Human Planet

2010 • BBC America
4.8
101 reviews
TV-PG
Rating
Eligible
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Season 1 episodes (9)

1 Oceans: Into the Blue
1/12/11
Season-only
As an air-breathing animal, the human is not built to survive in water. But people have found ways to live an almost aquatic life so they can exploit the sea's riches. From a 'shark-whisperer' in the Pacific to Brazilian fishermen collaborating with the dolphins to catch mullet, this journey into the blue reveals astonishing tales of ingenuity and bravery.
2 Deserts: Life in the Furnace
1/19/11
Season-only
Water is the essential element of life, yet many millions of us live in parched deserts around the world. From the Tubu women and children who navigate the endless dunes of the Sahara to the men rushing into Antogo Lake to catch the fish trapped as it evaporates, we discover how the eternal quest for water brings huge challenges -- and ingenious solutions -- in the driest places on Earth.
3 Arctic: Life in the Deep Freeze
1/26/11
Season-only
The Arctic is the harshest environment on Earth, little food grows, its dark for months on end and temperatures stay well below freezing for much of the year, yet four million people manage to survive here. Human Planet tells remarkable stories of extraordinary people who make their homes in nature's deep freeze.
4 Human Planet - Jungles: People of the Trees
2/2/11
Season-only
The rainforest is home to more species of plants and animals than any other habitat on the planet. But for humans, life there is not as easy as it looks. Life in the trees requires great skill, ingenuity and sheer bravery. The Matis of Brazil carve 4-meter-long blowpipes to hunt monkeys in near total silence. Deep in the Congo forests, Tete defies death by scaling a giant tree using nothing more than a liana vine, and he must then negotiate an angry swarm of bees, all to a collect honey for his family. Most memorable of all, in Brazil we join a unique monitoring flight in search of an un-contacted tribe.
5 Mountains: Life In Thin Air
2/9/11
Season-only
Explore the extraordinary ways in which people survive at extreme altitudes where nature becomes utterly unforgiving. In the Altai Mountains in Western Mongolia where the locals have forged an astonishing partnership with golden eagles that hunt for them. On the precipitous cliffs of the Simien Mountains of Ethiopia we join a young boy locked in a dramatic battle with the fearsome gelada monkeys hell-bent on raiding his family's meager grain harvest.
6 Grasslands: The Roots of Power
2/16/11
Season-only
Grasslands feed the world. Over thousands of years, we humans have learned to grow grains on the grasslands and domesticate the creatures that live there with great success. Though even today, life in the 'Garden of Eden' isn't always rosy. We walk with the Dorobo people of Kenya as they bravely attempt to scare off a pride of hungry lions from their freshly caught kill. We gallop across the Steppe with extraordinary Mongolian horsemen who were 'born in the saddle'. And in a perfect partnership with nature, built up over generations, Maasi children must literally talk to the birds!
7 Rivers: Friend and Foe
2/24/11
Season-only
Rivers provide the essentials of life: fresh food and water. They enable us to live in just about every environment on Earth. But as we discover in this episode, rivers are also capricious and treacherous. Rivers can flood, freeze or disappear altogether. Join Sam Niang, a Laotian fisherman who must walk a high wire strung above the raging Mekong River rapids on an extraordinary commute to work. Meet the father who must take his two children on a 6-day trek down a frozen river - the most dangerous school run on Earth!
8 Cities: Surviving the Urban Jungle
3/3/11
Season-only
The final episode looks at the one environment that's been made by us for us - the city. Over half of the world's population now lives in the urban jungle. The city is built to keep untamed nature out - but nature can't be pushed away. From bed bugs sucking our blood at night to rats in our restaurants, many animals have adapted to a life with us.
9 Extra: Zanskar Frozen River Adventure
3/3/11
Season-only
This bonus feature, not broadcast on television, tells the behind the scenes story of our camera crew's dangerous 8 day trek to get their location and contributors. A real life expedition set in the remote Zanskar frozen river valley high in the mountains of Northern India. The film, shot in HD, will reveal the risks and challenges the camera crew face before they even start to film. It's a nail biting prequel to the “most dangerous walk to school” featured in the Rivers episode.

About this show

Following in the footsteps of Planet Earth and Life, this epic eight-part blockbuster is a breathtaking celebration of the amazing, complex, profound and sometimes challenging relationship between humankind and nature. Humans are the ultimate animals - the most successful species on the planet. From the frozen Arctic to steamy rainforests, from tiny islands in vast oceans to parched deserts, people have found remarkable ways to adapt and survive in the harshest environments imaginable. We've done this by harnessing our immense courage and ingenuity; learning to live with and utilize the other creatures that share these wild places. Human Planet weaves together eighty inspiring stories, many never told before on television, set to a globally influenced soundtrack by award-winning composer Nitin Sawhney. Each episode focuses on a particular habitat and reveals how its people have created astonishing solutions in the face of extreme adversity.

Ratings and reviews

4.8
101 reviews
Dan Nordmann
July 4, 2016
I'm completely enamored with this series. I look forward to watching these over and over again for years to come. For students of culture and biology this simply can't be beat. The BBC makes the best nature documentaries hands down and this series is no exception. I frequently revisit their masterpiece Planet Earth and this is of the same caliber but with us! I can only hope they have a 4K series in the works.
7 people found this review helpful
Mike
December 10, 2018
this show is amazing. Best show that BBC have ever made. I love it, it tells amazing stories and shows different perspectives which can help me understand the world better. it is a must-watch.
Elizabeth Abels
January 29, 2015
The narration is great and informative. Gorgeous scenes and amazing stories. The best documentary I have ever seen
5 people found this review helpful