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I'm a big fan of The Discovery Channel. Unfortunately, it's hard to keep discussion threads going for the shows because they air them slowly over a whole year. Sometimes shows air in the same time slot, but different times of the year (for example, Deadliest Catch is about to start up Tuesdays at 9pm, which is where Dirty Jobs usually is) I thought a megathread would be a good idea, we can consolidate discussion into one thread this way because a lot of the shows aren't popular enough to merit their own thread. The Discovery Channel airs a variety of shows. If you used to be a fan, but got sick of all the "Build a Bike" shows, you should check it out again because they've all moved to TLC (although I did love Monster Garage). In addition to their own programming, the Discovery Channel also re-runs shows from the other networks owned by Discovery. Shows like Survivorman and How It's Made actually air first on The Science Channel, then later on Discovery. The Discovery Channel is also home to Shark Week. Remember kids, live every week like it's Shark Week. I've included the times when shows air, but since it's cable, things are re-run all through the week. As always, check local listings. Here's a rundown of their more popular shows. I didn't include Planet Earth, because there's a big thread for that here: http://forums.somethingawful.com/showthread.php?s=&threadid=2390716 Mythbusters http://dsc.discovery.com/fansites/mythbusters/mythbusters.html Wednesdays at 9pm EST Adam Savage and Jamie Hyneman host this show that puts popular urban legends to the test. Does a rolling stone really gather no moss? Can you really clean out a cement mixer with explosives? Will a gun operate under water? They've done some pretty crazy stuff on the show and it's pretty entertaining. Deadliest Catch http://dsc.discovery.com/fansites/deadliestcatch/deadliestcatch.html Tuesdays at 9pm EST I don't watch this (although I'll probably start because it looks interesting), but this series follows Alaskan Crab fishermen in what is a pretty dangerous job. Narrated by Mike Rowe. Dirty Jobs http://dsc.discovery.com/fansites/dirtyjobs/dirtyjobs.html Tuesdays at 9pm EST Mike Rowe does dirty jobs. There's really no better way to describe this show. You learn all sorts of interesting things, like what an electro-ejaculator is, or how they mine salt. Edit: Someone linked these videos of Mike Rowe on QVC. They're awesome. http://youtube.com/results?search_query=mike%20rowe%20qvc&search=Search Futureweapons http://dsc.discovery.com/fansites/future-weapons/future-weapons.html Mondays at 9pm EST Hosted by former Navy SEAL Richard "Mack" Machowicz, this show covers up and coming weaponry. Stunt Junkies http://dsc.discovery.com/fansites/stuntjunkies/stuntjunkies.html Mondays at 10pm EST Various people perform crazy dangerous stunts, like riding a motorcycle over the edge of the Grand Canyon, gliding off and pulling a BASE jump parachute to land safely. Man vs. Wild http://dsc.discovery.com/fansites/manvswild/manvswild.html Fridays at 9pm EST Hosted by Bear Grylls, this follows Bear as he goes off into remote areas and finds his way out. Unlike Survivorman, Bear travels with a two man camera crew, who are under strict instructions not to get involved or help him unless he's in grave danger. He's fond of demonstrating ways to get out of danger by putting himself in that situation (ie: he wanted to demonstrate what to do if you fell through the ice into a frozen lake, so he jumped in himself). Survivorman http://dsc.discovery.com/fansites/survivorman/survivorman.html Airing Schedule varies Hosted by Les Stroud. Even though this is a Science Channel show, I've included it here because they air it on Discovery. Les strands himself in remote locations and tries to find his way out. He goes in with minimal equipment, usually a multi tool and some random items his producers decide he can take (when he did a show in the Canyonlands of Utah, they gave him some corn chips and part of an energy bar). Oh, he also shoots the entire show himself, carrying all the camera equipment he needs for his trips with him. Those awesome shots of him crossing a stream or climbing up a rock wall mean he had to do it twice - once to film it and once to go get the camera. How It's Made http://science.discovery.com/fansites/howitsmade/howitsmade.html Airs various times Another Science Channel show airing on Discovery. This show is mesmerizing. The most menial things are sometimes really cool to see made and that's what this show does. In a typical 30 minute show, they'll show how three different things are made. There's lots more shows than this, so feel free to add your own summaries. The main Discovery Channel page is this way: http://dsc.discovery.com/ LordOfThePants fucked around with this message at 01:36 on Jun 26, 2007 |
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Mar 30, 2007 00:50
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thanks for this thread. i dont have TV at home but i still watch discovery channel everychance i get. dont forget planet earth! i have to say that man vs wild is the best show on TV right now! If not for the awesome footage, then for the savageness of christian bale--Er, bear grylls! Davidnssbm fucked around with this message at 17:33 on Apr 1, 2007 |
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Apr 1, 2007 17:30
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Deadliest Catch is addicting. I watch it and think how much I would hate doing that job despite one boat making $45k per crew member in like 35 days last season.
