Please explain the appeal of "Deadliest Catch."

[Zavulon]

My best friend insists that it's a great show. My sister, brother, father and boss also think it's great.

I sat through four or five episodes on their insistence and just don't get the appeal. Worse still, in this case I find myself in total agreement with my mother, my girlfriend (we don't share the same TV tastes at all) AND my landlord. :scared:

Fans of this show - PLEASE tell me why you like it so much. I don't mean any offense to any of you, I can't say "Christ, this fucking sucks," I just don't get why people rant and rave about it so much.

For my part, I'll stick with Mythbusters.

[deucemagnet]

1. It's like crack. I can't tell you why I like it, I just know that I want more. n/t

[Haole Girl]

2. My neighbor, at work says the appeal is how much much they can earn...

$10,000 in one month... up to $100,000 in a season. There you go! :hi:

[Zavulon]

8. Fair enough, but then why not

have reality shows about lawyers and Microsoft workers?

:hi:

[Haole Girl]

11. I never saw the appeal...

just reporting from the troops! lol :hi:

[Blue_In_AK]

35. Everybody gets a reality show...

I'm waiting for the one about the two old semi-retired folks sitting around in their living room watching "The Deadliest Catch." Do they pay good?

[Fox Mulder]

3. I don't understand the appeal of that show either.

[supernova]

4. Risk-taking, living life on the edge

There's a natural conflict (Man vs Nature) that is inherently compelling. I find this much more fascinating than the manufactured, contrived conflict of "reality" shows like Survivor.

Plus, every one of them is just PLAIN CRAZY! :D

[flvegan]

5. It's like any other reality show.

It's an ongoing drama. Which ship will set pots well? Who will make money? Who's the greenhorn? Why is the captain such a shit?

I was clicking through and came across one where a ship had sunk and a couple crew died. I guess there's some appeal due to the real life danger involved.

[graywarrior]

6. My brother in law is a fisherman in Nova Scotia

He lost two boats and almost his and the lives of his crew. After I read The Perfect Storm, I was so amazed at what they must deal with. It takes a special type to do that job.

[MichiganVote]

7. They don't sing, they don't dance, there is no Paula Abdul and the men

would laugh their assess off at the idea that Simon Cowell is rude or rough.

I'm the only one in my family that watches it too. They think I'm crazy. :)

[supernova]

9. Great show for man-watching

:D

[MichiganVote]

10. I just like watching something that is not glitzy or celebrity ridden.

[supernova]

14. Yes, that too

It's real people doing a real job.

[Wetzelbill]

46. you like Sig Hanson, don't you?

I have heard women say they think Sig is hot. :)

[shanti]

54. sig's hot

and i don't usually go for blonds. i prefer keith and johnathan tho;)

[WritingIsMyReligion]

57. Meh. Edgar's hotter, plus he's fuckin' hilarious as deckboss.

His "last man standing" competition with Sig was hilarious.

"Hey guys, whatddya wanna do?"
"Oooooh, is Skip getting tired?"

The Northwestern kicks ass in general.

[Wetzelbill]

66. yeah I love the Northwestern

You get attached to certain people watching these shows. I like that. :)

[PVnRT]

68. "I love my job....I love my job..."

I love when he does that, because we've all been there.

[shanti]

53. yup

lots of manly men:D

[littlebit]

12. There was an article in Time

a few weeks ago about this. The article said it appeals to the working class because it is all about the money. I don't like "Deadliest Catch" that much but I love "Ice Road Truckers".

[Mutley]

13. Everyone is waiting for someone to get killed.

It's inevitable.

[AlCzervik]

15. sometimes i'm in the mood for it. Did anyone the episode where one them smashed his

finger in the same place a few times and what they did to relieve the pressure? I had to change the channel.

[supernova]

17. Yes, I watched that

:puke: Worse, I happened to be eating at the time. :puke:

But it had to be done, otherwise, he would have lost the nail and been working with a lame hand.

[AlCzervik]

19. I have a strong stomach but i could not change the chanel fast enough.

the second i saw the staple under the flame even my husband was like oh no, please tell me he isn't going to do that. But of course the bonus is that is probably a good tip if i ever have that kind of emergency.

[grannylib]

20. Or the one where the skipper's kid pulled his own tooth with a

pair of pliers? Dad said, "You're not a real man until you do your own dentistry" or something like that...yikes.

[Lydia Leftcoast]

24. That is actually the standard treatment

If you went into an ER, that's what they would do.

[AlCzervik]

26. i don't want to see that in any setting but it worked well.

[Lydia Leftcoast]

29. One of my family had that problem, and called my youngest brother,

who is a doctor. Dr. Leftcoast's advice was, "Heat up a paper clip and pierce the nail with it."

