How The Curse Of Oak Island Tried To Solve Its Biggest Controversy

It's natural to feel some skepticism when you first sit down to watch History's treasure hunting series "The Curse of Oak Island" — and it's also natural to feel that skepticism returning after nine seasons of dead ends, misleads, and fantastical theories. The mystery of the titular island almost seems like something better suited to a movie like "National Treasure" than something you'd find in real life.

It all began when a group of young men discovered a mysterious man-made pit on the island back in the 1700s, and people began to speculate that this so-called "Money Pit" was actually home to some sort of buried treasure. Since then, the island has been rumored to hold such fantastical prizes as the pirate treasure of Captain Kidd, the lost manuscripts of Shakespeare, and even the Holy Grail itself.

Wild theories like these didn't exactly reinforce the legitimacy of "The Curse of Oak Island," and in fact one of the biggest issues the show faced in its first few seasons was trying to convince its audience that this mystical treasure hunt was not just some big hoax.

During the series' first three seasons, Rick and Marty Lagina quickly discovered that the wide range of misinformation and speculation which is inherent to the mystery of Oak Island led to a lot of skepticism from their audiences. By the time Season 4 rolled around, the Lagina brothers had decided enough was enough, and invited archaeological expert Laird Niven onto the show to give their search some credibility.

Niven is one of the preeminent archeologists in all of Nova Scotia, and the Lagina brothers no doubt hoped his presence in the series would prove once and for all that their search for treasure was more than just a pipe-dream. Alas, even Niven's presence on the show has been criticized, with many fans specifically pointing out the difference between archeological digs (which are delicate and time consuming) and the haphazard excavation prevalent on Oak Island — which Niven appears to have no problems with whatsoever (via The Biography).

At this point, it seems that skepticism and disappointment are simply baked into the premise of "The Curse of Oak Island" — and whatever the Lagina brothers might try, there hasn't yet been a way to fix that.