att Cutter (Nelson) makes his living flying tourists over the
African jungle, often in search of the legendary Darak'na.
He knows it's just a myth, but the legend of a fierce
shapeshifting beast has been good to him.
Hired by a mineral company to find a missing scientist,
Matt becomes suspicious of his employer,
Norliss (Peter J. Lucas). After Matt's plane nearly goes down in an
uncharted area known as La Mistas, he confronts Norliss
about his true mission. He barely escapes the confrontation with his life.
On the run from Norliss and his lackeys, Matt stumbles into quicksand.
Just as he's about to go under, a gorilla pulls him out of the pit.
Dazed, he sees the gorilla turn into a beautiful
woman. Then he's knocked unconscious.
He wakes to find he's been patched up by Kali (Margo Moorer),
the last living member of the Kaya tribe. She tells him a tale
about an orphaned white girl who grew up in the jungle among the animals.
The girl learned to transform herself into different wild animals by
feeling the spirits of their souls. But this girl, this
Darak'na, is no monster. She is the protector of her African paradise home,
which she will defend from those who seek to destroy it.
As Matt makes his way back to his plane, he runs into the legend
herself, and she is no beast. She is Sheena, a well-spoken, gorgeous
blonde woman whom Kali raised. Sheena admits her abilities and
agrees to help Matt against Norliss and his crew. Matt knows
that taking care of Norliss isn't going to be easy. Norliss has discovered
diamonds, and he's not about to let Matt or the Darak'na stand
in his way.
Sheena, bubblegum hero
Based on the comic books of the '30s and '40s, Sheena
is another entry in the female-action-hero derby. It's no
surprise that the Sheena show was dreamed up by one of the creators of
Baywatch (Schwartz) and by one of Xena: Warrior Princess's producers
(Sears). What Schwartz and Sears have done is throw one part
Xena and five parts Baywatch into a
blender and pressed purée. They top it off by casting the physically
blessed Nolin in the title role.
There's only one problem. Either Nolin can't act or she's
being poorly directed. Nolin maintains a blank look through most of
the pilot episode, and when her big dramatic moment comes--
admitting that she's the shapeshifting legend--she looks as if she's
broken a nail. While no Lucy Lawless, Nolin does much better with the
action stuff. When she takes on the bad
guys, she demonstrates only the appropriate amount of silliness for this
kind of show.
The producers wisely surrounded her with
solid actors. Nelson plays Matt, the charming rogue who catches
Sheena's eye, and Moorer is wonderful as Kira.
It's all pretty harmless. But a TV series about a
shapeshifting Darak'na could do a better job in the special-effects
department. Considering the morphing techniques available today,
it's surprising that the show can't come up with something more
impressive in the scenes that show Sheena's transformation.
Sheena doesn't do a thing for the African jungle except
perpetuate the Hollywood fantasy. It doesn't help women's rights.
It's not good dramatically. What Sheena does offer is plenty
of action and a lot of intentional and unintentional humor.
It's bubblegum entertainment about a beautiful person running
around in skimpy clothing, which is what made Baywatch
the most popular program in the world.
