SWAMP PEOPLE SEASON 3 EPISODE 3: Divide To Conquer
Swamp People is an American reality television series that debuted on August 22, 2010 in the History channel. The show set a ratings record for History and was initially broadcasted on Sunday nights at 10PM ET/PT. Because of the favorable ratings, History was moved to Thursday at 10PM ET/PT in its second season and was a great success, achieving a record breaking viewer ratings for the channel. Swamp People Season 3’s schedule was moved an hour earlier at 9PM ET/PT on Thursday nights.
Swamp People chronicles the life and day-to-day activities of some Cajuns who are living in the Atchafalaya River Basin swamp in Louisiana and participates in alligator hunts.
The reality television series focuses on five teams comprised of Cajun alligator hunters and each season is set during alligator season in the swamps of Louisiana that usually begins on the first Wednesday in September and will last for 30 days. Following tradition that dates back 300 years in the past, alligator hunters capitalize this season to earn their yearly income.
Alligator hunts are extremely dangerous and only the experienced do the work. Seasoned alligator hunters consider alligator season the most exciting and high risk time of the year. For 30 days, these gator hunters make the most of the season.
Twenty-two Cajuns from all parts of Louisiana (Pierre Part, Bayou Pigeon, Pecan Island, Bayou Sorrel, Morgan City, Hammond, Port Sulphur, Houma, Slidell and Ascension Parish), divided into teams are participating in the reality television series. Some of these experienced alligator hunters started in season 1 and became main participants and others are newcomers to Swamp People. Teams are sometimes composed of family members like fathers and sons or long-time hunting friends. Alligator hunts occur in and around the vast Atchafalaya River basin swamps.
The Atchafalaya River Basin swamp is more than a million acre in southern Louisiana and the largest swamp in the United States. The wetlands or bayous as well as the marches are home to 90 species of fishes, 300 species of birds and 54 species of different reptiles and amphibians. Among these are the famed, great American alligator. Present day Cajuns hunt alligators in the murky depths to earn a living. The changeable environment, where water levels fluctuate depending on the season, contributes to the harsh, risky situation the alligator hunters are subjected to in Swamp People.
Each episode of Swamp People features three or four teams as they hunt for alligators and get subjected to the whims of the unfavorable weather and the viciousness of the alligators. There are some episodes of Swamp People that features other activities the Cajuns imbibe in like socializing with the natives, fishing, hunting other animals and other sporting activities common in the swamps.
The hunters are each given a certain number of tags that they have to attach to their kills. Once they “tag out” or run out of tags, their participation is over and they can no longer kill any alligators for the duration of the show. The ultimate goal of these alligator hunters is to “tag out” before the season ends. However, there are some that save their final tag for their biggest catch – the most menacing and largest alligator they can find in the swamps through adverse weather and strictly regulated wildlife laws.
Swamp People season 3 started with the aptly titled episode “Gator Gold Rush”. It’s the first day of the thirty-day alligator season and the prizes are thirty percent higher than the previous seasons of the series. Big bucks are on the line for the winners. Troy Landry, one of the alligator hunters, has a focused plan to cash the prize money in. He has reunited with his long time hunting partner Clint Landry (they’ve been partners for 20 years) and runs a second boat with his son Jacob manning the helm. They were awarded four hundred and thirty tags for the duration of the season and he is more than determined to maintain his position at the top.
Troy Landry’s helper from Swamp People season 2, Liz Cavalier, is running her own boat down in Pecan Island this season with two hundred and sixty tags to fill. She’s joined by a born and bred Cajun woman named Kristi Broussard who’s more than eager to show what she’s capable of in the world of alligator hunts.
Down in Houma, R.J. Molinere, a two-time world arm wrestling champion and his son R.J. are back for another alligator hunt in Swamp People Season 3. He’s given five hundred tags and wanted to prove to everyone that he is still the king of the swamp.
On another team, swamp legend Bruce Mitchell is joined by his secret weapon, former military sharpshooter Ron Methvin for the alligator season.
In Swamp People season 3, episode 3 titled “Divide to Conquer” (premiered on February 23, 2012), it is the third day of the month-long alligator season in Louisiana and the teams of alligator hunters are working frantically to fill their tags and hopefully tags out soon. Troy Landry and master hunter Junior Edwards are both following similar strategies. They’ve both put their sons on the boats with them to carry on with a specific mission – to catch big alligators. The new captains are a little uneasy that they won’t be able to do the mission successfully.
Troy’s other sons, Chase and Jacob Landry found a big alligator that proved to be hard to catch. The only way to lure the huge alligator to be caught was to pretend that they are going away. Meanwhile, brothers William “Willie” Landry and Randy Landry got a surprise when Willie got struck in the crotch by a fish which caught them off-guard.
In Myrtle Grove, Joe LaFont and his stepson Tommy Chauvin are back on the swamps and have more tags this season than the previous seasons of Swamp People. They are both focused in cashing in the big bucks and plans to catch thirty alligators in one day. However, Joe sustained a back injury that puts them in jeopardy and might signal the end of the alligator season for them.
In Bayou Pigeon, newcomers to Swamp People and long-time residents of the swamp Austyn and Blake are setting out to prove that they are the next generation of swamp legends by earning their way into the alligator hunting business. One local buyer gave them five tags to fill. However, the alligator hunt rookies are finding out that filling in tags all in one day is proving to be difficult and easier said than done.
