''The Slow Mo Guys'' is a

science Science is a systematic endeavor that Scientific method, builds and organizes knowledge in the form of Testability, testable explanations and predictions about the universe. Science may be as old as the human species, and some of the earli ...

and

technology Technology is the application of knowledge to reach practical goals in a specifiable and Reproducibility, reproducible way. The word ''technology'' may also mean the product of such an endeavor. The use of technology is widely prevalent in me ...

entertainment Entertainment is a form of activity that holds the attention and interest of an audience or gives pleasure and delight. It can be an idea or a task, but is more likely to be one of the activities or events that have developed over thousa ...

web series A web series (also known as a web show) is a series of scripted or non-scripted online videos, generally in episodic form, released on the Internet, which first emerged in the late 1990s and became more prominent in the early 2000s. A single in ...

from

Thame Thame is a market town and civil parish in Oxfordshire, about east of the city of Oxford and southwest of Aylesbury. It derives its name from the River Thame which flows along the north side of the town and forms part of the county border wi ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

created by Gavin Free, starring himself and Daniel Gruchy. It has been described as the biggest channel for slow motion videos on

YouTube YouTube is a global online video sharing and social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by Google, and is the second mo ...

. The series consists of a wide variety of things filmed in extreme

slow motion Slow motion (commonly abbreviated as slo-mo or slow-mo) is an effect in film-making whereby time appears to be slowed down. It was invented by the Austrian priest August Musger in the early 20th century. This can be accomplished through the use ...

using a range of

Vision Research ''Vision Research'' is a peer-reviewed scientific journal specializing in the neuroscience and psychology of the visual system of humans and other animals. The journal is abstracted and indexed in PubMed. The journal's impact factor The impact ...

Phantom Phantom may refer to: * Spirit (animating force), the vital principle or animating force within all living things ** Ghost, the soul or spirit of a dead person or animal that can appear to the living Aircraft * Boeing Phantom Ray, a stealthy un ...

high-speed cameras, capable of shooting over 1,500,000

frames per second A frame is often a structural system that supports other components of a physical construction and/or steel frame that limits the construction's extent. Frame and FRAME may also refer to: Physical objects In building construction *Framing (con ...

. The series premiered on 15 October 2010.

Format

''The Slow Mo Guys'' is heavily influenced by Mythbusters; in a typical episode, Free and Gruchy attempt to film some sort of natural or physical phenomenon in extreme slow motion: subjects of the filming are often some type of spectacular chemical or physical reaction, stress tests of certain objects under extreme conditions, while some episodes simply aim for an aesthetically pleasing result, often by the use of rainbow-coloured paints. To emphasize the science angle, the pair wear

lab coat A white coat, also known as a laboratory coat or lab coat, is a knee-length overcoat or smock worn by professionals in the medical field or by those involved in laboratory work. The coat protects their street clothes and also serves as a simpl ...

s. Because the original lab coats Free ordered were too small for Gruchy, Gruchy's lab coat tore and has traditionally had a torn off right sleeve. Gruchy's lab coat is the more stained of the two, with Free's coat in fairer condition. The most prominent of the few stains on Free's lab coat is a blue paint smear on the right shoulder "

autograph An autograph is a person's own handwriting or signature. The word ''autograph'' comes from Ancient Greek (, ''autós'', "self" and , ''gráphō'', "write"), and can mean more specifically: Gove, Philip B. (ed.), 1981. ''Webster's Third New Inter ...

ed" by a Blue Man. The episodes generally feature Free as the cinematographer and camera operator, and Gruchy, a former

ammunition technician An ammunition technician (AT) is a British Army soldier, formerly of the Royal Army Ordnance Corps but since 1993 of the Royal Logistic Corps, trained to inspect, repair, test, store, and modify all ammunition, guided missiles, and explosives used ...

corporal Corporal is a military rank in use in some form by many militaries and by some police forces or other uniformed organizations. The word is derived from the medieval Italian phrase ("head of a body"). The rank is usually the lowest ranking non- ...

in the

British Army The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurk ...

who served in Afghanistan, as the rigger and often also as the stuntman. Over the years, Gruchy suffered numerous injuries, such as a lacerated ear, a glass shard lodged in his finger, an oil burn and a fractured wrist; he jokingly noted that he has suffered more injuries during the filming of the show than during his tour in the Afghanistan war zone. Some episodes feature Gruchy explaining how some explosives work, such as grenades and detonation cord, allowing him to draw on his background in the military. Following the popularity of their most viewed video, ''Giant 6ft Water Balloon'', Free and Gruchy have regularly produced further videos involving Gruchy in or around several-foot water balloons under the event of "Giant Balloon

June June is the sixth month of the year in the Julian and Gregorian calendars and is the second of four months to have a length of 30 days, and the third of five months to have a length of less than 31 days. June contains the summer solstice in ...

