[AdTheNad]

I've been watching the first 5 episodes of the discovery reality show Naked and Afraid and thought it was quite interesting from the survival perspective. Basically a man and a woman get dropped on a tropical island or in the jungle somewhere and have to survive for 21 days, naked with only 1 survival implement of their own choosing, eg machete.

Now granted it's a reality show, but it doesn't seem to be scripted. Well, they fit 3 weeks of film into a 40 minute show, so it's not like they need loads of dramatic material.

Anyway, it's amazing watching just how hard these guys have to struggle just to get a fire started or get some clean water, and any substantial source of protein is almost impossible to find/hunt. This was really quite a surprise to me, especially the guys who are in the jungle which has incredible bio diversity. It's a massive smack upside the head to anyone who thinks they will thrive in a full on shtf back to hunting and gathering scenario. If it's that hard to find food in the jungle good luck in the cities. Now granted they don't have guns, but they also don't have thousands of other people to compete with.

I though it might appeal to some people here. Also, I normally hate reality shows but found this one interesting.

[Beery1]

I've been interested in this show too, but more for how (based on the three or four shows I've seen so far) it illustrates a general tendency towards almost suicidal misogyny on the part of most of the guys that have taken part so far. Rather than admit that a woman can actually survive in the wild and even (shock-horror) help them out, many of them would rather starve and risk death by their own stupidity.

Not that I'm surprised at the attitude. What surprises me is how disappointing it is that EVERY SINGLE ONE of the episodes I've seen so far have this as a major theme. Not one of the guys has treated the woman as even close to being an equal. And what's funny is that only one of the episodes has featured a woman who was clearly the less capable of the pair.

The more I see of this show, the more I tend towards the stereotypical feminist opinion that, generally speaking, guys are idiots.

I also find it interesting that this is probably the only reality show I've ever seen, since The Late Late Breakfast Show (in which a reality show participant actually died) that actually has a good chance of killing one of its participants. So I'm guessing the producers aren't too bright either.

[PrestonSturges]

The guys aren't just dismissive towards the women, the guys are hostile, whiny, passive, drama queens.

[AdTheNad]

That does seem to keep cropping up.

Woman "I think we really need to do "A". I'll do it on my own I I have to"

Man "I can't believe how much energy she is wasting on "A". Stupid woman"

Later on ... Plan A worked really well.

Although I don't think the show is scripted, they could well be selecting people based on likelihood of interpersonal conflict.

Still the participants all seem to have a fairly decent survival background, certainly better than your average forum lurker, yet end up doing pretty miserably.

[Subjectivist]

It is amazing how you can make some people look foolish and other people look brilliant by selective cutting the footage from 21 days o fill 44 minutes. Give me 200 hours of George W. Bush to work with and I could cut out every dumb off the cuff statement and "uhm uh uhm" ou of his speaches and make him look like a genius. Alternatively I could pick out all the worst moments and make him a parody barely able to speak English as a second language.

I would expect the editors of this show to have at least that much skill.

[Ibon]

One of the survivor shows came and filmed an episode at Mount Totumas. I cannot say more as I signed a non disclosure agreement. What I will say is that these shows are garbage, fake, scripted and not worthy of mention on peakoil.com.

[PrestonSturges]

I only saw one show in the Okefenokee where the guy built a simple fish trap and caught a turtle, which seems like an obvious thing to do, especially since fish weirs were a major tool of native americans.

I don't see these people catching hermit crabs or working the tide pools or eating grubs from rotten logs. And they casually discard stuff like snake skin that should be kept for fish bait.

The one lesson in all these shows is that a .22 revolver and box of shells would let you live like a king, at least for a while.

[AdTheNad]

One of the survivor shows came and filmed an episode at Mount Totumas. I cannot say more as I signed a non disclosure agreement. What I will say is that these shows are garbage, fake, scripted and not worthy of mention on peakoil.com.

Ibon, presumably the NDA prevents you from mentioning which survivor show filmed at Mount Totumas? It doesn't sound like you are talking about N&A although I remember there was an episode somewhere in Panama so it could. Perhaps it was that Bear Grylls show. I am aware most reality shows are nonsense, but it doesn't seem to be the case, or at least not entirely the case with N&A which is why I brought it up. These people really are all losing between 20 and 40 pounds over a 3 week period, so it's not like they are having burgers as soon as the cameras are turned off.

