 | ON: Content is age-appropriate for kids this age. |
 | PAUSE: Know your child; some content may not be right for some kids. |
 | OFF: Not age-appropriate for kids this age. |
 | NOT FOR KIDS: Not appropriate for kids any age. |
Maneaters
- Animal Planet
- Genre: Educational
Common Sense Media says
When animals attack...plus safety, environment message.
Parents say
Kids say
What parents need to know
Parents need to know that the title of the reality series is spot-on -- it’s all about attacks on people by wild animals. The show re-creates real incidents as the survivors recount their harrowing tales, and the scenes are combined with sometimes-graphic footage of animals in their native environments hunting and feeding. The stories offer both educational moments and cautionary tales. However, the nature of the stories might be scary for young viewers.
What's the story?
For most people, the zoo is about as close as they ever get to wild animals. But this reality series goes out to the jungles, swamps, and oceans to meet real predators on their turf, and explains how these beautiful and fearsome creatures can become MANEATERS. The series features interviews with people who recount real-life encounters with dangerous beasts, ranging from crocodiles and sharks to wolves, bears, and leopards. The show re-creates these harrowing attacks, showing how a simple hike in the woods can suddenly become a survival situation. It also features plenty of footage of wild animals hunting and feeding, and makes it clear that in a fight, man is definitely the underdog.
Is it any good?
The animals are definitely the stars of Maneaters. Watching them run and swim and track prey is amazing. The survivors are less compelling to watch, and though their stories are terrifying, the re-creations are not that exciting, mainly because of the editing. There’s plenty of footage of the animals in nature, but for good reason, it’s impossible to film re-creations of the actual attacks. Instead, the show features clips of people acting scared then cuts to shots of threatening beasts -- it’s clear that the sequences are cobbled together.
This flaw doesn’t mute the message of the series: that we underestimate wildlife at our peril. The show is exciting to watch at times, but can also be seen as a how-to survival guide. It explains how people can come into contact with wild animals, and takes pains to point out that the ever-expanding human population is encroaching more and more into their natural habitat.
What families can talk about
Families can talk about interacting with animals. What would you do if you faced an animal attack? Do you think you would be able to fight for survival? What do you think these survivors did right, or wrong, in these cases?
As the world’s population expands, and wild areas shrink, do you think there will be more dangerous animal-human encounters? Do you think the animals should be blamed for these attacks, or are they just obeying their own nature? Should people make an effort to preserve natural space for wild animal habitat?
- Show:
- All members
- Parents
- Teens & kids
AGE
Really disturbing.
Educational? More like disturbing. They showed a shot of a two year old girl that got killed by coyotes, for instance, or describes a young boy being taken from his bed by lions and you hear screaming. It will make you afraid of animals.
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| TV rating: | NR |
| Network: | Animal Planet |
| Genre: | Educational |
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