I was watching the History Channel's latest show "Human Weapon" and they did a whole episode on Escrima/Kali. I was wondering if anyone saw it and has any input on it (accuracy, realism, usefullness of the techniques shown) From what I saw the Filipino methods looked really useful especially a kind of reverse half nelson (I forget the real name).
Anyone seen "Human Weapon?"
- Thread starter Hammer27
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One of these days I'll have to hook up my TV. Maybe it'll be on youtube. What sorts of kali did they showcase?
I've only studied Kali in the U.S., but based on what was shown in that episode, the stuff I learned was pretty close to what those guys were learning.
Keep in mind that while Kali/Escrima/Arnis is used interchangeably, there are a number of different schools in the Philippines that have all "tweaked" some of the techniques in FMA that make some of those moves unique to their style or system.
The real value of learning FMA is that the art is taught as a cohesive system. Yes, it cannot be denied that the stick is a major part of the training in almost all FMA. However, that does not mean the FMA practioner is lost without his stick. As Dan Inosanto, former student of Bruce Lee, used to say, in Kali, if you drop your stick, or sword, you just draw another weapon.
This concept is no different in current military training. If a soldier or Marine runs out of ammo, or if their M4 jams, they draw another weapon, such as their Beretta 9mm pistol.
In FMA, if the practioner loses a stick, go to the blade, or empty hands. With a few minor differences, the angles used for the stick are identical to those used for the blade. The angles used for the blade are the same as those used for the empty hand.
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That's one thing they mentioned in the show that impressed me about escrima -- you don't have to learn a whole new set of moves for weapons. That in itself seems very practical.