Discovery Channel Megathread

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Crazy Ted: Jul 29, 2003

muscles like this? posted:

On a whole I thought the Breaking Bad episode was kind of lackluster. Mostly because the Build Team's entire segment was pretty pointless seeing as they busted it in about 5 seconds.

I think that episode was another excuse to just do gross stuff. The two creators of the show were really annoying though.

# ? Aug 14, 2013 04:13

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# ? Jun 7, 2024 03:27

haveblue: Aug 15, 2005; Toilet Rascal

Crazy Ted posted:

I think that episode was another excuse to just do gross stuff. The two creators of the show were really annoying though.

I wouldn't say annoying, but the "it really worked because I said so" segments were unnecessary. It's a fictional show, things happen on it that would not happen in real life, everyone gets that and Mythbusters disproving it is not going to retroactively remove all the drama and tension from it.

Also, was it just me or did the styrofoam Walter White head in the Tuco recreation look a lot more like Tobias Funke?

# ? Aug 15, 2013 15:26

Irish Joe: Jul 23, 2007; by Lowtax

muscles like this? posted:

On a whole I thought the Breaking Bad episode was kind of lackluster. Mostly because the Build Team's entire segment was pretty pointless seeing as they busted it in about 5 seconds.

I didn't quite get that myself. They kept saying "this substance is so volatile that the slightest vibration might set it off" even after they failed to set it off after repeatedly slamming it on the ground. Also, was the pig even boned or did the bones melt with the flesh?

# ? Aug 15, 2013 17:10

ToastyPotato: Jun 23, 2005; CONVICTED OF DISPLAYING HIS PEANUTS IN PUBLIC

Irish Joe posted:

I didn't quite get that myself. They kept saying "this substance is so volatile that the slightest vibration might set it off" even after they failed to set it off after repeatedly slamming it on the ground. Also, was the pig even boned or did the bones melt with the flesh?

The bones melted it seemed. You could see bone during parts of the first attempt.

# ? Aug 15, 2013 17:41

muscles like this!: Jan 17, 2005

Hey, turns out there's a Mythbusters zombie special on tonight at 10/9.

# ? Oct 18, 2013 00:44

Ariza: Feb 8, 2006

muscles like this? posted:

Hey, turns out there's a Mythbusters zombie special on tonight at 10/9.

I hope they test how loving squishy the zombie heads were in the last season of The Walking Dead. Use a decaying something. It seemed like their heads were pies.

# ? Oct 18, 2013 00:55

muscles like this!: Jan 17, 2005

Its going to be at least partially Walking Dead related as Michael Rooker is going to be on.

# ? Oct 18, 2013 01:23

muscles like this!: Jan 17, 2005

Michael Rooker's zombie walk master class.

Edit: I think the problem with the axe vs gun test is that Adam didn't actually have to try and kill the zombies, just touch them. Jamie's was slower but more lethal.

muscles like this! fucked around with this message at 03:32 on Oct 18, 2013

# ? Oct 18, 2013 03:09

evilwaldo: Aug 2, 2004; @dcurban1: #FlyersTalk @28CGiroux and @Hartsy19 What do the C and A mean to you? We as fans expect more.Are you leaders or do you just make funny vids

@dcurban1: #flyerstalk @28CGiroux @Hartsy19 The A and the C are supposed to mean something. Leadership not stock quotes to reporters. Time to lead.

Tossing this out there in spoilers for Deadliest Catch people.

the Cornelia Marie will not be on this season. No word on why but Josh caught his King quota in 10 days. Go Josh.

Last night the Arctic Hunter ran aground. Distress calls went out and the Saga (Elliott) responded and saved the crews lives.

http://www.examiner.com/article/captain-elliott-neese-saves-crew-onboard-the-f-v-arctic-hunter

# ? Nov 2, 2013 19:01

FogHelmut: Dec 18, 2003

Did Mythbusters do a new season, or just a couple of promotional episodes for AMC shows?

# ? Nov 4, 2013 09:09

Photex: Apr 6, 2009

looks like Bering Sea Gold has returned, can't wait to see the awkward lovers quarrel between zeke and emily again :allears:

edit: and it didn't disappoint.

Photex fucked around with this message at 20:40 on Nov 9, 2013

# ? Nov 9, 2013 19:50

PowerBuilder3: Apr 21, 2010

FogHelmut posted:

Did Mythbusters do a new season, or just a couple of promotional episodes for AMC shows?

