Why do TV shows love Bullshido?

[Gypsy Jazz]

Today there was this show on TLC called The Ultimate 10, that I can only guess lists the "top 10" ______ every show. This weeks was martial arts, so I watched. I had low hopes at first, but then it opened with Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and interviews with Rickson (who of course claimed he has never ever been defeated) and Helio. I thought it was a fluke, but then they moved on to #9, Kali. They had interviews and video of the Dog Brothers and a few other Kali dudes, all good stuff. At this point I start to think that there is hope for this show yet. I don't remember the order exactly until we reach #3, but I'll try my best. #8 was Krav Maga, which really differs from the most extreme BS to a simple comprehensive system. The school they showed seemed kind of crappy, but they're at very least they were doing doing padwork.

I think the next was Ninjistu. I started to lose hope...big time. It wasn't as terrible as I thought, (fliping out and throwing magic powder) but it was still pretty bad. Ah the crowning acheivement of the show, Juko-Kai. This WONDEROUS system has been discussed at length here. The same fat mustache man American who has his "students" get kicked in the junk to acheive inner peace I know and hate from various other martial arts specials. I am speachless at this point. But wait there's more. Next up is our old friend Aikido. I personally love good Aikido, but there is the same morbidly obese butterball teaching BS Aikido from various other martial arts specials. He of course claims the samurai used Aikido and he has his students sweep his dojo, because it makes them better people.

I figured it couldn't get worse from there, so I stayed. Tae Kwon Do. I laughed to myself a bit. Hardcore TKD can be pretty badass, but this was olympic style love tapping. #3 Muay Thai. This part was great for so many reasons. The main one being that they interviewed and videoed Alex Gong. #2 was Karate. showed some old school conditioning and some drills...nothing out of the ordinary. #1 I'm sure you could all guess by now: Shaolin Kung Fu. A lot of talk of chi and some genuinely cool demonstrations as always.

Skip to here to avoid backstory

Just about every show I've seen on martial arts has a strong Bullshido component. Why? The show mentioned above has Kali, Muay Thai, and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. After all of these systems have been researched and seen, how can one go look at some portly fellows shouting and preaching a lot and still think it's valid? I don't even care if they go on about ki or spirituality, but to see a man who looks like he has just eaten Roger Ebert spin a few times and watch their "opponent" fall, and then believe it's valid is absurd.

This type of stuff generally floats around between the discovery channel, TLC, FitTV and other discovery owned networks. These networks tend to be pretty good in getting their facts straight with just about everything else. I don't understand why they fall short the second someone says martial arts. Any possible explanation?

[GhostSentinel]

good point and good question. i really have nothing truly insightful to add, except that perhaps there's nobody there that actually has trained seriously in *any* martial art (even if it is Bullshido) and therefore they go by what it looks like to an outside observer (mixed with some insider comments and ratings)

[Red Elvis]

This show was way lame!!! I missed the first part but I did pick it up during Krav Magra and I wasn't impressed. Here was the breakdown:

#10 - BJJ - Missed this part. ;-(
# 9 - Kali or FMA? Missed this part too but later they showed clips of the old Gatherings that were held in the park with the Dog Brothers. Was it strictly Kali Gypsy?
#8 - Krav Magra - Looked lame to me... hence my posts to Steve.
#7 - I believe it was Aikido - Again, just as Gypsy mentioned they talked of Samurai and such. mmmm...yeah
#6 - Juko Kai - Holy shit this was funny! I can't even begin to describe...
#5 - TKD - the jumping around hands at the side kind... Kee Yaa!
#4 - Ninjitsu - Guys in pajamas talking about Hatsumi. Lame!!
#3 - Muay Thai - Good bit showing Alex's fights and even a little Fairtex plug.
#2 - Karate - They showed a lot of Okinawan (sp) karate whcih looks nothing like what they do here in the good 'ol U.S.
and finally... drum roll please
.
.
.
#1 - Shaolin Kung Fu featuring a "real" Shaolin Monk from China. Interesting at least.

[Thaiboxerken]

It's because the general media that puts together these shows are lame-asses that have no freaking clue. It doesn't surprise me that shaolin is #1, it has the the most myths associated with it. Perhaps they should've titled the show "The most impressive martial arts to the ignorant public" instead.

[Poop Loops]

Dog Brothers should have been #1 IMO. Those guys are beyond badass.

I think I might have seen this, actually, or something VERY close to this. I remember guys getting kicked in the groin and limping away, but the shot being so fast that you really have to look for the limping to see it in time, but it's there. Then some woman got her shit ruined voluntarily, while making hissing sounds (or maybe they were kicking her ass because she wouldn't stop hissing at them, I don't remember)

Then the fatass Aikido guy. I mean, he looked like a balloon. He also taught an Iaido class, and had his students do his chores while he ate.

