John: "You don't need a mirror to look back."

Last week I was in Chicago which sadly made the posting of this review late. The windy city is home of the blues and some really smooth jazz. We heard some great tunes played by street musicians while there and got to go see the Broadway musical THE LION KING at Chicago's Cadillac Palace. THE LION KING was an amazing visual treat that will always rank as one of the finest, if not the finest, performance I have ever seen. Even while experiencing these soulful treats in the city, I still took time to watch this seventh episode of TARZAN "For Love of Country." THE LION KING it was not, but still, "For Love of Country" moved our now familiar story of a modern Tarzan and Jane forward and that is all I ask from an episode.

The producers, writers and directors showed us how very well John functioned in the wilderness and the great difficulty Jane has when removed from the familiar comforts of city life. John teaches Jane how to live in the wilds of life including how to swing from the stereotypical Tarzan vine. Inspite of his joy in country living, John beautifully explains to Jane that the jungles of the Congo were not home to him even though he grew up there and that was what was familiar. A rather surprised Jane asks why and John gives the simple, yet profound, answer that there was nobody like him there. As such, New York with Jane, Aunt Kate, Nicki and Sam, though very unfamiliar in terms of functioning, is filled with those like him and therefore home to John. This is what the Mattel toy company has been teaching us for years with the manufacturing of "Barbie"TM dolls of many races and colors. Little girls seem more comfortable playing with dolls who are "like" them. The question asked by Jane was one shared by many viewers and the answer was better than I ever could have hoped. The production staff for this series is phenomenal.

Jane and John had escaped into the wilds of upstate New York to hide from vengeful cops wanting to hurt both of them for Michael's murder. This vengeful cop thing is getting to be a little much, so I was glad to see Sam tell Jane that her superior had offered her protective custody. I was also glad to see the downfall of the vengeful cop. I found him to be a bit boring even in all his hatred and fighting. Jane, John, and Sam remained the interesting characters in this episode. I so enjoy watching them. I am so pleased that Ms. Callies has developed into the actress that she is. Speaking of development, I found John's offer of thanks to Sam to be an interesting bit of character development. John is realizing that when one is around those like oneself, one does not need to do everything alone. In fact things go better when we let others help us. Similarly, the self-described confident, know-it-all, loner Jane is successfully learning to depend on those around her.

I must admit, that I think the series does city intrigue better than wilderness intrigue (that was better left to shows like XENA, HERCULES, and QUEEN OF SWORDS), but "For Love of Country" did a nice job of progressing the stories of vengeance for Michael's death, who John is, and the love growing between he and Jane.

I give "For Love of Country" 8.5 out of a possible 10 skyscraper jungles for nice character and plot development.

Taram (TVtome.com)