Get too close so that they feel threatened, and you could be trampled or mauled. But getting close is exactly the mission for National Geographic Channel’s intrepid herpetologist Dr. Brady Barr. Each episode will focus on one location. First, well set up the challenge, establishing the secret animal world Brady will try to infiltrate. Well accomplish this by sending Brady into the field with a recognized scientist who’s currently conducting research on the animal in the location. Brady will experience the standard methods researchers use to get close to these animals to observe their behavior, collect samples, and/or attach monitoring devices. Hell find out what burning unanswered questions they have about the creatures behavior, and their biggest challenges in gathering data challenges Brady hopes to help them overcome in an innovative way.

Studying a two-hundred pound super-predator that utilizes the killing techniques of some of the world's best hunters is a dangerous business. The Komodo dragon is a meat eater, able to devour up to 80% of its body weight in a single meal. It's armed with razor-sharp, serrated teeth, a snake-like forked tongue, body armor and a mouth full of noxious bacteria. But National Geographic Herpetologist Dr. Brady Barr and Indonesian scientist Jeri Imansyah are determined to answer some of the many questions researchers still have about the predatory behavior of the world's largest lizard. To do that he steps into the middle of a feeding frenzy, captures a huge komodo dragon and tests its strength, covers a remote-control car in animal fur to see how, or even if the dragon will attack it. Finally, he does what no scientist has ever done before. He straps a camera onto the back of this mammoth reptile. The result: Brady and Jeri help to solve a few of the mysteries surrounding this ancient cold-blooded creature.

It's the ultimate warrior. Part combat submarine, part terrestrial tank, armed with tusks that can grow up to a foot long and deliver a bone-crushing bite, meet the Nile Hippopotamus. How do you work with what is reputed to be the most deadly animal in Africa? It's a dangerous encounter Brady style. Watch as he develops his understanding of hippos and tests a new suit of armor to protect himself and the hippos he'll be working with. It's a life size model of a hippo with a reinforced cage for protection in case he is perceived as a threat. Brady is out to see how close he can get to the hippos of South Luangwa and do something that's never been done before, collect a sample of wild hippo sweat for scientific analysis. Come along for the ride as Brady introduces Africa to an "American hippo."

Something is blinding American Crocodiles living in Costa Rica's Tarcoles River and National Geographic herpetologist Brady Barr is on the case. Turns out-- the Tarcoles River is one of the most polluted waterways in South America. Could deadly pollutants be the smoking gun or is something even more sinister at work? To solve the mystery, Barr teams up with scientific heavy weights Thomas Rainwater, a toxicologist at Texas Tech, to determine if any nasty toxins might be responsible and Nick Millichamp, a veterinary ophthalmologist specializing in eye diseases in exotic species, to determine if the problem is biological. Together, they head into the murky river to catch crocs and gather clues with the hope of solving the mystery.