The Most Extreme

The Most Extreme
Genre	Nature documentary
Developed by	Shelby Wilson
Country of origin	New Zealand
Language(s)	English
No. of seasons	5
No. of episodes	77
Production
Running time	46 Minutes
Broadcast
Original channel	Animal Planet
First shown in	United States
Original run	July 1, 2002 – Present
External links
Website

The Most Extreme is a documentary television series on the American cable television network, Animal Planet. It first aired on July 7, 2002. Each episode focuses on a specific animal feature, such as strength, speed, behavior, anatomy, or diet, and examines and ranks ten animals that portray extreme or unusual examples of that quality. The rankings serve only to give a broad depiction; a scientifically rigorous procedure is not employed to quantify them.

Along with each animal on the countdown, each episode presents a computer-animated segment which compares the animal's ability with something equivalent in humans, followed by an interview segment with people who share some common trait. For example, in "Super Sharks", the animal ranked #1 was the Hammerhead shark, for its extreme senses of vision and smell, along with its ability to sense voltages as small as a half-billionth of a volt. This was then compared with a team of human hackers, including StankDawg, who were war-driving around a neighborhood and looking for faint wireless signals. Old, often public domain, cartoons, movie clips and trailers are often included.

The series is made in New Zealand by a small production team at NHNZ. The termite has had the most #1 ratings but has only been in 15% of the top 10's.

The series airs in Australia on Channel Seven (first run) and on subscription channel Animal Planet (replays).

Episodes

Season 1

Parasitic worms, like this tapeworm, are among the most horrific animals of the world, according to episode 9.

#	Original airdate	Title	Overview
1	7 July 2002	Speed	The fastest animals on land, air and water.
2	14 July 2002	Births	Extreme reproduction in number of young, size and other factors.
3	21 July 2002	Cheats	The ways animals trick one another.
4	28 July 2002	Survivors	The animals who best survive extreme conditions.
5	4 August 2002	Jumpers	The fastest, highest and best jumpers.
6	11 August 2002	Gluttons	The greediest eaters in the world.
7	18 August 2002	Builders	The animal kingdom's most innovative construction engineers.
8	25 August 2002	Fighters	Warriors of the animal kingdom.
9	8 September 2002	Horrors	The animals that most inspire terror in human beings.
10	27 October 2002	Strength	Proportionally, the strongest animals in the world.
11	3 November 2002	Biters	The deadliest, most prolific and most extreme biters.
12	10 November 2002	Thinkers	Intelligence in the animal kingdom.
13	17 November 2002	Lovers	Most extreme courtship rituals.

Season 2

According to episode 17, the Mimic Octopus is one of nature's best disguisers. To discourage its predators, it mimics the species that prey on them.^[1]

#	Original airdate	Title	Overview
14	11 May 2003	Moms	Moms with the heaviest, hardest or most unusual jobs on the planet.
15	15 June 2003	Dads	Dads in the wild can go to extremes to take care of their young.
16	22 June 2003	Venom	Animals with the most lethal venom.
17	29 June 2003	Disguise	These animals are experts at pretending to be what they're not.
18	13 July 2003	Swarms	Hordes in the animal kingdom including millions and even billions of individuals.
19	7 September 2003	Body Parts	Extreme proportions and physical oddities.
20	14 September 2003	Predators	The most efficient predators come in many sizes.
21	21 September 2003	Stinkers	The worst smelling animals, including one with stench that kills.
22	28 September 2003	Super Senses	The world's best at keeping up with their environments.
23	23 November 2003	Eaters	Animals with the most unusual menus.
24	30 November 2003	Daredevils	Top stunstmen of the natural kingdom.
25	7 December 2003	Defenders	The best and most unusual self-protectors.
26	21 December 2003	Oddities	Strange animals and their human equivalents.

Season 3

One of the members of the world's most invasive animal, according to episode 41, the Botany Bay Cockroach makes its home in Australia.