Yeah, I was wondering about that. I've had it on DVR series record new episodes, but it hasn't picked any but a couple up.

# ? Nov 11, 2013 14:57

Combat Pretzel: Jun 23, 2004; No, seriously... what kurds?!

Their Twitter page says new episodes coming next year. So it was just promo stuff.

# ? Nov 11, 2013 22:46

ToastyPotato: Jun 23, 2005; CONVICTED OF DISPLAYING HIS PEANUTS IN PUBLIC

Even then, they haven't really done anything like a "full" season in a while. I feel like we only get a few episodes per year these days, and with good reason, there just isn't much to test (that they would be allowed to test.)

# ? Nov 11, 2013 22:56

Hazo: Dec 30, 2004; SCIENCE

The old Whale Wars thread is archived and I wouldn't make a new one for a one-off special anyhow, so I'm posting this here. Good news for schadenfreude fans:

quote:

"Whale Wars" Returns to Animal Planet in a Two-Hour Television Event Chronicling the Sea Shepherds' Toughest Campaign Yet
The special - airing Friday, December 13 - will chronicle the Sea Shepherds' 2012 "Zero Tolerance" mission that is in peril even before it gets started.

"In peril even before it gets started" is a great way to describe any of their missions.

When we last left our friends in the Sea Shepherds, an Interpol notice had been issued for leader Paul Watson's arrest. He promptly vanished and handed off the reigns to various pals as he went into hiding, according to various sources, in Ecuador or in international waters. He later resigned in an effort to comply with a US injunction requiring Watson to remove himself from the group and for the SS ships to stay away from Japanese vessels, but wouldn't you know it, the ships he was on just kept coincidentally colliding with those gosh darn whalers! How bizarre.

The promos keep using the tagline "A Commander Rises," but I don't know who they're referring to, and Wikipedia isn't much help because it's a jumbled mess of hilarious news reports of ineptitude mixed with Sea Shepherd supporters/plants trying to spin everything in a positive light. It could be the Indian guy Watson hired to captain the flagship Steve Irwin, the former Australian senator who took over the campaign, or even our friend Pubestache.

...! posted this in the Couch Chat thread:

quote:

�We�re not pirates,� anti-whaling sailor Paul Watson tells Seattle court

Activist sea captain Paul Watson, star of the reality-TV show �Whale Wars,� says he�s no pirate at a hearing to determine whether he violated a court order to stay away from Japanese whalers.

By Mike Carter

Seattle Times staff reporter

Paul Watson, whose high-seas exploits chasing Japanese whalers have made him a reality-TV star, insists he�s no pirate.

�Protesting against illegal activity is not piracy,� the founder of the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society (SSCS) said in a U.S. appeals court in Seattle on Wednesday during a hearing that will determine whether he and the organization should be held in contempt.

�I don�t care what people call us,� he said. �We�re not pirates.�

Watson is just as clear in his opinion of Japanese whale hunters: �They are criminals.�

Watson�s appearance before an appellate commissioner was because the judges want to know if he�s in contempt of court for violating an order to stay away from Japanese whaling ships.

Watson, who is wanted by Japan and Interpol for criminal charges stemming from his anti-whaling activities off the coast of Antarctica in 2010, said he has been at sea for the past year to avoid arrest. He explained that his appearance in Seattle was the result of �high-level negotiations,� but did not elaborate.

If found in contempt, Watson and the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society face fines of up to $2 million, although the Japanese whaling consortium that has sued Watson says it will forgo the fines if the fleet is left alone next season. The director of the Australian Sea Shepherd Society already has said it will continue with the harassment campaign this winter.

Moreover, the blustery 62-year-old eco-activist and the Friday Harbor-based Sea Shepherd Conservation Society face a possibly large monetary verdict in the civil lawsuit underlying the contempt action.

And that may not be all of Watson�s problems. Sitting in the back of the courtroom as Watson testified was Assistant U.S. Attorney Andrew Friedman, a criminal supervisor in the Seattle U.S. Attorney�s Office.

Friedman would say only that he was interested in hearing Watson�s testimony.

The contempt hearing arose from a lawsuit filed in U.S. District Court in Seattle in 2011 against Watson and the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society by Japan�s Institute for Cetacean Research and two large Japanese whaling firms. The lawsuit sought an injunction to stop the high-seas harassment, and damages.

