(S03E01) "All you need to be a coal miner is a weak mind and a strong back." James

One thing I love about 30 Days is that in every episode there is a wealth of information. In the first five minutes of this season's premiere episode, I more than doubled the amount of information I knew about the coal mining industry. More importantly, I was ready to learn even more.

This season's premiere, like the past premieres, stars Spurlock himself as the episode's guinea pig and just like the other times he has put himself in harm's way, Spurlock's wife Alex expresses her concerns. What I found funny is that her knowledge of the perils of your average coal miner was pretty equal to my own. It really doesn't go too far past cave-ins and black lung.

When I first heard that Morgan Spurlock was doing a series for FX, I was thrilled. I really enjoyed Super Size Me and I thought FX was the perfect place for a guy like him to do a show.

For those of you who haven't seen it. 30 Days uses the same basic premise of Super Size Me but takes it a giant step forward. Instead of adopting a bad habit for a month, like in the film, Spurlock and others actually live a completely different lifestyle. In past episodes, we saw people take human growth hormones, binge drink, work for minimum wage and much more all for thirty days straight.

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Morgan Spurlock, the filmmaker behind the documentary Super Size Me and FX's 30 Days, has signed a two-year agreement with Fox Television Studios to produce both scripted and unscripted programs. According to the article, the deal begins whenever the writer's strike ends.

Given the impact that man has made in the documentary world (particularly with his upcoming film Where In The World is Osama Bin Laden?) , it's no surprise that a network like Fox would try to get him under contract. Spurlock is good at making documentaries that examine the fears and problems of American people (terrorism, obesity) and Fox is good at exploiting those problems for profit.

The magazine Broadcasting and Cable has an interview with Morgan Spurlock of Super Size Me and 30 Days fame, but if you don't read that particular mag you can always check out a few extra questions from the interview on the B&C Beat blog. Spurlock talks a little bit about his stint in prison, which he taped for the first episode of the show, as well as the possibility of working on network television in the future. I was somewhat surprised to find out he still eats fast food, but apparently the chili cheese fries at Tommy Burgers in East LA are quite delicious. The new season of 30 Days starts July 26 on FX.

The Morgan Spurlock directed reality series 30 Days has been ordered up for a new season by FX for next year. The first season delivered on average 1.4 million viewers over only six episodes. I wonder how many good, original  ideas they can come up with for the new season. If they've got '30 days without a full night's sleep', I'm their man.

Related:
30 Days: Muslims and America
30 Days: Straight man in a gay world
30 Days: Off the Grid
30 Days: Binge-drinking Mom

This week's episode of 30 Days (if you don't know the premise, check out the site) is all about living off the grid. Jahari and Vito, two friends that work together at a club, are fossil fuel-guzzling Americans. They don't have many concerns about the environment and simply scoff at all the warnings all around them about resources running out. They're completely confident that it won't happen... at least in their lifetime. They have an 'ecological footprint' (which is pretty much an analysis of how much you waste). According to the report, if everyone in the world lived like Jahari and Vito, it would take the resources of 12.5 Earths to power the lifestyle. So can these two make it in a world without modern "necessities"?