph Maldonado-Passage, who ran Oklahoma's The Greater Wynnewood Exotic Animal Park under the nom de guerre Joe Exotic.
To describe Exotic as eccentric would be putting it very mildly. More flamboyant showman and aspiring social media star than zookeeper, he is a heavily tattooed and mulleted in a polygamous marriage who seems to spend most of his free time shooting guns, recording badly lip-synced country music videos, and feuding with fellow tiger lover Carole Baskin (that feud becomes one of the more fascinating storylines in a very eventful saga).
And, that's to say nothing of the alleged drug-dealing and other nefarious pastimes.
One need only watch the first minute or two of Episode 1 to understand why directors Eric Goode and Rebecca Chaiklin were so fascinated by Joe Exotic.
According to a statistic referenced in the final episode, there are an estimated 5,000-10,000 tigers kept in captivity in the US, versus a mere 4,000 still living in the wild. Some of these tigers live in zoos or wildlife preserves, but a great many are owned by private citizens subject to shockingly little government oversight.
Needless to say, it takes a certain kind of personality to think raising, feeding and attempting to profit off of these dangerous creatures is a good idea. That's basically the gist of Tiger King, a depressing and illuminating look into this world. This isn't your typical true crime documentary by any stretch.
Joe Exotic largely dominates this documentary, due both to his larger-than-life personality and the tragic circumstances covered in the final few episodes, but he's not the only morally questionable big cat lover on display in these seven episodes. There's the aforementioned Baskin, owner of Florida's Big Cat Rescue and whose own shady past is put on display in Episode 3.
Other supporting players include Bhagavan 'Doc' Antle, whose zoo T.I.G.E.R.S. (The Institute of Greatly Endangered and Rare Species) comes across as more a front for some sort of quasi-religious cult, and Exotic's backstabbing former business partner Jeff Lowe.
The documentary also features copious interviews with other former associates, employees and lovers of Exotic (and Antle and Baskin), none of whom seem better off for having been drawn into these people's orbits.
That's really the main takeaway from watching Tiger King.
The documentary isn't so much concerned with the details of Exotic's recent legal trial. This series is more dedicated to exploring the cults of personality that spring up around these zoo owners and the increasingly unhinged and self-destructive behaviour of Exotic himself.
In general, the documentary is adept at painting well-rounded portraits of these people without ever condoning their unacceptable (and sometimes downright criminal) behaviours. Though sometimes you might find yourself wishing the tigers would just rise up, eat their jailers, and restore balance to the universe.
There's a fascinating tonal shift to the series over time.
Early on, the show seems content simply to shine a light on a very odd community of animal enthusiasts.
Certainly, Goode and Chaiklin would have had no inkling early on of how dark their documentary's subject matter would become over the course of five years. But as the series progresses and it becomes clear just how damaged and unstable Exotic is, a great sense of sadness and unease settles in.
It becomes an uncomfortable reminder of how low some people will stoop in pursuit of fame and adoration.
The series can be downright uncomfortable to watch, especially for anyone sensitive to images of and references to animal cruelty.
One particularly stomach-churning scene comes as we learn exactly how the penny-pinching Exotic keeps his vast menagerie of animals and underpaid handlers fed. In another, a group of animals becomes collateral damage in an escalating conflict between squabbling partners.
Far from being a cynical, voyeuristic look inside a hidden community of big cat fanatics, Tiger King makes a strong argument for the need for much stronger regulations governing the ownership and care of these animals.
Sadly, as compelling as the journey is, Tiger King also becomes increasingly unwieldy over time.
The series is never particularly consistent in its focus, jumping around a lot in the first half and trying to juggle a real information overload in the final couple of episodes.
Antle isn't given nearly enough attention over the course of the series, considering what little we learn about his background suggests he'd be ripe for a documentary of his own.
Furthermore, as exhaustive as the series is in chronicling Exotic's life from 2014 onward, it's surprisingly tight-lipped about the many tragedies and scandals he was involved in prior to that point.
Watching the finale, it's hard not to walk away feeling Tiger King should have been at least one episode longer, and possibly kept in development a while longer, too.
The plot twists come fast and furious in the finale, rarely giving the viewer much time to process the criminal investigation before the next bombshell drops.
The ending is also frustratingly inconclusive. While Exotic's story is more or less wrapped up, we're left hanging where several other key players are concerned, with only the pre-credits text crawl providing some amount of closure.
Perhaps the idea is to eventually follow up with a Season 2 that chronicles more recent developments in the Tiger King saga.
Flawed though it may be at times, it may be best to leave this story where it is and focus on the all-important core message. Tigers are amazing creatures, and they deserve better than the hand humanity has dealt them.
Ultimately, this is one of the most difficult slices of media I've ever had to review. In fact, so much so that I really can't give it my usual score out of five.
It's sickening, yet oddly compelling at the same time.
There's certainly nothing else like it, so I'd recommend watching the first episode yourself and deciding from there if you want to stick with it.
One thing's for sure, you'll certainly get a taste for why it's taken the world by storm.
