City Life

City Life is perhaps best described as Melrose Place down under. This truly remarkable New Zealand series lasted only one season (but what a season!) and it still has a very small but dedicated following. Many so-called soaps from Australia and New Zealand are in fact just dull and realistic dramas - not at all larger than life. City Life, however, is one of the few exceptions and it is by far the best soap produced in New Zealand. The basic story focuses around a fancy apartment building called The Pile. A hunky doctor by the name of Damon South (guest star Kevin Smith) is the owner of the building and he lives in the penthouse apartment. All his ten tenants are also his very best friends. This lively gang of hopeful twentysomethings are: Ryan Waters (Charles Mesure), a friendly, gay bartender at the gang's frequent hang-out bar The Lava Lounge; Stephanie Cox (Laurie Foel), an ice-cold blonde who perceives herself as a serious TV journalist even though she's only the hostes