Well, another Shark Week has come and gone, and it was nothing short of amazing — as usual. Let’s face it, Shark Week has been a part of our summers for years and will probably continue to be for many to come. I mean, who can resist watching Great Whites jump out of the water to catch seals or the death-defying lengths these men and women will go to capture footage of sharks for our own pleasure? We all remember our first Shark Week and know the exact moment we were sucked in and sank our jaws into this glorious event that occurs every summer.
I remember my first Shark Week like it was yesterday. Late July 31, 2011, or July 31, 1 A.S.W (After Shark Week), then-SNL cast member, Andy Samberg, was hosting. Watching "Mythbusters" I came across the first ad, and I was immediately hooked. I was so excited to experience my first Shark Week ever, and I had no idea that it would change my life forever. Soon enough my DVR was full of shark specials, and my friends would be coming over at night for binge-watching, or as I called it our “late-night feedings.” This happened that week in the summer of 2011, and it would become an annual tradition.
We know this spectacular event changes lives, but the question is how. Is it inspiring people to study sharks? Possibly. Since it has almost been 30 years of shark, someone had to plunge into a career involving sharks because of it. Or maybe it causes people to hate sharks? No, that can’t be. All programs are meant to educate its viewers on how sharks are not the killer eating machines portrayed in Spielberg’s "Jaws," although the week does give the suspense and awe the film gave 40 years ago. But, besides all this, I have a theory on how Shark Week changes our lives.
My belief is that, for a week out of the summer, Shark Week makes us solitary predators, hungry for the next thrill that will fill our bellies. Yes, it’s true, Shark Week has us glued to the television, and we are unable to let go until the final day is over. Whenever a television is near us, it is immediately changed to the Discovery Channel — if that channel isn’t on the same channel since our last viewing (why wouldn’t it be? It’s Shark Week!). You hope that you aren’t called into work any day that week because you are “too busy,” but you are actually watching sharks being cool as hell. Your phone is full of unanswered text messages from friends asking if you want to hangout, but you pretend you don’t see them because you are actually seeing a shark fly out of the water to catch a seal. To put things in basic terms, Shark Week gives us the excitement of being near sharks while lazily sitting on our couch for hours on end.
It’s a fascinating event that rolls around every year and brings footage that tops the previous year's because technology is getting more advanced and the people who study sharks are getting more creative. It’s a week of education on a predator of the sea that we are always nervous about when we step foot in the ocean. Our love for sharks has become greater since Shark Week first aired in 1988. Even with we humans being attached to a couch for a week, Shark Week is obviously a win for everyone, including the sharks. It may be a bad week to be a seal, but it is a good week to own a TV.