". The episodes are generally filmed in Free's backyard in Austin, Texas, usually with only the two of them involved. In the case of ''The Super Slow Show'' and ''Planet Slow Mo'', as the budget of the show increased and more cast was involved, the experiments got larger and more elaborate; the availability of a designated camera crew allowed Free to participate in the stunts as well. During the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identi ...

, as Gruchy lives in the United Kingdom, the international travel restrictions prevented him from travelling to Texas to take part in filming for about a year and a half. In video comments of later videos, Free would make a running joke about Gruchy digging a tunnel underneath the

Atlantic Ocean The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the " Old World" of Africa, Europe ...

to sneak into Texas. Gruchy would then reference the joke by digging himself out from the ground in the first video he was able join in again in 2022.

History

Inception

The Slow Mo Guys at RTX 2013 (9275564917) (cropped)

In 2006, Gavin Free joined Green Door Films, the first production house in Europe to utilise

digital high-speed cameras as a source of

, working as a data technician and camera operator. He began working on adverts, music videos, and films such as ''

Hot Fuzz ''Hot Fuzz'' is a 2007 action comedy film directed by Edgar Wright and written by Wright and Simon Pegg. Starring Pegg, Nick Frost, Timothy Dalton, and Jim Broadbent, the film centres on two police officers investigating a series of mysteriou ...

''. In 2008, he was hired to direct the seventh season of the

Rooster Teeth Rooster Teeth Productions, LLC is an American digital media company headquartered in Austin, Texas. Founded in 2003 by Burnie Burns, Matt Hullum, Geoff Ramsey, Jason Saldaña, Gus Sorola, and Joel Heyman, Rooster Teeth is a subsidiary of W ...

machinima series '' Red vs. Blue''. Afterwards, he had decided to make a move to

Austin, Texas Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of Texas, as well as the seat and largest city of Travis County, with portions extending into Hays and Williamson counties. Incorporated on December 27, 1839, it is the 11th-most-populous city ...

and work full-time for Rooster Teeth, for which he needed to get a work visa; however, as he didn't go to

university A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States ...

, his only option was an application for an

O visa An O visa is a classification of non-immigrant temporary worker visa granted by the United States to an alien "who possesses extraordinary ability in the sciences, arts, education, business, or athletics, or who has a demonstrated record of extra ...

, a visa that requires an "extraordinary achievement" in arts or science. Being a video/film producer, he decided to utilise his access to slow motion cameras to create ''The Slow Mo Guys'' along with his friend Daniel Gruchy, and reach viral success. Free and Gruchy met while working in a

Waitrose Waitrose & Partners (formally Waitrose Limited) is a brand of British supermarkets, founded in 1904 as Waite, Rose & Taylor, later shortened to Waitrose. It was acquired in 1937 by employee-owned retailer John Lewis Partnership, which still se ...

in their home county of Oxfordshire. ''The Slow Mo Guys'', featuring slow motion footage of various pranks and stunts of the pair, has garnered millions of views since it launched in 2010. According to Free, the name partially comes from a comment Richard Hammond made on the set of ''

Top Gear Top Gear may refer to: * "Top gear", the highest gear available in a vehicle's manual transmission Television * ''Top Gear'' (1977 TV series), a British motoring magazine programme * ''Top Gear'' (2002 TV series), a relaunched version of the or ...

'':

Success

In April 2011, the channel was voted the winner of

's ''On The Rise'' program, which highlights up-and-coming YouTube partners on the homepage. In September 2012, their episode involving crushing watermelons was featured on ''

The Tonight Show ''The Tonight Show'' is an American late-night talk show that has aired on NBC since 1954. The show has been hosted by six comedians: Steve Allen (1954–1957), Jack Paar (1957–1962), Johnny Carson (1962–1992), Jay Leno (1992–2009 and 201 ...

''. On 20 February 2013, Free confirmed that the series had been picked up by Rooster Teeth and that further episodes of the series would be released on Rooster Teeth's website, as well as the series' existing YouTube channel. A best of compilation was released by Rooster Teeth Productions for home video on 10 September 2013. In January 2014, in collaboration with

GE Global Research GE Research is the research and development division of General Electric. GE Global Research locations include: * Global Research Center in Niskayuna, New York, established as the General Electric Research Laboratory in Schenectady in 1900 and ...

, the R&D division of

General Electric General Electric Company (GE) is an American multinational conglomerate founded in 1892, and incorporated in New York state and headquartered in Boston. The company operated in sectors including healthcare, aviation, power, renewable en ...

