All language subtitles for Forged.in.Fire.Knife.or.Death.S01E01.The.Last.Samurai.1080p.HULU.WEB-DL.AAC2.0.H.264-SiGMA_track3_eng

- Throughout history,

the blade and one's ability
to wield it

has been the difference
between life and death.

Tonight, America's top
bladesmiths, martial artists,

and knife experts
bring their weapons

to the toughest challenge...

- Come on, let's do this!
- They'll ever face.

- It's a grueling gauntlet

designed to put their
blade wielding skills...

Whoa!
To the ultimate test.

He broke the knife in half!

The top two competitors
move on to Dead Run,

the final showdown,

for a chance at
a $20,000 grand prize.

Total carnage!

Who can do the most damage
in the fastest time?

Whose blade, and dreams,
will shatter?

And who will earn the title
of Knife or Death champion?

- I've probably made
500 knives,

but the unknown of what

we're gonna cut
in this competition,

it's pretty intimidating.

- I've been a blade sports
competitor for a while.

I've done some crazy stuff
in my life.

Nothing like this.

- Blade wielders,
I'm Bill Goldberg.

This is the most difficult,
intense,

and utterly bad ass
knife competition ever created.

Welcome to "Forged In Fire:
Knife or Death."

Many of you have forged
your own blades,

others had them made
to their own specifications.

We've got katanas,
competition choppers,

and traditional bowie knives,
among others.

You and your blade
will be tested

in a series of timed challenges

that focus on precision,

technique, strength,

blade sharpness,
and durability.

It is my honor to introduce
to you

Special Forces Green Beret
Tu Lam,

a martial arts master,
and weapons expert.

- If your techniques
are on point,

if you choose the right angles,

have efficient movement,

you can win this competition.

- Ladies and gentlemen,

the first course
is Knife Fight.

The Knife Fight course is a
true test of speed and power.

The first obstacle
you'll face: Trail Blazer.

You must cut through
six wooden dowels,

each releasing a lit torch.

When the torches fall,
igniting the steel pits,

it's time to move on
to the next obstacle,

Stick and Move.
You must stab, slice,

and cut through
three separate containers

to release enough contents

so that the attached
counterweights

reach the ground

before the containers
rise to high to hit,

and before
you cross that line,

or you will be penalized.

Next up is Ice Pick.

You must chop into
a 3-foot block of ice,

puncture the plastic pipe,

and release the red liquid.

Then you move on to Lifeline,
a sudden-death obstacle.

You must fully slice
through three hanging objects

with one swing each.

Fail to slice through
the thickest part,

your run time ends,

and you're not allowed
to go on

any further in the course.

If you make it this far,

your last obstacle
is Curtain Call,

where you must cut completely
through the wall of meat,

and did the sheet of metal.

Your time ends
when you plunge your blade

through the tree stump.

- That course is frightening.

There's ice blocks,
and there's wood boxes.

I'm gonna put
some good strikes on it,

but I sure hope
my blade doesn't break.

- Fish, chicken, holy hell!

This is a competitor's dream.

Every cut I like to do
is here.

- All obstacles
you leave unfinished

will incur
a 25-second penalty.

After every competitor finishes
and penalties are added up,

the two that make it
the farthest the fastest

will move on to our second,
even more grueling

course challenge:
Dead Run.

The winner earns a cash prize,

and a spot in
the grand champion showdown

at the end of the season

to vie for
a $20,000 cash prize

and the title
of "Knife Or Death" champion.

- We station our very
own blade expert,

and "Forged in Fire" champion,

Travis Wuertz before
the start of this run.

He's gonna give your blade
one final once-over

before we give you the green
light to tackle Knife Fight.

If he finds any problems
with your blade,

he can disqualify you
from this competition.

- Time to get your hands dirty.

- The adrenaline is flowing.

I'm ready to compete.
I'm gonna win.

I'm Karl Groger,

and I'm from Holtsville,
New York.

I enjoy competing in
martial arts competitions.

I also hold
a black belt in Iaido,

the way of Japanese
samurai sword.

The blade that I brought
is a shinken,

which is a live
Japanese katana.

There is a confidence
and a spirit

that shoots through
the blade into me.

It should be able to
cut through anything

you can throw at me.

- Hi there.

Thank you.

It's great to see somebody

go through a lot
of the practice

of the art
of the Japanese sword.

- It's been a part of my spirit
my whole life.

