Best TV Show of the Week
Change of Plans
on Fox
By Ally Matteodo
The latest made-for-TV movie presented by Walmart and Procter & Gamble,
Change of Plans, was a perfect selection for a family-friendly night of
television, and is the clear choice for Best TV Show of the Week.
Aired on Fox Saturday, January 8th at 8:00 p.m. ET, the movie
featured former American Idol contestant Brooke White as Sally Danville,
a carefree musician married to aeronautical engineer and former Air Force pilot
Jason Danville. The two are planning a five-year-anniversary trip to Tahiti
when Sally receives a devastating phone call — her best friend Theresa has
perished in a plane crash, along with her husband Frank. A social worker named
Dorothy visits the Danvilles and explains that they are the next-of-kin listed
as guardians for the four children Theresa and Frank left behind. Incredulous,
Sally and Jason are sent reeling at this disclosure. Claiming they are not
parenting material, they agree to take the kids while Dorothy searches for a
more suitable home. Theresa and her husband were part of the Peace Corps and
adopted children in need wherever their travels took them, with the result that
he children come from all corners of the world. The oldest, Jordan, is a
sixteen-year-old who is the biological daughter of Theresa and Frank. Next is
Javier, a talented soccer player from Guatemala, followed by the Ugandan Caleb,
and the youngest, Sun Li from China. Slowly but surely the Danvilles come to
terms with their new lifestyle, and become attached to the children, regarding
them as their own. Officially adopting them, Jason trades in his muscle car for
a minivan, Sally foregoes a concert tour to stay close to her new children, and
the yuppie twosome becomes a more fulfilled set of six.
Theresa and Frank, the parents who perish in the plane crash, never appear in
the film, but exert a presence all the same. They were members of the Peace
Corps, and they were wonderful, giving parents. While the Danvilles are good
people, their lifestyle is thrown into stark relief when compared to such
selflessness. In their home, Sally has a studio for recording and practicing
with her band, and Jason has a work station; initially, it is clear their abode
is not child-friendly. On top of that, Jason is invited to fly state-of-the-art
jets for his squadron again, while Sally is fields an offer to go on tour — two
opportunities which would take them far from home for significant amounts of
time. For two people passionate about their careers, these are heady offerings
to pass up. Yet the two do pass them up, and in the end it’s not a sacrifice,
but a labor of love. The kids simply become more important than careers. When
people love one another, whether relatives, friends, or spouses, in the end the
individuals will always supersede money and prestige. The world often tells us
to develop the best versions of ourselves, and put our careers first, before we
take the time to develop a family; but this film demonstrates these two aims are
not necessarily exclusive. In the end, love is always the most powerful factor
affecting choice… and it is a force that will never steer you wrong.
Best TV Show
of the Week
The Parents
Television Council -
www.parentstv.org
