Animal Face-Off
Animal Face-Off is an American television program that aired on the Discovery Channel and Animal Planet in 2004.[1][2]
| Animal Face-Off | |
|---|---|
| Directed by | Malcolm Hall |
| Narrated by | Scott Dreier |
| Country of origin | United States |
| No. of seasons | 1 |
| No. of episodes | 12 |
| Production | |
| Executive producers | Andrew Waterworth Michael Stedman |
| Producer | Nick Bleszynski |
| Running time | 60 minutes (episodes 1-11) 120 minutes (episode 12) |
| Release | |
| Original network | Discovery Channel Animal Planet |
| Original release | March 21 – September 12, 2004 |
Synopsis
This program, produced by NHNZ, centers on hypothetical battles between two animals that could meet in the wild, or, in some cases, have been compared to each other by scientists. CGI replicas and models were used to collect data (such as strength, bite force, etc.) about the animals. Then, in a virtual arena, a brief computer-animated fight scene reveals the results. Some people have declared this show similar to the hit Spike TV show Deadliest Warrior. Since the fights are created artificially, results in real life may vary. Each episode of Animal Face-Off is one hour long, with the exception of the 12th episode, which is two hours long.
Episodes
| No. in series | Title | Location | Winner | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | "Saltwater Crocodile vs. Great White Shark" | Australia | Great white shark | |
| Off the coast of Australia, a female great white shark is roaming close to shore, looking for food; a male saltwater crocodile swims nearby, looking for a new territory. The shark hits the crocodile with the bump-and-bite technique. Accustomed to defending himself against rivals, the crocodile bites the shark's tail, but cannot get a good grip. The shark swims off and makes a wide turn for a full-on assault; all of a sudden, the crocodile gets the first bite on her right pectoral fin. The bite tears off the shark′s fin, helped by the classic death roll. Despite her injury, the shark is still strong. Then, the shark and the crocodile collide head on; the crocodile grabs hold of the shark′s snout with his crushing bite. This time, the shark cannot fight back; the crocodile attempts another death roll. After that, they both sink. Running out of air, the crocodile breaks the death roll and heads straight to the surface. The shark takes advantage of it; with the crocodile's soft underbelly exposed, she comes back with a textbook attack, killing the crocodile with a powerful bite. | ||||
| 2 | "Elephant vs. White Rhinoceros" | Botswana | Elephant | |
| In the plains of Botswana, a male rhinoceros has left his mud hole and is looking for somewhere to feed; nearby, a bull elephant is roaming around, also seeking good grazing. The rhino begin grazing but suddenly feels the ground shaking, and turns to see the elephant. Due to his poor eyesight, the ill-tempered rhinoceros sees him as a potential threat and prepares to charge. The elephant responds to the challenge with a loud trumpet, and the (relatively) smaller animal is not hesitant to charge, making his move, but the much smarter elephant anticipates the attack by charging too and dodging. The rhinoceros returns and tries to stab the elephant's throat, but he is too tall, even with his four-foot horn. The rhinoceros then tries an agile headbutt, but the elephant proves better with his seven-foot tusks. Sure enough, the elephant turns his rival around and stabs him twice with his tusks (breaking one in the process that gets stuck in the rhinoceros). The elephant then headbutts the rhinoceros and crushes him under his weight before stepping off and trumpeting in victory. | ||||
| 3 | "Asiatic Lion vs. Tiger" | India | Asiatic Lion | |
| A male lion is wandering in an abandoned Indian temple when he suddenly spots a male tiger feeding close by. The lion roars at his larger, striped relative to back off, but the tiger ignores the warning. The lion then charges at the tiger, but trips on him upon impact, catching the tiger off-guard. Quickly seizing the opportunity to win, the agile tiger quickly recovers and repeatedly attempts to bite the lion's throat, but the lion shakes off the attack and the combatants are back to square one. Both cats roar, claw, and wrestle with one another, but neither lands a fatal blow. The tiger tries to end the fight with a fatal neck bite, but the lion's mane deflects his aim. The tiger then charges at the lion, but the lion deflects the attack, catches the tiger off guard again and delivers the killing blow to the tiger's neck.[1][lower-alpha 1] | ||||
| 4 | "Hippopotamus vs. Bull Shark" | Zambezi River | Hippopotamus | |