That was hand forged to
the specifications of my body.

You can't take a sharpened
blade out of Japan.

They're actually considered
national treasures,

so I was lucky enough
to have found a Japanese smith

that actually lived in China,

and they were able
to send it to me

here in the United States.

- Yeah,
this is a beautiful blade,

but it does seem to have
a little bit of wiggle.

This can affect
the performance of the blade.

I've to do a little bit
of testing,

make sure it's safe
and handles well

before you're allowed
on the course with it.

- Hai.

- This is a fine blade,

and this definitely
makes the cut.

- Thank you, sir.
- Good luck.

- I've come
to "Knife Or Death"

for one reason: to win.

- I'm really excited
to see Karl.

He is the modern-day samurai.

The katana began to develop

when the Mongolians
invaded Japan.

A sharper blade was needed
to pierce

the Mongol warrior's
leather armor.

Let's see how it cuts
through a box and gravel.

- Hai!
- His blade, by far,

is the largest blade
in today's competition.

- You have 28 inches
of cutting power.

He can wield this thing
with one hand,

or he can double up
with both hands.

- Is bigger better?
We're gonna see.

- See how he's hitting
at a downward angle?

- Clean cut! Power!

- He's dropping those hips.
He's dropping the legs.

- He's through, he's through.

The torches are down.
It was precise.

He got the angle of attack,

and he generated
the power needed

to blow right through
those dowels.

Next up, Stick and Move.

- He's going towards
thrusting motion.

- Samurai blades
employ soft metal.

He may e trying to preserve
his blade here.

- The katana is a long blade.

Thrusting, versus
slashing the corners,

is not gonna give
the penetration to cut through.

It's slowly releasing
those contents.

I would've utilize
the power of that blade.

- He's leaving the crate

before that counterweight
reaches the ground.

- In the Special Forces,

you make sure that threat's
down before you move on.

- Now he's gonna try and slice
through the first bucket.

Let's talk about cardio
right now.

You see him slowing down.

- He's feeling
the pressure and time.

- Now onto the second bucket.

The second bucket's
counterweight

reaches the ground.

He needs those
two counterweights

to hit the ground
before you cross that line,

or it's a 25-second penalty.

Oh, he gave up on the box,
and the first bucket,

and crossed the line

before the two counterweights
hit the ground.

Two penalties
on Stick and Move.

- This ice is going to make
or break Karl.

The katana is a long blade.

He needs to hit it
at the proper angle.

- Look how he's attacking it.
- Yeah, and he's attacking it.

Angle one. He's coming down,
but I would also come up

at an angle
to open up that cavity.

- Is he getting a little bounce
from that ice?

Oh my God, his blade
is actually bending.

But he's through the tube.
There's the red liquid!

- He bust through that ice,

but he's definitely
concerned about that blade.

- And as you see,
he's manually bending it back.

- Definitely gonna
play in Lifeline.

- Karl is competing
with a bent blade,

and he's gonna need total
concentration and skill here

on Lifeline.

Through the chicken!

Nice!

Karl is staring down
sudden death.

Ugh.

Unfortunately, Karl can't move
on and complete the course.

- He stopped too short.

You need to cut
through that object.

- Look at those eyes,

and on that face is
complete disappointment.

- First off, hell of a run,

but were standing
in front of Lifeline,

which was sudden-death.

- I took that fish
for granted, you know?

I kind of just stopped
right here.

Unfortunately misjudged it
a little bit.

That's really disappointing.
The sword didn't break.

My spirit didn't break.
I really should've been able

to cut through
that fish with ease.

- Well, we'll see if your time
is good enough

to put you outside in Dead Run.

- Hai.

I'm proud of the way
I handled the course.

I think I did it with pride,

and I look forward
to being the winner.

- Two other competitors
will have to reach

or pass the fish
faster than Karl

in order to knock him
out of the competition.

- My name's David McConnell,

and I work
as a machine repairman.

In my down time,
I'm forging blades.

I was on "Forged in Fire."

It didn't turn out
quite the way I wanted it to.

I came in second.

I absolutely do not want

to come in second
on this competition.

- Welcome.
What have you brought me today?

- Bolo knife.

- Who made this knife?
- I forged it.

- I see you have
a nice thin edge.

The spot--I shouldn't
be able to do that.

You know, you do have
a little bit of a dull spot,

but it looks like a fine blade.

I'm gonna do a little bit

of test chopping before you're
allowed on the course with it.

