As if attempting to undo the carnal sins perpetrated against the sanctity of television by I’m a Celebrity, Get Me Out of Here!, Expedition Africa captures some glimpse of the truly savage visage of the outdoors while still giving reality tv junkies the “human drama” they so crave. Face it: I’m a Celebrity, Get Me Out of Here! hasn’t a single redeeming factor. It wasn’t original as the basic blueprint comes from either Big Brother or Survivor. Nor was it daring or edgy as it took the basic premise of Fear Factor and put it in the middle of a jungle. The contestants never really had to worry about a force of nature endangering their lives as they may as well have been on a big set in a studio considering how many safeguards were in place. If you have to ask, yes, I would much have liked to see a leopard attack and disembowel any of the celebrities on the show. With Expedition Africa there’s at least a chance for that to happen, unfortunately you don’t start out hating all the contestants (though the hatred grows). It still embellishes the legitimate mission of exploration that the show centers on with over the top instances of interpersonal conflict. Well, at least the overarching quest is cool.
“Dr. Livingstone, I presume?”
It’s a quote oft stated by many in their own personal situations of a long awaited confrontation, but the journey behind the quote gives Expedition Africa its raison d’etre. We all know how the journey of Sir Henry Morton Stanley ended; he finally arrives on the doorstep of the “lost” David Livingstone after his harrowing trek through the treacherous belly of Africa’s wilderness. He faced terrors of many shapes and sizes, contracted dysentery and braved environs that even the boldest Jeep commercial dare not traverse. It was one of those rare expeditions that today’s world of GPS, satellite imagery and nimble forms of transportation make unnecessary.
And the world has suffered slightly because of it.
Tales of heroic exploration now seem like valiant though ultimately pointless efforts. Their value to the evolution of cartography can’t be denied and the lands discovered as a result are home to new civilizations, but compared to the processes of today, the whole ordeal just seems antiquated. To make the subject new and exciting for a tech-oriented generation, Expedition Africa takes an interesting approach to the revitalization of man’s sense of exploration. Not only does it seek to show the invested viewer what obstacles awaited the bold journeymen of yore, but it shows us just how humanity has changed mentally in terms of addressing such a challenge. Comporting the crew are survivalists, naturalists, native Masai tribesmen (who carry their water – does no one else take issue with that?) and, oh yeah, a film crew. As far as the series can go in making positive strides towards recreating the efforts of this icon of exploration, they’re doing so with an obvious sense of a safety net and a clearer sense of direction. However, the effort remains admirable.
The reality television element of Expedition Africa drags it down every step of the way. Even if a conflict of personalities is a legitimate concern on a daunting mission, creating major episode arcs around the bickering just distracts the show from what’s important. The material is interesting enough to not require that exaggerated “humanity at its worst” quality which draws in the viewers from other Reality TV camps. The show has a level of professionalism to attract anyone seriously interested in old-time exploration, but those childish moments of indulgent whining will entice them to fast forward through certain episodes, the doing of which costs the series nothing in terms of quality. So why is it even part of the show?
Expedition Africa makes for a stupendous use of Blu-ray technology. The vast wilderness of Africa screams at the camera with a photogenic quality that just bursts from the screen. It’s beautiful, simply put.
Blu-ray Bonus Features
The set features a healthy dose of extra footage, some of which should have been used in lieu of the unnecessary conflict bits, and a behind the scenes documentary. Unlike most behind the scenes documentaries, there’s actually something to be said about the “scenes” in a show like Expedition Africa. Seeing how cameramen and support staffs suffer through the filming of a season makes for viewing as interesting as the show itself. Check it out.
The producers ought to pare down the miserable people factor in the show and just focus on the nature and trials which occur in exploration. The show has enough to keep you coming back and it makes me wonder if they’ll do a follow-up season like Expedition Brazil to recreate the ill-fated voyage of Percy Fawcett into the dark heart of the South American rainforest.
"Expedition Africa" is on sale October 27, 2009 and is rated NR. Documentary, Reality. Written and directed by Mark Burnett. Starring Various.
