Behind the Recommendations: Why I Recommended Octopus!

For several years now, I’ve been sharing streaming programs, podcasts, and books that I think you will like in the Thursday emails. I try to keep in mind that most people do not have the same tastes that I have, and there have been times when I’ve heard you say, “Why the *&%$ did she choose that?”
This series aims to demystify my admittedly odd choices.

In this week’s email, I suggested that you should watch Octopus! on Amazon Prime. No, it’s not a horror movie from the 1950s. Narrated by Phoebe Waller-Bridge (of Fleabag fame), the two-episode series’ synopsis reads, “This is a documentary about being murdered by your lover, getting lost in Mexico, finding a unicorn, a competitive quilter, Tracy Morgan, and exploring our connection with a possible alien. In other words, it’s a documentary about the octopus.”

With a synopsis like that, how can you NOT watch?

First of all, you should know that I am fascinated by octopodes. Secondly, you should know that the plural of “octopus” is definitely not “octopi.” Because “octopus” is a Greek derivation instead of Latin, the plural is either “octopuses” or “octopodes.” (I got this from both a professor of Greek and Latin and a biologist who’s has made the lovely octopus her life’s work.)

One more thing to know: this is decidedly not your typical nature docuseries. David Attenborough had nothing to do with this docuseries. It isn’t Life on Earth or The Living Planet.

Octopus! follows the life of Doris, a Giant Pacific Octopus, as told through stop-motion animation. Because why not? Interspersed with Doris’s story are interviews with an Italian octopus researcher, a marine biologist who’s also a competitive quilter, and a Greek octopus fisherman. Oh, and Tracy Morgan. Can’t forget Tracy Morgan.

Phoebe Waller-Bridge is a delightful narrator; she’s also an accomplished comedian and actress, and her narration reflects this. But what makes this docuseries important is the discussion of octopodes place in the world as both a predator species and a prey species. There’s also a fascinating discussion of how we tend to anthropomorphize animals as a way of connecting with them.

Octopus! contains very little heavy-handed reflecting on how humans are ruining the planet. I mean, we are, but there’s enough going on right now to weigh our souls down, and we don’t need more guilt to add to our depression and anxiety. It’s charming. It’s funny. You will laugh out loud. And you will learn something.