The Tribe

The Tribe	The Tribe is a unique and interesting show. I started watching only because the costumes and makeup were so creative. I would tune in each time just to see how everyone was dressed. Those responsible for wardrobe, hair, and make-up on this show are extremely talented and creative. Another captivating thing about this show is that there is so much of it. They put 50 episodes into a season and they are currently working on the fifth season so there are over 200 episodes. There's a seemingly infinite array of story arcs and possiblities for the viewer to experience. The characters have been everywhere and done everything. The cast is large and I like lots of characters; there's more room for the diversity of actual life. All the cast members play characters close to their own age which adds to the realism. Though I have my favorites, all of the cast members are exceptional actors, especially considering their ages. They did a good job of casting this show. The cast changes quite a bit. What I consider the core set or the best ensemble cast would be those pictured on the Abe Messiah soundtrack with the addition of about three others. These would be: Bray, Amber, Lex, Ebony, Tai-San, Danni, Patsy, Cloe, Trudy, May, Pride, Dal, Jack, KC, Ellie, Alice, Salene, and Ryan. That's a large cast and there might have been a time when most all of them were present at the same time. The plots are not really complex. The show is mostly about characters and I like character studies. The show is not technically accurate. Why are interior spaces well lit when there is no electricity? How do the Mall Rats get enough food to eat? When the Technos introduced electricity the Mall Rats never gave a thought to how great it would be to have a refrigerator. They must spend hours each day doing their hair and make-up. All these things just make the show a little campy which just serves to increase the enjoyment. Something that I noticed in the characters early on in Tribe 2 and Tribe 3 was that there wasn't one that was perfect. There is no main character. Each one has a flaw in his or her personality that determines how he or she interacts with the other characters. This makes all the interactions interesting. So I then spent time observing each character to determine the nature of their personality flaws and some of these observations are summarized in the following paragraphs.
Ebony Meryl Cassie	Meryl Cassie is the standout performer in The Tribe. Everything about her is extraordinary. She has been a regular character for all four seasons of The Tribe and continues on into the fifth season. She has such an exotic look with her features, dark skin, and intricate long braids. Most importantly it's the strong willed self serving personality that she gives to her character, Ebony, that is interesting. Ebony always has a hidden agenda and it's always a scheme to increase her power and control. And because of her strong personality and unscrupulous methods she wields a lot of influence. She's enigmatic in that she's the most powerful individual, but physically one of the shortest. Sometimes she uses her power to aid the Mall Rats even when it doesn't further her personal goals. She doesn't do it with altruistic motives. She only does it because she can. It gives her opportunity to exercise her power and she enjoys that. It's fun to watch her work. It's been interesting to watch Meryl mature as an actor. She was good in the beginning, but now in Tribe 4 she gives me goosebumps. Now when she speaks, one gets the impression that Ebony is deep, intense, thoughtful and passionate. "Fear is the most powerful of all tools." ~ Ebony
Trudy Antonia Prebble	Like Ebony, Trudy is another character that you love because of her over-the-top insanity. Antonia Prebble is a master of mood swings as the pre-Tribe 4 Trudy. One minute she will violently attack someone verbally and the next minute she's sweet and kind. And Antonia was good at making Trudy's sweet and kind mood just a facade. Ebony calls her "Trudy the moody." After her escape from The Chosen, Trudy has reformed and she's not quite as much fun to watch anymore.
Tai-San Michelle Ang	Alice calls her the space cadet because she has so many newage ideas. Like nearly everyone else, Tai-san has her own ideas about how things should be done and like everyone else she has her own unique methods of manipulation. Tai-san's tool is the rhetoric typical of liberal politicians. But that doesn't mean that she has liberal views. Danni was arguing: "We have a chance to do a lot of good here if we just take control." Tai-san responded: "Doing good and being in control are not the same thing." This is obviously a conservative position. Michelle has been cast in a film directed, co-written, and co-produced by Mark Prebble (Antonia Prebble's cousin).
May Laura Wilson	The only Tribe romance that ever caught my interest was that of May and Pride. Poor May, you could always see the longing in her heart written on her face. And she had a rough exterior that was quite off putting. No one that she cared for seemed to have any interest in her. Until Pride. They didn't seem an even match, but Pride's influence would have been good for May. But alas, it didn't last long and Pride never seemed really committed. He was probably still pining for Amber. May joined the Mall Rats late and always seemed like an outsider. She even betrayed them once. But still she evoked this pathos and you wanted to see her forgiven and accepted.
Danni Ella Wilks	As mentioned earlier, Danni, wants to do good for everyone by controlling everyone.
Patsy Sara Major	Patsy's problem is that she is a little gullible and easily manipulated. She is this way because she is eager to please and wants to be accepted by everyone. Of course, Trudy leveraged this to her advantage quite a bit.
Cloe Jaimee Kaire-Gataulu	Cloe is so cute. Or more accurately, one might say that she was cute in early Tribe, but now that she's so grown up in Tribe 4, she's beautiful. However, she returned to the Mall Rats with an attitude; Patsy was the brat before, but now it's Cloe's turn.
Ellie Jennyfer Jewell	Ellie is a little stubborn and has little care for what other people think of her. She won't heasitate to offend someone when it comes time to speak her mind. Her other problem is that she had just way too much patience with the very jealous Jack.
Alice Vanessa Stacey	I miss Alice. Most of the relationships in The Tribe I don't find interesting. But that between Alice and Lex was entertaining. Lex, the tough guy, never feared anyone, except Alice--she was twice as big as him with an attitude to match. Alice could change Lex for the better even in spite of himself. Alice really is a good kid and it isn't easy to find her small flaws. She tends to be embarrassingly loud and forward sometimes. She also is more inclinded to use physical force instead of persuasive language. Even Lex fears Alice.
Salene Victoria Spence	Poor Salene. She had the most unstable romance with Ryan, but for no apparent reasons. She was as lost in the world as he was. She even fell for the Chosen's bunk. But she finally seems to have found direction in Tribe 4.
Amber Beth Allen	Though she's politically a bit of a flake, Amber is a much better leader than Bray.
Moz Miriama Smith
Dee Kelly Stevenson	"If you complete that sentence, I'm going to have to punch you." ~ Dee to Patch
Mouse Jacinta Wawatai
Ginny Mia Taumoepeau
Ruby Fleur Saville	Fleur Saville from Being Eve is coming to The Tribe in season 5! She will be missed from Being Eve, but she couldn't have moved to a better place.
Abe Messiah	I bought The Tribe soundtrack CD just to hear the complete versions of the songs from the opening credits and the closing credits. The entire CD was a pleasant surprise and I'm glad that I now own it. Meryl Cassie (Ebony) has an amazing singing voice. I want to here more of her. I would really miss watching her act, but if she quit The Tribe and devoted the rest of her career to singing that would be okay with me. Another surprise was the great vocals by Caleb Ross (Lex). All the tracks are good, but my favorites are Abe Messiah, The Dream Must Stay Alive, You Belong To Me, and Abadeo. The CD is difficult to find; I bought it from Amazon.com UK.