National Geographic’s Doomsday Preppers is a new weekly show which explores the lives of otherwise ordinary Americans who are preparing for the end of the world as we know it. If you were like me, the first time I saw the title and preview for this, I was sure it was going to lampoon preppers with all the ferocity of Jurassic Park’s Tyrannosaurus Rex. I mean, seriously, haven’t we all been subjected to the raised eyebrows, the subtle head shakes, and the not-so-few suggestions of paranoia from our family, friends, and neighbors? So it was
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If you didn’t watch the highest-rated cable television series in the summer of 2011, it is probably because you ditched TV a long time ago, you consider anything labeled science fiction unwelcomed, or you gave it a shot but it took longer than two hours for mankind to redeem itself so you pulled out your worn-out copy of Independence Day in its place. The Story The first episode of Falling Skies begins with a child telling the story of how earth fell. The camera pans across crayon drawn images of the destruction of 90 percent
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There is only one word that can describe the Finale of The Colony. REVENGE. Now you might call it vengeance, vindication, eye for an eye, retaliation or payback. Perhaps because I’m Scottish the Latin “Nemo me impune lacessit” or “No one attacks me with impunity” jumps to mind. Whatever word you choose, human beings universally
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And then there were 8, but we’ll get to that a bit later on. Survival, true survival is a twofold strategy. If you wanted to create an acronym of sorts to help prepare yourself, TS = TS would be a good start. In addition to providing for the most basic of needs like food, water,
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Day 44 of The Colony kicks off with The Call from VOPA (Viral Outbreak Protection Agency). Becka and Reno learn from a payphone that the Agency will be on it’s way in 24 hours. In a personal flashback to the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, I sat amazed at the amazingly childlike Pollyanna mindset of the
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Starvation wreaks havoc on the human body; it also shows its earliest side effects in the human mind. Irritability, increased depression and decreased concentration are just the beginning. To see firsthand the disastrous down sides of starvation all you need do is watch Episode 7 of The Colony. If last weeks show was about the
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“Water, Water, everywhere, Nor any drop to drink.” So goes the Rime of the Ancient Mariner as well as Episode 6 of The Colony. With dead fish floating in the canal that now smells like raw sewage, the survivors are facing a formidable dilemma. In 4 short days their fresh water reserves will be gone.
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We’ve had Ricky and Lucy, Sonny and Cher, Ike and Tina. In Episode 5 of The Colony the dynamic between two of the youngest Colonists, Reno and Becka, steals the show. Though all of the Colonists were violated with the abduction of Becka–Amber calls it “a serious emotional blow to the Colony”–her kidnapping rocks Reno
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Week 4 of The Colony on the Discovery Channel was full of felonies; we’ll get to those in a bit. Notwithstanding the crimes, the deluge and subsequent floods wrought Mother Nature, this episode focuses a good bit closer to home for all of us. Episode Four was all about Food. We love it, we need
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What do you do when two seemingly pleasant strangers want to join your happy family in a post-apocalyptic societal jungle?  Week 3 of The Colony on the Discovery Channel simulates the reality of that situation, revealing some disturbing truths and inspiring possibilities about human nature and our seven original colonists.  Michel and Amber stroll into
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