61 Comments

There's an online feud brewing about Discovery's two leading survivalists, Bear Grylls of Man Vs Wild and Les Stroud of Survivorman. These are dudes who go out into the wilderness, using little but their wits and courage to survive in harsh conditions like jungles and deserts.

Bear Grylls climbed Mt. Everest. He's led expeditions all over the world and served the UK military in a dashing, daring capacity.

But some people claim that Bear is a fraud because he brings a camera crew along with him to shoot his survivalism show. And it has been widely reported that Bear and his crew have roughed it in hotels during filming.

Enter Les Stroud. Les doesn't boast decorated military service, but he was a full time wilderness guide in Canada and he spent his honeymoon deep in the Wabakimi wilderness, building a cabin with no metal, plastic, or tools that weren't handmade.

Les's fans argue that he's the more authentic survivalist because he films his footage alone, with no camera crew to save his butt if things get hairy. Check out this comparison graphic:

If that weren't damning enough, 4chan and Reddit have created a series of image memes poking fun at Bear Grylls's readiness to drink his own urine when unable to find a suitable water source...

...among other criticisms.

On the other hand, Bear's fans claim that Les spends most of his time whining and complaining about how hard it is to live in the wilderness. Another common criticism is that Les spends a lot of time sitting around waiting for something to happen. This might reflect a more authentic wilderness experience, but it doesn't make for engaging TV, at least not compared to Bear Grylls's stuff.

I'm guessing that a lot of the hate towards Bear comes from resentment about his pretty boy visage. Les just looks tougher. But it seems like Les Stroud's the clear winner in this online war, because most of the photoshops featuring him are actually making fun of Bear Grylls.