Bindi Irwin's jungle a bungleArticle from: Font size: Decrease Increase Email article: Email Print article: Print Darren Devlyn

July 19, 2007 12:00am
THE really eerie thing about Bindi: the Jungle Girl, which premiered on the ABC yesterday, is that her late dad Steve Irwin figures so prominently in the show.

It's macabre that Bindi Irwin narrates segments featuring her father, who died filming an underwater segment for the show, as if he's still alive.

Perhaps the series should have been put to rest with him.

Mum Terri Irwin maintains it was important for eight-year-old Bindi to keep filming "because she loves it".

The young star certainly matches her father's extroverted style in front of the camera, even leading the crew through Tasmanian scrub in search of a wombat.

The positive to come out of Bindi's show is that it promotes animal awareness and highlights the plight of endangered species.

The positives, however, fall drastically short of compensating for the production's shortcomings.

Bindi: The Jungle Girl , a 26-part series, screens at 4.05pm in the ABC's after-school line-up.