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Apr 1, 2007 19:22
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"I Shouldn't Be Alive" is usually pretty riveting and well produced. It's a staple of late-night TV viewing around my house, because you can guess on which characters will live or not. Sometimes they don't show the interviews with certain characters throughout the show to keep you guessing as to whether they lived or not.
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Apr 1, 2007 20:29
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Davidnssbm posted:thanks for this thread. i dont have TV at home but i still watch discovery channel everychance i get. dont forget planet earth! There may be new episode of Man vs. Wild starting April 6th, the fansite says it airs then at 9, but doesn't say if they are doing new episodes or not.
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Apr 1, 2007 21:26
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There's a new show, Really Big Things, hosted by the moronic Matt Rogers. I like the premise of the show - big rear end machines in action, but the host has got to go. I expect him to say "Git 'r dun" after every segment.
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Apr 2, 2007 00:12
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You know, I don't really care much for How It's Made. I don't know if it's the products they choose to show, or the narration, or the production quality, or what, it's just so BORING. There are other shows that do what it does, and better. And for some reason, when I watch the newer Mythbusters, it looks like Jamie and Adam look so ragged, especially Adam. Jeez guys, clean yourselves up a bit.
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Apr 2, 2007 01:02
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Oh God these Praying Mantises(Mantisi?) are pure evil.
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Apr 2, 2007 03:09
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John Ford Coley posted:You know, I don't really care much for How It's Made. I don't know if it's the products they choose to show, or the narration, or the production quality, or what, it's just so BORING. There are other shows that do what it does, and better. Yeah, but do those shows have half-assed puns for every segment and calming elevator muzack for a soundtrack?!? I don't think so.  That's why I love How It's Made. I can turn it on in the background and before I know it, hours have passed. It's great for when I'm working on crap on the computer.
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Apr 2, 2007 03:46
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cka posted:Yeah, but do those shows have half-assed puns for every segment and calming elevator muzack for a soundtrack?!? I don't think so. Very true. I put it on for something to have in the background as I played a little DS, and soon I put my DS down to see how they make Marshmallow Cookies. Everything in that drat factory was a secret.. 
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Apr 2, 2007 03:55
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How Do They Do It? is a poor man's How it's Made, even if it has a higher budget and travels farther to do its segments. Maybe part of the reason I like it so much is that it's often about local companies. When they showed how manholes are produced, one of the examples was for the town of Dorval, which is close by. 
The Dark One fucked around with this message at 05:31 on Apr 2, 2007 |
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Apr 2, 2007 05:29
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You know, at first I didn't really like How it's Made. But it's grown on me a bit. It's not fancy or flashy or anything, but it gets the job done and it's pretty informative without any unrelenting in-your-face gimmicks.