If you've seen an episode of N&A and still consider it to be fake, could you point out some of the more egregious errors so I can look out for them in future and avoiding starting bad threads?

[Ibon]

If you've seen an episode of N&A and still consider it to be fake, could you point out some of the more egregious errors so I can look out for them in future and avoiding starting bad threads?

I can't speak for the whole genre since I never watch these shows. From the personal experience I had watching the episode being filmed and conversations I had with the cameramen and staff I believe this whole genre is scripted.

Ratings require that drama and conflict be scripted. An actor or actress would certainly be willing to lose 20lbs to insure getting good ratings in order to keep the show going.

The low point for me on the episode I witnessed being filmed was when they switched out the wild game with grilled chicked when filming the "survivors" eating their catch..... that was so pathetic.

[Beery1]

From the personal experience I had watching the episode being filmed and conversations I had with the cameramen and staff I believe this whole genre is scripted.

'Scripted' is a word with a very specific meaning. The implication here is that there's an actual script with written dialogue for the actors to speak. That is not the case with any reality show that I know of. Yes, these shows have a preset story outline and a plot. That is clear, but that's not the same thing as a script - not the same thing at all.

An actor or actress would certainly be willing to lose 20lbs to insure getting good ratings in order to keep the show going.

Maybe, but again, the description of these folks as 'actors' is misleading. Everyone appearing in a reality show is an 'actor' - they become actors as soon as the cameras start rolling. That doesn't make them Robert DeNiro preparing for Raging Bull. There's a big difference between an actor willing to lose weight for the role of a lifetime and a reality show participant being starved during filming.

And any doctor worth his/her salt will tell you that losing 20 to 40lbs in the space of three weeks is inherently dangerous. It is not a dietary choice unless you're willing to risk severe health problems.

[Ibon]

'Scripted' is a word with a very specific meaning. The implication here is that there's an actual script with written dialogue for the actors to speak. That is not the case with any reality show that I know of. Yes, these shows have a preset story outline and a plot. That is clear, but that's not the same thing as a script - not the same thing at all.

Unfortunately I have to speak in generalities but I think you'll get the point. When all the wildlife was brought in sacks from far away and placed at the base of a tree or forced into a hole and then the "actors" happen to forage and find them you mean to tell me this is not scripted? And when the burnt piece of foraged game is a piece of grilled chicken this is not scripted?

Stunt men have done very dangerous things in films. Losing 20lbs is probably in the same category.

Why am I engaging in this conversation anyway...... geez!

[Beery1]

When all the wildlife was brought in sacks from far away and placed at the base of a tree or forced into a hole and then the "actors" happen to forage and find them you mean to tell me this is not scripted?

It's entertainment. At this point, anyone who thinks a reality show is actually 'real' has a lot to learn about TV shows. But 'scripted' is a very different thing than what you're describing.

[Ibon]

But 'scripted' is a very different thing than what you're describing.

I get what you mean....let's just settle on fake.

[AdTheNad]

The low point for me on the episode I witnessed being filmed was when they switched out the wild game with grilled chicked when filming the "survivors" eating their catch..... that was so pathetic.

Ok, that is pretty pathetic. My point however, is that N&A seems fundamentally different to that. A couple of different people ended up getting sick from drinking contaminated water, so a crew isn't stepping in here with bottled water from the supermarket. Unless of course they are just pretending and acting sick on camera.

Still, it is certainly possible the crew is assisting in other ways. For example, when one guy got sunburnt pretty badly from head to toe, including on his dick, a pair of (tight) pants washed up on shore. Could have been a lucky break or could have been placed there. Who knows.

[PrestonSturges]

At least on some shows the first thing someone does is make a grass skirt and sun shade to prevent dangerous sunburn, which can occur in the tropics in less than 15 minutes.

Was it Bear that used to eat fresh water fish raw? That's an excellent way to get liver parasites or brain worms. Salt water is fish is generally OK, but eating fresh water fish will get you on one of those "Eaten Alive" parasite shows.