Knife or Death
Knife or Death | |
---|---|
![]() Season 2 poster | |
Also known as | Forged in Fire: Knife or Death |
Genre | Reality |
Country of origin | United States |
Original language | English |
No. of seasons | 3 |
No. of episodes | 22 |
Production | |
Executive producer | Jim Pasquarella |
Producers | Jodi Flynn, David George, Simon Thomas and Vincent Cariati |
Running time | 42 minutes |
Production company | Outpost Entertainment |
Original release | |
Network | History |
Release | April 17, 2018 (2018-04-17) – September 19, 2019 (2019-09-19) |
Knife or Death (officially Forged in Fire: Knife or Death) is an American competition series that airs on the History channel. It is a spin-off from the successful Forged in Fire television series.
The show is hosted by former NFL player and WCW/WWE professional wrestler Bill Goldberg,[1] along with co-host Tu Lam, a former US Army Special Forces Soldier, martial artist and edged weapons expert.[2] Two-time Forged in Fire champion Travis Wuertz assists as the show's blade inspection specialist.
On each episode, eight contestants compete through two rounds, using edged weapons that they have either forged themselves or had fabricated to their specifications. They must submit their weapons to a preliminary examination by Wuertz and can be immediately disqualified in case of a safety issue or failure. The contestant who finishes the second-round course in the shorter time advances to the season finale, with a $20,000 cash prize at stake.[3]
Knife or Death premiered April 17, 2018 on History and is produced by Outpost Entertainment.[4]
Format
The contestants in each episode run two obstacle courses individually. A 25-second penalty is added to a contestant's time for each failure to complete an obstacle properly, and a catastrophic weapon failure (defined as damage that renders a weapon unsafe or ineffective for further use) results in disqualification.
Round One: Knife Fight
The first round, "Knife Fight," is a course that tests the quality of the contestants' weapons and their ability to strike stationary targets. The two who either finish the course or move the farthest along it in the shortest time advance to the second round. The course consists of five obstacles:
- Trailblazer: Cut through six 1" wooden dowels or hemp ropes, each of which releases a torch to swing down into a bucket.
- Stick and Move: Three containers (including a wooden crate and a plastic bucket) hang from chains with counterweights suspended on the other end. Each container must be pierced/damaged so that enough of the contents spill out to let its counterweight hit the floor.
- Ice Pick: Strike a 3-foot-tall block of ice and pierce a tube of liquid running up through its center.
- Lifeline: Slash cleanly through three hanging targets: a chicken, a fish, and a plastic tube filled with sand. The contestant is given one attempt per target; a failure on any of them stops the clock and ends the contestant's run immediately.
- Curtain Call: Cut through two hanging targets: a slab of pork belly and a piece of sheet metal. The contestant must then drive the blade into a wooden stump to stop the clock.
Round Two: Dead Run
The second round, "Dead Run," is a course intended to test the two remaining contestants' speed, timing, accuracy, and precision in wielding their blades against both stationary and moving targets. The contestant who finishes the course in the shorter time advances to the season finale. This course consists of six obstacles:
- Steak Knife: Cut five steaks in half as they hang from a rotating carousel.
- Extinguisher: Four lit candles are set beneath funnels. For each, the contestant must cut a rope to release a bottle of water, then slice the bottle on the downswing so that enough water lands in the funnel to run down and put out the candle.
- Weight Cut: Cut 40 pounds each from a hanging ice block and rack of meat slabs.
- Free Fall: One at a time, cut 10 watermelons in half as they are released from overhead chutes. Each cut must expose the melon's red flesh in order to count.
- Strike Zone: Cut a rope to release a curtain, then cut all the targets behind it (ropes, water bottles, slabs of meat, etc.) in half.
- Firestorm: Cut two ropes, releasing a flight of steps to fall into place, then run up the steps to a platform and chop through a stack of sugar cane.
