The Most Extreme
The Most Extreme is a documentary television series on the American cable television network Animal Planet. It first aired on July 7, 2002. Each episode focuses on a specific animal feature, such as strength, speed, behavior, anatomy, or diet, and examines and ranks ten animals that portray extreme or unusual examples of that quality. The rankings serve only to give a broad depiction; a scientifically rigorous procedure is not employed to quantify them. For instance, the episode that focuses on the greatest jumpers suggests that the klipspringer can jump 7.6 m high. However, the figure in meters is more likely to be the correct figure for feet, which should be 2.3 m.
Along with each animal on the countdown, each episode presents a computer-animated segment which compares the animal's ability with something equivalent in humans, followed by an interview segment with people who share some common trait. For example, in "Super Sharks", the animal ranked #1 was the hammerhead shark, for its extreme senses of vision and smell, along with its ability to sense voltages as small as a half-billionth of a volt. This was then compared with a team of human hackers, including StankDawg, who were war-driving around a neighborhood and looking for faint wireless signals. Old, often public domain, cartoons, movie clips and trailers are often included.
The series was made in New Zealand by a small production team at NHNZ. The termite has had the most #1 ratings, but has only been in 15% of the top 10s.
The series airs in Australia on Channel Seven and on subscription channel Animal Planet.
Episodes
The show was narrated by Adam J. Harrington. On Animal Planet, the episodes were also announced by Simon Arnstein.Season 1
| # | Original airdate | Title | Overview | Animal that was Number 1 |
| 1 | 7 July 2002 | Jumpers | The fastest, highest and best jumpers. | Flea |
| 2 | 7 July 2002 | Gluttons | The greediest eaters in the world. | Caterpillar |
| 3 | 14 July 2002 | Speed | The fastest animals on land, air and water. | Tiger beetle |
| 4 | 21 July 2002 | Birth | Extreme reproduction in number of young, size and other factors. | Tapeworm |
| 5 | 28 July 2002 | Cheats | The ways animals trick one another. | Cuckoo |
| 6 | 3 August 2002 | Survivors | The animals who best survive extreme conditions. | Water bear |
| 7 | 11 August 2002 | Fighters | Warriors of the animal kingdom. | Ant |
| 8 | 18 August 2002 | Builders | The animal kingdom's most innovative construction engineers. | Termite |
| 9 | 25 August 2002 | Horrors | The animals that most inspire terror in human beings. | Parasitic worm |
| 10 | 3 September 2002 | Strength | Proportionally, the strongest animals in the world. | Rhinoceros beetle |
| 11 | 11 October 2002 | Biters | The deadliest, most prolific and most extreme bites. | Cookie-cutter shark |
| 12 | 3 November 2002 | Smarts | Geniuses in the animal kingdom. | Parrot |
| 13 | 10 November 2002 | Lovers | Most extreme courtship rituals. | Spider |
Season 2
| # | Original airdate | Title | Overview | Animal that was Number 1 |
| 14 | 11 May 2003 | Moms | Mothers with the heaviest, hardest or most unusual jobs on the planet. | Sea louse |
| 15 | 15 June 2003 | Dads | Fathers in the wild can go to extremes to take care of their young. | Seahorse |
| 16 | 22 June 2003 | Venom | Animals with the most lethal venomous bites or stings. | Box jellyfish |
| 17 | 29 June 2003 | Disguise | These animals are experts at pretending to be what they are not. | Mimic octopus |
| 18 | 13 July 2003 | Swarms | Hordes in the animal kingdom numbering millions and even billions of individuals. | Argentine ant |
| 19 | 7 September 2003 | Body Parts | Animals with relatively large body parts. | Giraffe |
| 20 | 14 September 2003 | Predators | The most efficient hunters come in many sizes. | Shrew |
| 21 | 21 September 2003 | Stinkers | The worst-smelling animals, including one with a stench that kills. | Skunk |
| 22 | 28 September 2003 | Super Senses | The world's best at keeping up with their environments. | Shark |
| 23 | 23 November 2003 | Eaters | Animals with the most unusual menus. | Vulture |
| 24 | 30 November 2003 | Daredevils | Top stuntmen of the natural kingdom. | Barnacle goose |
| 25 | 7 December 2003 | Defenders | The best and most unusual self-protectors. | Bee |
| 26 | 21 December 2003 | Oddities | Strange animals and their human equivalents. | Deep-sea anglerfish |
Season 3
| # | Original airdate | Title | Overview | Animal that was Number 1 |
| 27 | 3 August 2004 | Gross-Outs | The most disgusting behavior in the wild. | Fly |