- Please.
- All right.

Well, this part may not be
as sharp as this part,

all parts cut.

Your blade has made the cut.
Good luck.

- Thank you.
I'm feeling a lot of anxiety.

I just want to cut something.

- David McConnell is
a "Forged in Fire" veteran,

and this cat knows
how to forge a blade.

- Bolo knife throughout
history was used to cut down

thick vegetation.

- Obviously, these are
good chopping tools.

- But if he doesn't know
how to use balance,

like a martial artist,
which he lacks those skills,

he may have a problem.

- And he's about three times
the size of his blade.

He's gonna have to come down
with all his force.

David's off!

First dowel, right through it.

Resetting--right
through the second.

- See how he's resetting?

He's getting his base down,
he's dropping those knees--

- Making his cut.

- He's definitely
using his body.

- Yes, sir, that bolo's
going right through it.

Whack!

Success on Trail Blazer
for David.

- Beautiful run.

Now he needs to refocus
the mind.

- Up next, Stick and Move.

- David doesn't bring
a lot of raw power,

so it will all depend
on the strength of his blade

to penetrate
these tough objects.

- He's going for each corner,
not specifically one.

- Oh, he's gonna bust
through that box.

- He is blowing
right through it!

Oh, my God!
- Whoa.

Oh, my God!
metal clattering

No, he broke
the knife in half!

Oh, my God!
- Whoa!

- Can you see the disbelief
in David's eyes?

I'm telling you, man,
that is a testament

to the difficulty
of this course.

- Now, unfortunately, we had
a catastrophic blade failure.

Your blade made clean cuts
on the dowels,

and I attribute a lot
to your edge geometry,

that convex sharp edge.

I would've liked to see the
knife survive a little longer.

You really got me excited to
see what you could do with it.

We do see some enlarged grain,
but at the same time,

this was the thin spot in it.

So unfortunately, your time on
"Knife and Death" is over.

- Thank you.
- Here's your tip.

- You know, this competition
meant a lot to David,

but his blade failed him,

a blade that
he constructed himself.

- I'm feeling
total frustration.

My blade broke.

I've never had
this failure before.

Just bad heat treat.

I'm so competitive.

stammering
A-and this kills me.

- Two competitors up,
two competitors down.

- My name is Rodrigo
indistinct.

I'm originally from Brazil,
and right now,

I live in Atlanta, Georgia.

I'm a judo black belt,
a jujitsu black belt.

The blade I'm competing with
is a kopis sword.

It's a Greek style.

They say back in the years,
it used to help

when you cut a head off,
all this stuff.

Every morning, I make
my orange juice with my blade,

cutting the orange,
and stuff, you know, I love it.

Opa!
You ready?

I'm coming for you all.

I brought you a kopis.

- A kopis?
Who's the maker?

- There's a guy
from the mountain,

up in North Georgia,
this guy is great with knives.

- This is an impressive blade
to hit a small target.

- Yeah, I'm ready.

- I'm gonna do a little bit
of testing myself.

- Right on.

- This is a fine blade.

Congratulations.
Your blade makes the cut.

- Appreciate it.
Thank you.

Be ready, because
I'm gonna rock and roll.

- Look at the energy
from Rodrigo.

- This is a kopis blade.

The hoplites,
back in ancient Greece,

they were armed
with a spear and shield.

They had their kopis blade.
They use that as a side arm,

so once Persians would breach
the spears,

hoplites, they would transition
to these short swords

and, man, I tell you what--
- Carnage.

- I feel this is
one of the best blades

to bring into this competition.

- This is gonna be fun.

- Got hung up on the dowel.

- With a man his size,
it shows how hard

these things can be
to cut through.

- There he goes.
- Now he's dropping his base.

- Absolutely.

- First one,
he didn't drop the base.

- Boom, boom, boom.
Goes through all of them.

Okay, Rodrigo stepping up
to Stick and Move.

Let's see
how he destroys the box.

He's blowing it apart!
- shouts

- As the contents fall out,
it's only going to get higher.

- Is he gonna be able to
have the weight hit the ground

before it's out of his reach?

One counterweight down!
Second obstacle!

He may have ripped
that bucket open,

but the counterweight
did not touch the ground.

Whoa! Right through it!

Unbelievable power and ferocity
he attacked that with.

The first bucket's
counterweight

did not touch the ground

and he's already past the line.
There's the penalty.

