Soap on the Range

"Soap On The Range" is "the world's first animated soap opera", Fact|date=May 2007 created by Pat and Joyce May (QSP, Inc.) and written by Larry Levi (acclaimed writer for "Seinfeld", "Saved By The Bell" and "Aaahh! Real Monsters"). The show is ready to air Fall 2006 during prime time.

"Soap on the Range" is a half hour animated parody of a soap opera that drags "Desperate Housewives" out into the Wild West, puts it on a grander scale, then adds the bite and wit of "Family Guy". It’s about the Betts clan of Colorado who raise and ride bulls for the PBR (Professional Bull Riders), a NASCAR-like phenomenon and the fastest growing sport in the United States. A plague has fallen upon the Betts family in the name of Eunice Calhoun, an over-sexed, filthy rich walking-implant who will stop at nothing to destroy them.

Throw into the mix narration by insightful prize-winning bull Cyclone and this saga of two rival families - their trials and tribulations and their ups and downs will be portrayed to the watcher in a new and unique way. The description of human behavior as seen through the eyes of a ‘non human’ leaves the writer of this show with the freedom to stretch the limits – but not too far. To clarify, bulls are not humans and the remaining herd on the Betts’ ranch will not be driving cars and performing a weekly grocery shop, but they may provide an opportunity to better explore animation boundaries and provide an additional comic element.

The setup goes as follows: The scandalous Eunice Calhoun has returned to Longridge, Colorado after a self imposed exile of 26 years to take possession of the Four Star Ranch. Once poor but now outrageously wealthy due to a series of well orchestrated marriages, the Four Star was bequeathed to her by her last husband, Buck Betts Sr., who was many years her senior. The old man had met and married her on a recent vacation to Las Vegas and had the decency to expire after a very eventful honeymoon night. (The legalities of his death will surface throughout the season – did he just die with a smile on his face or is there a more sinister reason?).

The Four Star is important to Eunice, because it is the lifeline of Buck Betts Jr., her former fiancé who (in her opinion) heartlessly stranded her at the altar 26 years ago. Hellbent on revenge, she is mostly there to make Buck Jr.’s life miserable. Of course, flaunting her abnormally large diamonds in front of a town that shunned her is also a definite plus. After a legal battle over the will, Eunice had to settle for three quarters of the Four Star.

Just to irk nature-loving Buck Jr. and also to live in the style to which she has become accustomed, she has plopped a gaudy, Beverly Hills style hotel spa down on her portion. (She lives in a private section of the hotel with her two children and large entourage). When she takes over his portion of the Four Star, she intends to cement it, turning it into a huge parking lot and figures that if Buck Jr. isn’t a basket case by then, then that should certainly push him over the edge. To accomplish her goal, Eunice is determined to beat him at everything, even at his pride and joy, raising prizewinning PBR bulls – she hardly ever succeeds and most of the time her bulls don’t even warrant a mention. And that leads to this next twist, Cyclone (Buck Betts Jr.’s pride and joy and also PBR’s bull-of-the year, three times in a row) has disappeared, yet not fully – it is his insight into the goings on in Longridge that the watcher of "Soap on the Range" will be privy to as he narrates the show giving his own opinions and informative insights into the folly of human behavior! This narration will further stem the interest into ‘Where exactly is Cyclone?’ and provides external opportunities for national ‘missing person’ campaigns!

Now Buck is not the kind of guy who is going to lie down and let Eunice steam roll over him. If she took Cyclone, he’s going to find out – but maybe she didn’t, could it have been the shifty looking bartender? Or the ‘too-rich-for-his own good’ rival bull contractor from the next town over? Whoever took him, Buck thinks it’s Eunice (she’s happy to let him think what he wants and we never quite know ourselves if it was her) and will fight her with every ounce of strength in his body. However, he’s at a decided disadvantage. You see, he fights fair.

Everyone has an opinion in Longridge and with that in mind, the main characters (who range in age from 18 to 75) will get involved in the muddy and murky hi-jinks going on at the Four Star Ranch and further a field.

There won’t be a moment to sit back and take a breath – you won’t want to! This is an edgier "King of the Hill" with insight that will not only appeal to that audience but also bring in the viewers from "Family Guy" and "The Simpsons". The stories will give us a chance to reflect and lampoon the human condition, but our priority is laughs. "Soap on the Range" chooses comedy over meaning, but mixes the two enough to make it very special.

External references

* [http://www.soapontherange.com "Soap on the Range" Homepage]
* [http://www.soapontherange.com/trailer.html Watch the Trailer]
* [http://feeds.feedburner.com/SoapOnTheRangePodcast Get Our Podcast!]