It is another version of the reality show theme. This one has some staying power. The personalities and characteristics of the individuals are what makes it work.

The "story" that these are all destitute people is a bit of a stretch. Yeah, some of them are at the end of their rope but clrearly there is a bunch of money being thrown at this mining operation. No doubt they have some issues with accuratley projecting their real costs. Makes you wonder how much the revenue from the TV contract was factored into their budget when they set their plan in motion.

Clearly, these people have just enough techincal mining knowledge to make them dangerous... to the envirnoment, themselves, their banking accounts, etc.

I share the "wathcing an accident in slow motion" feeling but then again I don't think the producers would have put this on the air without some sort of satisfactory outcome... so I guessed they would eventually get their operation chunking out the flakes and covering their costs, at least.

Its fun to watch people who don't have it figured out yet actually stumble into some success. I'll keep watching.