The bounty hunter is back on the hunt.  Tonight marks the premiere of the fifth season of Dog the Bounty Hunter, the reality show which features the adventures of bail bondsman and bounty hunter Duane “Dog” Chapman, his family and his associates.

This marks the return of the series on A&E after the network pulled the plug on the show last November.  This was after an audio recording of Chapman using racial slurs was released to the public.  His controversial comments, aimed at his son Tucker's African-American girlfriend, became the center of calls from civil rights leaders for A&E to cancel his show.  Despite a statement from Chapman, who apologized for his “regrettable use of very inappropriate language,” the network suspended production of the series for an indefinite period of time.

However, after many petitions from disgruntled viewers and calls of support from other civil rights groups, A&E finally brought the show back.  “It's not about ratings,” a network spokesperson said during an announcement last May.  “We know him and know he's not a racist.”  In June, the network began airing episodes from the last season that weren't aired after the controversy.  Production for the fifth season began immediately after.

Tonight's season premiere starts where the fourth season left off, and brings Dog and his family—wife Beth, sons Leland and Duane Lee, and daughter “Baby” Lyssa—to Colorado, doing what the network describes as “one of their most exciting captures ever.”  They will encounter a felon with an apparent love of sawed-off shotguns, a desperate addict, and an informant who is willing to risk everything to help Dog bring the fugitive to justice.

Dog's journey towards catching bail jumpers across the country, and perhaps beyond it—and, ultimately, him getting his reputation back together—starts tonight, and every Wednesday from 9pm, on A&E.


-Henrik Batallones, BuddyTV Staff Columnist
Source: A&E
(Image courtesy of A&E)