- He's attacking low.

He's picking the direct line
to that pipe,

and that's the way to go.

- Complete!

He moves on to Lifeline.

Sudden-death obstacle.

Remember, one cut
through each object.

If not, you're out
of the challenge.

- Ah, completed number one.

He even had some words
to the chicken.

Karl couldn't get
past the fish.

Let's see what Rodrigo can do.

Oh, my God!

He wasn't able to get through.

- No! bleep.
buzzer sounds

- You see, he did not release
those hips.

He did not drive through
that blade. He stopped short.

fish didn't fall.

- I don't understand
with each of these contestants

why they don't get
to that point...

- Wow.
- Take their time,

and go through it like
a hot knife through butter.

What is it gonna take for
somebody to defeat this course?

- I'm Jo Carruthers,

and I'm from Mooresville,
North Carolina.

I love being
a competitive chopper.

Going through a 2x4
or hitting a dangling rope,

slashing through
all the water bottles,

being out there
with the big guys,

and people going, "Wow!"

It's just a blast.

- Welcome. Let me take a look
at your knife.

- It is a 12-inch behemoth
chopper that I made.

My husband and I
have a machine shop

where we make our knives.

- And you heat treated
this blade yourself?

- Yes.

- So this is a sole
authorship blade?

- Sole authorship blade.

- Good for you.
- Thank you.

- This is definitely
a structurally sound knife,

and I'm gonna do
a little bit of testing.

All right.

Congratulations.

Your blade has made the cut.

Good luck in this competition.

- I'm here to show
the knife world

that girls can do this too.

And I would love
to come home with a win.

- She has a lot of experience
in the competition world.

Choppers also refer
to stone tools

used as far back
as 2 million years ago.

These choppers are
the modern version

of one of man's
earliest inventions.

- I'm excited to see it.

buzzer sounds

See, here's where the power,
or lack thereof,

may come into play.

- I would definitely
drop my base.

Use the legs,
use the structure of your body

to be able to drop
and cut through that.

- Yeah.
- She's just using

her upper body
and her hands right now.

- She got through.
A couple little stumbles,

but she's moving on
to Stick and Move.

- It's gonna be a little bit
of a disadvantage,

'cause see how she has to swing
almost at a different angle up,

you know, if you're shorter.

She's getting
a little fatigued,

but hey, you know what?
She's not quitting.

- There's no doubt about that.

She has got
the true warrior spirit.

Well, moving on.

- Swing through it.
- Lack of power.

- You have to swing through it,
just like a boxer.

You have to swing
through that target.

But I want you to look
at her footing.

She's not really locking in
that place

like a boxer
or a martial artist.

She hits at one angle.
The contents start spilling,

then she'll hit the other side
of the bucket.

You need to continue to hit
the same area

consistently to release
those contents.

- Second bucket's counterweight

reaches the ground.

Two counterweights hanging,

there are two penalties.

Got through the pipe,
there's red liquid.

But she is gassed, for sure.

Lifeline concentrates
on the angle of entry,

and the speed
in which you wield it.

- On to Lifeline.
Can she fully slice through

three hanging objects
with one swing each?

Fail and you're not allowed
to go on

Jo did not get through
any fu the chicken!

The rules state that
you must cut completely

through the thickest part
of the chicken.

Jo only cut through the leg,

for that, she's unable
to finish the course.

- I wanted to make it
through the course,

but I'm proud
of my performance.

Probably the coolest thing
I've ever done.

- I'm Pat Biggin, and I've been
a part-time bladesmith

for 13 years.

As a kid, my grandpa
gave me a knife

that his dad had made for him
during World War II

during his naval service.

And it kind of kicked off
my interest in making blades.

In my spare time,
I participate

in extreme
obstacle courses.

I do all my events in a kilt.

My family
is traditionally Irish.

And it gives me a little bit
of extra insulation

and padding to move around in.

- What have you brought me?
- I have brought you a chopper.

- All right.
So who forged the blade?

- I did.
- The blade's got nice weight.

Yeah, definitely
has some chopper edge,

except little bit
more of a point.

So what's this?
What you got here?

- Uh,
it's a bamboo hardwood floor

from when we redid
the house floors,

and the bottom black
is the rubber floor

from my gym we put in.

- Well, I'm gonna do
some testing

before you're allowed
to go out in the competition.

- That sounds like fun.

- You ready?

- Hell yeah.

