Survivorman

After being put through the test of time with other survival shows making it on to the scene, Les Stroud's Survivorman still reigns supreme. Unlike the rest, Survivorman is the only one where the host is completely alone throughout the filming of every episode. And each one is done for seven days, as opposed to some usually unknown (and probably shorter) length of time, as in the case of Man versus Wild, Dual Survival, etc.

Although it is not as exciting as some of the competition, using what you learn from Les will not get you killed. There is no climbing into bottomless crevasses of glaciers or doing butt slaloms down scree slopes, but rather just straight forward survival techniques displayed in easy to understand presentations.

And perhaps most important aspect of the show is the amount of failures that Les encounters. Even with the years of experience that he has accumulated, many of his attempts fall flat simply due to the actual difficulty of what he is trying to do. This not only presents a realistic image of how hard true survival is, but it also shows that in a survival situation, you can fail many times and still survive.

This is definitely one of the most interesting shows to watch. There are lots of survival shows out there, but this one really kicks the competition. This show is great to watch because Les Stroud really does survive. Most of these types of shows use camera crews to document their survival, which isn't bad either, but this is pretty much a one-man show. The show definitely has a lot of great adventures taken on by Les Stroud, the Survivorman. This is a unique show of how insane it is to survive alone in different wilderness situations and scenarios. This is a great show to watch and I'd definitely recommend watching it if you want to see REAL survival.

One man. A few cameras. Lots of batteries and tape. No food. Sometimes just a canteen of water and the most help he will get is a "rescue team" that often looses contact with him. Through it all, using his learned skill and wiry wit, Les battles not just the elements but his own human frailties and feelings of isolation.

Immediately, the differences between this and Bear Grylls' show, Man Vs. Wild, become apparent. There is little to no theatrics. He does not grab everything he sees and tries to bite it. He does not go running around in the latest garb from L.L Bean and only rarely does he throw himself into situations which are more or less avoidable.

This is not only more interesting entertainment, but also makes for a more human experience and more valuable survival advice. Without all the blatant theatrics, the message of the episodes become clear, and the techniques become better ingrained on the minds of the people watching it. And it is fascinating to watch Les struggle through not just the physical, but mental fatigues and pains that come with surviving alone in all the wildernesses of the world.

Unfortunately, Les canceled this fantastic show. And considering the physical strain it was putting him under, I don't blame him. And while Bear continues to throw himself at trees to a thundering orchestra, this show still has more educational value.

I highly recommend you watch this show if you are at all interested in learning about how to survive the most extreme situations from the comfort of your own home.

I stumbled onto this program on the Discovery Channel completely by accident and was struck by the incredible audacity of Les Straud to undertake such an enterprise. The inherent weakness of most television involves the ever-present camera crew and their entourage. Les does it all. When you are watching "Survivor", you are always aware there are several cameramen lurking about, and you know you are seeing an edited version of "reality." With Les and "Survivorman", you know the only footage you don't see is the endless footage of him selecting a vantage point for the tripod and camera so that he can effectively function as his own cameraman. This is a great program if you are at all interested in true survival of one man against the great wilderness of the world.

This is by far my favorite show, Les is a great role model in the sense that his house is completely self sufficient ...if you have ever seen his show off the grid, you would know his water is from a well. his power is wind water and solar generated. Now sorry 4 rambling on back to serviorman. my personal favorite episode is the (canadian boreal forest) one because its in my home country and i sometimes go out it the woods and do my own little survivor thing. not for a week or anything but for like a weekend all my friends think in nuts... anyway!! this show kicks the crap out of any other survivor show GO LES!!!!!