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Apr 2, 2007 09:02
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Eat a Peach posted:Deadliest Catch is addicting. I watch it and think how much I would hate doing that job despite one boat making $45k per crew member in like 35 days last season. I visited my sister out in Dutch Harbor for Thanksgiving, a really beautiful place. I got to visit the Eagle Store the Fisherman stock up at  Crazy high prices.
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Apr 2, 2007 09:07
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Its a travesty that these guys and their lovely boat the Rollo won't be a part of season 3.
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Apr 2, 2007 11:20
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I can honestly say that is all I got on my TV was the Discovery Channel and the USA network, I'd be set for TV viewing. Dirty Jobs, Mythbusters, How It's Made and It Takes A Thief are awesome ways to learn, be entertained and let the hours fly by.
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Apr 2, 2007 19:09
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Did anyone else see the Season 2 recap of Deadliest Catch on last night? I've never seen the show before, but I'm pretty excited for Season 3 after watching that. It looks like a pretty cool show.
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Apr 2, 2007 22:11
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LordOfThePants posted:Did anyone else see the Season 2 recap of Deadliest Catch on last night? I've never seen the show before, but I'm pretty excited for Season 3 after watching that. It looks like a pretty cool show. This channel is something I can watch hours of at a time. Anyone knocking How It's Made has never tried using it as a remedy for insomnia. I'm fast asleep by 5:10.
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Apr 2, 2007 22:26
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LordOfThePants posted:Did anyone else see the Season 2 recap of Deadliest Catch on last night? I've never seen the show before, but I'm pretty excited for Season 3 after watching that. It looks like a pretty cool show. You have to watch season 1, from the days of derby style fishing. Catch as much as you can as quickly as you can, it was great stuff.
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Apr 4, 2007 11:33
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wernox posted:You have to watch season 1, from the days of derby style fishing. Catch as much as you can as quickly as you can, it was great stuff. Season 1 was MUCH better than season 2, just because of how insane crab fishing used to be, compared to now. Also, season 2 didn't have any Coast Guard rescues or anything, just a bigass wave hitting a boat. It looks like season 3 is going to be different. But it looks like no Hiram for season 3. 
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Apr 4, 2007 22:13
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Bob Sapp Please posted:Season 1 was MUCH better than season 2, just because of how insane crab fishing used to be, compared to now. Donna Quashnick posted a blog thing that said they had to let him go, she really didn't go into why. I wonder if Blake uses that same crew on his Dad's boat? Or does Rick fish Opies with the same crew? Season 1 featured a 48 hour king crab season. Did Big Valley go down in season 1? Was Cash Seel on season 2 talking about it?
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Apr 5, 2007 13:42
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How it's made: The machine that put the toothbrush bristles in knocked my socks off, then the sock-making machine made me a new pair. HOW SO FAST?! I love manufacturing. I just wish that The Science Channel was in the basic cable package where I live. It's pretty much all I watch whenever I go home. If there is a bad show about bridges, I haven't seen it. As for Mythbusters, They've been re-doing old myths alot lately. I'm starting to worry that they're running out of ideas. I haven't watched that Bear Grills guy's show. Survivor man has made me think that anyone who isn't in the wilderness alone is kind of cheating. To people who have seen both shows: How does Man vs. Wild stack up against Survivorman?
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Apr 5, 2007 14:19
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BlockStacker posted:As for Mythbusters, They've been re-doing old myths alot lately. I'm starting to worry that they're running out of ideas. As far as "MythBusters", they aren't running out of ideas, so don't worry about that. I went to a 'live' show thing with Adam and Jamie last weekend, and they talked about some of the myths that they are currently filming, and they sound very interesting, so don't worry. I actually seem to prefer "Man vs. Wild". Bear isn't alone, but he does a hell of a lot more, mostly because he doesn't have to lug around the camera equipment by himself. He will specifically do things that he doesn't have to do or that are dangerous simply to show viewers certain situations. As an example, when he was filming in this frozen glacial area, he jumped into freezing/below freezing water to show viewers how you are supposed to handle those situations. First, he said that most people gasp when they first hit the water from the shock of the freezing temperatures, and that this will cause you to suck in water which can cause you to choke and then drown. Then, he demonstrated how to get out of the water and how you must do some exercises (e.g. pushups or jumping jacks) to keep the blood flowing. Things like that. I have also seen him drink the water from elephant feces for nourishment, as well as eat a fish raw, straight out of the river (like Gollum in LOTR!). It's pretty crazy. Oh, he also came across a dead zebra that had been killed and eaten by scavenging birds in Africa, and he ate that, too.