They thought he was kidding, so they went to the ER, where the doctor heated a paper clip and pierced the nail.

[WritingIsMyReligion]

58. Yeahhhhh, the greenhorn!

My dad's done that several times to himself--it's disgusting but absolutely what you have to do.

:scared:

[bigwillq]

16. I find it very interesting

that these men sometimes go to hell so we can eat, and that they could support their families.

I give those men a lot of respect. They are brave souls.

[supernova]

18. As God is my witness, I will never complain about the cost of a crab dinner!

:wow:

[WinkyDink]

21. Man vs. Nature. It's an ancient theme.

[Crabby Appleton]

22. It has crabs in it !!1!1!

[Lydia Leftcoast]

23. I saw one episode before I canceled cable

I thought, "Okay, that was mildly interesting, life on a fishing boat."

I was astonished to find out that it is a SERIES. It's another reason I'm glad I canceled cable.

[Enthusiast]

25. As far as lame reality shows go

As far as lame reality shows go, it is head and shoulders above the others I've seen. I don't like reality shows. There is no 'reality' in them. I've never gotten clear through an episode of Deadliest Catch.

[lost-in-nj]

27. Real men

real "boys"
one had his wife on board
danger
excitement
a really great narrator (LOL)
just


real people trying to make a living
I don't eat crab of any kind
but when I see it in the store I wonder which crew caught it


and look at my food no matter what

very differently


:hi:


lost

[YankeyMCC]

28. It's much more 'real' than any other so called reality show

I don't know that I could really explain it but I find it very compelling. The work is so primal and extreme even with the added editing and production it's hard to smother out the reality of these guys out there facing the ocean and making a living.

[Skittles]

30. it makes me sick n/t

[GOPisEvil]

31. It starts out as Man vs. Nature, but then you get somewhat invested.

You follow the lives of these people year to year.

I enjoy it because it is a way of life that is totally foreign to me. I'm a relatively recent convert to the show. I find it intriguing and interesting.

[leeroysphitz]

32. I love it. I wish I could parse and relay the appeal but It just makes me want to pick up stakes

and head north and west in the worst way possible (and I don't even like cold weather!)

A job like that is an adventure compared to the mundane paycheck to paycheck routine drudgery that describes so many of our lives.

I'm sure I wouldn't last 5 days in that gig but I love watching the guys who do pull it off.

Maybe it's in my blood. My step dad is to this day and has always been a sailor on the Great Lakes. My biological father left for Alaska (pipeline work I assume) before I was old enough to remember and has never come or looked back. While I work in a dingy little office making money for tiny, ugly little men who walk around all day with dollar signs in their eyes.

[pokerfan]

33. Those who enjoy the show

should read The Perfect Storm and no, watching the film is not a substitute.

http://books.google.com/books?hl=en&id=-28VV_KVFsEC&dq=The+Perfect+Storm&printsec=frontcover&source=web&ots=rkqImo6Bre&sig=a24xjXly-qu9VyrkgVXz2TS3r4w

[Blue_In_AK]

34. I like it because it's Alaska

and I like EVERYTHING Alaska. Plus, the boyfriend of the girl who catered my wedding was actually on the first season.

[realisticphish]

36. its different

its not about winning a date, or being famous. It's about making a buck, and being a badass in the meantime. It's not manufactured, they don't make up plot lines, i don't know. It's just interesting :shrug:

And I even loathe "reality shows." I wouldn't even consider deadliest catch one, unless you consider your average NGC special to be a reality show

[ProudToBeBlueInRhody]

37. Compared to the other silly "reality" shows......

....you can at least respect what these guys do. I've only watched it once or twice, but I can see the drama of all that danger and the need to make a living drawing people in.

But I prefer Mythbusters too.

[PassingFair]

38. You've seen ONE "deadly catch", you've seen 'em all.

That's why they DRINK so much,,,

I'm with YOU, Zavulon.

Booorrrring.

[Tommy_Carcetti]

39. It's so funny that you mention this.

My wife and I were talking about it today. She said, "I don't know why I like this show. All it is is a bunch of men pulling up crab traps on a boat."

Yet we were oddly fascinated by this.

Perhaps it is Mike Rowe's ominpresent voice.

[Wetzelbill]

49. Mike Rowe is great in that

He makes the show even better. He does The Ultimate Fighter too, it seems like as soon as he started doing the 4th season of the Ultimate Fighter that the show picked up an extra amount of awesomeness. His voice is so cool.

[Tommy_Carcetti]

65. Mike Rowe is THE man. I would love to be Mike Rowe.

Seriously, if you watch Dirty Jobs whenever he is interviewing a female, you can tell they are instantly smitten by him.