- This blade makes the cut.
- Thank you.

Got a lot of adrenaline
running right now,

so I want to use that energy,

focus it on all the obstacles.

I hope I leave
this course in pieces.

- As Pat walks up
to Trail Blazer,

let's talk about the blade he's
bringing to the competition.

- This is a heavy chopper,
so any downward angle,

he's gonna slice through
like butter.

My only concern is, there's
not a lot of blade there.

Blade hand gets tired,
he can't really double up.

Only 5 inches of handle.

- He kind of looks
like a Viking.

- He does.
buzzer sounds

- There goes Pat,
right through the first dowel.

Not an issue whatsoever.
Taking his time.

- That chopper cutting through,
no problems.

- This is about power
and this is about strategy.

And he goes
right for the corner.

He's about to destroy
that entire box.

Full destruction!

There he goes, moving on.

Box is down,
the question is,

with the shortness
of that blade,

how is he gonna take this on?

- There's not much blade,

so he's able to wield
that thing a lot faster.

- I don't think
there's any question

that Pat's getting
a little winded here.

- There's a lot of strokes,
a lot of movement.

- He's through! He's through!

He's done with Stick and Move.
On to Ice Pick.

I don't know about
the shortness of that blade,

how it's gonna be attacked.

- But he's hitting it hard.
- Man, he is going through it.

- He has no problems with that,
and I truly feel

that it's because of
the shortness of the blade--

allows him full control
over that weapon.

- Well, that, and the size
of his biceps.

- That grip is wearing down
on that ice.

- I'm watching him attack that
ice, and I'm getting fatigued.

- When you have thick gloves,

you don't have
that grip strength.

See how he's readjusting?
- Yep.

- The kill shot. Nice!

Readjusting his grip again,
you see that.

No margin for error
in Lifeline.

One swing, and not
a clean cut through,

and you're out
of the challenge.

This is gonna be tough.

He did not get through
the chicken!

Unfortunately,

Pat cannot move on
and complete the course.

More than half
the competitors

have stepped up
to Knife Fight,

and not one has made it
past Lifeline.

At the end of the day,
that chicken kicked his ass.

- My name is Craig Singleton.

I got interested in blades
about six years ago,

when I started getting into
African martial arts.

It wasn't Daniel-san,
Mr. Miyagi type of thing,

it was just
a combat defense tool.

The blade I brought is custom
handmade from Palestine.

It's a simple blade.

It's stocky,
it reminds me of myself.

There is no competition.

- Well, what have you
brought me today?

- I brought you a bowie.

- How have you trained
with this knife?

- I just got it recently,

so I did a couple
of cutting on fruit.

- Well, it's a very fast blade,

but it doesn't have
a whole lot of mass up front.

You know the old proverb,

"Man with short knife
needs long arms."

You're gonna need some long
arms to swing this sucker,

but I'm gonna
do some testing.

Gonna determine
whether or not

you're able to compete
with this blade.

- Ready.
- Right.

So I definitely felt
some resistance cutting.

That kind of comes
to the overall

lack of mass in the tip.

But ultimately,
what I can do with the knife

has nothing to do with
what you can do to a knife.

Your knife makes the cut.
Good luck.

- Thank you.
Oh, I'm cool right now,

but when it's time
to go on this course,

I'm hitting the ground
running.

- Craig Singleton,

wielding, for the first time
today, a bowie knife.

- It was used by Jim Bowie
in the Battle of the Alamo

for a self-defense
type of weapon,

versus chopping
through something.

Well, he comes from an African
martial art background.

It's used to breach, it's used
to eliminate the threat.

I just don't know how it's
gonna do in this competition.

- But he's got the guts
to step up to the plate,

and he has, ultimately,
the guts to take on

"Knife or Death."

buzzer sounds
Here he goes.

- bleep.

- Okay, we've got problems
from the beginning.

I think he almost lost
the blade out of his hand.

- See how he readjusted
his mind?

- Yes, sir.

And he is attacking it
with fervor.

Look at that.
Destroying the course!

Up next, Stick and Move.
Here he goes.

- He's trying to attack low.

Now he's coming
at attack angle two.

- He is going to gas out
before he gets anywhere.

That is my prediction.

- That is not the blade
to be hitting

at the corners like that.
- Yeah.

Although, he's got some
aggression going towards it.

He's not giving up.

- I can see the martial art
background coming out.

- One thing's for sure:

he has the will
and determination.