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Apr 5, 2007 14:30
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B40C posted:As far as "MythBusters", they aren't running out of ideas, so don't worry about that. I went to a 'live' show thing with Adam and Jamie last weekend, and they talked about some of the myths that they are currently filming, and they sound very interesting, so don't worry. Cool, What was the live show thing? Were they taping a show or was it like a convention appearance? I was thinking that "Man vs. Wild" was just a re-tread fo "Survivorman" stuff. But since Grills goes a step further, I'll have to check it out. I think it's interesting that, unlike Americans, Canadians can be survival experts without seeming crazy.
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Apr 5, 2007 14:44
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I think they're just redoing a lot of myths on Mythbusters to show how much impact the viewers have on Discovery's programming. It's kind of a nice thing to see, really.
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Apr 5, 2007 16:02
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They also still air American Chopper on DISCHD. The whole "Family fighting" thing gets a little old, but I still enjoy the show immensely. Pretty much everything on discovery channel is worth watching. My tivo is filled with Mythbusters, It Takes a Thief, Deadliest Catch, Dirty Jobs, and more.
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Apr 5, 2007 17:07
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B40C posted:Oh, he also came across a dead zebra that had been killed and eaten by scavenging birds in Africa, and he ate that, too.
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Apr 5, 2007 18:19
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I know it's past, but Everest kicked my rear end completely. Very interesting and they managed to get a solid story out of the whole deal. And it ends on such a brutal note (everyone has frostbite on their extremeties, one guy loses something everywhere and one bastard from another expedition has to be left to die. I also got into The Deadliest Catch and, as already mentioned, is amazingly awesome. They do a great job of covering the working parts involved in crab fishing and it was very easy to get into. I also have no small respect for people that can work in those conditions.
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Apr 5, 2007 19:35
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BlockStacker posted:Cool, What was the live show thing? Were they taping a show or was it like a convention appearance? It was a two hour seminar-type thing. Jamie and Adam were on stage along with a host, and they talked for about an hour or so, then showed us some "never before seen" footage that didn't make it onto the show. They discussed that a little bit and then had an audience Q&A. I was surprised that the audience seemed to be mostly families. I think the younger audience was probably upset that they weren't filming a show or busting myths, but for me, it's just what I would have wanted, really. Plus, it was only $10, and $10 for two hours of entertainment is a bargain. Jamie and Adam were both just like they are on the show, and Adam in particular was hysterical. I'm not sure if he was just joking around or not, but Adam made a comment about how he and Jamie don't get along and don't do anything outside of the show. I had heard that before, but now I really have to wonder. Robot Relations posted:I think they're just redoing a lot of myths on Mythbusters to show how much impact the viewers have on Discovery's programming. It's kind of a nice thing to see, really. They said more than once that they enjoy hearing from viewers in regards to questioning what they had shown previously as well as for submitting ideas. They mentioned that to have someone second guessing their conclusions is the aim of the show (those weren't the exact words but that's the general idea).
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Apr 5, 2007 19:39
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lordblytzkrieg posted:Pretty much everything on discovery channel is worth watching. My tivo is filled with Mythbusters, It Takes a Thief, Deadliest Catch, Dirty Jobs, and more. I can't stand that retarded "Criss Angel Mindfreak" show or "A Haunting". I do enjoy "Mayday", though. 