Watson has for years been a sort of anti-Ahab, an obsessive opponent of whaling who has risked ship and crew to interfere with the Japanese fleet � exploits documented on Animal Planet�s reality show �Whale Wars.�

The Sea Shepherd ships often run perilously close to the whalers in heaving seas, with crews throwing acid and smoke bombs, and dragging cables to foul propellers. The group claims it has saved thousands of whales.

Japan is permitted by international treaty to take whales for research, and the country kills as many as 1,000 of the sea mammals every year as allowed by the International Whaling Commission. However, the whale meat not used for study is sold as food in Japan.

Watson and the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society say the research is a sham, and that much of the meat makes it way to the market.

Last year, U.S. District Judge Richard Jones ruled for Watson and the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society in the lawsuit, and refused to issue the injunction to stop the protests. The whalers appealed, and Jones� decision was not only reversed, he was removed as trial judge for abuse of discretion.

Shortly after, a panel of judges on the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals � led by Chief Judge Alex Kozinski � issued an injunction of its own, ordering Watson, the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society, and anyone working �in concert� with them to stay at least 500 yards away from the Japanese whaling ships.

The whalers allege that injunction was violated at least 10 times, including one incident in which a Sea Shepherd ship rammed a fuel vessel.

Watson claims he is not responsible. He said that by the time of the alleged violations he had resigned from every aspect of the organization he had founded in 1977 � right down to losing his salary and health benefits � in an effort to comply with the injunction.

He acknowledged he was on board one of the four protest ships when the violations occurred, but only because it was under way when the injunction was issued and he feared arrest if he went ashore.

He said he remained only as an observer, and urged compliance with the injunction, but said he could not force it because the operation was at that point being run by Sea Shepherd of Australia. That group�s director, Jeff Hansen, testified earlier this week that he believes his organization is beyond the reach of the U.S. courts.

Watson explained there are several Sea Shepherd organizations around the world, many started by former crewmates. He said they are affiliated with � but independent of � the U.S. organization.

The attorney representing the Japanese whalers questioned whether Watson�s attempts to comply with the injunction weren�t a fiction to allow the protests to continue while claiming he had no control over them.

The lawyer, John Neupert, suggested that if he had really wanted to comply with the injunction, he would have stayed in command of the operation and ensured that the ships did not violate the 500-yard rule.

Watson said he didn�t think he could do that, because he would not be able to stop the other captains if a whale�s life was in danger.

The panel has taken the matter under advisement.

edit: Oh, and about that first quote in the article, "We're not pirates": Turns out, yeah, you totally are.

Hazo fucked around with this message at 23:46 on Dec 10, 2013

# ? Dec 10, 2013 23:38

smg77: Apr 27, 2007

Hazo posted:

The old Whale Wars thread is archived and I wouldn't make a new one for a one-off special anyhow, so I'm posting this here. Good news for schadenfreude fans:

My excitement for the return of Whale Wars is tempered only by my disappointment that it's only a one-off special and will probably be the last time they are on TV outside of news stories about Paul Watson going to jail. I'll have to resort to following Pubestache on twitter or something.

# ? Dec 11, 2013 00:11

Megillah Gorilla: Sep 22, 2003; If only all of life's problems could be solved by smoking a professor of ancient evil texts.; Bread Liar

Whale Wars was the greatest show that was ever made.

Ever.

It was Dunning-Kruger on the high seas as a ragtag mob of incredibly incompetent halfwits somehow managed to not kill themselves over the course of several years.

# ? Dec 12, 2013 14:22

Hazo: Dec 30, 2004; SCIENCE

The amount of disrespect the Sea Shepherds have for even the most basic levels of boating competency is absolutely unbelievable.

edit: "Let's box in a giant tanker to the point where they can't maneuver. Wait, they might hit us? They're irresponsible assholes" (actual quote)

Hazo fucked around with this message at 06:47 on Dec 14, 2013

# ? Dec 14, 2013 06:45

Yates: Jan 29, 2010; He was just 17...

Buying the Japanese boat straight from the whalers and having them deliver it was a loving awesome move though.

# ? Dec 14, 2013 17:09

smg77: Apr 27, 2007

The Whale Wars special was amazing. Losing their helicopter pilot and one of their ships just minutes into the show was hilarious but watching pubestache (who started out as a lowly deckhand) come into his own and risk the lives of 34 other people to stop one ship from refueling another was awesome.

