It’s been a while since I found a new show worth discussing here, but my brother clued me in to the Discovery channel’s new show The Colony and it’s easily my favorite show this summer.

The concept is simple: a dozen or so people (who the show calls “volunteers”) have somehow managed to survive a viral outbreak in Los Angeles that has killed most everyone else and they have to see if they can survive. They come from all walks of life and have different skills to contribute. Their first tasks are basic: get to a warehouse, secure it, find food and water, and try to do something about electricity. Beyond that, they try to get creature comforts and figure out if they’re going to stay holed up in the warehouse forever or try to venture out somewhere. They are assigned tasks and put in situations that might be expected in a real post-disaster world. I’m impressed with the level of hard work and ingenuity most of them have shown so far.

The Discovery channel managed to shut down a huge area along the Los Angeles River so when these people venture outside, they see no signs of life. It’s been two weeks for them so far (the whole project is supposed to last 3 months) and their behavior is entirely consistent with people who really are alone. It doesn’t seem like they know they’re on a television show — nothing like most reality shows where the contestants are playing a game and trying to win money, while fully aware they are being filmed. The roving marauders that occasionally try to break in, cause havoc, and steal their supplies have been told by the show’s producers that they are not allowed to hurt the volunteers… but the volunteers are not told this. The fear is palpable, and you can almost smell the adrenaline through the television screen when these people realize that everything they’ve worked on for two weeks can be taken away in an instant if they are not vigilant in securing their sanctuary.

At times during the show, there is commentary from survival experts, psychologists specializing in traumatic situations, and others who have studied Hurricane Katrina, earthquakes, and other natural disasters. It all helps explain what one would expect and how one would need to behave to survive.

It’s like Survivor on steroids but with none of the voting or talk about strategy. It’s all about survival, getting along with each other, and trying to retain some sanity in a post-apocalyptic world. The volunteers on the show have bought into it completely, and now so have I.

The third episode is airing this whole week in case you want to jump in. If you have On Demand with your cable or satellite provider, you can probably get the first two episodes too — that’s what I did with DirecTV. Or you can go here and watch full episodes online.