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Apr 5, 2007 19:57
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The Dark One posted:I can't stand that retarded "Criss Angel Mindfreak" show or "A Haunting". I do enjoy "Mayday", though. I just watched this week's episode of Deadliest Catch. I wish I had caught this earlier, because it's pretty good. I've setup a Season Pass on the Tivo to try and grab all the old episodes. As Ape Agitator said, Everest: Beyond the Limit is very good and you should try and catch it when they re-run it again. It's pretty cool to see how brutal the climb is. The part when the Chinese expedition completely blocked the only ladder up/down one part in the death zone pretty much made me never want to even attempt to climb Everest, because no matter how skilled you are, it's pretty easy for someone who's completely incompetent to kill you with their choices
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Apr 6, 2007 00:34
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B40C posted:Jamie and Adam were both just like they are on the show, and Adam in particular was hysterical. I'm not sure if he was just joking around or not, but Adam made a comment about how he and Jamie don't get along and don't do anything outside of the show. I had heard that before, but now I really have to wonder. That's probably true. Jamie seems like he'd be a real humorless rear end in a top hat to work with or for and of the few times he's laughed at Adam's jokes or actions, none of them sounded genuine in the least.
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Apr 6, 2007 02:40
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Robot Relations posted:That's probably true. Jamie seems like he'd be a real humorless rear end in a top hat to work with or for and of the few times he's laughed at Adam's jokes or actions, none of them sounded genuine in the least. Did you see the episode where they were testing methods to pass the Breathalyzer? Jamie looks like he'd be a mean drunk.
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Apr 6, 2007 03:06
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BlockStacker posted:To people who have seen both shows: How does Man vs. Wild stack up against Survivorman? My take on it (as a fan of both shows) is that they're similar in a lot of ways, but they're really about different things. In Man vs. Wild, Bear mostly tends to focus on what to do if you get lost or stranded, and how to survive on your way back to civilization. You'll notice that in his show, he tends to be on the move a lot, always pointing out that you need to find a stream or river which you can follow downstream, as they usually lead to some sort of civilized area (except in Africa; there you have to follow water upstream). With a few exceptions, he generally follows this rule for each show. Les in Survivorman tends to be more about just demonstrating the different ways you can survive in the wilds. From the episodes I've seen, he doesn't tend to try and find ways to get out (indeed, he knows that at the end of the week, he will be getting picked up), so his goal seems to be more to show how to survive in one area, and roam around for food and shelter, moving on only when needed. I'm sure part of the main reason for this difference is like everyone said, Bear travels with a camera crew, while Les is his camera crew. So it's a bit easier for Bear to be constantly moving, while Les understandably just wants to get settled in and rest after lugging his 55+ lbs. of camera gear around.
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Apr 6, 2007 04:01
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LordOfThePants posted:I thought that Mindfreak show was on A&E? The Discovery Channel runs it here on Saturdays in Canada. v  v
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Apr 6, 2007 04:06
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Robot Relations posted:That's probably true. Jamie seems like he'd be a real humorless rear end in a top hat to work with or for and of the few times he's laughed at Adam's jokes or actions, none of them sounded genuine in the least. I also don't think Jamie can be too bad to work for; I read something (an interview? her blog? don't recall) with Scottie (she of the tattoos), where she said she loved working with everyone on the show, and loved working at M5, and only quit because the producers began to treat her less like an artist and more like a general mechanic. Heck, if nothing else, the fact that Jamie employed Kari to begin with shows the man has class and taste.
