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The minds behind the Fox series Party of Five didnt want to revive the show for the usual reasons.

Nostalgia sells, of course, and new versions of Will & Grace, Veronica Mars, and Roseanne scored (again) with audiences. Amy Lippman, who created the 90s hit Party of Five with Chris Keyser, told the TVs Top 5 Podcast that she needed a better reason to bring the story back to primetime TV.

The nations immigration crisis, and a hearty case of Trump Derangement, gave her team all the rocket fuel required.

Party of Five, debuting Jan. 8 on Freeform, doesnt feature five children whose parents die in a car crash as in the original version. This familys children are separated from their illegal immigrant parents when ICE agents deport them back to Mexico.

Lippman broke down the shows creative process, vowing that the series wouldnt be as political as it sounds. Her own words clashed with that description throughout the interview.

She said the genesis of the project began before President Trumps shocking 2016 election day victory. In the early stages, the story morphed from the car accident leaving the kids without parents to an immigration-based drama.

That gave the reboot a fresh coat of creative paint. Still, she worried the show wouldnt get on-air quickly enough to mirror reality.

We kept saying, lets get going on it because the situation may resolve itself in some way that means were sort of writing after the fact, were behind on it. And we wanted to be relevant, Lippman says.

I dont think any of us anticipated we would find ourselves debuting the show right in the middle of this crisis, she says of the current immigration battle.

Lippman concedes the show has a strong viewpoint on illegal immigration, but reveals the president wont be part of the conversation, at least not directly.

That, she confirms, was by design.

We dont mention the president or the administration throughout the [first] season, she says, a measure taken as an ideological olive branch. Wed like to reach everyone with the show because we think it has something to say regardless of where you are on the political spectrum.

Obviously were on the side of families, and families staying together seems very important to us, she says. Does that imply Americans who support border enforcement are anti-family?

Lippman also described the diversity of her writers room, including one colleague who made a dramatic change following Trumps victory.

After the election, one of the writers in our room went out and became a dual citizen of the country that her parents were born in, Lippman explains.

I said, why? I dont understand.Youre an American. You have a passport. Youre not even a naturalized citizen. You were born in this country. Why would you do that?

She said, I dont feel safe.

Lippman continues the writers thoughts on the dual citizenship decision.

I feel like even though Im completely here legitimately, in this climate it feels like it could all go away. Maybe people would begin to investigate how did my parents come over, or my grandparents? And that that could all unravel for me, Lippman recalls.

And thatfeeling of insecurity, and a feeling that prejudice and bias against you, is not my experience, Lippman says. I couldnt have done the show this season without beingsurrounded by people who had that perspective.

Early Party of Five reviews strain to describe the show as apolitical. Thats the line peddled by the liberal siteVulture.com.

Until it doesnt.

Make no mistake: All of this is political. But Party of Five humanizes the political and makes the audience see the deeply personal impact that the decisions made by the administration have on the lives of young people who are trying their best to do the right thing every day.

The Washington Post quotes lines from the first few episodes as preachy as a Michael Moore screed. Heres what an ICE official says to the parents as they round them up for deportation.

You think the rules dont apply to you? Things have changed, Mr. Acosta. I need to see your papers, the man growls.

Naturally, this critic frames the story as a welcome plea for open borders.

The show gives American viewers a solid, up close experience of how easily U.S. immigration policy (and its blunt enforcement) can tear apart a good, law-abiding family.

They broke the law by entering the country illegally, a point the critic clearly ignores.

The WaPo critic also contends the show isnt overly political and then quotes the family saying the immigration officials dont care who we are.

Nothing political or incendiary there. Never mind that these officials are just doing their jobs and enforcing the law.

Lippmans podcast interview eventually gives away the game.

She admits to wanting the shows audience to care so deeply for the family in question that they reconsider their views on immigration

If you embrace the family, maybe thats a path to understanding the political situation from a different perspective, she says.

A version of this article is also published on HollywoodInToto.com.

Excerpt from:
'Party Of Five' Relaunch Fueled By Trump Derangement Syndrome - The Daily Wire