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subego
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Aug 22, 2014, 10:46 AM
 
Kari, Tory, and Grant just got the axe.

Laem.
     
The Final Dakar
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Aug 22, 2014, 11:03 AM
 
I can't imagine the ratings are anything other than a small fraction of years ago.
     
lpkmckenna
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Aug 22, 2014, 11:05 AM
 
That show should just be cancelled.

When they ran out of actual myths to debunk and started testing whether or not you could "curve bullets" like Wanted, the show ceased having a purpose.
     
The Final Dakar
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Aug 22, 2014, 11:11 AM
 
The show runs on unexpected results, and at some point between diminishing myths and improving predictions/scale-model tests, that faded into the background and the new focus became, "what would it take to get the desired effect" which too often wasn't even possible because the experiments were ridiculous.

I think the blown experiment I'd most like to see them try again was the one where they dropped the parachuter onto an exploding structure to see if the concussion would help break his fall.
     
subego  (op)
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Aug 22, 2014, 11:13 AM
 
That (curve bullets) was one of their weaker bits, but they find relatively interesting ones. Battle of the Sexes was quite good.

For me, the purpose of the show is to hack at their methodology.


Edit: which is one of the reasons I vehemently disagree with people who say the show isn't science. Science is almost all about methodology.
     
ort888
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Aug 22, 2014, 11:17 AM
 
Yeah, I'm a fan of the show, but it really is losing steam. They're just out of ideas.

More often than not they start out with some lame premise that's obviously simply not going to work and then they just stretch it out even though everyone involved and everyone watching already knows what's going to happen.

I was just watching an episode where they were trying to use a Corvette as a ramp to flip a car over. Uh, yeah, guys, that's not really a myth and a 10 year could tell you what was going to happen. Let's drop the act. If you just want to crash some cars then just do that and stop scraping the barrel for "myths".

There's only so many "Can we make a cannon out of ________________?" myths one can handle.

It's also about 50% filler. They repeat and explain everything over and over again... it grows annoying. I think they could cut every show down to 30 minutes and it would lose absolutely nothing.

All that said, they've done some truly amazing things through the years. It's sad to see the trio go. Are they rebooting the show in some way?

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subego  (op)
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Aug 22, 2014, 11:19 AM
 
My understanding is it's going to focus more on the builds.
     
subego  (op)
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Aug 22, 2014, 11:25 AM
 
Which makes a certain amount of sense. DIY is big now.
     
The Final Dakar
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Aug 22, 2014, 11:31 AM
 
Originally Posted by subego View Post
Which makes a certain amount of sense. DIY is big now.
And it eats up a shit-ton of time without actually doing anything about the myth.
     
Thorzdad
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Aug 22, 2014, 11:44 AM
 
The nail in the Mythbuster coffin, for me, came when the guys started pimping for Comcast.
     
Mike Wuerthele
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Aug 22, 2014, 12:56 PM
 
Originally Posted by Thorzdad View Post
The nail in the Mythbuster coffin, for me, came when the guys started pimping for Comcast.
As I understand it, they didn't have much choice in the matter.
     
The Final Dakar
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Aug 22, 2014, 01:03 PM
 
Can someone explain the comcast bit for someone who hasn't had cable in years?
     
Thorzdad
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Aug 22, 2014, 01:15 PM
 
Originally Posted by The Final Dakar View Post
Can someone explain the comcast bit for someone who hasn't had cable in years?
They started doing tv commercials for Comcast. The theme was Comcast's usual "We're so much faster than DSL" message. The ads were staged as a Mythbuster experiment. They were pretty sad.

Originally Posted by EstaNightshift View Post
As I understand it, they didn't have much choice in the matter.
How so? What kind of contract did they accidentally sign that made them indentured to Kabletown?
     
Mike Wuerthele
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Aug 22, 2014, 01:29 PM
 
Not indentured to Kabletown, but indentured to Discovery.
     
The Final Dakar
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Aug 22, 2014, 01:49 PM
 
Originally Posted by Thorzdad View Post
They started doing tv commercials for Comcast. The theme was Comcast's usual "We're so much faster than DSL" message. The ads were staged as a Mythbuster experiment.


Thanks.
     
Laminar
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Aug 22, 2014, 06:02 PM
 
Originally Posted by ort888 View Post
It's also about 50% filler. They repeat and explain everything over and over again... it grows annoying. I think they could cut every show down to 30 minutes and it would lose absolutely nothing.
/r/smyths

Check the sidebar on the right for everything you need to know.
     
ort888
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Aug 22, 2014, 06:12 PM
 
That's amazing. It's been driving me nuts forever. I really do love the show, but they way they regurgitate and repeat everything after every commercial break drives me up a wall.

I have a feeling that this new move is really just the beginning of the end for the show. How can they keep going? They really need to re-evaluate what it's all about, because they ran out of real myths years ago.

