Concert review: Mythbusters - Behind the Myth

MythBusters hosts Adam Savage and Jamie Hyneman.

There's no denying the pedigree of Jamie Hyneman and Adam Savage.

After all, making 257 episodes across 12 seasons of Mythbusters - the lovable science show that takes great delight in busting urban myths and Hollywood tricks alike - makes it a bonafide television phenomenon.

There aren't many TV shows that could get up to 5000 people, including many father-son duos, packed into Vector Arena to see the stars in action.

So for a Discovery Channel show known for its kooky experiments and love of explosions, and for its sometimes tense and testy relationship between its hosts, the lack of wow factor in Mythbusters' live show was obvious right from the get-go.

For starters, the two hour show was full of padding, with lots of talking (mostly by Savage), audience interaction and video replays of some of the show's most well known tricks.

Some of the night's most boring stunts, like using a high-def slow-mo camera to film audience members blowing raspberries, were repeated several times.

Others, like strapping a camera onto a fan's head, distorting her field of view and asking her to complete several tasks while swinging a sword around, were tedious timewasters.

At one point, in a segment dubbed 'the social media part of the show,' the pair took a selfie, then told the audience to follow them on Twitter to see it.

And two Q&A sessions hosted solo by each presenter without the audience being able to hear the questions from front row fans certainly tested the patience.

Yes, watching a two-minute explosions package on giant screens with subwoofers cranked up certainly rattled the ribcage, and might have been louder than the Queen shows that played in the same venue earlier in the week.

And the duo's passion for what they do certainly shone through; at one point, Hyneman hugged a water heater and declared it his favourite thing to blow up. If anything, you may have come away with a renewed appreciation for high school science.

But there was little here that you couldn't see on YouTube, or catch in a DVD boxset package, or see in an episode of their TV show. One for the diehards, then.

Mythbusters: Behind the Myth
Where: Vector Arena, Auckland
When: Saturday, September 6

- nzherald.co.nz