The events of this series present a chain of crimes committed by a group of prisoners and are now facing a painful fate behind the prison. The events begin as criminals confined in the California prison, the home of Charles Manson, are given teenagers a taste of life on the scene. In those prisons, no prisoner can approach the children and give them the sense of life's risks in prison, where it seems to be about humanity above all else.
If the series actually makes some kids in the viewing audience change their lives, then Shapiro might want to revive "Scared Straight" for future generations. (Does it change viewers? Perhaps another unknown).
A series that, unlike most of what passes for "reality TV," feels truly authentic -- and sobering. For the network of "Intervention," this is the kind of intervention that obliterates the camera's contaminating eye.
What's also a little disconcerting is that these girls seem to think that being on TV is a big enough achievement that the reason doesn't matter. That's a pretty scary thought itself - but not as scary as Valley State.
