Animal Face-Off

Animal Face-Off
Title card
Directed by	Malcolm Hall
Narrated by	Scott Dreier
Country of origin	United States
No. of seasons	1
No. of episodes	12
Production
Executive producers	Andrew Waterworth Michael Stedman
Producer	Nick Bleszynski
Running time	60 minutes (episodes 1-11) 120 minutes (episode 12)
Original release
Network	Discovery Channel Animal Planet
Release	March 21 (2004-03-21) – September 12, 2004 (2004-09-12)

Animal Face-Off is an American television program that aired on the Discovery Channel and Animal Planet in 2004.^[1][2]

Synopsis

This program, produced by NHNZ, centers on hypothetical battles between two animals that could meet in the wild, or, in some cases, have been compared to each other by scientists. CGI replicas and models were used to collect data (such as strength, bite force, etc.) about the animals. Then, in a virtual arena, a brief computer-animated fight scene reveals the results. Since the fights are created artificially, results in real life may vary. Each episode of Animal Face-Off is one hour long, with the exception of the 12th episode, "Sperm Whale vs. Colossal Squid", which is two hours long.

Episodes

No. in series	Title	Location	Winner
1	"Saltwater Crocodile vs. Great White Shark"	Australia	Great white shark
Off the coast of Australia, a solitary great white cruises close to shore, looking for prey; a large saltwater crocodile swims nearby, looking for new territory. The shark senses prey and investigates. It uses an exploratory bump; definitely food, but this meal fights back. With its crushing bite and powerful death roll, the crocodile tears off the shark's pectoral fin, but the shark is still strong. Then they collide head-on; the crocodile grabs the shark's snout. The shark cannot fight back. The croc goes for the death roll again, and they both sink. Running out of air, the croc breaks and heads for the surface. The shark takes advantage; with the croc's soft underbelly exposed, it comes back with a textbook attack and delivers the fatal bite.
2	"African Bush Elephant vs. White Rhinoceros"	Botswana	African bush elephant
On the African plains, a solitary bull elephant searches for food. Nearby, an ill-tempered white rhino leaves his mudhole, also seeking good grazing. Nearsighted, he sees only a threat and prepares to charge. The elephant answers the rhino's challenge with a show of strength, but the rhino calls his bluff. Unfortunately for him, the much smarter elephant anticipates his charge-and-thrust. The rhino returns and tries to stab the elephant's throat but cannot reach, even with his four-foot horn. The rhino comes back with an agile headbutt, but the elephant proves better with his seven-foot tusks. He uses those tusks to turn his rival around and stab him — twice. The elephant then charges, headbutts the rhinoceros, and crushes him under his weight before trumpeting in victory.
3	"Asiatic Lion vs. Bengal Tiger"	India	Asiatic Lion
A lion wanders through an abandoned Indian temple when he suddenly spots a tiger feeding nearby. The lion roars at his larger, striped relative, but the tiger ignores the warning. The lion charges but trips over the tiger on impact, catching him off guard. The agile tiger quickly recovers and attempts a throat bite. The lion shakes off the attack, and the combatants are back to square one. The big cats roar, claw, and wrestle, but neither lands a fatal blow. The tiger swoops in to end the fight quickly with a neck bite, but the lion's mane deflects his aim. The tiger then charges, but the lion deflects the attack and delivers the killing blow to the tiger's neck before roaring in victory.[1]
4	"Hippopotamus vs. Bull Shark"	Zambezi	Hippopotamus
A lone bull hippo rests in an African river. He is bleeding from a gash on his back, the result of a fight with another male. The smell of blood attracts a hungry bull shark, which begins the encounter with an exploratory bump. After confirming the hippo is food, the bull shark tries to take a few bites. But the hippo's thick hide, combined with his enormous girth, is too much of a mouthful for the smaller shark. The dangling tail is an easy target, but even the thin skin behind the back leg proves too tough for the shark. The hippo does not know what hit him, but that bad temper lights a fire in his belly. Soon, the hippopotamus submerges and spots the deadly shark. The hippo's enormous jaws easily encircle the shark, impaling it on his foot-long tusks and crushing it.
5	"Cougar vs. Wolf"	Rocky Mountains	Cougar
In the Rocky Mountains, an alpha male wolf is eating a carcass when a cougar smells meat and investigates. Feeling his evening meal threatened, the wolf charges forward and bites the cougar's hind leg but backs off when the cougar pounces with his front legs and lethal claws. The wolf howls to his pack for backup. Low on stamina, the cougar tries to back off, but the wolf bites his paw. The wolf pins the cougar but exposes himself to those claws again. The cougar grabs the wolf with his front paws, scratches him with his hind limbs, and throws him to the ground, knocking the wolf unconscious. The cougar goes for a fatal neck bite, but the cries of the approaching wolf pack force him to retreat.
6	"Walrus vs. Polar Bear"	Arctic Circle	Walrus