, they released a video showcasing the company's latest innovations, including

superhydrophobic Ultrahydrophobic (or superhydrophobic) surfaces are highly hydrophobic, i.e., extremely difficult to wet. The contact angles of a water droplet on an ultrahydrophobic material exceed 150°. This is also referred to as the lotus effect, after the ...

surfaces and how

magnetic nanoparticles Magnetic nanoparticles are a class of nanoparticle that can be manipulated using magnetic fields. Such particles commonly consist of two components, a magnetic material, often iron, nickel and cobalt, and a chemical component that has functionali ...

behave like liquid magnets. Two additional videos featuring them demonstrating

MEMS Microelectromechanical systems (MEMS), also written as micro-electro-mechanical systems (or microelectronic and microelectromechanical systems) and the related micromechatronics and microsystems constitute the technology of microscopic devices, ...

and "cold spray" 3D painting technology were also released on the official GE YouTube channel. The series has been featured as part of YouTube's " Rewind" year-in-review video in 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, and 2017. The series was used as part of a 2014 YouTube advertising campaign. The advertisements featuring Free and Gruchy were titled ''"You Make Every Second Epic"''. A large image of Free and Gruchy was printed on a

London bus Buses have been used as a mode of public transport in London since 1829, when George Shillibeer started operating a horse-drawn ''omnibus'' service from Paddington to the City of London. In the decades since their introduction, the red London b ...

as part of the campaign, alongside TV commercials, billboards and Tube station posters. The series was nominated for a

Webby Award The Webby Awards are awards for excellence on the Internet presented annually by the International Academy of Digital Arts and Sciences, a judging body composed of over two thousand industry experts and technology innovators. Categories includ ...

in Best Web Personality/Host (Online Film & Video) in 2016. At the 2016

Streamy Awards The YouTube Streamy Awards, also known as the Streamy Awards or Streamys, are presented annually by Dick Clark Productions and Tubefilter to recognize excellence in online video, including directing, acting, producing, and writing. The forma ...

, the series won in the Cinematography category. On March 27, 2020, Oculus TV premiered their eight-part series collaboration with The Slow Mo Guys called ''The Slow Mo Guys VR''. In this show, people would be able to watch Free and Gruchy recreate their videos in 3D slow motion. Several videos have been made in collaboration with other entertainers. This has included filming of a

sabrage Sabrage is a technique for opening a champagne bottle with a saber, used for ceremonial occasions. The wielder slides the saber along the body seam of the bottle to the lip to break the top of the neck away, leaving the neck of the bottle open an ...

competition with Rhett & Link; dropping

bowling ball A bowling ball is a hard spherical ball used to knock down bowling pins in the sport of bowling. Balls used in ten-pin bowling and American nine-pin bowling traditionally have holes for two fingers and the thumb. Balls used in five-pin bowling, ...

s with the

Blue Man Group Blue Man Group is an American performance art company formed in 1987. It was purchased in July 2017 by the Canadian company Cirque du Soleil. Blue Man Group is known for its stage productions, which incorporate many kinds of music and art, bot ...

; and providing

Will Smith Willard Carroll Smith II (born September 25, 1968), also known by his stage name The Fresh Prince, is an American actor and rapper. He began his acting career starring as a fictionalized version of himself on the NBC sitcom '' The Fresh ...

(wearing Gruchy's lab coat) a flamethrower to use on cardboard cutouts of himself.

YouTube Originals

In 2018, Free and Gruchy launched their first YouTube Original, ''The Super Slow Show''. This was essentially ''The Slow Mo Guys'', but on a grander scale, featuring new equipment; larger stunts, such as crashing through walls; and special guests, including

Dylan Sprouse Dylan Thomas Sprouse (born August 4, 1992) is an American actor. He is best known for his role as Zack Martin on the Disney Channel series ''The Suite Life of Zack & Cody'' and its spin-off, ''The Suite Life on Deck'', where he starred along ...

and

Mayim Bialik Mayim Chaya Bialik ( ; born December 12, 1975) is an American actress, game show host, and author. From 1991 to 1995, she played the title character of the NBC sitcom ''Blossom''. From 2010 to 2019, she played neuroscientist Amy Farrah Fowler on ...

. In 2019, Free and Gruchy launched their second YouTube Original, ''Planet Slow Mo'', in which the duo would travel around the world and film special events and stunts. A trailer was released on 21 January, with the first episode airing on 23 January.

Television Debut

On 1 September 2022, Free and Gruchy's first television show, ''The Slow Mo Guys' Big Adventures'', premiered on Sky Kids in the UK. The ten-episode series features themed episodes about historical events such as the Wild West, the Viking era, and the first rocket launches.

Awards and nominations

References

External links

YouTube ChannelRooster Teeth PageInstagramTwitterMerch Store
{{DEFAULTSORT:Slow Mo Guys, The English comedy duos British Internet celebrities YouTube channels Rooster Teeth channels British video bloggers English video bloggers Slow motion