Dual Survival

I haven't given a ranking, because I have no way of judging how accurate the survival information presented is. Which is what the program is supposed to be about. But it's actually about personal conflict. (More about that later.)

As human beings have become increasingly effete (the word means weak, not effeminate), programs about "survival in the wild" have become increasingly popular. Discovery has three or four shows about "making it" in Alaska alone.

I find it "quaint" that viewers actually believe the participants are in real danger. Only in "Naked and Afraid" do they seem to run any real risk, mostly because they're dumped in areas where there's little or no fresh water or food. Accidents can occur and mistakes made, but the producers aren't stupid enough to take chances. Serious injury or death could result in embarrassing lawsuits, regardless of how cleverly written the contracts are.

The underlying purpose of these shows is to create conflict -- people arguing with each other. The survivalists aren't chosen solely for their varying perspectives on survival skills, but (as when making a fire) how much "heat" can be generated by friction between them.

This was obvious from the start. Cody Lundin and Dave Canterbury made an irritating odd couple. This viewer found Lundin especially annoying. Though obviously heterosexual, there was something unmanly -- castrato-like -- about the guy. If I were a woman, I wouldn't let him within 10m (33') of me. Canterbury probably felt the same way.

Joe Teti and Matt Graham were the opposite. It's hard to believe Graham isn't homosexual (his offer to make Teti a suede loin cloth was charmingly hilarious). Though they argued (especially about Graham's proclivity to hang out and soak up the environment), Graham was often amiable about accepting Teti's way of doing things. It was this general lack of friction (it's surprising they haven't announced their engagement!) that likely explains the short run of their partnership.

The current pair comprises Bill McConnell and Grady Powell. They're probably the closest to what the producers had in mind from the start. Powell thinks McConnell is a braggart, but forgives him when he can't start a fire in an impossibly damp environment. (How much of this is real and how much dictated by the producers isn't clear.)

Which brings me to what provoked this series review (and the Summary line). McConnell and Powell are forced to spend the night without fire in a cold, damp cave. And get this -- they sleep apart.

Who's kidding whom? Are these guys so homophobic they won't lie together to keep warm? Or are the producers afraid of offending viewers?

Cowboys spread their bed rolls right next to each other. (Wanna see a photo?) It was mostly to conserve heat, as cloudless nights on the plain got very cold.

If you're trying to show people how to avoid freezing to death, you don't reject the simplest and most-obvious solution.

I watch all survival shows, and gain helpful insight into best practices when toughing it in the worst situations.

But lets get real. I just watched the episode where EJ and Jeff are spear fishing for fish in a fresh water situation. Lets say for kicks and giggles that this was the only episode I ever had the opportunity to watch. What I watched these idiots do was, upon their well earned catch was Jeff screaming, "Yeah baby!!!", like he was Austin Powers on steriods, effectively scaring any potential animal food sources to areas as far away as possible from the loud scary humans. You can tell this show is supported because a real hunter in a life and death survival situation would most certainly never do that. Secondly and most importantly, bearing in mind that I am a random viewer seeing the show for the first time, these two morons after catching their fish proceeded to eat that fish raw, both of them taking a bite from it, EJ saying something about sushi?? Ask any expert, do fresh water fish have the potential of carring major parasites..YES, THEY MOST CERTAINLY DO!! No different than telling high school kids that if you pull out, the girl won't get pregnant. With possible major consequences for some poor sap who only saw this one show and thinks its OK to eat FW fish raw. Shame on you guys.

The show is very entertaining, and has tons of good tips and tricks, but this episode just left me shaking my head.

These two guys are good together. You start off laughing at Cody, but then you come to respect what a bad ass he is in his own right. There are elements of humor throughout most episodes that are genuinely funny due to the unusual pairing. I've watched lots of survival shows and this one seems to have something the others are missing- an entertainment factor that doesn't require fake scenarios put in only for TV purposes. The guys provide entertainment and they really teach you how to survive along the way.

The locations are standard survival fare, but each of the guys has a different background which means one of them will usually be taking the lead and the other will be learning new tricks.

All in all, I would say this is my favorite survival show. Even my kids find it entertaining.

The Odd Couple meets Man versus Wild. This was my favorite of all the man v. Nature shows popping up in the late 2000s and early 2010s. A middle-aged alpha male veteran and no-nonsense hippie (both of whom have extensive survival skills) must put their differences aside and learn to coexist in harsh environments. Both of these guys were a pleasure to watch, even when they were in vehement disagreement.

I'm slightly surprised to be the first reviewer for what I consider one of the better reality shows on the air, but I am glad that I caught this show by accident. Dual Survivior is basically about a military guy(Dave Canterbury)and an ex hippie who used to live in a commune(Cody Lundin)who are placed in situations where their expertise in survival is required. Dave does more of the physical stuff like hunt, while Cody, who walks barefoot mostly, uses his knowledge of the land to create current remedies for the situation at hand. It's an interesting combination of brawn vs. brains, even though Dave is also very wise when facing survival and is a great hunter. He and Cody sometimes have differing opinions on how to best gauge their predicament, but it all works out in the end. I'm normally not a fan of reality shows, but Dual Survivor works for me because of the characters and their surroundings.