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subego  (op)
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Aug 22, 2014, 07:28 PM
 
Not to mention, and this somewhat devastated me, I don't think Adam really likes Jamie all that much, and I surmise it isn't random. Jamie appears to be kind of an asshole.
     
OreoCookie
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Aug 23, 2014, 08:45 AM
 
Originally Posted by subego View Post
Not to mention, and this somewhat devastated me, I don't think Adam really likes Jamie all that much, and I surmise it isn't random. Jamie appears to be kind of an asshole.
Well, he has said on multiple occasions that they aren't friends but have a lot of respect for one another and a lot of trust. Savage said that for some stunts, there are only two people in the world he trusts to »push the button«, Jamie and himself.

But you're right about the affection thing. But honestly, ever since Kari, Tori and Grant have teamed up to film myths in parallel, it was Adam and Jamie by themselves again. I have to say that I don't like some of the direction the show has taken, the inane focus on gratuitous explosions rather than good myths. I understand why they had to shake up the concept of the show.

I enjoyed the Rube Goldberg-esque charm of some of their earliest rigs (the toast & buttering machine comes to mind). But by far my favorite myth was whether you are safe underwater from bullets. Mind blown. Make it simpler not more »spectacular«.
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Laminar
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Aug 23, 2014, 07:20 PM
 
Originally Posted by OreoCookie View Post
Well, he has said on multiple occasions that they aren't friends but have a lot of respect for one another and a lot of trust. Savage said that for some stunts, there are only two people in the world he trusts to »push the button«, Jamie and himself.
Jamie said it in his AMA.

...Adam and I have done quite well by each other and have learned to have respect. We don't hang out, we don't like each other, but see that as an asset rather than a problem. There is no dishonesty, no meanness, no game playing, no emotion. Just get the job done. We both feel the other brings a lot to the game.
Adam says the same thing in a video answer to a question posted in his AMA.
     
OreoCookie
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Aug 23, 2014, 07:47 PM
 
Yup, this was the occasion I had in mind. Their relationship is similar to that of Penn and Teller: they've been a team in show biz for years, and they claim that their secret to success is their lack of friendship. Yet it seems that their relationship is more cordial than that of Savage and Hyneman. For me it's impossible to spend 20+ years as respected colleagues without having dinner at one point.
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subego  (op)
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Aug 23, 2014, 10:14 PM
 
While maybe not friends, I get the impression Penn and Teller like each other. With Adam and Jamie I get the feeling they genuinely rub each other the wrong way.
     
ort888
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Aug 25, 2014, 10:45 AM
 
Originally Posted by Laminar View Post
/r/smyths

Check the sidebar on the right for everything you need to know.
Holy crap. That was amazing. I watched an episode and it was everything I could have hoped for and more. 28 minutes of nutmeat with 16 minutes of crap hacked out.

As for them not liking each other, I thought that was pretty well known. Honestly, I think it just boils down to Jamie being a douche. Adam seems like one of the more likable people on the planet.

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subego  (op)
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Aug 25, 2014, 01:22 PM
 
I didn't know it until the AMA. It was Adam's response to the question of whether they're friends. He used the "a-word"... acquaintance. Jamie is a very close acquaintance of his.

Ow.

Adam is so likable, from that moment I kinda had it out for Jamie.
     
The Final Dakar
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Aug 25, 2014, 01:34 PM
 
It's obvious Jamie is a hard-ass. They did that stupid light-switch myth because he wants lights out when you leave a room.

I'm not sure I'd completely sell him out because of Adam's remarks, though. I could see Adam's child-like constantly irreverent and joking demeanor as getting old too.

The important thing is, they see each other's value in their skill. I forever note that when they do the lead balloon myth that Jamie makes a point to say as it's inflating (and before we know whether it'll actually float) "Adam, your design is working as intended. You did a good job." High praise from someone so reserved, but not unsurprising given the difficulty of the task and the complexity of the design.
     
ort888
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Aug 25, 2014, 01:48 PM
 

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subego  (op)
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Aug 25, 2014, 01:50 PM
 
I'd venture a guess what you see on TV is Adam's TV personality. Ever since I saw him being the kid in the old Charmin commercial with Mr. Whipple, it clicked that Adam has a deep vein of "actor" in him, which he's truly thrilled to be able to mix with his mechanical effects experience and a love of science.

Jamie has stated he doesn't really care about science, and it appears to me he thinks TV is stupid past the part where they give him a check. I'd imagine he thinks acting is stupid, too.
     
ort888
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Aug 25, 2014, 04:48 PM
 
I haven't seen a lot of him, but he has a podcast I've seen a few episodes of and I've seen a few talks he's given and his "persona" doesn't really change much. It's pretty obvious that's he's just a relentlessly driven and passionate nerd who really gets giddy as a schoolgirl about this stuff. I'm sure some of it is an act, but most of it isn't. I'm pretty sure of it.