Season finale changes
In the season finale, the five episode winners and the runner-up with the fastest time in Dead Run compete for the $20,000 prize. All targets are thicker and/or made of tougher materials, with the following specific changes:
- Ice Pick: The ice block has two embedded tubes of liquid that must both be pierced.
- Lifeline: No longer a sudden-death obstacle. The contestant may make multiple attempts, but incurs a time penalty for every attempt after the first on a target.
- Curtain Call: The contestant must cut through three targets (pork loin, plywood, sheet metal).
- Steak Knife: Renamed Rotisserie, with chickens replacing the steaks.
- Weight Cut: The rack of meat slabs is replaced by a second ice block, and the contestant must cut at least 80 pounds from each block before advancing.
Series overview
Season | Episodes | Originally aired | ||
---|---|---|---|---|
First aired | Last aired | |||
1 | 6 | April 19, 2018 (2018-04-19) | May 22, 2018 (2018-05-22) | |
2 | 8 | October 3, 2018 (2018-10-03) | November 22, 2018 (2018-11-22) | |
3 | 8 | August 28, 2019 (2019-08-28) | September 19, 2019 (2019-09-19) |
Episodes
All times include penalties assessed for failing to complete an obstacle properly.
Season 1 (2018)
Episode | Original air date | Title | Winner | Time |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | April 17, 2018 | "The Last Samurai" | Jo Smith | 3:11 |
2 | April 24, 2018 | "All the Barong Moves" | Jason Johnson | 3:28 |
3 | May 1, 2018 | "A Fish Called Lifeline" | Michael Allenson | 2:51 |
4 | May 8, 2018 | "Super Smash Bros." | Dwayne Unger | 3:45 |
5 | May 15, 2018 | "The Kukri Monster" | Jacob Gayton | 5:01 |
6 | May 22, 2018 | "Last Action Hero" | Michael Allenson | 2:06 |
Season 2 (2018)
Episode | Original air date | Title | Winner | Time |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Oct 3, 2018 | "Forged in Fire All Stars" | Keith | 6:50 |
2 | Oct 10, 2018 | "Blade Runners" | Zeke | 8:09 |
3 | Oct 17, 2018 | "Enter the Yatagan" | Eric | 4:10 |
4 | Oct 24, 2018 | "American Choppers" | Tom | 5:25 |
5 | Oct 31, 2018 | "Gladius Maximus" | Earl Culver | 5:05 |
6 | Nov 7, 2018 | "Don't Fear the Recurve" | Joel | 4:43 |
7 | Nov 14, 2018 | "Mutant Ninja Chickens" | Jeffery Robinson | 5:02 |
8 | Nov 21, 2018 | "$20,000 Dead Run" | Keith | 5:39 |
Season 3 (2019)
Episode | Original air date | Title | Winner | Time |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Aug 28, 2019 | "David vs. Goliath" | Don | 5:21 |
2 | Aug 29, 2019 | "Military All-Stars" | Jonathon | 5:51 |
3 | Sep 5, 2019 | "Death Fish" | Duy | NT |
4 | Sep 5, 2019 | "Seax & Violence" | Sam | 8:35 |
5 | Sep 12, 2019 | "Fortune Kukri" | Dan Weston | 6:03 |
6 | Sep 12, 2019 | "Messers of the Universe" | RJ Kriegsmesser | 2:45 |
7 | Sep 19, 2019 | "Hard Knock Knife" | Mike | 5:54 |
8 | Sep 19, 2019 | "Blade Fest of the Champion" | Dan Weston | 6:03 |
References
- ^ "Cast: Host". History. Retrieved May 16, 2018.
- ^ "Cast: Co-Host". History. Retrieved May 16, 2018.
- ^ "Forged in Fire: Knife or Death Sneak Peak". IGN. 17 April 2018. Retrieved May 16, 2018.
- ^ "History's New Competition FORGED IN FIRE: KNIFE OR DEATH Hosted by WWE Hall of Famer Bill Goldberg Premieres 4/17". BroadwayWorld. Retrieved May 16, 2018.