#	Original airdate	Title	Overview
27	3 August 2004	Gross Outs	The most disgusting behavior in the wild.
28	10 August 2004	Home Designers	The most extreme, unusual and innovative animal architects.
29	7 September 2004	Tough Babies	The strongest babies in the animal kingdom, with human comparisons.
30	14 September 2004	Wild Parties	How the most extreme partiers in the wild compare to human get-togethers.
31	21 September 2004	Monster Myths	The reality behind some of the most feared animals in the world.
--	25 September 2004	The Best of the Best	Retroactive examination of #1s from earlier episodes, with a countdown to the most extreme among them.
32	12 October 2004	Killer Cats	The deadliest felines in the world.
33	19 October 2004	Battle of the Sexes	Males and females of some species have very little in common with one another, and they aren't always good for each other's health.
34	23 November 2004	Big Mouths	Proportionally, the ten largest mouths in the world.
35	30 November 2004	Deadly Snakes	The most venomous, dangerous and prolific killers.
36	14 December 2004	Killers	The animals with the highest human kill counts.
37	8 February 2005	Bloodsuckers	Vampires in the animal kingdom.
38	15 February 2005	Super Sharks	The "highest tech" sharks in the water.
39	22 February 2005	Poison	The deadliest toxins.
40	1 March 2005	Super Dogs	The 10 dog breeds that have evolved the farthest from their wolf ancestors.
41	8 March 2005	Global Conquerors	The most invasive animal species.
42	15 March 2005	Outrageous Flirts	The unusual ways that animals attract one another.
43	27 April 2005	Athletes	The most athletic animals and their human equivalents.
44	4 May 2005	Odd Couples	When two species unite: unexpected animal matings.
45	25 May 2005	Movers	The animals that move the beast with the least limbs for movement.

Season 4

In spite of persistent myths, discussed in episode 57, lemmings are not suicidal.^[2]

#	Original airdate	Title	Overview
46	25 October 2005	Hissy Fits	The worst temper tantrums in the animal world.
47	1 November 2005	Living Dead	Not actual zombies, these extreme hibernators can appear to come back from the dead.
48	8 November 2005	Divers	The animals that can hold their breaths the longest or dive the relative deepest.
49	29 November 2005	Dieters	Some animals can eat a lot without gaining weight, while others can go long times between meals.
50	24 January 2006	Loudmouths	The world's loudest animals.
51	2 February 2006	Appendages	The most unusual animal attachments.
52	7 March 2006	Transformers	10 transformers capable of altering themselves in extreme ways.
53	14 March 2006	Fashion Disasters	In the animal kingdom, some fashion "choices" can be dangerous.
54	21 March 2006	City Slickers	Animals best adapted to life in human urban environments.
55	28 March 2006	Workaholics	The hardest working species in the natural world.
56	25 April 2006	Slime Balls	The animals who have found the most or most innovative ways to use slime.
57	2 May 2006	Animal Myths	The most misunderstood animals.
58	6 June 2006	Gourmets	Not all animals gobble their food. These species put time and effort into their food preparation.
59	13 June 2006	Diggers	Extreme underground dwellers.
60	20 June 2006	Weird Weapons	The strangest ways animals fight.
61	26 September 2006	Cleaners	Nature's most unusual neat-freaks.
62	3 October 2006	Pirates	Animals who act like pirates, taking from others or hunting for treasure.
63	10 October 2006	Gardeners	The unusual ways that animals impact vegetable growth.
64	17 October 2006	Freeloaders	Opportunistic species that gain benefits by associating with others.
65	24 October 2006	Awesome Ancestors	Some animals have giants in their family trees.

Season 5

Among the "Freaky Fliers" of episode 70, the flying snake has been videotaped gliding distances of 780 feet (240 m).^[3]

#	Original airdate	Title	Overview
66	24 April 2007	Inventors	Innovative animals.
67	1 May 2007	Night Lights	The brightest animals in the wild.
68	8 May 2007	Leaders	Species with extreme numbers of followers.
69	15 May 2007	Medics	The unusual ways some animals self-treat.
70	22 May 2007	Freaky Fliers	Species with unusual ways of moving through air.
71	5 June 2007	Bodysnatchers	Species that take over the bodies of others.
72	12 June 2007	Gadgets	Innovative tools nature-built right into a species' body.

References

• "The Most Extreme Season 1-4 Episode Guide". tv.com. http://www.tv.com/shows/the-most-extreme/season/?season=all. Retrieved 26 September 2011. 

1. ^ Roach, John (20 September 2001). "Newfound Octopus Impersonates Fish, Snakes". National Geographic News. National Geographic. http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2001/09/0920_octopusmimic.html. Retrieved 26 September 2011. 
2. ^ Woodford, Riley. "Lemming Suicide Myth Disney Film Faked Bogus Behavior". Alaska Fish & Wildlife News. Alaska Department of Fish and Game. http://www.adfg.alaska.gov/index.cfm?adfg=wildlifenews.view_article&articles_id=56&issue_id=6. Retrieved 26 September 2011. 
3. ^ Kaufman, Marc (22 November 2010). "DOD tries to uncover secret of flying snakes". Washington Post. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/11/22/AR2010112206308.html?wpisrc=nl_fed. Retrieved 26 September 2011.