The Only Streaming Series In Existence Everyone Can Agree Is Perfect Isn’t On Netflix

Starring Adam Savage and Jamie Hyneman, who the opening narration always notes are special effects experts with decades of experience, Mythbusters is formulaic, but if it works, why change it?

Almost every episode starts with the pair discussing the upcoming myth with fun animations. Then, they do an initial test, refine it, and then do a final test. Depending on the results of the final test, the pair will throw caution to the wind and push it to the limit, which often results in an explosion.

Later in the series, Adam and Jamie are joined by the Build Team, Grant Imahara, Tory Bellecci, and Kari Byron, with episodes that usually feature the original crew on one myth and the build team on another. No matter who’s behind the project, Mythbusters puts emphasis on following the scientific method even if, well, critics argue that they don’t follow it all that well. I argue it doesn’t matter; stop thinking so hard about it and sit back and enjoy.

Mythbusters may be predictable, and the commercial break bumpers made it through to streaming, but there’s something fun about seeing them try and launch a car with a JATO Rocket, or blow up a house with a water heater, or prove that James Cameron was wrong and yes, Rose could fit on the door.

Around the edges of all the science and experimentation, there are constant quips and jokes, which, yes, are incredibly corny, and a lot are firmly in the territory of dad humor, but that’s what makes the show so perfect for anyone: we all cringe at Jamie’s jokes.

Amazingly, there are even stories of people who survived certain death thanks to what they learned watching Mythbusters. To this day, the “Underwater Car” episode, in which Adam and Jamie show how to escape a submerged vehicle, is required viewing. In one of the moments, Adam later explained he had to apologize to his wife; the team also covered how to sit to survive a plane crash by dropping themselves a dozen feet in a fake plane cabin.

Most episodes won’t change your life, but Mythbusters can help settle arguments even then. The Season 7 episode, “Banana Dip, Double Dip,” set out to disprove that the famous Seinfeld episode was completely wrong, and in another, the five-second rule is put to the test. There are even episodes devoted to major movies, from Star Wars to Indiana Jones, and even testing the curved bullets from Wanted.

I wanted that last one to be possible.

After a few episodes, you’ll learn that Mythbusters will almost always end in an explosion. This reached the point that there are even clip episodes that collect nothing but explosions, ranging from the small (a jawbreaker) to the greatest explosion of all time (the cement truck). I may not know a lot about science, but I do know everyone loves explosions.

The only problem with Mythbusters is that the hosts did change over time, with the build crew leaving in 2014 and Adam and Jamie stepping away in 2016. Returning for two more seasons with new hosts Jon Lung and Brian Louden, the show died slowly and painfully. The new hosts tried hard, and they were, indeed, smart, energetic guys who tried to make everything fun, but the magic was gone.

REVIEW SCORE

No matter what someone’s interested in, there’s at least one Mythbusters episode for them. That makes this the perfect show to keep in mind when you’re visiting family over the summer or for holidays and need to put on something that will make everyone happy, from your little nephew to grandma.

Mythbusters can be streamed off Max, YouTube, and Discovery+.