The only disappointments were not getting enough of Paul Watson being creepy and not seeing what happened to the captain of the new ship who basically refused to do anything he was told to do. That guy was the only sane person and I'm sure he was drummed out of the Sea Shepherds as soon as the whaling season was over.

# ? Dec 14, 2013 17:51

Crisco Kid: Jan 14, 2008; Where does the wind come from that blows upon your face, that fans the pages of your book?

I don't have cable anymore, so the only time I get to see these shows is whenever I visit my parents. Ever since I was a little kid, they've always had the television tuned to either the news or Discovery -- the channels haven't changed, but the programming has. :/

Over the last few visits I've seen a ton of Alaska: The Last Frontier episodes. It's become my favorite of the current "educational" reality show lineup, though I don't see it talked about much on here. It doesn't stress me out because the family is actually competent and likable, and the editors don't try to manufacture interpersonal drama, so the only conflicts are, y'know, actual conflicts, like trying to remove porcupine quills from a horse's leg or when a grizzly is eating the cattle. It's refreshing, though the Kilcher family isn't in nearly as much danger as the narrator keeps trying to suggest. I get why people enjoy watching idiots fall off of stuff, but sometimes I just want to see someone build a well-crafted outhouse or cook some moose or something without any drama.

Plus the dudes have awesome names like Atz and Eivin. (Eivin and his wife Eve are so :3:

)

edit: Oh, and in one episode a turkey named Thanks Giving was decapitated with a sword.

Crisco Kid fucked around with this message at 18:00 on Dec 14, 2013

# ? Dec 14, 2013 17:55

Hazo: Dec 30, 2004; SCIENCE

Yates posted:

Buying the Japanese boat straight from the whalers and having them deliver it was a loving awesome move though.

All that money could have gone towards education, media outreach, public awareness, or conservation groups. Oh well.

# ? Dec 15, 2013 06:25

Thumposaurus: Jul 24, 2007

Crisco Kid posted:

I don't have cable anymore, so the only time I get to see these shows is whenever I visit my parents. Ever since I was a little kid, they've always had the television tuned to either the news or Discovery -- the channels haven't changed, but the programming has. :/

Over the last few visits I've seen a ton of Alaska: The Last Frontier episodes. It's become my favorite of the current "educational" reality show lineup, though I don't see it talked about much on here. It doesn't stress me out because the family is actually competent and likable, and the editors don't try to manufacture interpersonal drama, so the only conflicts are, y'know, actual conflicts, like trying to remove porcupine quills from a horse's leg or when a grizzly is eating the cattle. It's refreshing, though the Kilcher family isn't in nearly as much danger as the narrator keeps trying to suggest. I get why people enjoy watching idiots fall off of stuff, but sometimes I just want to see someone build a well-crafted outhouse or cook some moose or something without any drama.

Plus the dudes have awesome names like Atz and Eivin. (Eivin and his wife Eve are so )

edit: Oh, and in one episode a turkey named Thanks Giving was decapitated with a sword.

They are Jewel's family too so I've heard.

# ? Dec 16, 2013 04:21

TheRationalRedditor: Jul 17, 2000; WHO ABUSED HIM. WHO ABUSED THE BOY.

wow, the "battle of the sexes" now have competition in the race to find the worst Mythbusters episode. Jesus christ that zombie special was an embarrassment to the show's entire legacy.

# ? Dec 16, 2013 18:06

muscles like this!: Jan 17, 2005

I thought the one where they knocked down the door was interesting. Also while it wasn't the theme of the bit the crowd density thing was interesting.

# ? Dec 17, 2013 00:40

TheRationalRedditor: Jul 17, 2000; WHO ABUSED HIM. WHO ABUSED THE BOY.

WARNING: SCIENCE CONTENT a weightless nerf axe you expend no physical energy to gingerly tap into the head of a san franciscan goon in pancake makeup is a better weapon than "gun"

# ? Dec 17, 2013 07:27

Irish Joe: Jul 23, 2007; by Lowtax

As much as I love Naked and Afraid, the show doesn't work with a dedicated cameraman. Professional camerawork makes it feel more like Survivor than an actual survival show (though, "Trish showed she has what it takes to survive naked and afraid _{before dying from dengue fever}" was a hysterical end to the episode).