| 28 | 10 August 2004 | Home Designers | The most extreme, unusual and innovative animal architects. | Termite |
| 29 | 7 September 2004 | Tough Babies | The strongest babies in the animal kingdom, with human comparisons. | Sand tiger shark |
| 30 | 14 September 2004 | Wild Partiers | How the most extreme partiers in the wild compare to human parties. | Christmas Island red crab |
| 31 | 21 September 2004 | Monster Myths | The reality behind some of the most feared animals in the world. | Wolf |
| - | 25 September 2004 | The Best of the Best | Retroactive examination of Number 1s from earlier episodes, with a countdown to the most extreme among them. | Cookie-cutter shark |
| 32 | 12 October 2004 | Killer Cats | The most ferocious felines in the world. | House cat |
| 33 | 19 October 2004 | Battle of the Sexes | Males and females of animals in which the two sexes have very little in common with one another and are not always good for each other's health. | Whiptail lizard |
| 34 | 23 November 2004 | Big Mouths | Proportionally, the 10 largest mouths in the world. | Argentine horned frog |
| 35 | 30 November 2004 | Deadly Snakes | The most venomous, dangerous and prolific killer snakes. | Cobra |
| 36 | 14 December 2004 | Killers | The animals with the highest human kill counts. | Mosquito |
| 37 | 8 February 2005 | Bloodsuckers | Vampires in the animal kingdom. | Tick |
| 38 | 15 February 2005 | Super Sharks | The "highest tech" sharks in the ocean. | Hammerhead shark |
| 39 | 22 February 2005 | Poison | The deadliest chemical defenses. | Golden poison frog |
| 40 | 1 March 2005 | Super Dogs | The 10 dog breeds that have evolved the farthest from their wolf ancestor. | Chihuahua |
| 41 | 8 March 2005 | Global Conquerors | The most invasive animal species. | Cockroach |
| 42 | 15 March 2005 | Outrageous Flirts | The unusual ways that animals attract one another. | Elephant |
| 43 | 27 April 2005 | Athletes | The most athletic animals and their human equivalents. | Arctic tern |
| 44 | 4 May 2005 | Odd Couples | When two kinds unite: unexpected animal partnerships. | Greenland shark/Ommatokoita |
| 45 | 25 May 2005 | Movers | The animals that move the best with the fewest limbs for movement. | Scallop |
| 46 | 1 June 2005 | Troublemakers | The animals that cause the most trouble for humans just by doing what they do. | Termite |
Season 4
| # | Original airdate | Title | Overview | Animal that was Number 1 |
| 47 | 25 October 2005 | Hissy Fits | The worst temper tantrums in the animal world. | Elephant |
| 48 | 1 November 2005 | Living Dead | Not actual zombies, these extreme animals can play dead or, when dormant, can appear to come back from the dead. | Water bear |
| 49 | 8 November 2005 | Divers | The animals that can hold their breaths the longest or dive the relative deepest. | Whale |
| 50 | 29 November 2005 | Dieters | Some animals can eat a lot without gaining weight, while others can go for long times between meals. | Tick |
| 51 | 24 January 2006 | Loudmouths | The world's loudest animals. | Pistol shrimp |
| 52 | 2 February 2006 | Appendages | The most unusual animal attachments. | Anglerfish |
| 53 | 7 March 2006 | Transformers | Ten transformers capable of altering themselves in extreme ways. | Ribeiroia |
| 54 | 14 March 2006 | Fashion Disasters | Animals whose appearances can put them in danger. | Deer |
| 55 | 21 March 2006 | City Slickers | Animals best adapted to life in human urban environments. | Macaque |
| 56 | 28 March 2006 | Workaholics | The hardest-working animals in the natural world. | Honey bee |
| 57 | 25 April 2006 | Slime Balls | The animals who have found the most or most innovative ways to use slime. | Banana slug |
| 58 | 2 May 2006 | Animal Myths | The most misunderstood animals. | Lemming |
| 59 | 6 June 2006 | Gourmets | Animals that put time and effort into their food preparation. | Honey bee |
| 60 | 13 June 2006 | Diggers | Most extreme cavity makers. | Termite |
| 61 | 20 June 2006 | Weird Weapons | The strangest ways animals defend themselves or attack. | Electric eel |
| 62 | 26 September 2006 | Cleaners | Nature's most unusual neat-freaks. | Japanese macaque |
| 63 | 3 October 2006 | Pirates | Animals who act like pirates, taking from others or hunting for treasure. | Amazon ant |
| 64 | 10 October 2006 | Gardeners | The unusual ways that animals impact vegetable growth. | Lemon ant |
| 65 | 17 October 2006 | Freeloaders | Opportunistic animals that gain benefits by associating with others. | Tapeworm |
| 66 | 24 October 2006 | Awesome Ancestors | Prehistoric animals larger than their modern descendants/relatives. | Megatherium |