Fight Quest (2007– ) User Reviews

Far better than Human Weapon

[gscbw5 · 8/10 · 5 September 2008]

Contrary to what many people have said about Fight Quest and shows like Human Weapon which predate it, I have to give Discovery Channel and the producers high marks for picking hosts that actually have chemistry, seem to have respect for the arts they are learning (unlike Human Weapon which breaks everything down to computer generated simulations), and seem more willing to take a beating.

Also, unlike Human Weapon, you get to see both guys fight at the end. Since each of them goes thru different training it is interesting to see each take on their challenge. Also, on Fight Quest the hosts don't wimp out from a fight like supposedly happened on Human Weapon when one of the hosts got knocked out, the other one suddenly was too hurt to fight.

The fact that on quite a few episodes Doug has fought with completely destroyed legs and feet, including getting knocked out in one episode, have more fight in them than the other show.

While Human Weapon might be more for the people interested more in the science behind the martial art ( especially if you can get past two boring hosts who always seem to be showing off for the camera, and one who seems like a bigot), Fight Quest is more about the journey, the story the hosts par-take in.

Great show, wish there was more

[ADogknowsbest · 10/10 · 9 August 2011]

Every review seems to be centered around the difference between Human Weapon and Fight Quest. As an unbiased observer (I have not yet watched Human Weapon) I can say that I absolutely love this show! The chemistry is great, the fights are real (and get as rough as I had hoped!) and it is amazing to see all the different styles.

The only problem I had with the show was that in each location, the guys only spent 5 days. While it is cool getting a snippet of different fighting styles and seeing how much they can take in during this short time allocated to them, it would be much more entertaining (and realistic for the final fight) if they would given more time to spend training.

Ever since the first episode I watched, I was hooked. I watched this show straight through and will probably watch it again. It is one of the few shows I am a huge fan of and, while I doubt I would be so lucky, I really hope they bring it back. Doug and Jimmy are awesome.

Quest Complete

[seanmcdermottcgd · 10/10 · 18 May 2013]

After reading some reviews of people moaning about this series I felt it appropriate to add my views to the mix.

First and foremost; this is a great show and I've thoroughly enjoyed it from beginning to end. The hosts of the show (Doug and Jimmy) train in a countries respective martial art for 5 days and then fight against seasoned opponents.

After reading people's complaints there's a few things I'd like to clarify. Firstly, it states in the show, that only one of the hosts is a professional Mixed Martial artist (Doug) whilst Jimmy is an amateur fighter!

Secondly, yeah they do moan they're sore and injured: but I'm not surprised. Getting hit hurts! Especially if you are already injured and the training they are put through during their short time (5days) in learning the martial art form they will compete in has obviously been intensified by the coach/instructor/master for the benefit of the camera and to prove how tough 'their' martial art is in comparison to the others.

Finally, I feel the fights are not staged! Some of the more traditional martial arts lend themselves to more flamboyant moves which are easily nullified (or impractical) when in a full contact fight! Furthermore for most of these instructors teaching their martial art is their life's work and may also provide their only income. So why, as suggested elsewhere, would they allow choreographed fights in which amateurs of their martial art (the hosts) provide some very stiff opposition for their opponents.

Enjoy this interesting series, learn about new cultures, martial arts and that sometimes being stubborn, prepared to take a punch and knowing how to throw a punch can really do wonders for you in a fight!

Mediocre show at best

[nuclearsummer · 3/10 · 11 April 2011]

This show had so much potential, but they blew it. The show frequently relies on unrealistic, over-dramatic plot lines (for example: When visiting Indonesia, just because there are Muslims there, Doug has a "deep" flashback of his tour in Iraq, just because there are Muslims in Iraq). Some of the fights are obviously choreographed and Doug and Jimmy are ethnocentric and arrogant in every country they visit. The hosts are difficult to relate with, but Jimmy is especially detestable. He complains through every step of his training regardless of where he is, and frequently makes excuses. For example, in France he gets hit in the liver and in an overly dramatic fashion collapses on the floor and screams his lungs out. For the rest of the episode the only words heard out of Jimmy's mouth are, "Getting hit in the liver sucks," "I hope getting hit in the liver won't effect my fight," and "Wow, that liver-shot was brutal. If I get another shot in the liver I might die."

