Greetings,
So...television. It's kind of not that great these days. Maybe it's just me, but I have a very hard time finding a lot of really good shows. The amount of bad quality one can find is overwhelming, and you can take my use of the word 'quality' any way you want, since I am including both how shows are produced as well as content. I mean, does anyone even care anymore? And I think a lot of people put tons of blame on reality television, such as it is. Not to say that I disagree completely on that one. However, a miracle has sprung up from that pile of reality...whatever, making me believe that there may be some hope for television after all. I am, of course, speaking of the phenomenon known as Duck Dynasty. If you don't know what that is, first of all, welcome to our planet, and second, let me tell you about it.
Duck Dynasty is all about the Robertson family who run Duck Commander, a company that makes duck calls and other hunting whatnots. And it is truly all about the family, which is where all the entertainment comes in. The Robertsons are a fun-loving, hardworking, wholesome bunch, and I enjoy them heartily. Wait. Did I say fun-loving? I should also add beard-loving to that, since pretty much all the guys have beards, hardcore. They're kind of known for them. And all the wives put up with them. God bless.
Seriously, I think whomever was the first person to refer to real people as being "characters" may have been talking about this family. Oh, they are characters, alright. And yet, somehow, very not fake. As matter of fact, it's about the only reality show of which I can think where I don't have to put the word reality in quotations. I have never seen people be themselves so much ever, and that is what everyone loves about them. They are just who they are. And who are they? Well, let's look at the family tree. And this may take some time, because they have a big family. Not Osmond style or anything, but close.
The patriarch is Phil Robertson, a former college football player who created the first Duck Commander duck call about 40 years ago. He is married to the lovely Miss Kay, who might be the most wonderfully mama-like woman I've ever come across. I kid you not. You will, at some point, want to give her a hug. I do, every time I see her.
The loving couple, Phil and Kay, were eventually joined by four sons. First, there's Willie, who is the current CEO of Duck Commander and also something of a narrator for the show. He is the boss, through and through, which is good, because every business needs one of those. Next is Jase, who is usually seen tuning the duck calls or leading the charge to torment Willie. I kid. Sort of. See, Jase is more laid back, in contrast to Willie, but he tries hard to get his little brother boss to loosen up, succeeding occasionally. Then, there's Jep, the baby of the family. I hear he films and edits all the Robertson hunting DVDs, so I suppose we can call him the artistic one. Or the tech guy, whatever you like. And being the baby boy, he is, of course, Miss Kay's favorite. Not to worry, though, they don't tease him too much about that. And finally, we have the oldest son, Alan. Now he actually left the family business to become a pastor and hasn't been a part of the show. But, now that season four has arrived, he has decided to join in. This may be difficult since he is the black sheep of the family. By that, I mean, he has no beard. Not even a little bit. I often wonder if that may change.
Now the Robertson brothers are pretty different when it comes to their personalities and other things, but they do find common ground in one area. They all have superior taste in women. Enter the Robertson wives; Korie, Missy, Jessica and Lisa. These ladies are drop-dead gorgeous, and that's not even factoring in how beautiful they are on the inside. The Robertson boys were certainly blessed to find such amazing women, even if they are 'city girls'. Yeah, that comes up quite a bit and has made for some interesting incidents. But it also shows that, when you love someone the way these husbands and wives love each other, nothing can stand in the way.
And from these blessed unions have come several beautiful children, namely Sadie, John Luke, Will, Bella, Rebecca, Reed, Cole, Mia, Lily, Merritt, Priscilla, River, Anna and Alex. And take a breath. I think I got them all mentioned there, and thank you, A&E, for the family tree diagram. Clearly, from what I have seen, these kids are being raised phenomenally. Do they live in the world of 'kids will be kids' and, even worse, 'teenagers will be teenagers'? Sure they do, but they are still such respectful, upright, well-behaved and just plain good, young people. It literally makes my heart sing to know that this is our future. So I guess it pays to be an attentive and loving parent that teaches their kids right from wrong. Who knew?
Besides the family, we've got some other fun folks. Like Duck Commander employees, John Godwin, who has worked there for over a decade and Justin Martin, who is also working on his master's degree. That's a good thing, because it led to the escaped lizard episode. Just trust me. And, of course, there's Mountain Man, whose real name I don't know. I don't think anyone does actually. And Mountain Man talks very, very slowly. That makes him awesome. All these guys are awesome, as a matter of fact.
Now I feel like I'm forgetting someone. Who could it be? Oh, right! The best thing about this entire series - Uncle Si Robertson. Where do I begin? Honestly, I think the word that bests describes him is indescribable. There are just too many words and not enough. He kind of reminds me of all those fun, eccentric older people who are so interesting because they've lived these amazingly full lives. And Si's not shy about telling us all of his life experiences. We know he was in Vietnam,that's for sure, and it turns out that he possesses skills that sometimes even his own family is not aware of. I refer you to the time he sewed an apron from scratch, because the women couldn't do it. And it was really nice! No kidding, if they ever have an apron sewing challenge on Project Runway, he should totally be the guest judge. Just sitting right there with his sweet tea, next to Tim Gunn. Wow, I REALLY want this to happen now. But Uncle Si is just so much fun. I dare you to witness this man and not have a smile on your face. Oh, and I heard that Si's wife, Christine, may be showing up this season as well. Here's hoping.
So besides all the talk about how entertaining and fun this show is, let's get to what I find most appealing and the thing that makes me love and admire these people above all other reasons. The Robertson family members, one and all, are born-again Christians. Now, technically, these people are celebrities, and my usual response to celebrities claiming to be Christians is to say, "I doubt it, but maybe." I just rarely see them follow through with any Christ-like behavior. But with this family, I have never once doubted their faith. Not that they've had to do so, but they have proven it to the world time and again. And they haven't been free from some bouts of spiritual warfare. I mean, when the show first starting airing, the producers were adding in swear beeps, as if they were swearing. They don't swear, and Papa Phil asked them why they had to do that when you can literally turn on any other show and get plenty of profanity. Needless to say, the beep stopped there. And, then, there was the infamous 'the way they pray' issue. See, every episode ends with the family gathered around the dinner table to eat, and, of course, they say a prayer beforehand. And they pray in the name of Jesus, as you tend to do when you're a Christian. Well, again, the producers were editing out the mentions of Jesus. I guess they thought they might offend someone. Seriously? This is who these people are. If the producers didn't want that, then why did they give them a show? And I can't even talk about the criticisms they've gotten because they hunt for their food. I can't talk about it, because those criticisms are downright ridiculous. Still, the Robertsons, and the Lord, are continually winning all these battles.
Look, I can understand that not everyone is going to be into this show. To be perfectly honest, even I wasn't into the show at first. But that's just because my entire family loved it, and I thought if they loved it, it couldn't be that great. See, we agree on pretty much nothing when it comes to television. I'm happy to say, though, that I gave it a chance, and it is that great. In the vast ocean of all the junk on TV, this show is about the most refreshing thing I've ever seen. How wonderful to get to witness the lives of this Godly, loving, diligent family, not to mention getting to see how God is faithful to bless His children for keeping their faith strong. As a Christian myself, I look to these people for inspiration in my own life. I see, through them, that working hard and being steadfast in my commitment to God will help me to achieve my own dreams as a writer. And, therefore, I consider this family one of the greatest blessings to me, as well as one to millions of other people.
And that is how Duck Dynasty is saving television. May God continue to bless them so that they may continue to do so.
Love and full moons,
Becky the Writer