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Apr 6, 2007 04:08
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Mister Kingdom posted:Did you see the episode where they were testing methods to pass the Breathalyzer? Jamie looks like he'd be a mean drunk. I did see that one. I think Jamie's got some secrets only he knows about. It wouldn't surprise me in the least if he was a Green Beret or such. Grandpa Pap posted:I remember reading a couple of interviews somewhere where Adam said that Jamie gave him his first job in the industry, and was the one who recommended they hire Adam for Mythbusters; something to the effect that Jamie was to initially be the host, but he sagely noted that Adam was a much more dynamic (and therefore television-friendly) personality than he was. I'm sure that doesn't mean they're drinking buddies, but I can't imagine they'd have done the show this long if they disliked each other. Yeah, they originally just wanted Jamie since the shop is his and his alone, but he asked them to add a second host because he knew he wasn't the most charismatic guy. I'm sure they get along. I doubt they would have been able to do the show this long if they didn't. I just get the impression that Jamie holds it together for as long as they're taping and signs off fairly quickly once the cameras are off. Also, the one assistant (Christine, was it? The one who got burned by the exploding Jawbreaker) seemed to catch a lot of poo poo from Jamie for no real reason. On more than one occasion, she'd mismeasure something or accidentally break a gear or a wheel and Jamie would just berate her almost to the point of cruelty. I'm sure the man knows his poo poo and is probably a font of knowledge about special effects and physics, but I wouldn't want to work with him.
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Apr 6, 2007 04:28
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Robot Relations posted:Also, the one assistant (Christine, was it? The one who got burned by the exploding Jawbreaker) seemed to catch a lot of poo poo from Jamie for no real reason. On more than one occasion, she'd mismeasure something or accidentally break a gear or a wheel and Jamie would just berate her almost to the point of cruelty. I'm sure the man knows his poo poo and is probably a font of knowledge about special effects and physics, but I wouldn't want to work with him. You do make a good point, now that you mention Christine. I remember the episode where they were showing the "lost footage" and Jamie and the Aussie producer were giving her crap over not wanting to do the bit where they slid down the wire from the top of a building while holding the piece of plywood or whatever (for the myth about the worker gliding with a piece of plywood). She was really upset and Adam was trying to be a bit more comforting, but as I recall both Jamie and the producer were kind of like "just do it and get it over with".
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Apr 6, 2007 04:49
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I cannot stand Mythbusters but I love MegaBuilders and pretty much everything else. Also, I know it originated on BBC, but Planet earth is the best thing ever
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Apr 6, 2007 06:33
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BlockStacker posted:To people who have seen both shows: How does Man vs. Wild stack up against Survivorman? I'm going to disagree both with the guy that preferred Man vs. Wild and the guy that said they were comparable. Survivorman, in my opinion, is far superior for several reasons. First and foremost, Les Stroud doesn't "cheat" in his survival situation. You can see Bear with life jackets and harnesses and whatnot when he's in dangerous situations, and I'm sure he doesn't skimp on the food, matches, fuel, and handwarmers the camera crew bring along. When you see Les stranded on a liferaft for a week, however, you know it's him and only him in that boat, with zero assistance from anyone. Also, if you watch the 2-hour documentary Les did where he tries to go green in the Canadian wild with his whole family, it's amazingly fantastic the personal drive this guy has to be close to nature and exist in harmony with his surroundings. He's such a neat guy. Additionally, and slightly less importantly, I prefer the method of surviving for a week straight in a situation (past where you can function without some sort of food and water) as opposed to Bear's ordeals where he's dropped 2 days easy hike from anywhere. While I will admit Bear does some pretty hosed up things (the raw fish and elephant poo water were amazing) and he's still a great guy and all, I just personally prefer Survivorman.
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Apr 6, 2007 08:07
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A lot of Discovery shows eat up my DVR's drive, but of them all I enjoy Mythbusters the most. I have to admit it seems like Adam and Jamie genuinely respect eachother and work well together when they're working, but likely don't really get along as "people", per say, and wouldn't be friends outside of work. It doesn't help that Jamie seems like a completely sour, antisocial rear end in a top hat and Adam seems like a manic and obnoxious nerd. Those two personality types make for great TV but not for great friends. It is possible to have a healthy, working professional relationship with someone without being their "buddy". Mythbusters is proof of that, I think.
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Apr 6, 2007 08:22
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