‘Meerkat Manor: Rise of the Dynasty’ Recap – ‘Episode 9: Gone Girls’

Written by John Edward Betancourt

Caution: This article contains spoilers for Episode Nine of ‘Meerkat Manor: Rise of the Dynasty’.
​
One particular aspect of nature that we learn about in a passing manner, is that all the animals of the world have their own specific season to mate and it makes sense as to why we pay this little mind. Because it clicks with us and it seems to be quite the simple act, one devoid of anything complex, since it is in fact... all about the survival of their species. But what is fascinating about our world is that mating season isn’t quite as black and white as our minds have led us to believe. For it can in fact, be quite the complex and chaotic time for some species, as evidenced by last night’s episode of Meerkat Manor: Rise of the Dynasty.

For ‘Episode 9: Gone Girls’ took the time to show us how the call of nature can upend the order that is normally found in the Kalahari and how far a matriarch will go to protect her new pups or ones that are on the way. In fact, let’s talk about that, first. Because while we’ve enjoyed a sampling of what that is like, we’ve yet to see a matriarch really go all out in the matter, but Swift had no problem taking such an act to the extreme. Because with more pups on the way and two of the ladies in her family, Pandy and Mercy, having either threatened her or done little to help… she didn’t like the threat they posed and opted to chase them off. And despite their best attempts to come back to the family a la Sencha in Hakuna Matata, she refused to let them return, leaving them to their own devices and making it clear that this time of year will go badly for any meerkat that gets in the way of a matriarch on a mission. 

As for the chaos, well that was explored by way of the Ubuntu family. Because unfortunately for Daisy, all of the ladies in her clan… were eager to meet new suitors and ventured off on their own to see what romance and the future might hold and that left Daisy… in a very chaotic place. Because the little ones weren’t being tended to in the slightest, since there were no babysitters to be found, and that led to some rambunctious times in the burrow. The kind that saw the babies play fight and enjoy a case of the Kalahari zoomies and it also revealed that a matriarch will eventually end up outright exhausted when this kind of excessive action happens. But Daisy did do her best to go about her day in a normal manner and thankfully, she did find some peace in doing so. Since she was still able to enjoy some solid meals and a little time away from the chaos back home.

But where this episode truly shined, was in its ability to provide us with an in depth lesson in regard to the complexities of the mating rituals that meerkats go through. For while Daisy more or less pulled her hair out in frustration at the burrow, we were able to travel to the outskirts of Ubuntu territory and see what the ladies were up to and well, this was quite fascinating. For they basically hung out in this area and sized up any and all suitors to see if they would be a worthwhile mate and to top it off, some of the gals actually took part in double dates. All because they wanted to see if these male meerkats would provide them with the perfect chemistry to start their own tribe and it really was quite incredible to see Wren and others, carefully observe the males and grade their wooing performance and to see them take charge in a matriarch manner.

If anything, this is one of those episodes that really just takes the time to teach us about the meerkat. Because let’s be honest, these were habits we simply weren’t aware of in the slightest. But thanks to this magnificent series, we now have a wonderful understanding of how the meerkat mating season works and how dangerous and intricate and unique it can be and well, that really is what makes this series so great. Because on a moment’s notice, it can go from being a genuinely fun and entertaining ride to a serious drama to a straight up learning experience and now that this particular educational run has come to a close, we are back to playing the waiting game for next week’s episode and it should be quite interesting and exciting to see which story format awaits us next Saturday. Until then.

---