Andrew W.K.'s 10 Reasons to Watch the New Cartoon Network Series Starring Andrew W.K., Destroy, Build, Destroy

List of the Day

When we got word that Cartoon Network had greenlit a television show where Andrew W.K. will blow things up with young people on a regular basis, we got pretty excited. So excited, in fact, that we shot Mr. Wilkes-Krier and e-mail asking him to craft a List of the Day about it. Behold, the result:

10. I'm Wearing White In A Construction Zone
When I signed up to host this show, I insisted that I be allowed to wear my traditional white t-shirt and jeans stage clothes. It didn't really occur to me that white clothing and heavy duty destruction don't mix. By the end of filming every episode, my clothes had gone from white to dark brown and smeared with black. We had to keep changing out my clothes for fresh ones, to keep the continuity going. It was a hilarious struggle to stay clean, and it's something fun to see, I think.

9. We Have A Russian WWII Tank

Yep, that's right! We use a huge military tank to destroy a car and blow up a vehicle on this show. In fact, I got to ride in the tank and fire it off in the final explosion. I can honestly say, I've never had a greater experience in my life.

8. These Are The Best Teenagers

I'm not sure how old you are now, but you've either been a teenager, are a teenager, or will be a teenager. The fact is, I was a teenager for about seven years, and it ruled. On Destroy Build Destroy, we have two teams of teenagers competing to destroy stuff and then rebuild with the ruble. In my opinion, these teenagers are as smart and kind as anyone I've ever met, teenagers or otherwise. I think you'll enjoy watching them blow stuff up.

7. No Dogs Or Birds

Even though we feature lots of crazy stuff on Destroy Build Destroy, we don't feature any dogs or birds. So, if you're someone who has had a fear of these animals, I can put your mind at ease; you'll see no birds or dogs on this show. The one bird that did appear was a wild sparrow, which was accidentally blown up on set. I felt bad about this and we took proper steps to dispose of its beak and wings, and made sure it didn't happen again.

6. It's Really Hard

I've got to give credit where credit is due: The contestants really give their all on this show. It is not easy, and the various challenges you see our teams go through are as difficult and demanding as anything they've ever done in life. At the end of the final race, many of the team member's said it was the hardest thing they'd ever done. But well worth it!

5. The Girls Are The Leaders

Each of the two teams has three members, and often times the teams area asked to pick a leader or a captain for a certain part of the show. Ninety percent of the time, the teams voted for a girl to be the leader, to go first, or to step up and do the most difficult tasks. This happened over and over again, and was really interesting to me and the creators of the show. It's a good sign for the younger people of the world; they realize that women are just as good leaders as men!

4. I Refuse To Chide

In my role as host, ringleader, cheerleader, live commentator, and pep talker, I have the opportunity to really help pump up the contestants and also explain the rules of the show to them. However, no matter how intense a competition might get, or no matter how poorly a team may be doing, I will NEVER chide them, browbeat them, or otherwise degrade them for the sake of the show, or as some sort of backward motivation. I saw these young people put their hearts and souls into every moment of their work on this show, and all they deserve is praise and high fives.

3. Thousands Of Dollars

At the end of each episode, the winning team gets $3,000 to split up and spend as they like. I realize they probably have to pay taxes on it, and that might knock down the total a bit, but still, the idea of a teenager having any amount of money over $5 is really intense. After the show, I've asked the winners what they plan to buy with their money, and almost everyone of them said "candy." That seems about right.

2. Milk, Eggs, Cheese, And Loaves Of Bread

Just in case you were wondering, every episode of this show was filmed in beautiful Santa Clarita, California, about an hour outside of Hollywood. I would get up every morning at around 5 a.m., shower, drink two cans of Diet Coke, and then hit the road to make it to the set on time. The best part of the morning was getting to eat breakfast and meet the teenagers for that day's show. We could always bond over cheese omelets with toast and tall glasses of farm fresh milk with ice cubes in 'em.

1. TNT, C4, and Bazookas

The number one reason that I and anyone wants to see this show is to watch teenagers play with explosives. And let me tell you, these explosions are MASSIVE. I had no idea that this show was really going to involve such powerful and over-the-top destruction. Within the first 10 minutes of my first day of filming, we set off a 20-story mushroom cloud that was so intense you could feel the heat from over 500 feet away. I got hooked on the high you get from being around that much power. I can see a future for myself in action movies...maybe as the pyrotechnics guy!