We’re into February now, and as we move away from the holidays and the NFL season, we’re seeing the emergence of new shows. But what of these shows are worth your time to check out? In this series we provide you all the information needed to know if a new show is for you. Today it’s a reality competition on Netflix.
Series: Celebrity Bear Hunt
Where to Find It: All eight episodes are now streaming on Netflix.
What’s It About: Have you ever dreamed of playing survival games against Bear Grylls? If that’s your idea of a good time, boy do I have a show for you! Grylls is the titular bear in Celebrity Bear Hunt, a new reality competition show that pits 12 British celebrities against Grylls in a series of competitions. Those that get captured, or fall short, end up facing Grylls in the Bear Pit, where they face elimination.
The cast of this season includes people like Kola Bokinni, of Ted Lasso fame, former tennis player Boris Becker, actor Joe Thomas, and former Spice Girl Mel B, among others. They’re dropped into the jungle and given challenges and tasks to survive and work on as a team. Those that follow short face potential elimination.
The series also showcases Bear Grylls and his unique ability to track and capture the contestants. Unlike other reality competitions, the players feelings and alliances don’t factor in, just their ability in these competitions.
You Should Try It If: You’re a fan of reality competition series, a fan of Bear Grylls, or a fan of the cast members.
One Man’s Opinion of Celebrity Bear Hunt: Is this reality series worth watching?
I don’t often cover reality series in these pieces, but it’s a slowish time of year and the title really caught my attention. We have some really engaging and dynamic reality competition series on right now, like The Traitors. I thought this might present another dynamic, action-packed kind of series.
Unfortunately, it doesn’t really play out that way. The series is just eight episodes, each under an hour. It makes for a quick watch and a quick binge. I powered through the first three in a short time to get a feel for the series and the competition. While the physical feats they’re asked to do are impressive, and the idea is still somewhat interesting, it doesn’t have a lot of pop on the screen. There isn’t a regular flow and a regular pace. In fact, through three episodes only one contestant had been eliminated, with crucial sequences of the Bear Pit bleeding across a few episodes and challenges not resolving or featuring all the contestants.
That makes for a somewhat disjointed watch. In addition, competition series like The Traitors really hits when it focuses on the players, their scheming and infighting. Stripping a series of that really puts more pressure on the format of challenges to be engaging. Even the elimination we got was relatively drama free. With a cool title like Celebrity Bear Hunt, I hoped for more bite.