| An injured male hippopotamus is seen resting in his stretch of the Zambezi River, relaxing by the water′s edge, unaware that a male bull shark is roaming around, looking for food. The shark catches the smell of meat, but does not know where it is coming from. The shark starts the encounter with an exploratory bump. After confirming the hippo is indeed food, the shark bites the side, but the massive girth combined with the enormous weight of the hippo is too much of a mouthful for the smaller shark. Even the thin skin in the back leg proves too tough. Despite this, the shark does manage to rip off the hippo's tail. All while, the hippo has been roaring in pain, not knowing what hit him, but his bad temper lights a fire in his belly. Soon, the hippopotamus submerges and spots the deadly shark. The enraged hippo comes towards the shark, and the shark comes towards the hippo, who then opens his mouth, revealing his huge sharp foot-long canine teeth, but the bull shark keeps coming and is finally crushed and killed when the larger hippo closes his mouth on him, ending the fight. | ||||
| 5 | "Wolf vs. Cougar" | Rocky Mountains | Cougar | |
| In the rocky mountains of North America, an alpha male wolf is eating the carcass of a large deer; from a great distance, a male cougar catches the smell of meat, and comes to investigate. The cougar comes across the wolf eating. Lying down, he thinks about how to steal the meal without having the wolf call for reinforcements. Soon after, the wolf notices the cougar and growls. The cougar growls in response. The wolf soon responds by charging forward and ferociously biting the cougar's hind leg, but backs off when the cougar pounces on him with his front legs and lethal claws. The wolf howls to his pack for backup. Realizing he is in grave danger, the cougar tries to retreat, but the wolf bites his paw. Furious, the cougar rolls onto his back, rakes the wolf with his claws and throws him off to the ground, killing the wolf at once. The cougar prepares to eat, but he then hears the wolf pack approaching. Left with no choice, he leaves the kill and flees straight to the forest. | ||||
| 6 | "Walrus vs. Polar Bear" | Arctic Circle | Walrus | |
| A male walrus is relaxing by the water's edge. Suddenly, a hungry male polar bear comes by to attack the walrus. Startled and nervous, the walrus heads straight for the sea. The bear attempts to bite and scratch the walrus, but the pinniped's thick skin is too much, even for a large bear like itself. Although he briefly manages to latch on with his sharp teeth, the bear cannot do much serious damage. The walrus then tries to stab the bear with his four-foot tusks, but the agile predator anticipates this. The bear then tries several paw swipes to the head, but the walrus's skull is too thick to land a killing blow. As the walrus flees, the bear holds on and gets dragged into the ocean, afterwards, the walrus turns around, goring the bear with his tusks. The bear, wounded and running out of air, heads straight back to the surface. But the walrus returns with a vengeance – he soon sinks his tusks onto the carnivore's back, killing him. The dead bear sinks into the ocean. | ||||
| 7 | "Brown Bear vs. Siberian Tiger" | Siberia | Brown bear | |
| In the Siberian woodlands in wintertime, a male Siberian tiger is feasting on his kill, and a large male brown bear is roaming around, looking for one more meal before going into hibernation. The tiger then suddenly spots the bear. Not in the mood to share, the tiger roars at the bear to back off, but the bear ignores the warning and continues to advance. The tiger tries a body blow, but the bear absorbs the impact without losing balance. The tiger then tries to land a killing blow on the bear's neck, but the bear pushes him down. The bear then approaches the kill, but the tiger recovers and pounces on the bear from behind, cutting him with his claws, but fails to disable him. The much stronger bear turns around and, using his superior strength against the tiger's speed and agility, overpowers the tiger by pawing his face. The bear then breaks the tiger's spine and finishes him off with a neck bite. | ||||
| 8 | "Lion vs. Nile Crocodile" | Maasai Mara | Nile crocodile | |
| A male lion is eating by the river's edge when a male crocodile emerges from the water, intent on stealing the meal. Upon seeing this, the lion roars at the crocodile to back off, but he does little than get a loud hiss from the crocodile. The lion attacks, but cannot land a deadly blow because of the crocodile's thick body armor. The lion tries to flip the crocodile to reach his unarmored belly, but a roll and tail swipe stops him from doing so. Determined to get rid of the lion, the crocodile heads back to the water, and gets out of sight. Determined to protect his kill, the lion stays close to the water's edge, looking for an opportunity to kill the crocodile. All of a sudden, it is too late. The crocodile launches a surprise attack on the lion, grabbing his neck and dragging him to the water. The crocodile soon performs a death roll, which kills the lion at once, ending the fight. | ||||
| 9 | "Jaguar vs. Green Anaconda" | Amazon Rainforest | Green anaconda | |
