Neanderthals: Meet Your Ancestors

Wow, this was very poorly done right from the opening. The presenter is clearly a lightweight, saying that until "the latest research" everyone thought the Neanderthal was a brutish protoype for modern humans.

Seriously that view was gone 25 years ago, it is not news. in fact for more than a decade we have known the more Neanderthal or Denisovan genetic material a population has the higher the average intelligence.

Really in the two hours, there is a total of five minutes of discussion with the actual experts in the field that is worthwhile, and the hour and 55 minutes is idiotic.

What a shame. Interest in Neanderthal is generally a very good thing since it tells us a lot about ourselves and hominid and human evolution, and where backflow of isolates may have given significant evolutionary advantages to a given branch.

I thought I would take a quick look at the reviews. I wish I hadn't bothered as it seems there are 3 reviews posted here that may have been put online by the same person. Is it possible someone has nothing better to do? Could someone be so filled with hate for the film maker?

I apologize if I am incorrect but I think I smell a rat. A big one who uses the same style of speaking and writing. If I am correct let's keep it real people. Don't ruin it for others.

The documentary was well-done, well-researched and extremely interesting...guess the 'dumbing down' works for me.

I am a geoscientist not specialized anywhere around the topic of Neanderthals, but interested enough to follow publications and progress in this field of science for over three decades. Concerning TV-documentaries, this is among the best I have seen to date on Neanderthals, because it covers in two hours the broad range of life, demise, and continued genetic presence in modern humans with clear examples and convincing conlusions. The facts are well presented and commented by world-wide acknowledged experts in this field.

A must-see for those who wish to better understand the past of our planet, the nature of this fascinating hominid, and his traces in our genome.

A self-proclaimed scientist teams up with Hollywood special effects guys to create a pretend Neanderthal couple. Then she has them parade around naked. As entertainment, rather than education, it should have been no more than 30 minutes long, instead of stretching it out to 120 minutes.

Yeah, we know how blue screen works and how Hollywood can create pretend people by pasting tracking markers on actors, but what does that have to do with Neanderthals?

Too bad the "scientist" didn't pay as much attention to conveying useful information as she paid to her wardrobe.

Don't get misled: just because it came from PBS doesn't mean it's good.

Save your time. This two part documentary obviously had writing problems and degrades into an exegesis on its own production, with virtually noting of interest on is subject: the Neanderthal.

Yes we know the BBC has been eclipsed by other makers in its once unparalleled production of science and documentary content. But this is a new low, and presumes its audience is utterly illiterate.