A polar bear approaches a walrus that has climbed onto the ice to rest. Sensing something attacking, the walrus turns, sees the bear, and heads for the water. Wielding immense strength, the bear holds the walrus long enough with its huge paws to latch on with its teeth but cannot inflict serious damage. The turning point comes when the walrus inadvertently drags the bear into the water. In its element, the walrus proves quicker and more maneuverable than the bear, which it gores with its tusks. Wounded and running out of air, the bear struggles back to the surface. But the walrus is not finished – it delivers the fatal blow. The dead bear sinks to the depths as the walrus climbs back onto the ice to rest again.
7	"Ussuri Brown Bear vs. Siberian Tiger"	Siberia	Ussuri brown bear
On a Siberian mountainside, a hungry tiger makes a much-needed winter kill. Nearby, a huge brown bear forages desperately for food before his long winter sleep. The bear picks up the scent of the kill and approaches the tiger to steal the meal. The tiger lunges, striking with all his weight, but the bear absorbs the impact without losing his balance. The tiger then tries to land a killing blow on the bear's neck, but the bear pushes him down. The bear then approaches the kill, but the tiger recovers and pounces from behind, slashing with his claws but failing to disable him. The much stronger bear turns around, breaks the tiger's spine, and finishes him off with a neck bite.
8	"Lion vs. Nile Crocodile"	Maasai Mara	Nile crocodile
At the edge of an African waterhole, a lion feeds on his kill. A hungry crocodile senses the meal and emerges from the water. Armed with a deadly bite, the lion is confident he can defend his kill. But the croc's body armor protects it from teeth and claws. The croc fights back, but its head flick and body roll only dislodge the agile lion. Fast reflexes keep him out of harm's way, and he presses his attack, but he never manages to tip the heavy croc over and expose its soft belly. The croc heads back to the water for a surprise attack. Not knowing where it went, the lion stays at the water's edge. When the croc strikes from ambush, it grabs the lion's neck, pulls him under, and kills him with a death roll.
9	"Jaguar vs. Green Anaconda"	Amazon rainforest	Green anaconda
Deep in the Amazon jungle, a hungry jaguar prowls the water for prey. A giant anaconda senses a disturbance and slithers closer to strike. The jaguar senses danger but cannot see the anaconda through the murk. A bird call distracts the big cat, and the snake strikes, coiling around its victim. The heavy collision pulls the cat off his feet. Underwater, the jaguar rakes the anaconda's body with his claws and sinks his teeth through its spine. In response, the snake releases its grip and tries to retreat, but the jaguar begins dragging it ashore, determined to eat it. However, the giant snake's body is free enough to turn around and counterattack. This time, the anaconda completely restrains the jaguar, who is now too tired to resist.
10	"African Leopard vs. Mountain Gorilla"	Central Africa	Mountain gorilla
A big silverback leaves his family in the trees, while he seeks a place to rest for the night. Unbeknownst to him, a leopard has hidden her cubs in a nearby den. The leopard then sees the gorilla walking by and interprets him as a threat. The gorilla, seeing the leopard, also sees it as a threat to his troop. He tries to avoid a fight, beating his chest, growling, and howling, but the leopard does not flinch. In the dim light, the leopard's night vision and stealth give her the advantage. But she cannot get a chokehold on the big primate, and the gorilla has a powerful bite of his own. Desperate, the leopard makes a final lunge towards the gorilla, but he throws his powerful arm onto her spine, breaking it and killing the leopard, and also orphaning her cubs.
11	"American Black Bear vs. American Alligator"	Everglades	American black bear
After a busy morning raiding alligator nests, a black bear approaches a body of water to quench his thirst. Beneath the surface, an eleven-hundred-pound alligator watches his every move. Taking advantage of the element of surprise, the stealthy alligator seizes the bear's leg with its powerful jaws and rolls, but all it grabs is a mouthful of fur, fat, and muscle. Hurt, but not fatally wounded, the bear fights back. The reptile counters with a tail swipe, but the smarter bear anticipates the attack. Running out of steam, the alligator tries to retreat. When the bear lunges, the alligator tries to roll free, exposing its soft underbelly, which the bear fatally slashes. The bear leaves as the alligator's dead body rots on the bank.
12	"Sperm Whale vs. Colossal Squid"	Antarctic Ocean	Sperm Whale
A huge sperm whale is diving into the deep abyss, while a colossal squid rockets through the depths. Both combatants sense each other – the squid sees the whale, while the whale's echolocation reveals the squid's location. Seeing the whale as a potential predator, the squid releases a burst of ink as a warning, but the whale ignores it and slowly attacks the huge squid. Just before it reaches the mouth, the squid latches onto the whale. By rising close to the surface, the whale shakes the squid off, though it gets scratched by the squid’s hooked suction cups in the process. The whale amplifies its sonar and stuns the squid. The paralyzed cephalopod is helpless – and thus eaten alive.

See also

• Deadliest Warrior
• Death Battle

References

1. John F. Bonfatti (March 27, 2004), "Survival of the Fittest", The Buffalo News, archived from the original on 23 October 2012
2. Wallenstein, Andrew (2004-03-19). "TV Review: Discovery Channel's 'Animal Face-Off'". NPR.org. Retrieved 2022-06-03.