TheRationalRedditor posted:

WARNING: SCIENCE CONTENT a weightless nerf axe you expend no physical energy to gingerly tap into the head of a san franciscan goon in pancake makeup is a better weapon than "gun"

Yeah, anyone who's ever chopped down a tree or axe murdered someone knows the down motion isn't the hard part.

# ? Dec 20, 2013 17:17

muscles like this!: Jan 17, 2005

TheRationalRedditor posted:

WARNING: SCIENCE CONTENT a weightless nerf axe you expend no physical energy to gingerly tap into the head of a san franciscan goon in pancake makeup is a better weapon than "gun"

They really need a better "gun" analogue than those single shot paintball guns. They had pretty much the same issue with it in the gun vs knife fight where the physical cocking of the gun takes longer than a real gun's would.

# ? Dec 22, 2013 16:34

FogHelmut: Dec 18, 2003

I didn't see the episode, but paintballs are like 280 fps. Having spent many years refereeing and playing paintball, you have plenty of time to get out of the way. As long as you're not point blank or anything.

FogHelmut fucked around with this message at 17:52 on Dec 22, 2013

# ? Dec 22, 2013 17:50

ToastyPotato: Jun 23, 2005; CONVICTED OF DISPLAYING HIS PEANUTS IN PUBLIC

What about that simmunition stuff I've heard about. Real guns firing modified paint bullets. I think that is how it works?

# ? Dec 22, 2013 18:40

Beeb: Jun 29, 2003; Can't post for 16 days!

Given how those clowns handle firearms, I wouldn't want them loving about with simunitions.

Well, I do, in the hopes of a series of unfortunate events that results in the show being cancelled, but in the name of science and such? Not so much.

# ? Dec 22, 2013 21:41

TheRationalRedditor: Jul 17, 2000; WHO ABUSED HIM. WHO ABUSED THE BOY.

I don't want the show to be cancelled but holy poo poo they could do with remembering where they came from. The Car stunt/Animal repellant episode was okay, but apparently it was actually from 2012 and didn't air for some reason.

# ? Dec 22, 2013 23:05

Megillah Gorilla: Sep 22, 2003; If only all of life's problems could be solved by smoking a professor of ancient evil texts.; Bread Liar

They started as some great edutainment. Then they dropped the 'edu' bit. It's become so childish they should drop the 'men' bit, too.

What's left is their true nature.

WARNING: TAINT

# ? Dec 24, 2013 08:24

Clamknuckle: Sep 7, 2006; Groovy

Irish Joe posted:

(though, "Trish showed she has what it takes to survive naked and afraid _{before dying from dengue fever}" was a hysterical end to the episode).

Someone actually died from being on the show?

# ? Dec 24, 2013 12:07

muscles like this!: Jan 17, 2005

Looks like Mythbusters is doing another special. This one is a Star Wars related episode that's going to be airing Jan 4th.

# ? Dec 29, 2013 01:01

Amphion: Jun 10, 2012; All we know is... he's called The Stig.

Clamknuckle posted:

Someone actually died from being on the show?

She recovered http://www.tmz.com/2013/12/07/naked-and-afraid-discovery-dengue-fever-virus-death/

# ? Dec 29, 2013 01:17

Supreme Allah: Oct 6, 2004; everybody relax, i'm here; Nap Ghost

Discovery channel has been advertising a new season of Survivorman starting at 9pm tonight in the corner of the screen periodically, but I don't see anything on the websites. I don't know whats going on, I got excited and now I'm confused.

# ? Jan 1, 2014 23:53

muscles like this!: Jan 17, 2005

Reminder that the new season of Mythbusters starts tonight with the Star Wars special. The Star Wars myths they're going to test are if Luke and Leia could swing across the gap in ANH, if Luke could really survive on Hoth inside the tauntaun and if the Ewoks really could destroy an AT-ST with primitive weapons.

Also weird thing I learned from an article about the new episode that not only is Grant one of the few people rated to remote control R2D2 he was also in the C3PO suit in official non-movie appearances.

# ? Jan 4, 2014 08:04

Megillah Gorilla: Sep 22, 2003; If only all of life's problems could be solved by smoking a professor of ancient evil texts.; Bread Liar

When they do ridiculous poo poo like this is about the only time I find the show bearable anymore

# ? Jan 4, 2014 14:12

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# ? Jun 7, 2024 03:27

iastudent: Apr 22, 2008

It's starting now.

# ? Jan 5, 2014 02:00

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