For those of you who have yet to see it…
Both the Fetching Mrs. Colclough and I find it absolutely fascinating and interesting. Each show follows host Bear Grylls to a popular tourist location that claims lives every year. Whether it’s the Moab Desert in Utah, The Swiss Alps, Or a deserted Island – Bear give you some ideas about what you can do there to survive.
What sells the show for me though is the host. As an Eagle Scout myself, I appreciate seeing someone actually being prepared with the knowledge to survive and using it. Also, Grills doesn’t come off as some know-it-all tough guy (think Future Weapons). Rather, he seems to have a humorous, down to earth (though nuts) personality. Whether he gets shafted by the rain or giartia, you feel his pain. Often, he puts himself deliberately in a dangerous situations just to show how to escape them. Here are some quotes about Grylls from the Discovery Channel Site:
Grylls, who is a Karate black belt, served three years with the Special Air Service, a special forces unit of the British Army, during which time he broke his back in three places while parachuting over Southern Africa.
Despite the accident, he fought back to become the youngest British climber to reach the summit of Mount Everest and return alive. Grylls wrote about his experience in his first book The Kid Who Climbed Everest.
It is very interesting to see what methods Grylls uses to devise shelters, start fires, find food, and escape tough scrapes. Be sure to view the clips to see what I mean.
Man vs Wild – Episode 4 Mount Kileaua Highlights pt. 1 of 5
The only criticism I have heard about the show is along the lines, “He has a camera crew with him so he obviously isn’t in going to die.” This is silly because it misses the real point of the show – to show you what you could do if you had to. Not, whether or not Grylls will survive. Not to meantion – the crew is not allowed to step in and assist him unless his life is in mortal danger. Plus, why would you want him to die? He’s funny!
Warning: Gross clip
The show is on Fridays at 9 p.m. ET/PT Be sure to check it out.
UPDATE: Read Part 2
January 12, 2007 at 11:33 pm
To echo the thoughts of my husband, I have to agree that this show is excellent. From it, I have learned how to escape from quicksand, how to build a snow cave, how to ice fish, and much more. This guy is awesome! He knows his stuff, and he’s willing to stake his life on it. How many of us can say that?
March 16, 2007 at 11:35 am
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October 4, 2007 at 10:46 am
Bear Grylls show has been proven as a hoax.
see:
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/07/23/ngrylls123.xml
October 4, 2007 at 10:47 am
I love the show and have learned much from it however, see above
October 4, 2007 at 11:05 am
I guess the whole thing doesn’t really phase me. It’s TV. I enjoy the show and in future they are going to be much more transparent with the way they film it. I think that’s a great thing.
I have worked filming and producing stuff a little bit in the past – and the final movie is never 100% accurate or true. It’s all part of the process.
The only disappointing thing was that they were claiming something that wasn’t really happening. That’s just silly. Gladly – they will learn from the mistake and do it right from here on out.
Everyone makes bad decisions…
November 17, 2007 at 11:16 am
I find it totally ridiculous that people would criticize this show! Most of those who do haven’t spent a single day in a pair of jungle boots, let alone a night under the stars!
The bottom line is that MVW is an absolutely fantastic show! It is head and shoulders above Survivorman and provides invaluable information that could save your life if you really have the aptitude to absorb and act upon the information this wonderful show provides. :)
June 23, 2008 at 10:54 am
I don’t care if it’s fake or not as long as it’s entertaining. But it surely does look staged …
Adios
thomas
well, he showed in one of his episodes how to survive in the sonora desert, maybe that’ll come in handy sometime :D
http://www.welovesonora.com
March 15, 2009 at 12:40 pm
Bear Grylls rocks! Ultimate Survival (Man vs. Wild) is the best TV show I have ever seen! I really like his way to leave alive after such sever tests of nature. Of course I don’t actually see it exciting when he eats some crap like worms and beetles, however his tricks are awesome!
September 9, 2009 at 6:43 pm
I find the show entertaining but Man Vs Wild is more of a guide to how to get killed for sure. If you are in a real survival situation you would not do most of the jumps, rappels, and climbs that Bear does. Cause if you twist an ankle, bust a knee cap or brake a leg you are dead. I think its just a matter of time until we hear that some idiot was lost in the woods and decided to do a Bear Grylls move and ended up dying 1/2 mile from civilization.