External links
- Official website
- v
- t
- e
- Alone (since 2015)
- American Pickers (since 2010)
- Ancient Aliens (since 2009)
- The Curse of Oak Island (since 2014)
- The Food That Built America (since 2019)
- Forged in Fire (since 2015)
- Kings of Pain (since 2019)
- Modern Marvels (since 1995)
- Mountain Men (since 2012)
- Pawn Stars (since 2009)
- The Secret of Skinwalker Ranch (since 2020)
- Swamp People (since 2010)
- The Toys That Built America (since 2021)
- The UnXplained (since 2019)
- 20th Century with Mike Wallace (1994–2005)
- Appalachian Outlaws (2014–15)
- Alaska Off-Road Warriors (2014–15)
- America Unearthed (2012–15; 2019)
- Ancient Discoveries (2003–09)
- The American Presidency with Bill Clinton (2022)
- American Restoration (2010–16)
- Ancients Behaving Badly (2009)
- Around the World in 80 Ways (2011)
- Ax Men (2008–19)
- Barbarians (2004–07)
- Battle 360° (2008)
- Battlefield Detectives (2003–06)
- Battles BC (2009)
- Big Easy Motors (2016–17)
- Big Rig Bounty Hunters (2013–14)
- Big Shrimpin' (2011–12)
- Billion Dollar Wreck (2016)
- Boneyard (2007)
- Brad Meltzer's Decoded (2010–12)
- Breaking Vegas (2006)
- The Butcher (2019)
- Cajun Pawn Stars (2012–13)
- Cities of the Underworld (2007–09)
- Civil War Combat (1999–2003)
- Clash of the Gods (2009)
- The Conquerors (2005)
- Conquest (2002–03)
- Counting Cars (2012–21)
- The Curse of Civil War Gold (2018–19)
- Decisive Battles
- Declassified
- Decoding the Past
- Deep Sea Detectives
- Digging for the Truth
- Dogfights
- Down East Dickering
- Eating History
- Engineering an Empire
- Evolve
- Expedition Africa
- Extreme Trains
- Food Tech
- The Food That Built America Snack Sized (2021)
- Full Metal Jousting
- Gangland
- Gangland Undercover
- Great Minds with Dan Harmon
- Greatest Tank Battles
- God, Guns & Automobiles
- Great Lake Warriors
- Hairy Bikers
- Hangar 1: The UFO Files
- Haunted History
- The History of Sex
- History's Business
- History's Lost & Found
- History's Mysteries
- History vs. Hollywood
- How the Earth Was Made
- How the States Got Their Shapes
- Human Weapon
- Hunting Hitler
- Ice Pilots NWT
- Ice Road Truckers
- In Search of...
- Join or Die with Craig Ferguson
- Jurassic Fight Club
- Knife or Death
- Knightfall (2017–2019)
- Last Stand of the 300
- The Legend of Shelby the Swamp Man
- Life After People
- The Lost Evidence
- Lost in Transmission
- Lost Worlds
- MadHouse
- Mail Call (2002-2009)
- Man, Moment, Machine
- The Men Who Killed Kennedy
- Mega Disasters
- Mega Movers
- MonsterQuest
- The Most
- Mounted in Alaska
- MysteryQuest
- Nostradamus Effect
- Only in America with Larry the Cable Guy
- Ozzy & Jack's World Detour
- Patton 360°
- Pawnography
- Picked Off
- The Presidents
- Project Blue Book
- Reel to Real
- Save Our History
- Shark Wranglers
- Shockwave
- Shootout!
- Six
- Sliced
- The States
- Stan Lee's Superhumans
- The Strongest Man in History
- Surviving History
- Tactical to Practical
- Tales of the Gun
- That's Impossible
- Top Gear
- Top Shot
- Tougher In Alaska
- Truck Night in America
- UFO Files
- UFO Hunters
- Unidentified: Inside America's UFO Investigation
- United Stats of America
- The Universe
- Vikings (2013–2020)
- Warriors
- Weird U.S.