Ausgesetzt in der Wildnis

I watched and enjoyed Survivorman well before Man vs. Wild came along, and expected a similar type of show. The producers apparently anticipated the same reaction from their audience, and decided the show needed to be spiced up a bit.

So we have the host, Bear Grylls, performing all sorts of highly adventurous activities, like swimming upstream, climbing cliffs and trees, eating live animals/insects, and so forth. This makes for great entertainment, but much of what Bear engages in is impractical and even dangerous at best in a survival situation.

Now granted, it would also be impractical to assume that this show should be construed as a survival guide. Bear does, however, give a great deal of information and good advice mixed in with the thrills. I find him to be mostly level-headed and good natured, even when faced with very difficult situations. Despite his hardships, I don't believe I've ever heard him complain once. And that really is as important to survival as anything - having a positive attitude and making the best of one's situation.

His credibility does suffer a bit with the admission that he tends to sleep in hotel rooms or base camps as opposed to in the wild. That certainly keeps him fresh and ready to face new challenges, but perhaps most importantly to speak with authority and excitement in order to keep the audience interested.

It's difficult to sort through the good and bad advice, since the show is as concerned with entertainment as it is with developing survival skills. I suppose one must do whatever it takes to survive, but some things can make one even worse off. In one instance, Bear drinks his own urine without much second though, but in another case he is very careful about determining the source of potential drinking water. And a parasitic infection from frequent consumption of live animals might make hunger seem nothing but a dull ache in comparison.

In all, Man vs. Wild is a good show. It is more of a show about personal challenge for Bear than it is for survival education. "The Bear Grylls Challenge" might have been a better name. At any rate, despite the liberally sprinkled good advice, this show is primarily for entertainment purposes. If you want to learn about more practical, albeit less exciting, application of survival technique, then watch "Survivorman."

The basic plot is Bear parachutes himself into a secluded wildlife area and is there until he gets himself out. The camera crew is along for the ride so he is not as secluded as he could be but he is out in the middle of no where with only his wits, a canteen and a flint to get him through.

Behind the scenes, a ton of research is completed on the area of challenge and Bear is the beneficiary. He can speak smartly about the area and gives wonderful bits of information that he works into his commentary.

All in all, a very good show, very enjoyable, some humor, good bits of information.

At times the continuity of this show is subject, but overall it is much more satisfying than similar shows like "Survivorman." Bear is informative and provides a very clear and informative narration, and the geography presented in the episodes is daunting and entertaining. The only problem is the obvious presence of the cameraman, diffusing any real stress in the situations Bear faces. I nearly cut my finger off on a serrated Gerber knife earlier and my typing is slightly sub-par this evening because of it. What would Bear do? Probably wrap the wound in tree bark and keep the wound out of still water until it clotted, then build a shelter out of leaves and beaver pelts and raft down the river on conch shells and a hippo skeleton.

Like it or not this is reality TV hence this show should be taken for what it is: a man applying survival techniques in a moderately safe (but usually horrible) environment. I am not a fan of reality TV but I can't help but to sympathize with Bear in each episode -a truly charismatic and intelligent man-. He will show ultimate survival techniques for different parts of the world, some of them helpful some of them a little too weird but ALL of them fun to watch. The episodes are filled with excellent trivia about the different places and hilarious situations (from a viewer perspective there is nothing funnier than watching a dude eat bugs). I won't deny that this show is not for everyone but I find it hard to believe that any person remotely adventurous won't enjoy watching this fine piece of entertainment.

Those suggesting that Bear does not have any or the best survival skills and that he is not actually surviving. Putting yourself in a position where you have to survive and presenting a show designed to entertain based on a man in the wild. To be stranded he would actually have to strand himself with a film crew. That is not actually being stranded.

The show itself is entertaining and that is what it is for. Of course he could be more logical with his survival but it is not survival. He has put himself in that position. If he did the same thing as the show referenced in other reviews 'Survivorman' it would be the same show. There is also a reason this is in the Top 150 shows on IMDb and not 'Survivorman' This is not a Documentary. Please take this into consideration when you have a low IQ and feel the need to post a review.