Netflix's new version of Little House on the Prairie came out July 9th. I've watched just one episode, and was surprised at how much I liked it. My caution came not as a fan of the old series who feared changes, but as a result of the trailer which did nothing to make the show seem appealing.
It looked both saccharine and empty. It isn't either of those things. The first episode reminded me of the novel itself, which I found to be a gritty presentation of life in open, largely uninhabited country.
The Ingalls are traveling to Independence to claim land. Flyers for this free land for the taking "are all over Wisconsin", as Charles says at one point, so it must be true.
There's an early scene where the family crosses a river, which is too swollen from winter melting as it turns out. The horses and wagon get stuck on some unseen rocks. Charles dives into the water to try to guide the horses through, handing the reins to Caroline. The entire wagon begins to tilt and Caroline has the reins in one hand and the other holds desperately onto the wagon itself.
All harrowing, but what haunted me throughout the episode was their dog Jack jumping off the wagon to get into the fray, and being swept down the river away from the family.
For all the hardships faced by the Ingalls family, losing that dog was the hardest.
There are wolves, faced by Caroline and Laura alone. Charles is off arranging something, leaving Caroline to stand guard through the night by the fire.
Neighbors are unwelcoming at best, hostile at worst.
Watching Charles chop down trees from a stand a distance away from their camp, then having Caroline and even Half Pint helping load them onto the wagon to get them "home" was arduous to behold. They had a notch cut into the logs which they used to connect the pieces. The footprint of the house looked small with these logs as the base but how could you work alone as they were and make it any bigger.
They go ahead building and planning, though they learn the land is owned by the Osage Indians and there is no guarantee this land will actually ever be available to them. It took all of the family's money to come here. Caroline is pregnant. They feel they haven't a choice right now but to build a home and prepare for winter.
