Irish Examiner view: Hippo-critical TV

Drug kingpin Pablo Escobar imported some hippos into Colombia back in the 80s for his own personal menagerie, but now their descendants, some 150 in total, are causing problems. Picture: Kevin Clancy/Fennells

At first glance it looks like a pitch for Netflix — a drug baron’s pet hippopotamuses escape and roam the countryside, but their offspring eventually proliferate and cause serious problems for locals. Knockabout comedy. High farce.

Yet this is the reality in Colombia. Drug kingpin Pablo Escobar imported some hippos into the country back in the 80s for his own personal menagerie, but now their descendants, some 150 in total, are causing problems in the Magdalena Medio area of the country.

Politicians want them deported to India and Mexico, which is understandable: A two- or three-tonne hippopotamus can be a difficult proposition for a local resident.

The reason for mentioning Netflix is that Pablo Escobar has enjoyed an unlikely afterlife thanks to various TV series, both on that platform and elsewhere. 

Pudgy in his 80s leisurewear, straggling moustache unmistakable, Escobar pops up as an almost benign presence — remote but motivated, a businessman focused on improving numbers.

Has Escobar’s ubiquity on screen normalised our perception of the Colombian, who died 30 years ago, and our perception of cocaine in turn? Perhaps. 

However, there are uncomfortable reminders which jar with those on-screen narratives and remind us of the reality. Like the hippos.