Stream It or Skip It: ‘You vs. Wild’ on Netflix, the Interactive Bear Grylls Series Where You Can Force Him to Eat a Grub

Netflix’s latest “interactive TV” series is You vs. Wild, which lets us (sort of) boss around famous survivalist Bear Grylls as he navigates harsh, scary environments. Why an expert like Bear needs us, a bunch of sweatpantsed couch-denters, as consultants is a question we shouldn’t ask, lest we risk undermining the potential entertainment value of virtually pushing the Man vs. Wild star into a murky, crocodile-infested river. And here’s a cursory mention of the new series’ remote-riding predecessor, Black Mirror: Bandersnatch, the don’t-call-it-a-choose-your-own-adventure-movie Netflix debuted in 2018. Where that was a trippy tumble down a frequently forking rabbit hole, the significantly simpler You vs. Wild likely will offer naught but a finger into a wormhole — an actual, literal wormhole, because worms are the types of things Bear eats in the woods.

’YOU VS. WILD’: STREAM IT OR SKIP IT?

Opening Shot: An overhead drone shot of a dense tree canopy in a Central American jungle. Just where under there will Bear Grylls eat something vile?

The Gist: In the pilot episode, Operation Jungle Rescue Pt. 1, Bear must risk limb and life to find a doctor who got lost while attempting to deliver medicine to a remote village. And you get to help! Pressure’s on, though: the doc’s been missing for 24 hours, so her life may be in danger. Bear needs to find her as quick as possible, navigating treacherous terrain, and watching out for hissy snakes, toothy crocodiles, prowling jaguars and mischievous monkeys. Surely, the medicine is needed to aid SAD PEOPLE who are IN PAIN as our thumbs hover over our remotes, contemplating which path Bear should take, or which gross thing will be his next snack.

Our Take: Ah, Bear. It’s absolutely in character for him to strap on a machete the size of the Yucatan, yet fail to pack even a single Clif Bar. He needs some “good energy” to continue his mission, so should he eat a big, squirming, gloop-filled grub, or some considerably less icky termites? When you inevitably pick the grub, he grimaces and utters, “Of course you did,” before ripping its head off and choking it down.

That’s nothing new for Man vs. Wild devotees, though. He ate enough grubs to make a grizzly bear envious. The interactivity gives the old formula a new, amusingly corny twist. Bear frequently addresses the camera directly, urging us to make choices as a timer ticks down. The pilot features five choices in 15 minutes, and you can roughly triple your entertainment value by replaying the episode with different combinations. The interface offers a quick jump to the previous choice, and the fast-forward/rewind options only allow you to skip ahead or back 10 seconds. Inevitably, you’ll start riding the skip button a lot in order to avoid hearing the same Bear spiel over and over again as you try to find out what happens after he eats the termites instead of the corpulent larva of some bug you’ll never want to meet.

For my first adventure, I opted for Mostly Conservative Bear. I had him bring along a grappling hook over a slingshot. Then, I chose the faster river route instead of a slow bushwhack through the dense foliage. He encounters a croc, surely not planted by animal handlers at all. “I wish I had that slingshot,” he says. Damn. So should he swim underwater and try to sneak by it, or try to scare it away? Let it be known, only one of these options results in a shoddily edited croc-wrestling sequence.

Later, he comes across a ravine: should he cross on a wobbly log, or swing on a vine? Log, I said, and it crumbles beneath him. He survives the tumble, dirty but mostly uninjured — and uses the grappling hook to get out! “A survivor’s choice,” Bear says, holding the hook. “I like it.” Pat yourself on the back, ye choosers of the grappling hook! Then, he hears a shout — it’s the doctor, and there’s no way she’s just an actress! He takes her to a nearby helicopter (which probably could have found her faster, but never mind), and the countdown to Operation Jungle Rescue Pt. 2 begins, because Bear still has to deliver the medicine to CHILDREN who are probably SUFFERING IMMENSELY!

The second time through, I opted for the bushwacker’s path, which led to the silliest choice yet: Should he climb a tree to see if he can spot the doc, or follow the hoots of howler monkeys, whose agitation are likely prompted by humans? Contrary to the Latin phrase on my family crest — “Always follow the sounds of monkeys,” it reads — I climbed the tree, which led to the same conclusion as before. Boring! So I backtracked to follow the monkeys, leading Bear on a hot MONKEY CHASE! “Wow, these monkeys are fast!” he exclaims, just before he tumbles down a ravine and severely injures his ankle. Mission fail. CURSE YOU MONKEYS!

Sex and Skin: None so far, unless a future episode finds Bear rehashing the classic Man vs. Wild moment when he pulled down his pants to give himself a vital guano-water enema.

Parting Shot: Depends if you make the right choices or not! Good: the helicopter takes the doc to safety, and Bear crouches on the beach, waiting for you to help him deliver the medicine to DYING BABIES! Bad: Bear winces in pain in a dark ravine; fade out; does he just lie there and die, or do we go back to start?

Sleeper Star: Playing the agent of Bear’s demise, the monkey is quite clearly deep in the Method.

Most Pilot-y Line: “From here on out, every decision you make will be critical!” Bear says. You better believe it.

Our Call: STREAM IT, at least until Bear gets too overBEARing. The risks don’t seem all that risky, the staged drama is corny and the novelty might wear off quickly, but there are worse ways for Man vs. Wild fans to spend their time.

John Serba is a freelance writer and film critic based in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Read more of his work at johnserbaatlarge.com or follow him on Twitter: @johnserba.

Stream You vs. Wild on Netflix