You may remember explorer Josh Bernstein from Digging for the Truth, a History Channel show that looked into legends and myths to find the reality behind them. Well, he’s back in a new Discovery Channel show, Into the Unknown with Josh Bernstein. And you know, it feels like he never left.

I just watched a preview disc of “The Secret Life of Gladiators,” an episode of the series seen Mondays at 10 p.m. Eastern (I believe this episode ran last week, but I’m sure it’ll be on again). If you’ve seen Bernstein Digging, you know what to expect. This episode starts in Rome, where Bernstein has decided to find out what the lives of gladiators were really like. “The answers may surprise you,” he says. No, it won’t surprise most of us to know that the movies weren’t historically accurate, but it will still be interesting to find out the reality.

No matter. The high point of the episode comes early. In a modern gladiator school with a mission of testing out all those neat ancient weapons in hopes of finding insight into the gladiator life, Bernstein tries a few himself in a sparring match with the instructor. Naturally, Bernstein wouldn’t have made a gladiator, at least not without a year or two of intense training. From there, it’s off to one of the original training centers, a graffiti wall in Pompeii, and two amphitheaters that stand today. At each stop, he talks to an expert who provides a little more information. By the time he’s done, you’ll have a general idea of what a gladiator’s life was like.

Yeah, Bernstein can be melodramatic in his narration, but if you like a little bit of learning with your entertainment, it’s not a bad way to spend an hour. He gets the information across, mostly seriously but with a touch of self-deprecating humor, and he’s willing to take a tumble with gladiator swords and the like. That’s pretty much what you’re looking for in a show like this, isn’t it?

Still, it’ll be hard to tear away from that all-new Anthony Bourdain episode to check out Josh Bernstein’s “Search for Noah’s Ark,” Monday’s new episode. If you feel the same way, take note: Into the Unknown repeats at 2 a.m. Eastern early Tuesday morning and 1 p.m. Eastern on Saturday.

I’m seeing Mark Spitz’s face on TV and online a lot lately, now that Michael Phelps has taken home enough gold to beat Spitz’s Olympic record. The question keeps running through my mind: Is it possible that Spitz could get more endorsement money now than he got when he had the record for most gold?

Just saw tonight’s Eureka, which has been advertising the death of a major character for the past week, showing the possibilities in the promo spots. They laid out the clues fairly and obviously, so the ending was in the back of my mind. Even so, it was still a surprise because I had the “No, it can’t be. They’re going to do away with some minor character at the edge of the frame” factor in there, too.

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I miss 24 as much as the next guy–make that more than the next guy–but the gratuitous use of split screen on last night’s Anthony Bourdain: No Reservations didn’t impress me. Watching the making of chocolate eggs may have been the high point of Bourdain’s trip to Spain, but it doesn’t get more exciting with split screens.

“Stay hydrated,” folks, and “Tell yourself you only need four hours of sleep–really.” With tongue (hopefully) in cheek, NBC just did a feature on those hardy viewers who stayed up all night to watch the Games and gave tips for staying up all night to watch the Beijing Olympics. Remember, dear reader, staying up all night to watch TV should only be done by veteran insomniacs. Any attempt … um … yawn … I feel … zzzz …

Just watched the USA - China basketball game this morning; made an omelet to go with it. More than half a billion people were watching in China, but given the 12-hour time difference, they probably weren’t eating omelets. If you’re curious about what they might have been eating, check this link.

Naturally, NBC did a slice of life on how Yao Ming’s success has made basketball and the NBA wildly popular in China. They showed Chinese basketball fans talking about their favorite player, who frequently was… Kobe Bryant. Turns out Yao Ming’s not on top in jersey sales, either. Good for the NBA, which should have a market in China long after the 7-foot-5 star retires.

It would be nice if, say, fencing found that kind of groundswell of interest in the USA after our women’s team swept everything. I’m not expecting to see many international fencing matches on TV for another four years, though.

While NBC was rolling its tape of the Opening Ceremonies from Beijing, the Czech Republic took home a gold medal in women’s air rifle.

One of the trivia items the announcers threw out drove me up the wall. I heard in passing one flag bearer pointed out as literally one against the world, his country’s lone athlete, but it took me a while to check which country online. Turns out the one-man Olympic team is weightlifter Itte Detenamo from Nauru, the AP says at the NBC Olympics site. Even if he doesn’t take home any medal, someone oughtta sign Detenamo up for an ad campaign.

BTW, I found several answers to the question above, but Detenamo’s the only one that checks out with the Olympic athletes by country list at Yahoo!

Just one night and I’m already suffering from Olympic trivia overload …

Watched what’s going to be the last Doctor Who for a while tonight. In a word: weird. It looks like the end for the Daleks–again (until the writers really, really need a Dalek fix). The episode played up some of the show’s plot quirks: the mortals around him sacrifice their lives and happiness, while the immortal Doctor “never looks back,” and the irony that he’s a loner with so many friends. The latter became my favorite TV irony when it reached its illogical extreme in Burn Notice: If you were dumped in sunny Miami with as many friends as Michael Westen has there (not just Sam, Fiona, and his mom, but a contact for every occasion), wouldn’t you just hit the beach and chill?

Bought a Blu-ray yet? No? You’re not alone, according to a study by ABI Research. As the company says, more than “half of the 1000 respondents, citing ‘other priorities,’ say they have no plans to purchase one; a further 23% are likely to buy, but not until sometime in 2009.”

“Most are very satisfied with the performance of their current DVD players,” the firm’s main analyst Steve Wilson said in a press release. The cost and the requirement for an HDTV to go with it were also cited as reasons why people haven’t bought yet.

Makes you wonder: If we’d had economic downturns at the wrong times in our gadget evolution, would we still be watching VHS movies and listening to eight-track and vinyl?

You can read more about it here.

… if you’re not on the cable.

THIS TV is MGM’s new digital channel, designed to be broadcast as part of free digital packages put together by local stations. Partner Weigel Broadcasting is bringing it out first in Chicago, Milwaukee, and South Bend. THIS will feature MGM movies and TV shows, although MGM’s press release doesn’t go into specifics.

I’m not sold on digital TV, but if we’re going to have it, it’s time to start coming up with some of that improved content that the broadcasters promised. This sounds like a decent start.

To read more, check out MGM’s release.

To look at Britain’s Freeview, which has been a bit more ambitious in a digital conversion, check here.