'Meerkat Manor: The Next Generation': A Star Is Born

If ever you needed to learn how to make it big in the world, you need look no further than Ryan Seacrest. His namesake on Meerkat Manor: The Next Generation seems to be on that same path towards greatness. But first, destiny will have to pluck him from obscurity.

These Spoilers are a little pitchy, dawg.

Seacrest is an early riser amongst the Whiskers. No longer content to stand in the shadows of the clan, he looks to find his own 'American Idol' to thrust him into the spotlight. It's been a time of change for our Whisker friends. With Zaphod defecting to another clan, the kids must now attempt to fend for themselves. Seacrest comes up short, though, in his attempts to find breakfast.

However, with Zaphod gone, Rocket Dog now has yet another challenger for the throne in her brother Zorro. Her lack of power is evident in the fact that the family won't follow her to find the most important meal of the day.

At least at first. The rest of the Whiskers come around and they take off, even with the wandering Seacrest in tow.

Meanwhile, in a textbook display of effective leadership, Nikita keeps the Commandos in perfect working order. Food, territory, leadership... this clan has it all. They even have more prolific sentries, as they pick up on Rocket Dog's attempt to find food in their territory. While she's ready to tuck tail and bail, Zorro has other ideas. He takes the lead, and the Whiskers boldly charge against the Commandos!

Or does he? It turns out young Seacrest is out front of the Whiskers attack. Turns out he's so far ahead of the family that he doesn't hear the retreat call from Zorro. He gets caught up in a pile of angry Commandos and looks like a dead Meerkat. Lucky for Seacrest, the Commandos show mercy and release him. Thanks to Zorro, Seacrest almost bites the big one and Rocket Dog loses even more control of the family.

What a fantastic brother he is!

To top that, Seacrest has now been deserted from the rest of his family. Not knowing which way the Whiskers fled, he takes off in a random direction, only to happen upon the same group he was trying to flee himself... the Commandos. Seacrest's mantra becomes "If you can't beat 'em, join 'em," but Nikita quickly pulls the Welcome mat from under his tiny legs.

Not to be deterred, Seacrest uses his keen stalking skills to hit on a young female Commando. Just like everyone else in history who thinks of the lustful move before the smart move, he blows his own cover and nearly gets taken down a second time. Nikita is clearly upset at the lack of charge in her family, so she takes matters into her own hands.

As dusk sets on the Kalahari, Nikita does indeed find and punish Seacrest for his trespassing ways. Only if you call forced mating a punishment. Once the "punishment" is complete, Nikita takes a cue from all the females in all history and quickly loses all interest in him. Instead of taking the hint he's no longer welcome, Seacrest moves into their burrow.

The next day, Seacrest is once again the first awake. He tries to make a run for the border, but Nikita apparently wasn't finished punishing him. It seems the Commando leader is taking no chances in her attempts to become pregnant again. After once again using Seacrest for her own personal gain, she dumps him like a bad habit.

Sorry if this sounds overly pessimistic, but these scenes are hitting too close to home for me.

Back with the Whiskers, Rocket Dog takes a lonely hike away from the family. Family issues have her playing the role of an ostrich... shunning the troubles of the world by burying her head in the sand. When the general alarm sounds, she quickly peeks up to find a large gang of rovers in the distance. What seems like an impossible mating dream coming true quickly fades when Zorro and the boys dispatch of the rovers. It's like fate keeps kicking Rocket Dog when she's down.

Seacrest is sitting pretty, even though he's been deserted from the Whiskers. He's mated (twice!) with Nikita and is seemingly on a path of good fortune, despite being a first-time rover.

There's no doubt the Whiskers have been hurting since the loss of Flower, but their outlook on life may be improving thanks to the potential buns in Rocket Dog's oven.

Next time on MM:TNG, Sophie looks to be headed for trouble. Whether or not it's due to Rocket Dog's secret remains to be seen.

Could the final revelation of the episode be the dramatic turning point of the fortunes of the Whiskers? Is Nikita really that bad ass? When do you expect our young Seacrest to get his very own frost and tip highlights?

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