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The Manhunt Begins Friday on UPN
by Melinda Smith
-- 07/10/2002
Manhunt isn't your average reality game. Oh, sure, there is a vote and all that, but what happens to the person who loses the vote? They don't just leave the island or something. And staying "alive" means more than just forming alliances.
Reality show fans who are tired of watching contestants on other shows sitting around and withering away week after week, only to be picked off by the Machiavellian plottings of self-appointed underlords, might enjoy the more direct approach of UPN’s new show, Manhunt.
This fast-paced, six-week show pits 13 everyday people like hairdressers, students, and ministers against the depredations of 3 self-styled "bounty hunters," aka Big Tim, Koa, and Rain. The hunters stalk their prey through the beaches, rainforests, volcanic craters, and swamps of the island of Kauai, armed with an impressive-sounding arsenal of air-powered marker rifles, pyrotechnic grenades, and tripwires.
To survive, the prey – er contestants, must traverse 6 booby-trapped courses while being stalked by alternating hunters who launch frontal assaults or more stealthy stalking maneuvers. And they must survive as a group, without being "marked." They have to make it to the "safe zone" by sundown. But are they home free then? Fans of "Survivor" and "Boot Camp" will appreciate yet another round of "vote off the pest," for this show also pits the remaining contestants against each other.
The loser must then run the gauntlet of all three hunters, who try to hunt him down and shave his head.
Sound like fun? Catch it at 8 pm/7c, on Fridays starting August 3.
Melinda Smith is a technical illustrator and writer with a background in graphic arts. She and her family live in Cincinnati, Ohio.
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