He's not giving up.

He is going for broke.

He's getting success now.

One counterweight
finally down.

On to the second part
of Stick and Move.

- He definitely needs to change
his pattern of attack.

That's not cutting through.

- Adapt and overcome.

Now, I can't see from
this angle, but I don't know

if he's been able
to even penetrate that yet.

The blade's bouncing off.
I don't think the edge

is anywhere near sharp enough
to be doing this.

His blade broke
right off the handle!

buzzer sounds
Instant disqualification.

- There's your problem.

This being such a thin blade,

the tang--I don't have
a better word than bleep.

laughs

But it was a pleasure
watching you swing it.

- Thank you.
- Unfortunately,

your time on "Knife or Death"
is done.

Would you like a souvenir?
- Sure.

- laughs

- I am disappointed
in the blade,

because I paid
some money for it.

I figured that I was getting
a quality for my money.

- What he lacked in blade,
he sure made up for in heart.

- When I was eight years old,
my dad handed me a knife,

pointed me to a deer and said,
"Skin it,

and don't cut any holes."

I figured out I might as well
just start making my own.

My name's Jo Smith,

and I use every bit
of my engineering background

to build my knives.

I've been a blade sports
competitor for a while.

This is the knife
I'll be bringing.

This blade is bad ass.

It's sharp.

I could shave you bald
with it.

- What have you brought me?

- I brought you
a competition blade.

Cleaver style, no point,
built to a spec

that is good for cutting,
chopping.

- Do you have any blade
sports experience?

- I'm the 2017 Amateur Points
national champion.

- Awesome.
So did you forge this blade?

- Correct.
- Very polished edge.

- Correct.

- Your intent is to sever
anything this blade

comes in contact with.

- With speed and that polish,
it'll go through anything.

- Well, we're gonna do
a little bit of testing

before you're allowed
on the course with it.

- Have at it.
- All right.

This is a fine blade.
It definitely makes cut.

Good luck.
- Thank you, sir.

I'm extraordinarily confident
in my blade.

It'll do anything I need it to.
I'm gonna win this.

- I can hear them,
now I can see him.

Big bad Jo
from Jenks, Oklahoma,

stepping up to the plate!

- Looks like the Lone Ranger
little bit,

with an attitude
and a huge knife.

- This dude looks like
an assassin in a Coen movie.

This guy lives, breathes,
and eats choppers.

- Look at that thing, though.
- That's unbelievable.

Right now, the course
is his adversary,

because it's kicked
everybody's ass up until now.

Not one competitor
completed the course.

So far, only two have even
made it past the chicken.

Jo is the last one up,

and he's got to make it
to the fish

to even have a chance
of moving on.

- Come on, let's do this!
- Jo's ready.

He's about to jump out
of them boots.

buzzer sounds
Jo starts Trail Blazer!

Right through the first,
right through the second.

Good God!

- Oh, yeah.
- Speed, precision.

Unbelievable!
- Unbelievable!

- Jo got through there in half
the time it took everyone else.

As he steps up
to Stick and Move,

we've seen people have an issue
with that box before.

Let's see how Jo attacks it.

And there he goes,
here we go!

- I would attack
a little lower,

'cause he's hitting it high,

and is counters are not
dropping.

He's just trying
to destroy the box.

- Looks like he's trying
to destroy it and he did.

Jo moves on
to the second obstacle.

There we go, counterweight's
down on the first.

Looks like he's exerting
a little bit more effort.

Counterweight two did not
touch the ground, though.

And you see him
take the deep breath.

You see the enter
of angle right there?

Jo is destroying the course!

Second counterweight did
not touch the ground, though.

That will incur a penalty.

Okay, now we're testing
that blade on the ice.

- On the top!
- Completely different strategy

than we've seen before.

We are watching a pro at work.
Taking his time.

Strategic.

And he's wearing
half of that ice.

I see red. It's a pass.

No one's made it through.

Can Jo defeat Lifeline?

Here we go.

One cut--oh, successful
through the chicken.

Absolutely easy.
buzzer sounds

He rushed.
- bleep.

- Did not take his time.
He didn't analyze the object.

No question,
he didn't follow through.

You can't tell me that blade's
not sharp enough

to go through that fish.

- That blade will cut
through it.

- I feel like
I let everybody down.

- Jo is devastated.

- bleep things off of me.

- This is a national
level champion

so this should tell you
how hard this course is.

