Think of the kind of lurid title that might have been found on the cover of a true-detective magazine from the 1950s. Say, something like “Naked and Afraid.”
Got your attention? Well, that’s the point, isn’t it?
“Naked and Afraid” is the title of the six-week summer reality show that the Discovery Channel, uh, unveiled, at 10:20 p.m. Sunday, right after coverage of Nik Wallenda’s successful skywire stunt near the Grand Canyon. Mind you, this is the cable channel that already has a reality show called “Naked Castaway.”
But, as buff titles go, “Naked and Afraid” has that beat by miles. In a race of amazing reality titles, “Naked Castaway” is barely getting started as “Naked and Afraid” is crossing the finish line.
As for substance? OK, we’re not expecting a doctoral dissertation with something called “Naked and Afraid.” Nor are we expecting a “Game of Thrones”-style budget. They certainly weren’t spending a lot on wardrobe. The nudity is obscured by blurring and sly camera angles.
Strip away the tawdry title, and what you have is your basic reality survival show, and not a bad one. Each week, the series follows a new team of “complete and total strangers — one man and one woman” — who, according to Discovery, “find themselves stranded in and, quite literally, exposed to some of the world’s most extreme weather environments.”
They must survive on their own (followed by a camera crew, of course) for 21 days, packing nothing but one personal item each. The prize? There is none. They’re baring and braving all for the challenge and (wait for it) exposure, tackling nature in the raw with no food, no water and no clothes.
