Human Weapon

It wasn't too long ago that I was contemplating such a show as this. I originally had the idea while watching Kung-Fu: The Animal Within. I thought Discovery or TLC would be the best place for such a show, but the History channel is almost as good a choice, in some areas it is an even better choice. The difference in this show and the show I had in mind are subtle but important...

I don't think you can do justice to a martial art form in less than a two hour block. There is just too much history to cover and if you are going to convey historical facts through a TV show then you must simultaneously provide entertainment, hence the need for a two hour block instead of a one hour block.

Although I like both of the hosts I would have considered a female to take the place of one of the hosts. Most likely Bill since his size and strength makes him more than a match for most other martial artists of equal caliber. Maybe adding a third host who was female would work nicely. This would help enhance the shows female demographics by attracting women who are interested in self defense.

The end match, I'm torn on if I would keep the challenge at the end. It is entertaining to watch but it is also a no win situation. If Jason or Bill defeat their opponent (it is possible since they are both professionally trained and will continue to get better) then in a sense they dis-honor the school. If they loose, then what does that say about all of the previous training they have been exposed to, do they dis-honor their instructors every time they loose. I understand it is just an exhibition match, some fights will be all out while during others the opponents may be holding back.

The format of the show is good and may get better. What I want to see though is consistency from show to show in how it presents material to the viewer. I would like it to lay out the history of the art form up front and always include the information I have listed below. The show does a good job of showing some of the items I list, but it really glosses over some parts and doesn't address others at all:

• Origins and branches
• Why a practitioner might choose this branch of the art form over similar branches
• How the art is significantly different from art forms that have previously been visited
• Number of people practicing the art
• Number of schools and concentrations around the world
• Number of federated organizations
• Ranking system in detail (i.e. number of belts, with colors, name, dan, etc)
• Learning requirements (i.e. 10 techniques for first belt, 24 for second belt, 155 total Kata/Tul/Tao, must be able to perform 1000 kicks for black belt, etc.)
• Special training equipment utilized
• Discuss and explain the spiritual aspects, if any, of the art form

I noticed on the web site that the DVD for each episode is available for $25. For that amount of money per episode, they really need to pack it with a lot more information. In fact, I would go so far as to say they need to include several more hours of detailed training footage that they surely recorded while on location. This would make the DVDs a very attractive purchase. As it is, the DVDs are only around 50 minutes and don't even include closed captioning. It is naive to think that these DVDs will have high sales as they are currently being packaged.

I would like to think that the History Channel had higher production values than what this show demonstrates. I like the hosts, I like the locations they travel to and the teachers they train with, I even like the main battle at the end of each episode. What I don't like is that this show could just as easily be on any of the other lesser channels. I just want and expect more from the History Channel. I want to feel like I have been educated about something when I am done watching a show on the History Channel. I think to some degree it should make me feel like I have just walked out of a really good classroom lecture! I have heard it said that TV as a medium cannot convey such information. I think it can and I think that there are a few shows out there that prove it. Instead of looking toward Spike, Vs, and MTV for guidance, the History Channel should be looking closer at its own programming and at programming found on the Food Network, FitTv, and the Learning Channel. In fact, perhaps some opportunistic martial artist should be looking closer at FitTvs's show lineup... not a single martial arts program to be seen.

For more information on Human Weapon, visit http://www.history.com/minisites/humanweapon