I was watching a Breakfast Club interview a few months ago with Tisha Campbell, Kym Whitley, and Yvette Nicole Brown, when I realized I didn’t tell y’all about My Dad the Bounty Hunter. So, later that week I watched it with five of my favorite kids, and because I love em, here I go.
Before I start my review, I have to acknowledge two of the best Black dad’s I know. I watched this series both with the kids and again by myself, and I thought of these two losers. The five children that I watched the show with belong to the dad on the left, Dad B. He’s the head of a beautiful blended family, The dad on the right, Dad D, is the proud father of a beautiful little girl I nicknamed Princess when she was four. I joke but they really are shining examples of Black dads and think they’re cool. I don’t know if the kids feel the same way, but we’ll let them have that. As I said, Laz Alonzo’s character in this series reminded me so much of these two and their interactions with their kids.
Now, if I’m right, both of them do not read my blog and will not know that I have shouted them out. I won’t tell em. That’s all. Back to the review.
So let me set the stage for My Dad the Bounty Hunter. Terry, voiced by Laz Alonzo, is a proud, separated dad of two, Sean and Lisa. Lisa, voiced by Priah Ferguson, is the oldest and has a bit of spunk, and what I mean by that is that she’s in those adolescent years where her parents and her little brother get on her nerves. What I LOVE about Lisa is the fact that she will go to the ends of the Earth for her little brother. Throughout this series, since we only see the Mom at the beginning and end of the series, Lisa gives me mom vibes. She’s always trying to put Brok in his place and is very overprotective of her brother. I feel like Lisa feels like because her parents are separated that she has to step in as the unofficial third parent. Dad B’s oldest is 10 and I see him in a similar light as Lisa. He’s not as spunky as Lisa, but I catch him using his dad voice on his two-year old sister all the time. It’s so funny to me since I’ve known him since he was around four or five.
Then, there’s Sean. Sean, voiced by JeCobi Swain, isn’t a confident child and lives to impress his dad. He wants to be as confident as Lisa is and show his dad that he can be as strong as his is. Seeing his progression through the show is a bit slow, but there comes a time in the show where everything is riding on Sean to save the day.
Now, remember I said Terry was separated, meaning he is in a coparenting situation. Dad B and D also coparent their children and go through a bit of what Terry goes through. They may have it easier than Terry does. Their mom, Tess voiced by Yvonne Orji, seems like she’s wary of Terry having the kids, but she has hope that he will get his life together.
The series starts with Terry at work catching a bounty, as a bounty hunter does. Now, at work, he goes by Sabo Brok. What isn’t explained is that the kids do not know what their dad does for a living. That is explored further when the kids end up on their dad’s ship after a mysterious man comes to the house to tell Brok that he has to catch a person of interest. And here is where the adventure starts. Now, Dad B and D’s kids would never end up in this situation. Actually, I take that back. I can see the two-year-old in this situation. The other four kids go to sleep too early to snoop. I feel like Dad D’s daughter is smart enough to figure it out but not say anything until her dad brought it up to her.
Typical children’s shows usually allow the children to explore on their own, sans parents, but this show shows the dynamic between the parent and the kids and how each can learn from the other. As a kid, I never knew how I added to my mother’s life. What I mean by that is that I don’t know if i ever taught my mom something or I ever changed her mind about something. Sean and Lisa got to do just that on this mission with their dad. They find that the company Brok works for aren’t the greatest people and the bounty the company sent him to find isn’t actually harming anyone. With this knowledge, Brok is now faced with the dilemma of doing his job because that’s what he’s been paid to do or to trust his kids and buck the system.
While I don’t think Dad B or Dad D’s kids have ever helped them in a moral conundrum, I have seem the impact the kids have made on them and vice versa. It’s the freedom the kids have to express themselves with their parents and the parents being open to not having all the answers. Dad B and D are vastly different people than when I first met them and a lot of that has to do with their children. A lot of what Terry/Brok has to deal with with his kids is a lot of what I’ve seen B and D deal with with their own kids. Rebellion, trying to impress dad, dad trying to explain that all of what he does is for these ungrateful kids, losing the kids because they moved when you said not to, etc. The moral of the show is believing in your kids. The dilemma Terry has comes down to if he values the money he’s making at his job or is he values what his kids believe in. You’ll have to watch to figure out all what happens and which way he goes. Do I think Dad B and Dad D would do what Terry did? More than likely because they raised their kids to do the right thing, and for the most part, they do. All six of these kids are the best (although, we’re still working on the two-year-old. She marches alone sometimes.).
There’s a lot of twists and turns in this story but the real twist comes at the very end of the series. I can honestly say that this is a twist I did not see coming, but it does set us up nicely for season two where we get to see the kids have an adventure with mom. Check it out!
Season two of My Dad the Bounty Hunter debuts on Netflix on August 17th. I’ll have my thoughts when the full season is done. The trailer doesn’t give me much and I’m not as excited as the first season, BUT looks can be deceiving.
