Underdogs
Channel: Nat Geo Wild (DStv 182 / StarSat 221)
TX Time: 18h00
Genre: Wildlife, Documentary Series
For 137 years, National Geographic has been bringing you wildlife footage of iconic animals - penguins, elephants, whales and more.
Hold on to your binoculars, folks, as Nat Geo gets up close and personal with the outcasts of the animal kingdom in Underdogs, narrated by Ryan Reynolds.
From their hidden talents to their unconventional hygiene choices to their unsavoury courtship rituals, Underdogs celebrates the unique behaviours of the animals who don't usually get to be the stars of the show.
Each episode of the five-part series showcases a different aspect of these Underdogs' bizarre mating strategies, surprising superpowers, deception, dubious parenting skills and gross-out behaviours.
Underdogs features a range of never-before-filmed scenes, including the first time a film crew has ever entered a special cave in New Zealand - a huge cavern that glows brighter than a bachelor pad under a black light thanks to the glowing butts of millions of mucus-coated grubs.
All over the world, overlooked superstars like this are out there 24/7, giving it maximum effort and keeping the natural world in working order for all those showboating polar bears, sharks and gorillas.
Underdogs celebrates the oddballs and outcasts while highlighting remarkable survival techniques, mental resilience and exceptional instincts.
Green Day wrote the original theme song for the series.
Episodes include the following:
Superzeroes
Ryan assembles a team of Superzeroes, apparently pathetic animals with unexpectedly awesome superpowers.
Forget about the cheetah's speed, the eagle's eyesight or the elephant's brute strength, and say hello to the invisible glass frog, the indestructible honey badger and the pistol shrimp who can fire bubbles that are as hot as the surface of the sun.
Terrible Parents
Ryan reveals some highly questionable parenting strategies from the animal kingdom's worst parents, the Underdogs.
From a goose who lays their eggs on the top of a cliff to a koala that feeds its baby poop, it's uncertain if they are bad parents or just misunderstood.
But no matter how bad you think you may be at parenting, you can't be as bad as these guys.
Sexy Beasts
Forget the birds and the bees, Ryan reveals the steps to finding the one, underdog-style.
From the first attraction in giant-nosed proboscis monkeys to the importance of wingmen in turkey courtship to foreplay in flying foxes, these guys have re-written the rule book on messy and complicated relationships.
The Unusual Suspects
Ryan puts the spotlight on the Underdogs who get ahead by sneaky tactics.
From the master-of-disguise frogfish to a butt-biting jackal and a multi-headed caterpillar playing the decoy, these are the masters of deception and deceit.
And bringing all these hustlers together is the greatest con artist of them all — a cunning macaque who feeds on the spoils from unsuspecting tourists.
Total Grossout
Ryan gives his unique take on the animals who use gross-out tactics to achieve their goals, from defending their home to finding a mate and wining at the game of life.
His cast includes manatees that use flatulence to control their buoyancy and cave-dwelling fungus gnats that create beautiful, illuminated fly traps from the mucus lit by their bioluminescent butts.
Marry Me Now SA 2
Channel: Mzansi Wethu (DStv 163)
TX Time: 19h30
Genre: Reality
Reality television series based on the "Marry Me Now" format in which women plan an entire wedding with the help of friends and relatives before 'ambushing' their partners with on-the-spot proposals.
Each week the show follows one woman who has had enough of waiting for a ring.
She takes the lead in her life and relationship and prepares her own wedding in just a few days - without the groom-to-be's knowledge.
The bride-to-be has just three days to plan her proposal and dream wedding.
She is supplied with a wedding planner and a set wedding budget.
She chooses her dream décor, cake, flower arrangement, food menu, her partner's suit and wedding dress.
Her family and friends as well as her partner's relatives are all in on the scheme.
It's her task to get them all to show up on her big day and keep her plan a secret until her big reveal.
On the third day she surprises her partner in her wedding dress with an ambush proposal.
If he says no, it's all over... but if he says yes, they tie the knot on the spot.
The brides are not only planning a life-changing event in record time, they're also handling the complexities of cultural paths that lead to the altar.
The question is, will their bold moves break traditional norms and win hearts, or will cultural obstacles prove too strong for these surprise ceremonies?
This season is hosted by Ntombi Ngcobo Mzolo, taking over from Talitha Ndima who hosted the show in Season 1.
In the Season 2 premiere: Having dealt with his cheating and drug abuse, Cynthia feels that proposing to Fuzi might be the thing they need to get a fresh start.
Will he say yes?
TVSA Show Page: Marry Me Now SA 2