[rockymountaindem]

40. Because life is boring

and it's interesting to see people who risk their lives as part of their daily living.

[madrchsod]

41. these guys do a job

that is more dangerous than what i have done. i guess it`s respect

[The Straight Story]

42. Because unlike most reality tv, it's not about the acting, the conflict, or the sex

It's about real folks doing a real job that is pretty freaking wild and most of us will never experience.

[DS1]

43. wait. I thought I was watching a documentary of Lindsey Lohan's STD clinic

lots of crab, oh yeah

[PVnRT]

69. I see what you did there

+1, would read again.

[bullwinkle428]

44. "Ice Road Truckers" is kind of the same deal, but damn if I'm

not fired up about watching the second season of the show, debuting in a couple of weeks!

[Wetzelbill]

45. It's awesome, I don't know why but it's like crack

I don't even watch the seasons. I don't have cable. When I did have cable I watched one episode, couldn't get into it. However, I rented the first season and once I saw it from the beginning and got to know some of the people and see them develop, I started to care for them and respect how tough their jobs are. Plus, it's not all fakey, call in and vote for the guy who tap dances the best while singing and eating a roach type BS. It's real people out doing a real job, and a tough one at that. It's fascinating, I love it.

[Kutjara]

47. I've seen a couple of episodes, but couldn't really get into it.

I do think its appeal would be immeasurably increased, however, if they crewed the boats with American Idol contestants. Now that's something I'd pay to watch.

[mcctatas]

48. totally superficial...

but there's something about all those rugged looking men...

It's like PG-13 Porn!!!!!

;)

[Wetzelbill]

50. that is so sexist

Are we all just pieces of meat to you? :P

[mcctatas]

51. Some are ground chuck...

but you are Grade A prime beef;)

[Wetzelbill]

52. well, I can live with that

You could be First Lady material, you know? Right now, I'm polling at zero percent, but I think the post convention bump will put me over the top. Yes, that's me, over the top. :) Sexist? I mean "sexy"... my bad.

[Doug.Goodall]

55. It is men, performing difficult dangerous tasks, in a world where there are no women

It is the same appeal as professional football.

[WritingIsMyReligion]

56. It's just incredibly fascinating, at least for me. Much safer stuff similar to it is in my family.

I live in Maine and have a lot to do with the ocean up here, which is cold enough, thanks. My father sails and lobsters and is obsessed with tugboats, I know people who are merchant marines on tankers, I spend a lot of time out on the ocean cruising around. "Deadliest Catch" is like all this stuff amped up 10,000 times, on colder, deadlier water with people's livelihoods on the line. It's something I, at least, understand quite well, even from my safe home on land.

[muriel_volestrangler]

59. I don't understand why people want more and more episodes

I can see that a one-off documentary on those fishermen would be interesting. But time after time? All about catching crabs? Series about emergency services get variation, and there's the aspect of helping people, but this is all about the same thing - a non-essential food. :shrug:

[Midlodemocrat]

60. My husband loves it. Watches it constantly.

I can't watch it. It scares me. I get too caught up in who lives.

For the same reason I can't watch things like America's Funniest Videos. I don't think videos of people skiing into trees is funny. :shrug:

[baldguy]

61. Real men doing manly things.

[RebelOne]

62. It's exciting. That is the only reality show I ever watch. n/t

[nadine_mn]

63. Same reason I love Ax Men and Ice road truckers

These are real people (ok men) - I cant explain it either. My husband is more addicted than I am ...he can watch the same episodes over and over. I like the stories - generations passing down a way of life, like how sad the father was that his son didn't want to be in the family business. And whenever I see the waves crashing and the ice, I think wow....people want to do this job?

Its not like the bass fishing shows (you know the ones....couple guys in a boat talking about lures and reeling in fish) - its about the danger, the frustration, the excitement...

just my 2 cents

[El Fuego]

64. When you eat king crab legs

it makes you appreciate all the high-stakes risks and drama that went into getting the beastie to your plate, and you can think about this as you dip the sweet delectable morsel into melted BUTTAH. Yumm.

[datasuspect]

67. please explain the appeal of 99% of all current television programming

[kentauros]

70. The only reality show I've ever watched (and enjoyed)

wasn't this. :P

But it was a British production called simply Spy.

:)

[Iggo]

71. Deadliest Catch sucks.

Ice Road Truckers, on the other hand...

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

72. Well, it's sure as hell better than Ax Men.

Watch as the logging team is thrown into confusion and disorder by failing to remember it's daylight savings time, and stop work an hour early!

:eyes:

[DS1]

73. It's an escape for guys who hate working in cube farms

because that shit is more unnatural than being in a boat in freezing water and massive waves