I remember some Ninjitsu stuff. Some white guy training in Japan, working as a butcher to support himself. Some Japanese guy made a smoke bomb deely out of an egg and some "secret" powder.

Maybe it wasn't the same thing, but I think most of the people were the same.

PL

[Gypsy Jazz]

# 9 - Kali or FMA? Missed this part too but later they showed clips of the old Gatherings that were held in the park with the Dog Brothers. Was it strictly Kali Gypsy?

First off thanks for correcting my order. Yes it was strictly Kali, although they refered to Kali as "The Fllipino Arts". Lots of really awesome clips of Dog Brothers sparring. Some clips of this guy who teaches the more obscure weapons of the Filipino arts. I don't know much about FMA, so I couldn't really say how good this guy was, but seeing some axes, shields, short swords, chains and other weapons you (or at least I) don't typically think of as FMA weapons.

Seems the consensus thus far is that Bullshido, magic and legends are just what the people want to see. Unfortunate, but probably true.

[IzzyDaHedgehog]

People want to believe in magic. No one wants to hear that all the cheesy Kung Fu movies they've seen are fake. That's all there is to it.

[Red Elvis]

People want to believe in magic. No one wants to hear that all the cheesy Kung Fu movies they've seen are fake. That's all there is to it.

Whaaaa? You mean The Master of the Flying Guillotine wasn't real? :XXbuzzsaw

[IzzyDaHedgehog]

I wanted to learn Eight Drunken Immortals for the longest time after I saw the Legend of Drunken Master movies. Only after I came here, and started watching Pride videos and stuff, did I realize that I was better off with teh grapple.

EDIT: And, us Scots all know drunken boxing genetically, I shouldn't have to learn it in the first place.

[Red Elvis]

I wanted to learn Eight Drunken Immortals for the longest time after I saw the Legend of Drunken Master movies. Only after I came here, and started watching Pride videos and stuff, did I realize that I was better off with teh grapple.

I always wanted to learn Drunken Kung Fu. So I spent like eight years getting plastered training for it, but somehow in my waking stupors I forgot about the whole Kung Fu part. :new_sleep

[IzzyDaHedgehog]

All you need for Drunken Kung Fu:

1. A kilt.
2. A bottle of scotch (NOT IRISH WHISKEY GODDAMN IRISH).

Drink the bottle of scotch, start hitting people with the bottle. Throw haymakers after you lose the bottle, you won't be able to feel pain so no need to keep your guard up.

My friend Nikita suggested the same thing, except with a big fur hat and vodka instead of the kilt and scotch.

[Red Elvis]

All you need for Drunken Kung Fu:

1. A kilt.
2. A bottle of scotch (NOT IRISH WHISKEY GODDAMN IRISH).

Drink the bottle of scotch, start hitting people with the bottle. Throw haymakers after you lose the bottle, you won't be able to feel pain so no need to keep your guard up.

My friend Nikita suggested the same thing, except with a big fur hat and vodka instead of the kilt and scotch.

Well damn, then I've already done this!!! Except I was wearing blue jeans, had a half full 32-ounce Steinlager and my punches were straight.

This means I am Drunken Kung Fu Master!!! (too bad the cops didn't think so...)

:qswim:

[Reikon]

I was disappointed as soon as I saw BJJ and Kali were dead last.

The dog brothers clips were cool, but saying the most noticable weapon of the FMAs are sticks is a bit stereotypical.

The Juko-Kai crap is just that, crap.

The Aikido guy was ok, considering I remember him making the relation between Aikido, and Jujutsu, and jujutsu being what the samurai used. Iaido, however is not part of Aikido. Aikido uses bokuto and jo to demonstrate techniques, and some (most i've heard) aren't proper sword techniques. The whole showing a clip of Iaido and calling it Aikido was sad. (especially when they backtracked and showed the tameshigiri clip with Aikido in the middle of it.)

Krav Maga didn't look too bad.

TKD was olympic TKD so I didn't expect much, except they tried to pass it off as actually being effective.

Ninjutsu was expected The part where the guy used the knife to block the sword was sad though, because he would've been missing a hand.

The MT portion was good.

I agree on Karate. They showed an old Okinawan school...not like the US.

Shaolin was...akward. The guy said "shaolin started it all" etc. etc. Interesting but akward.

[Sungam]

These shows are for entertainment in the same way that almost haunted almost live almost delivers real ghosts these programs almost show real fighters almost training to fight. I'm sure to the untrained eye some of it looked cool as well.

[Matsufubu]

Should be "Which MA looks totally sweet!" instead.

No judo? Seriously?