TV Review: Little House on the Prairie (2026)

Little House on the Prairie (2026) created for television by Rebecca Sonnenshine based on the book series by Laura Ingalls Wilder

The Ingalls family heads out west to start a new life in the town of Independence. Charles Ingalls (Luke Bracy) took a flyer at its word and sought his own piece of land. The Osage Indians still live in the area but the federal government is working out a deal. The trip is treacherous, almost costing their lives. They find help from some neighbors and some of the Independence townfolk, including Doctor George Tann (Jocko Sims), who patches up some injuries on Caroline (Crosby Fitzgerald), the mother. Daughters Laura (Alice Halsey) and Mary (Skywalker Hughes) have a tough time adjusting. Mary is bookish and misses friends and family; Laura is more of a tomboy and has troubles being more lady-like. They go through various adventures as Pa builds the house and farms the land while the rest of the family interacts with the neighbors (including a Native American family with a much nicer house and Mr. Edwards (Warren Christie), a rough settler living on his own nearby). Trips to town put them in touch with the local women's club (creating social drama for Caroline) and the general store with its cute young boy clerk (creating romantic drama for Mary), and the James family with its two daughters about the younger Ingalls's ages (creating social drama for both Mary and Laura). 

The stories are loaded with drama thanks to the difficulty of frontier life. All the episodes are interesting and a lot of attention is given to side characters like the doctor, who gets romantically involved with the general store owner. The Native American family are part of the Osage tribe about to be displaced if the deal with the US government goes through. Most of the adventures have happy endings and the family's plucky American spirit often wins the day.

Another television adaptation ran for ten years starting in 1974. Starring Michael Landon as Pa and Melissa Gilbert as Laura, the show was a childhood favorite in my family. The two stars have a lot of star power, boosting an upbeat and family-friendly drama. This new series has fine acting but no one is particularly outstanding. The stories have a slightly larger scope, telling the experiences of side characters, especially the indigenous population who are more sympathetic than in the 1970s show. The old show did not do much with the Indians, though a scene of two males invading the Ingalls cabin and taking most of their stuff is in both shows. In the 1970s, it's a moment of unmitigated terror (Pa is in town, leaving the women alone to face the half-naked males who don't speak English). In the new show, subtitles reveal that one of the Native Americans claims he is justified in taking the Ingalls' stuff since the whites have taken a lot from the Osage. They still come off as bad people and get something of a comeuppance, but they are treated as more complicated than earlier. 

I haven't read the books, so I don't know how either series compares to the source material. This new series seems like a prequel because the 1970s series is set in Walnut Grove, the existence of which only comes in at the very end of the 2026 series.

I enjoyed this series though I think the original 1970s show is better. Maybe that's my childhood bias showing? I would watch more of this show if/when they make more.

Mildly recommended.

As I write (August 2026), this is only available streaming on Netflix.