It’s like the Discovery Channel gets me. Imagine a nonfiction reality television show where one of the contestants can actually eat the competitor.
It can happen (likely won’t), on the newly announced Man Vs Bear, a reality TV series from Discovery that explores the often mused question, “can a bear do the job better than a person?”
The series will pit man against bear. You heard me. Grizzlies versus humanity.
In the predator world, they don’t get much bigger, or badder, in reputation for maulings and motherly aggression, than the grizzly bears described by the network as having “unchallenged dominance.”
This all-new competition series puts humans up against powerful grizzlies, specifically three grizzlies — Bart, Honey Bump, and Tank — who will take on three new human competitors at their Utah sanctuary.
Why?
The premise of this series is to test the limits of strength, speed, and stamina in bears and men. To see which species is the better… bear-man? Man-bear? Furry biped mammal?
How?
All challenges will be based on the bears’ innate instincts, as well as predatory skills and action. Think about a game of tug of war or using brute force to roll giant logs, which is a regular bear activity in the wild.
Who?
Meet “big” Bart, the largest, most powerful grizzly on the mountain. No bear can come close, according to Discovery.
The fast bear is Honey Bump, the sole female on Bear Mountain. Female equals ferocious in the mammalian bear world. Don’t kid yourself; the smaller stature doesn’t mean she won’t attack with gusto.
Tank is the big eater of the three. He was keto before keto was a thing.
The hosts emceeing this have some bear cred.
The series has commentary from Brandon Tierney and grizzly expert Casey Anderson, who had a grizzly bear named Brutus that served as his best man at his wedding to actress Missi Pyle.
Sports fans know Emmy Award-winning sports commentator Tierney from CBS Sports Radio’s nationally syndicated show, Tiki and Tierney. He also does coverage for the New York Knicks and has been a commentator for college basketball for the last 20 years.
Casey is a wildlife expert with 25 years of experience and has lived with bears nearly his entire life. He is known for his nonfiction reality TV work as a wildlife filmmaker and expert on animal biology and behavior. His organization, the Montana Grizzly Encounter, has rescued seven bears from inhumane captivity situations.
Why?
These bears were rescued as orphan cubs and are not being put to work for your viewing pleasure.
Bart and Honey Bump were discovered by an Alaska State Trooper. The two cubs were adopted by caretakers Doug and Lynne Seus. Along with Tank, a grizzly bear who can tuck away food like nobeary’s business — and Discovery says that the Seus’ have raised these three bears for two decades on a “sprawling section of protected land.”
The details
Each episode highlights five distinct challenges inspired by what bears do instinctively in the wild. Grizzlies are quick, strong, and clever. Do these humans stand a chance? And will the humans be able to prove that they’re the best predators… or prey?
Human men and women will be tested “to their absolute limits.”
In the final round, the top two competitors will challenge big Bart, who stands 8 feet 6 inches tall and weighs 1,400 pounds. The human competitor who earns the most points of the day will win.
The top three competitors at season end with the most points “will return one more time for the super-human showdown against the bears.”
“Competing against bears is both scary and exciting,” said Ira, an MMA fighter and competitor from Dallas, Texas in Discovery’s press release. “It’s competing against the unknown. This is a completely new challenge for me.”
Extras
You can also stream new episodes each week on the Discovery GO app.
From Discovery:
Viewers can also get to know the bears and discover more about their lives on Bear Mountain. And while learning more about these fiercely talented grizzlies, viewers are encouraged to find out which bear matches their own personality with an interactive quiz. Viewers can join the conversation on social media by using the hashtag #ManVsBear and follow Discovery on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter for the latest updates.
Man Vs Bear premieres Wednesday, December 4 at 9 p.m. ET/PT on Discovery.