Hilfe, ich wurde gebissen!

I love this show. I hope I've learned enough to save my life or someone else's. Out in the wild I'm just as afraid of human contact as an animal. Not having cell phone reception doesn't help. Sometimes I've thought, what don't they do this or that. But until it happens to you, you really don't know what you'd do in any given situation. The show that featured the flying barracuda really gave me pause as I've scuba dived around them with no problem. Now I think I was a very lucky diver. Same with sharks. So this show really is a teaching tool for encounters on land and water. I really hope there's a season 2.

This series is similar to 'I Shouldn't be Alive' series and is just as interesting. Deals with real life stories of peoples near death experiences, but as the title suggests, this time it's solely dealing with interractions with other species on our wildly diverse planet. The reconstructions are well made and the interviews with the unfortunate victims and others involved are informative and often very moving. Many of the stories are also very uplifting and show sides to human nature that are very positive, as well as showing respect for nature and giving great tips on what to do when those interractions don't exactly go to plan.

I'm a big fan of survival stories so this series really grabbed me. The format is very methodical and works well. There are two stories per episode featuring the actual survivors being interviewed along with a dramatized version of the events played by actors, accompanied by numerous interviews with the scientists who study animal behavior. I always feel grateful after hearing about others' challenges, so every episode lifted my spirits quite a bit. It's surprising that the production staff were able to find so many survivors of animal attacks, and I'm not sure there could be a second season with quite the same impact. It would be a bummer if they had to go with "Something Bit Me And I Died" which is the actual outcome of less positive situations. As I noted, survival stories rock my world.

I really liked this show. The victims and the experts were realistic in their view of our interaction with nature. They told you what the humans did right and wrong and probably what should've or could've been done differently. They explained why the animal might've acted the way it did. They made sure the audience knew these were special situations and not the normal wildlife behavior. The only real soap box they got on was to "stop feeding the wildlife!" That was a soap box I didn't mind.

This can be an emotional ride sometimes. Being a father who loved being outside with our six kids, I choked up while telling my wife about the father who was also choking up as he watched his daughter being taken out of the Grand Canyon while dangling high in the air by a cable from the rescue helicopter.

I would've liked to see more of the smaller critters that we can sometimes encounter. Spiders, wasps, mosquitos and parasites can also kill and maim.

I can't wait for season two!

Not only is this series interesting and well-produced, but it's one of the first I've seen to truly incorporate conservation science. I really appreciate the ways that the scientists explain how these encounters can be avoided and all of the impacts that humans have on wildlife. I definitely recommend this to anyone outdoorsy or people who enjoy search and rescue shows.