- Jo, that was
an incredible run,

unfortunately,
it ends here at Lifeline.

But your time on "Knife
or Death" may not be over.

- Thank you, sir.

- What I love about
all these competitors,

they had fight in them.

- Well, they didn't
have a choice,

because this course
fought back.

And it won.

Blade wielders,
nobody completed

the Knife Fight course.

There were two catastrophic
blade failures,

and you are the three
who made at the farthest.

You all made it
past the chicken,

but got stopped
by the fish.

Now, it's down to
who did it faster.

Jo, your time,
including penalties,

was one minute and 37 seconds,

the fastest time today.

Congratulations, you're the
first competitor in Dead Run.

- Thank you, sir.

- Rodrigo,
your time in Knife Fight,

including penalties, was
two minutes and two seconds.

Karl, your time,
including penalties was...

Three minutes and 28 seconds.

Rodrigo, congratulations.

You earned the right
to face Jo in Dead Run.

- Yeah!

- Sorry, Karl,

but your run on "Knife
or Death" ends right here.

- Thank you. Good luck.

I'm pretty disappointed.

I should be holding the
championship trophy right now,

and I'm not.

- We have an epic battle
set up for Dead Run.

And the winner will get
the chance to come back

for the grand champion
showdown

for the chance
to take home $20,000.

- I'm feeling pumped,
I got a job to do.

Let's get it done.
Let's go home.

- Gentlemen, behind me
is the most difficult

blade course ever built.

This is Dead Run!

While Knife Fight was the
ultimate test of your blades,

Dead Run is the ultimate
test of your speed,

timing, accuracy,
and precision.

- bleep.
It's about to get real.

This course,
it's twice as long

as anything
we've done so far.

Let's see what happens.

- Steak Knife:
from the platform,

cut each steak in half.

A solid slice will keep
the swing moving.

Extinguisher: cut the rope,
release the bottle.

Cut the bottle on the downswing
to extinguish the flame.

Weight Cut: cut the necessary
40 pounds each

from the meat and
the ice block to advance.

Free Fall: you cut each
watermelon as it drops.

Only exposed red fruit counts.

Strike Zone:
behind that curtain

is a variety of objects
that you must attack.

Cut the rope
to bring down the curtain,

and the objects are revealed.

Every object
must be cut in half.

Dead Run ends with Fire Storm,

where you must cut two ropes
to release the platform,

fight exhaustion
to ascended the stairs,

and the clock stops only if
you can make one final chop

through a stack
of hard sugarcane.

In Dead Run,
the clock never stops,

and for every challenge
not completed,

time penalties will be added.

The fastest time wins.

Rodrigo, you're up first.

Please take your spot
in the starting position.

We'll see you gentlemen
at the finish line.

- Look at that intensity!

- My only issue with Rodrigo
going through is,

can he contain his excitement?

buzzer sounds

- This is my first
blade competition ever,

and I made it all the way
to the finals.

Nothing's gonna stop me today.

buzzer sounds
shouts

- There he goes!
He's up to Steak Knife.

- The technique to this
is slicing at an angle.

Definitely the length of
that blade is helping him out.

He has more power
behind that swing.

- He let that thing swing
all the way around,

and didn't make another cut.

Moving on to Extinguisher.

There is an unknown
factor here.

Even if you break
the bottle open,

it doesn't ensure
that the water's

gonna put out the flame.

- When that bottle's going,
he needs to pinpoint

where he's gonna attack it,

and hit it at that angle.

- It did not
extinguish the flame.

- Look at that water!
- Oh, got that one!

- There it is!

- Beautiful shot!

- He needs to do that again.
Find that spot.

- Yeah, the problem with
getting it on the back swing

is it's not angled
at the flame.

Okay, he got the final candle.

He incurred
a couple penalties now.

He's on to Weight Cut,
one of the obstacles

that I think he may have
a little problem with.

- The ice tears up the blade,

so it's about that durability.

- 40 pounds each.

- He's attacking it
pretty high,

so that big chunk
is gonna drop.

- The amount of strikes
that he's taken,

it's continually
dulling that blade.

Oh, look at that.
He goes on the meat.

Almost lost some grip there.

- You can definitely see
that blade is wearing down.

- Yeah, so is his cardio.

There's no question about it.

He's gonna be exhausted
after getting through this.

He's moving on
and came up one pound short.

40 pounds--
that's a time penalty

for each pound he was under.

