America Unearthed Season 3 Episodes 10 Thru 11 Recaps: Do You Believe In Bigfoot?

These were not my most favorite episodes but they cant all be great. Maybe it's because I've already heard so much about these topics. Maybe it's because they're much less credible than other episodes. Seriously, Bigfoot? In any case, here's a general overview.

Cleopatra's Need in Central Park

Episode 10: "Egyptian Secrets in NYC"

Scott investigates the "Cleopatra's Needle" obelisk in Central Park. He thinks Freemasons are responsible (since arent they responsible for all conspiracies)? Masonic objects were found under the obelisk when repairs began. No surprise there. The Freemasons were once a very powerful organization. George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Benjamin Franklin and many other founding fathers (as well as several of my ancestors) were Freemasons. Masons trace their origins back to the building of the pyramids and use much Egyptian imagery (such as the trowel, ruler, compass, square, etc). The Vanderbilts brought Cleopatra's Needle to the US and also built Central Station. Do the constellations painted on Central Station's ceiling hold secret significance? Are the obelisks arranged to signify Orion's belt? Cant say that I really care. Two other obelisks are also highlighted-- the Thomas Addis Emmet Obelisk and the Worth Obelisk. The Emmet obelisk is outside of St Paul's Church (where George Washington attended services). I dont particularly find any of this shocking (or even interesting). Lots of cities have obelisks so why not New York? Also the late 1800s apparently had a craze for all things Egyptian (which I understand cause Egyptian stuff is cool). But the big story here in my opinion is not what the Freemasons were up to but how many of Egyptian's great national treasures were pillaged by Westerners.

Episode 11: "Tracking Bigfoot"
Bigfoot is of course big industry these days. Everywhere you turn there's a show about BigFoot. Scott says up front he doesnt believe in Bigfoot. I'm with ya this time. He travels to the Northwest (where many of the sightings occur). He also talks with a man in Minnesota who have supposedly seen one. Scott even visits Nepal where a sherpa says he encounter Bigfoot's cousin (the Yeti). Next it's time to visit some petroglyphs. Native Americans have stories passed on for generations about a large ape like creature. Scott looks at "evidence" with Doug Hijek (who has been investigated Bigfoot for many years). He has: 1. Fragments of a supposed Bigfoot skull; 2. A footprint; and 3. A hair (that when magnified is said not to be human because it has never been cut, also there's something about scaling). Scott takes the hair for later DNA analysis. Hijek says that a now extinct very large ape named Gigantopithecus could be related to our Bigfoot. The biggest species, Gigantopithecus Blacki, stood ten feet tall and is the largest ape ever to exist. Paleontologists believe Gigantopithecus inhabited parts of Asia and went extinct some 300,000 years ago.Could these apes have crossed the Bering Strait land bridge and made their way into North America? I didnt know anything about these apes so that was WAY cool. Scott also mentioned my major criticism of the possibility of Bigfoot. If they exist, why have we found no bones? A time lapse video demonstrates that a dead deer will almost completely decompose in the wild in seven days. OK, I never thought of it that way. And in the big reveal at the end of the episode, DNA analysis of that "Bigfoot" hair reveals it is... wait for it... it is human. No surprise there. Hijek says it's because Bigfoot is close to humans genetically. Sure dude, whatever ya say. In conclusion, it would be great if Bigfoot did exist but I'll believe him when I see him.

Is This Sign Really Necessarily?

Grade: 3 Monsters (out of 5). More history and less bigfoot hunting if you want to keep my attention. Oh well, I guess you have to do something to fill up all the episodes.