by W.H. Garcia

Created on: February 29, 2008

"I reject your reality and substitute my own!" - One of the famous quotes by Adam Savage and which aptly sums up what the show is all about. This long standing series on Discovery Channel attempts to debunk urban myths and legends by putting them through a series of tests and experiments. And if the mythbusting crew fails to replicate the myth, they often indulge themselves by replicating the results. The latter usually leads to spectacular and often unnecessary explosions and destruction. But hey, nobody is going to complain when they get to see a cement truck getting blown to smithereens or a tree being felled by a Gatling gun. Remember, if something is worth doing, then it is definitely worth overdoing!

MythBusters was never intended to be a hit, especially if you consider the two unorthodox hosts that front the show. On the one hand, we have Jamie Hyneman, the beret-wearing bald guy with a walrus-like mustache. On the other hand, we have yet another balding guy with a goofy grin to complement his often neurotic antics. Perhaps it is the novelty of the show and its light-heartedness that have attracted its early viewers. Over the years, the show has evolved from being geek television fodder to a favorite staple for a demographically wide audience.

Discovery Channel often puts out shows that are scientifically accurate and informative. Having a show with two awkward guys playing around with strange contraptions and calling it science is really quite a big deviation from its long established academic culture. The fact that the show did not start out as a production that took itself too seriously was perhaps precisely what makes the show tick. People just like stuff that they don't have to think too much about.

Although the producers of the show go through great lengths to ensure that their experiments would not be easily dismissed, to say that the experiments are scientifically rigorous would be too much of a stretch. More often than not, the results are just reliable enough to call a myth busted, confirmed or plausible. Producers are also shrewd enough to know that too much scientific content might harm the show's popularity. As a result, we have a show that displays a harmonious mix of entertainment and scientific accuracy. There are visible signs that MythBusters has taken on a more professional approach as the show gains more recognition. Thankfully, the light-hearted nature of the show is still preserved.

Much of the success of the series has to be attributed

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