| A male anaconda is out stalking for prey in the Amazon River. However, a male jaguar is stalking nearby. The big cat then enters the water, right in front of the giant snake. The jaguar then stops briefly, apparently sensing the reptile before being distracted by a bird calling in the distance. This lapse in attention allows the anaconda to get the perfect opportunity to strike, during which the snake begins to coil around his victim. The force of the anaconda's strike is enough to knock the big cat off his feet and into the water. The big cat furiously claws at the anaconda and bites his tail. Injured, the snake attempts to retreat, but begins to get dragged ashore by the jaguar. However, most of the giant snake's tail is free and coils around the jaguar, and the anaconda is able to turn back around and strike back at the jaguar. This time, the anaconda completely restrains the jaguar, who is too tired and wounded to struggle any further, ending the fight. | ||||
| 10 | "Mountain Gorilla vs. Leopard" | Congo Rainforest | Mountain gorilla | |
| A silverback mountain gorilla has left his family in the trees, looking for a place to spend the night. Around the same time, a female leopard leaves her cubs to go hunting. The leopard then sees the gorilla walking by and interprets him as a threat. The gorilla, upon seeing the leopard, sees it too as a threat to his troop. He tries to avoid the fight, beating his chest, growling and howling in the process, but the leopard does not flinch. The gorilla approaches, swinging at the leopard, who soon leaps onto a cliff side. Afterwards, the leopard jumps onto the gorilla's back, biting his shoulder. However, the gorilla throws the leopard off. She leaps onto his back again, but cannot get a grip. The gorilla throws the leopard off again; the leopard runs for her life, but the gorilla knocks her off balance before she gets free, but not before the gorilla chomps down on the leopard's shoulder, though she gets free immediately after. Both opponents stare and snarl at each other. Desperate, the leopard makes a final lunge towards the gorilla, but he throws his powerful arm onto her spine, breaking it and killing the leopard, ending the fight. | ||||
| 11 | "Alligator vs. Black Bear" | Everglades | Black bear | |
| On a hot day in the Everglades, a male black bear has gone into a lake to drink, not knowing that a male alligator is resting underneath. The alligator wakes up and sees the bear, but the bear has also spotted the alligator and tries to retreat. The alligator then ambushes the bear and grabs his leg and does the classic death roll, but all he grabs is a mouthful of fur, fat and muscle. Hurt, but not fatally and still strong, the bear fights back by slashing the alligator's mouth. The alligator then attempts a tail swipe, but the much smarter bear anticipates this; knowing he is vulnerable on land, the alligator tries to retreat, but the enraged bear lunges at him. The alligator tries to roll free of the bear's grab, but this gives the bear the advantage to flip him over, which exposes the alligator's soft underbelly which the bear slashes fatally into and kills the alligator; the bear leaves as the alligator's dead body rots in the riverbank. | ||||
| 12 | "Sperm Whale vs. Colossal Squid" | Antarctic Ocean | Sperm Whale | |
| A bull sperm whale is diving into the deep abyss, while a male colossal squid rockets through the depths. Both combatants sense each other – the squid sees the whale, while the whale's echolocation reveals the squid's location. Upon seeing the whale as a potential predator, the squid releases a burst of ink as a warning, but he is ignored by the whale, which launches a slow attack on the huge squid. Just before he reaches the mouth, the squid latches onto the whale and rakes him with his suckers, wounding him in the process. By rising close to the surface, the squid is shaken off, but not before he scratches the whale further. Although wounded, the whale amplifies his sonar and stuns the squid. The paralyzed cephalopod is helpless – and thus eaten alive. | ||||
Experts
A list of the experts (zoologists, scientists, veterinarians, etc.) who participate in the show, betting on the featured animals:
- Dave Salmoni
- Sam Stephens
- Dr. Ellen Rogers
- Dr. Tara Stoinski
- Jeff Watson
- Dave Tesslar
- Dr. Adam Britton
- Peggy Callahan
- Dan Huber
- Prof. Frank Mendel
Reruns
The show was rerun on the Discovery Channel in the mid-2000s under the "Wild Discovery" branding.
The show currently airs in reruns on Quest.
Notes
- For actual records of Asiatic lions and Bengal tigers fighting in the wilderness of India, see Coexistence of the lion and tiger in the Eurasian wilderness.
References
- John F. Bonfatti (March 27, 2004), "Survival of the Fittest", The Buffalo News, archived from the original on 23 October 2012
- Wallenstein, Andrew (2004-03-19). "TV Review: Discovery Channel's 'Animal Face-Off'". NPR.org. Retrieved 2022-06-03.
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