The first of the TV "reality" shows to reflect the tenor of America following September 11, 2001, Combat Missions was hosted and overseen by ex-Navy SEAL and former Survivor contestant Rudy Boesch. Each hour-long episode featured a group of "combat specialists": ex-Green Beret and Delta Force members, SWAT team participants, CIA operatives, and the like. Comprising four six-man squads, the contestants squared off in simulated combat missions (with plenty of live ammo!). As in Survivor, one contestant per week was eliminated from the proceedings, until only two finalists remained. Combat Missions debuted over the USA cable network on January 16, 2002.
A spinoff of the outrageous stunt series Jackass, Dr. Steve-O was a vehicle for the earlier show's daredevil veterinarian (real name: Steven Glover). Dedicated to the proposition of "de-wussifying" the men of America, Dr. Steve-O travelled across the country in his tricked-out ambulance (orginally a camper van in the pilot episode), searching for wimps, nerds, geeks and couch potatoes to rescue from a dismal future. Descending upon these sorry examples of manhood (who'd been selected to appear on the show by their friends and loved ones), Steve-O and his well-endowed nurse Trishelle Cannatella embarked upon an intensified program of attitude adjustment, showing unmanly men how to overcome such problems as bullying bosses and nervousness around the opposite sex by submitting themselves to silly stunts and public embarrassments. Each episode was divided into three phases: "Initiation Treatment", "Personal Procedure" and "Group Therapy." Those who survived the treatment to become a "real man" were given a clean bill of health--which Dr. Steve-O usually stapled to the guy's chest. Also appearing was Reggie Pace as Steve-O's fearsome-looking chauffeur and general factotum. Dr. Steve-O joined the USA Network family of reality series on October 1, 2007.