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subego  (op)
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Aug 25, 2014, 04:53 PM
 
Oh, yeah. I don't think it's all that different. More like... enhanced. The "role" he's playing is himself.

He's a ham. Point a camera at a ham and they ham it up.
     
Shaddim
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Aug 25, 2014, 05:10 PM
 
Until this came out, I didn't know that Mythbusters was still on the air.
"Those who expect to reap the blessings of freedom must, like men, undergo the fatigue of supporting it."
- Thomas Paine
     
subego  (op)
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Aug 25, 2014, 05:49 PM
 
At the opposite end of the spectrum, it's literally the only show I watch.
     
subego  (op)
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Aug 26, 2014, 02:06 AM
 
Originally Posted by ort888 View Post
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aOm6wqMs2vI

Highly functioning autism?
If not that, certainly OCD. Looking at his shop, he appears to be a compulsive hoarder as well.
     
Shaddim
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Aug 26, 2014, 04:36 AM
 
I'm a little picky about my garage/shop, but that's on a whole `nother level. Mostly I'm anal about people not messing with things in my office(s), and particularly my desk, if I put something somewhere, it's for a specific reason. Don't rearrange things, and that includes trying to sort or clean. Yeah, to someone else it make look cluttered, but to me it's vital for my workflow and nothing pisses me off faster than knowing that I placed something somewhere and it's not there anymore. Then I'm wasting time looking for it, and that's time I could be spending doing something more productive.

Oh, and there's also our "shop guide", it's ~300 pages full of procedures, if a person works at the garage they're required to know it, cover to cover. They get a copy of it before anything else. Yes, I have been known to give pop quizzes on various subjects in the guide, out of the blue. No, I'm not being an ass, knowing all that info is vital. Don't ask me, or anyone else, how to do something, at least not without checking the guide first, because there's a very high probability that whatever you need to know is in there.
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OreoCookie
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Aug 26, 2014, 08:23 AM
 
Originally Posted by subego View Post
If not that, certainly OCD. Looking at his shop, he appears to be a compulsive hoarder as well.
Everybody I know who really cares about something and is very good at something has obsessive tendencies, and can be abrasive if someone doesn't care. I don't see that as a minus, in fact, it's probably indispensable to being successful.

Honestly, I don't care whether they are the odd couple or don't want to be friends, I still find Mythbusters entertaining, especially the early ones. The only reason this is an issue for friends is because as humans we want them to be friends. Maybe the show would be better, but then again who knows. Apparently Kari, Grant and Tory, have been on good terms with each other, but I usually find the stories told by Adam and Jamie more enjoyable. The other guys are goofing off a little too much.
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subego  (op)
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Aug 26, 2014, 01:29 PM
 
Originally Posted by OreoCookie View Post
Everybody I know who really cares about something and is very good at something has obsessive tendencies, and can be abrasive if someone doesn't care. I don't see that as a minus, in fact, it's probably indispensable to being successful.
Oh, no doubt. I have all kinds of obsessive tendencies, and see them as a net plus. Hopefully, I've also got the part where I'm very good at something.

Note however, I say net plus. It has disadvantages. An example disadvantage would be me ignoring workplace etiquette to the point I was slagging my loyal subordinates on television. If that was one of the disadvantages I suffered from I don't know if I'd have the same conclusion about it being a net benefit.
     
subego  (op)
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Aug 26, 2014, 01:40 PM
 
I may be obsessive about Sharpies like a certain Mythbuster, but I design the system so I can be assured of finding at least one when I need it.

     
subego  (op)
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Aug 26, 2014, 01:51 PM
 
Originally Posted by Shaddim View Post
I'm a little picky about my garage/shop, but that's on a whole `nother level. Mostly I'm anal about people not messing with things in my office(s), and particularly my desk, if I put something somewhere, it's for a specific reason. Don't rearrange things, and that includes trying to sort or clean. Yeah, to someone else it make look cluttered, but to me it's vital for my workflow and nothing pisses me off faster than knowing that I placed something somewhere and it's not there anymore. Then I'm wasting time looking for it, and that's time I could be spending doing something more productive.

Oh, and there's also our "shop guide", it's ~300 pages full of procedures, if a person works at the garage they're required to know it, cover to cover. They get a copy of it before anything else. Yes, I have been known to give pop quizzes on various subjects in the guide, out of the blue. No, I'm not being an ass, knowing all that info is vital. Don't ask me, or anyone else, how to do something, at least not without checking the guide first, because there's a very high probability that whatever you need to know is in there.
The thing which flips me out is messy cable. I rarely, if ever, torch someone for it though. I just redo it myself.
     
   
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