Friday, February 6, 2009

Man vs. Wild

An article that confirms my suspicions of the popular tv show. Man vs. Wild is a good example of society's nostalgia for the return of more primitive times.

http://www.reuters.com/article/televisionNews/idUSN2934925920070730
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3 comments:

Jim Tantillo said...

what a great article!! it's Joseph Knowles deja vu all over again:

"Grylls is the star of 'Man vs. Wild,' an increasingly popular series on Discovery Channel that recently concluded its second season. Each episode he parachutes into a different uninhabited territory without a map or much else in the way of camping equipment and spends several days trying to find his way back to civilization.

"But this British adventurer is now the subject of an investigation by U.K.'s Channel 4, which already has confirmed that Grylls checked into motels on a few occasions when he was depicted on TV having slept under the stars. Other allegations have been made suggesting that the crew that records Grylls in action isn't as hands-off as it might appear to viewers."

great stuff.

February 6, 2009 at 3:42 PM
Jon said...

I concur, great topic. However, I think the author of the article was a little harsh overall... especially in saying: "Truth be told, though, "Wild" isn't so much 21st century "Gilligan's Island" as it is a hybrid of "McGyver" and "Jackass." Grylls has a knack for improvising solutions to dangerous predicaments and isn't above grossing out everyone in the process." Having both done survival training and seen the show, I can say yes some stuff he does is gross... but its about survival not meeting societies norms in the wilderness (even though it does lend itself more to tv). Comparing this show to "Jackass" is completely out of line. The show isn't supposed to be 'realistic' in the sense that these situations frequently happen. But on the off chance you're in Africa and parched it is helpful to know you can get water from elephant dung. And yes the author of this article would probably do this over dying of dehydration. Yes, Bear Grylls might not be all that he seems. He clearly has company out there and might not rough it quite so much as it would appear but lets cut him some slack, he accomplished his job two fold: 1. We're entertained... even if it requires some suspension of disbelief he clearly does what we see on camera. And 2 if we find ourselves without food we might just remember that termites have lots of protein. Oh, and they taste like carrots.

February 11, 2009 at 1:31 AM
Jim Tantillo said...

hey, that's a fantastic comment as well. Now you're inspiring me to try and watch the show.
jt

February 11, 2009 at 6:19 AM

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