- This is all about
hand and eye coordination.

- Two for two.

Four for four, he's on it!

- He's finding that spot.
- Oh, he missed it.

- Oh, he missed it.
- He's going.

- Oh, he's there!
- Nice!

- Find that spot!
- Final one!

And he gets it!
- Yes!

- Moves on to Strike Zone.

Okay, right here
is where were gonna see

the sharpness of that blade.

Does it have
an edge on it left?

Objects in Strike Zone
must be cut completely in half

before moving on
and the time's ticking.

Rope first,
having some issues with it.

- He needs to drop his legs!

- Doesn't go all the way
through, he's going home.

He's through the rope.

- He needs to attack
each one of these items.

- Yeah, I don't think
he's got an issue

with going through these,

but he needs to get
some speed going there.

He just took those apart.

Sugarcane--whack!
Onto the fish.

Gave everybody problems inside.
Problems outside too.

Two swipes.

- You can definitely see
the dulling of the blade--

it's wearing it down.

- He's having some serious
issue

with that pork belly
right there.

Okay, moving on
to the final one; Fire Storm.

Rodrigo's exhausted.

His blade's dulled, but he's
got to cut the stairs free.

He's got to ascend to the top
and stop the clock.

Okay, he's got a make up
some time here.

Finished!

Time will be revealed.

- Ha!

- 5:46 for Rodrigo!

Rodrigo's time included
four 25-second penalties.

He had two at Extinguisher,
one at Freefall,

and came up 1 pound short
at Weight Cut.

Let's hope that that 1 pound

is not the difference
between victory or defeat.

We've got Rodrigo's time.
Let's see what Jo's gonna do.

- When I failed on Knife Fight
earlier,

I was devastated.
I didn't know what to do.

I got a chance
to redeem myself.

I came to prove my mettle.

I came to prove myself.

- It's difficult to get
through the meat

when it's dangling
and swinging.

- Jo is through Steak Knife.

He's on to Extinguisher.

Extinguisher
is the ultimate test

of your timing and accuracy.

Jo missed the first one.

That's a penalty.

There's a hit!

Nice shot on the second bottle.

Candle's out.

He's found his stride.

Another hit!

- He's finding that perfect
timing now.

- Oh, another miss.

Two penalties out
of Extinguisher,

but time to move on
to Weight Cut.

- This ice chopping is no joke,

it will wear on your grip.

That ice is
a blade destroyer.

- Whoa! Right through it!

40 pounds instantly.

Just like Steak Knife,

that thing is flying
right through the meat.

The sharpness on the blade
is just unbelievable.

You can tell he's done
something like this before.

- Yeah, you can definitely tell
he is a professional chopper.

- Headed to Free Fall.

This is gonna be nuts.

Whoa! Misses it!

- He needs to get that timing
down, Bill.

- No question.

Got the second one, missed
the first, got the third.

Good precision, good hand-eye.
Look at that. He is on it.

- That short blade
is easy to wield.

- On it!

Oh, he's even eating
some of it.

He only missed one.
Beautiful job.

- That's impressive.
Impressive.

- Jo's on fire.
He's headed to Strike Zone.

- That chopper is
extremely sharp.

- Okay, we're gonna find out
if it's long enough

going through those bottles.

And he destroyed it!

That is carnage!

This one--destroyed.

He's gotta do this to move on.

Right through the pork.

- That was fast.
- Fire Storm!

He's headed up.

And he's through!

Rodrigo's time: 5:46.

- Yeah!

- That is one happy
camper up there.

Jo is on top of the world,
literally.

This guy took failing
on Knife Fight so hard

that he turned it completely
around, redeemed himself,

came out here and
he destroyed Rodrigo's time.

- Congrats, Jo.

- My friend, thank you.

- Thank you, man.
Congratulations, man.

I feel a little disappointed,

but I feel great as well

to be a part of this
very tough competition.

No regrets at all.
I would do everything again.

If the life
gives you chicken feet,

make a stew out of that.

- Ooh!

Oh, boy!

I fell down in the mud, got up,

wiped it off, came out here,
and kicked its ass.

Damn, that feels good.

- You did a hell of a job,

and would we will see you
at the grand champion showdown,

where you will compete with
five of your fellow champions

to see who will
take home $20,000.

- Boys, you better take
a deep seat in a faraway look.

I just punched that ticket for
the grand championship round.

Let's rock 'n roll.