I have mixed feelings

I must admit, there are a lot of shows and movies sitting in my streaming list.

I typically like to watch things in the order I put them in, so when I bump a show or movie up, it’s typically because I’m particularly interested in the storyline. Untamed, the newest Netflix number one series, has commanded a lot of chatter since its debut, which made me dive in sooner than I had anticipated. Starring Eric Bana, Sam Neill and Rosemarie DeWitt, the show centers around a federal agent named Kyle Turner (Bana), who is tasked with investigating a woman’s death in Yosemite National Park. And from the very first episode, there are plenty of clues to start putting the pieces together.

Netflix

Episode one begins as a small group of climbers are met with a dead body being flown in their direction, and from there, Turner and the Investigative Services Branch (ISB) are on the scene to solve the case. A park ranger initially tries to dismiss the incident as a suicide attempt. Turner, however, suspects otherwise, mostly because of small clues such as the bloody prints left behind, and additional wounds present on the body that didn’t come from a fall.

Park Ranger Naya Vasquez (Lily Santiago) is then introduced into the storyline, and from there, more evidence is uncovered that seems to indicate that a brutal crime has taken place. The team traces the woman’s footprints back to an abandoned shed where a bloody rope is found, along with evidence pointing towards her being both shot and attacked by coyotes. The explanation for this? That the woman was shot first, and then tried to recover from her injury in the shed, where she was attacked by the coyotes.

Honestly, I almost turned my television off at this point because what are the odds of *both* of these happening to a person back-to-back? This just seems like a very unrealistic scenario, which is head-scratching, to say the least. Nonetheless, I was committed to seeing the episode through, convincing myself that, perhaps, anything is possible at Yosemite.

Netflix

That said, I am glad I stuck the episode out, mostly because of the other elements of Turner’s life that give the introduction to this series some depth. In short, every time Turner is alone, he is accompanied by the ghost of his deceased son, Caleb, which I feel is a poignant way of showing how loved ones who have passed away can still be with you, while simultaneously exploring the challenges of grief. Caleb, however, isn’t automatically revealed as a hallucination, as you don’t find that information out until a “moment” between father and son is interrupted by a colleague of Turner’s, and Caleb is no longer there.

It’s because of this very twist that I’m willing to keep going with Untamed, as I am certain there is more than meets the eye regarding the young woman’s death at the park—and Turner’s story. And while it’s not the most compelling introduction to a series I’ve ever seen, I’m going to see it through. Untamed is now streaming on Netflix.a