It's way over the top and it's hard to enjoy the fights when you have to listen to what these clowns have to say about their host countries (although I have to admit that Doug is a more sympathetic host). Also, the glaring flaw in this show is that there is no way that a 5-day crash course in a martial art will allow an amateur (note: AMATEUR) MMA fighter to fight and beat a seasoned expert in that martial art. I can't recommend this show unless you want to laugh at how absurd it is. This show could have worked with different hosts, but I really feel that they blew it on this one.

Could have been interesting but . . .

[geraldd · 3/10 · 5 January 2008]

Fight Quest is a reality based show that places two mixed martial artists in the situation of training for one week in a traditional martial art in which they have no background and then compete against a master of said art. Sound familiar? Well, it should because it is the same exact formula that The History Channel used in the far more interesting Human Weapon.

In the premier episode of Fight Quest the two hosts, Jimmy Smith and Doug Anderson, travel to the Philippines to train in the popular weapons based art of Kali, as done in Human Weapon. In the second installment, the duo travel to China to train in San Da Kung Fu (also another Human Weapon adventure). Out of the hundreds of different styles of Kung Fu that could have been selected, both shows chose the kick boxing style of San Da probably due to its similarity to the American mixed martial arts. The differences between the two shows were minor (at the time of this writing, episode three has not aired).

One difference between this show and Human Weapon is that Jimmy and Doug are split up and each train with a different master only to be reunited prior to their match and each of them engage in combat; while fans of Weapon know that Bill and Jason stick together, travel to various locations around the country to train with different masters of that weeks chosen style and only one is selected to compete. Other than that the shows run along parallel plot lines.

Another notable difference between Fight Quest and Human Weapon is that Bill Duff and Jason Chambers (both of Weapon) have better on screen chemistry and they inject a fair amount of humor into each episode; whereas Jimmy and Doug (Quest) seem to approach their task with arrogance. In the end both Jimmy and Doug usually end up whining about their training and making excuses about their sub-par performance against their opponents. Remember, Jimmy and Doug are both professional mixed martial arts fighters.

Fight Quest could be a very interesting show if the producers had tried a non-Human Weapon approach or even done something as minor as selecting different martial arts to highlight. Nice try guys but, we've seen it before.

Squandered Opportunity

[fzr1483 · 5/10 · 18 August 2013]

Fight Quest is a show that follows American hosts, Jimmy Smith and Doug Anderson, around the world to explore different martial arts styles. Jimmy is a professional and Doug is an amateur MMA fighter respectively. (I can't believe every other user review got this wrong). Many reviewers have compared it to Human Weapon, which I haven't seen. It's not a valid complaint that it's a me too show. BBC's Way of the Warrior preceded both shows by around 15 years. What is valid is that Fight Quest doesn't present the info any better due to a poor choice of hosts.

The hosts split up at each location to train with different masters. I absolutely appreciate the fact that they try to make one location traditional and the other in the city. It gives amazing cultural insight into the history of some of these martial arts. Unfortunately, the cultural opportunity is usually wasted by ethnocentric and arrogant hosts. Doug, for example, when introduced to the various masters rarely bows (or any other cultural attempt to show respect).

Both hosts train for 5 days in their respective locations and end with an actual fight with representatives from each martial art. (I know several reviews said its unfair to only train for 5 days, but this is TV. The producers wouldn't be able to make 10 episodes in a season if they stayed to "master" each one)

I do give the hosts credit for showing real effort in training and being genuinely excited by the fights. The bruises and blisters they accumulate are proof that they aren't just showing the training for TV. Because of this fact, I don't mind the complaining.

IMO the shows downfall is the hosts' commentary. I really wish they wouldn't speak (or better yet, have selected different people). While I don't mind them complaining about injuries, I can't stand it when they complain about training techniques. Both hosts are very closed minded and have called multiple exercises "useless" or "I'd rather be preparing for my fight" or "I'm not learning anything... maybe they're setting me up to fail." There isn't a master who competes that would want a student to fail in a fight. Their reputation is directly linked with the quality of fighters they produce.

Host Doug is most guilty of this. He treats most of his training as if it were an American McDojo. By around day 3 or 4, he's always complaining that he isn't learning anything to help him in a fight. It's seems that he just wants to learn some ultimate move from each style. It seems pretty disrespectful to the masters who, in their commentary explain that he's not learning a particular motion (basic fundamental stuff) correctly or that he doesn't have good leg strength. For someone who's an MMA fighter, he should know you can't learn to run before the walk.

In short, the show had potential but the hosts really ruined it.