The docuseries "Tiger King" achieves amazing things: It tells the incredible story of the big-cat collector Joe Exotic, distracting us from the coronavirus crisis. There's now a race for the most original memes.
One thing has to be said upfront: If you want to understand the hype surrounding the Netflix documentary series Tiger King: Murder, Mayhem and Madness, you can't get around watching all seven episodes. The world that is revealed in the series is unfathomable to any imagination. What happens is indescribably bizarre, unrestrained, hypocritical and unbridled.
In the US state of Oklahoma, Tiger King, aka Joe Exotic, runs a private zoo with wild cats. At times, he lives there with more than 200 tigers, two husbands and a crowd of followers. But that's not all that's going on: There are also the issues of money, drugs, sex and contract killings. In a nutshell, it is a sphere in which no rules seem to apply. Joe Exotic, however, is by far not the only big-cat fanatic in the US. There are endless feuds that develop between the Tiger King and his rivals.
Big Cat fanatics: The Baskins promoting their animal sanctuaryImage: picture-alliance/Zuma/Tampa Bay Times/L. Lake
One of those rivals is the big-cat dealer "Doc" Antle, who awarded himself the title "Doctor of Mystical Sciences." On his reservation in South Carolina, he not only indulges his passion for predators, but also unabashedly presents himself as a polyamorous cult leader. Another figure is the self-proclaimed animal rights activist Carole Baskin, who usually wears predator-patterned clothing from head to toe and is suspected of murder.
Without a doubt, the human chasms that are revealed here are deep and unfathomable.
Eric Goode, director of the reality series, has recorded the wheelings and dealings of the protagonists over five years. With this production, he succeeds in evoking a different world that comes as a welcome distraction during the coronavirus pandemic.
Once you have started the series, you can't stop being mesmerized by it. Viewers around the world can't believe their eyes when they witness the madness taking place on their screens, which gets worse from episode to episode.
Of course, celebrities have long since jumped on the bandwagon, including US singer and actor Jared Leto...
And in some cases involuntarily, like Donald Trump...
More tigers in cages than out in the wild
But despite all the creativity evolving on social networks regarding the Tiger King, there are also critics who call into question the enormous hype surrounding the true-crime series. After all, the fate of thousands of predatory animals is at stake here. In the US alone, there are more tigers living in captivity than those who have been counted in the wild around the world. In addition, there are the degrading conditions in which the employees of private zoos live and work.
Despite the monstrosities, or perhaps because of them, the streaming figures for the series are booming these days. Currently, Tiger King is one of the most popular TV shows in the US. In Germany, the documentary is listed as 9th in the Netflix ranking. The bizarre dealings of Joe Exotic and his rivals seem to have hit a nerve in the coronavirus crisis. It can't seem to get any more absurd than this.
Coronavirus' top winners: From Netflix to Tesla
The coronavirus has battered the global economy. But not everyone is losing money. Video streaming platforms and home training systems are seeing a huge boom as people are social distancing and staying at home.
Image: picture-alliance/NurPhoto/Yichuan Cao
In top gear
Tesla has emerged as the most valuable automaker amid the pandemic, eclipsing Toyota and Volkswagen, despite selling only a fraction of cars sold by the traditional behemoths. Tesla shares rose more than 100% in the second quarter during which the carmaker's sales topped estimates thanks to a rapid ramp-up in production at its Shanghai plant, which remained largely unaffected by the pandemic.
Image: Reuters/Y. Sun
Netflix and chill
Netflix has added more than 25 million subscribers in the first six months of the year as lockdowns forced people to stay homebound. The streaming platform has gained $70 billion (€61 billion) in market capitalization this year, making it more valuable than media giants such as Walt Disney, AT&T, the parent of HBO, and Comcast, owner of NBC and Universal Studios.
Image: picture-alliance/AA/M.E. Yildirim
Ditch your gym
The fitness startup Peloton, which makes exercise bikes and also offers online fitness classes, saw its sales jump 66% in its third quarter as stay-at-home orders and coronavirus fears prompted many fitness enthusiasts to ditch their gyms and opt for the company's offerings. In April, Peloton held its largest class ever with more than 23,000 people attending it from home.
Image: picture-alliance/AP Photo/M. Lennihan
Coronovirus billionaires
Moderna Chief Executive Stephane Bancel (R) briefly became a billionaire after the company shipped an experimental coronavirus vaccine for clinical testing in humans, boosting its share price, Bloomberg reported. Malaysia's Lim Wee Chai (L), who owns a majority stake in medical gloves maker Top Glove, also entered the billionaire's club amid the outbreak.
Stay home, stay connected
Few companies have been so talked about during the past few months as teleconferencing firm Zoom. At its peak, the company attracted more than 300 million participants on some days in April, up from 10 million in December, despite some PR troubles around privacy and security issues. The company's market cap has zoomed past $70 billion, up from around $16 billion at the time of its IPO last year.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/W. Ring
Gaming gains
Gaming provided a perfect escape for millions stuck at home. Online games such as Call of Duty attracted tens of millions of players. The latest game, Nintendo's popular Animal Crossing franchise, sold more than 13 million units within six weeks of its launch in March. Nintendo's Switch and other consoles such as Xbox and PlayStation have seen demand soar over the past few months.
Image: Getty Images/AFP/K. Nogi
Streaming to glory
The Swedish music streaming firm saw its paid subscribers base surge to 130 million in the first quarter amid coronavirus lockdowns. The company saw usage on video game consoles such as Xbox and PlayStation soar during the period. Spotify's US-listed shares are among the top performers so far this year.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/B. Pedersen
Stay-at-home stocks
The pandemic has boosted stay-at-home stocks such as Apple, Microsoft, Amazon and Facebook — companies whose offerings facilitate online communication, remote working and transactions. These companies have been the main drivers of US indices over the past few months. Companies like Paypal and cloud-computing firm Twilio have also surged in the past months.
Image: Reuters
Empty shelves
Retailers such as Germany's Rewe and France's Carrefour saw food items fly off their shelves during the initial days of the pandemic as panicking shoppers stock up their pantries. The rush at the supermarkets prompted investors to lap up shares of packaged food companies. Online retailers like Amazon are also seeing strong demand as virus-spooked shoppers avoid brick-and-mortar stores.
Makers of face masks, hand sanitizers and sanitary wipes are witnessing a huge surge in demand as shoppers around the world seek ways to protect themselves against the rapidly spreading virus. 3M Corp, which makes face masks among other things, is one of the biggest beneficiaries.
