"Are You Tougher Than a Boy Scout?" which premiered at 8 p.m. Monday on the National Geographic Channel stuck much closer to the realities of Scouting skills than either my son - an Eagle Scout and now a leader the Venturing program – or I – a former Scoutmaster and merit badge counselor – expected.
"Are You Tougher Than a Boy Scout," a Scouting-based reality show aired its first episode Monday.
The only real slip that we picked up on was the near-Bowie-sized survival knives the competitors used to carve spear points in the final challenge of the first episode. While smaller blades are generally more useful in most outdoor situations, the long blades with partially serrated edges likely played better for the cameras.
The adults seemed to enter the competition with the mistaken impression that mastering the Scouting skills would prove that "I could've been an Eagle Scout."
While a mastery of those skills, and the merit badges they lead to, are a part of the Trail to Eagle – official Boy Scouts of America terminology – they far from the only criteria for the ultimate rank of Eagle. Demonstrated leadership skills and a substantial, community-bettering Eagle Scout project are equally critical to achieving Eagle.
The hour-long show, which pits a trio of adults against a team of extremely skilled and in-shape Eagle Scouts in various challenges based on the skills involved in earning merit badges, was fairly accurate in its portrayal and application of those skills,
And, it peppered in plenty of tips and how-tos from the Scouts for many of those same skills.
Although it's portrayed as a reality show, Tougher didn't delve too deeply into the personalities of the competitors and kept the whining to a minimum.
The notable exception was the occasional airings of childhood issues surrounding the adults never having earned Eagle while they were Scouts.
However, part of the BSA's goal through its involvement in this show is recruitment and the adults' regrets may actually have helped to showcase the special status of seeing a Scouting career all the way through to the rank of Eagle.
The videography for the show, produced by Original Productions, with previous credits in shows like "Deadliest Catch" and "Ax Men," is of the highest quality, particularly the promo spots for upcoming shows, which included strong, emotional Scouting themes.
One last take-away from the first show: no one is really very accurate with a slingshot.