Via Cnet.com:
Just when you thought your summer might be uneventful, here come TV science stars Adam Savage and Jamie Hyneman.
The duo will blow up a boat, make a machine gun inspired by “Breaking Bad” and test the aim of “Star Wars” Stormtroopers in the midseason of “MythBusters,” starting July 18 on the Discovery Channel. (Fans in the UK and Australia, check your local Discovery Channel website for the time and date of the episode.)
The first episode will follow Savage and Hyneman as they try to blow a boat right out of the water using high-powered explosives — 1,000 pounds worth. They also take on the most requested myth of the year as they test the ability of Walter White’s homemade machine gun from “Breaking Bad” with series creator Vince Gilligan.
Upcoming “MythBusters” summer episodes include tackling more myths from a galaxy far, far away. Are Stormtroopers really that bad at shooting Rebel scum or have Darth Vader’s army of white armored soldiers been given a bad rap? Savage and Hyneman also take a closer look at Anakin Skywalker’s painful defeat in the epic lightsaber duel against Obi-Wan Kenobi in “Revenge of the Sith.”
This isn’t the first time we’ve seen “MythBusters” debunk famous “Star Wars” moments. In 2014, the team took on Ewok battle tactics, the risky Princess Leia rescue and a smelly snow survival trick using a dead tauntaun.
More pop culture moments under “MythBusters” hosts’ usual brand of scientific scrutiny include taking aim at Hollywood hit men to see if handheld bullets can really be set off by thrusting a hand into fire, as the case in the movie “Shoot ‘Em Up.” And can a well-placed shot through an interior wall really hit a target?
Savage and Hyneman also take on aviation history to see whether the U-2 really is the toughest aircraft. Plus, they test run the latest delivery drones and quadcopters. (Savage has already taken a quadcopter out for a spin on his own show “Tested.”)
Ever walk by a construction site and wonder what would happen if a plate of glass fell on you? So do Savage and Hyneman. They look into the urban legend of a pane of glass falling from a construction site and cutting an innocent bystander completely in half.
And nothing says summer like lawnmowers, so the “MythBusters” guys test whether a rock that ricochets off a lawnmower blade would have the same deadly power as a bullet shot from a gun. Perhaps this test might make you look twice before casually running your lawnmower over gravel.
Over the past 13 years, “MythBusters” has tested 984 myths, filmed over 8,000 hours, created 880 explosions and used 62,500 yards of duct tape. Good thing it’s all in the name of science.
Which upcoming test are you most excited to see?
