The Rocky Mountain Collegian

April 22nd, 2007

“Little People” are big inspiration

PHOTO courtesy of Janeofalltrades.verveblogs.com:

 When it comes to any kind of reality television, from “Survivor” to the “The Real World”, I typically avoid like the plague. The day I walked into my home and my family had the TV turned to TLC’s “Little People, Big World“, I followed suit by scolding my kin for watching a seemingly ridiculous and exploitive reality show.

But this show is different. It’s not boring, nor arbitrary, nor is it intended to present itself as some kind of freak show (as opposed to “The Simple Life” or “I Love New York“). Sure, the first time you watch the show, appearances may catch you off guard, but you soon forget the physical differences and begin focusing on the dynamics of this remarkable and inspirational family. 

The Rundown (courtesy of TV.com) and TLC.com:

• “Little People, Big World” is a reality series about life in a family of little people (or dwarves).
• Standing only four feet tall, Matt and Amy Roloff are struggling to raise their four children on their 34-acre farm.
• Matt and Amy’s kids are 16-year-old Zach, who is two feet shorter than his twin brother Jeremy, 13-year-old Molly, and 9-year-old Jacob.
• The parents and Zach are the only three family members who are of small stature.
• The family was introduced in an hour-long special in 2005; they recently began their third season with the show.
• According to one source, the show has been doing exceedingly well in the ratings since its third season premiere, and on April 30^th will air two “lost” episodes from season one.

What I love:

• After watching for a while, you begin picking up on the personalities of the family members: Matt, the dad, who can be a bit of a control-freak at times; Amy, the typical soccer-mom, other than the fact that she is often shorter than the kids she coaches; Zach, a headstrong teenager who, with his twin Jeremy, just love to slack off on chores to play on the farm instead.
• With an array of different personalities all living under the same roof, hilarity often ensues (though not in a “Real World”-like way; these people have scruples).
• They aren’t perfect; they all bicker, the parents scold, the kids get into trouble, and as the end of last season showed, devastating events can transpire. It is the utter normalcy of these people’s lives that is truly captivating.

• Being four-feet tall can obviously have its difficulties; watching how the smaller members of the Roloff family get around and accomplish certain tasks is astounding at times. As Amy states during the intro of each episode:

“We can do pretty much anything average height people can do. We just do it in a different way.”

I suppose it could be argued that viewing this show is no different from viewing others like it…it’s still just you sitting around watching other peoples’ lives. But as far as quality reality TV, it made a believer out of this skeptic; after watching the show since the middle of season two, I have absolutely fallen in love with this family.

When it’s on:

Reruns air all afternoon before the new episodes, which air at 6:00 and 6:30 p.m. on Monday nights. Check your local listings.

For information about dwarfism, check out the F.A.Q. at TLC.com.

Visit the Roloff family’s official fansite to meet the family, tour their farm, or check out the message boards.

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