Gizmodo: japanese tv show not really

I Survived a Japanese Game Show: Dizzy Weddings and Chastity Belts

John Herrman — Wed, 30 Jul 2008 19:40:00 EDT

This week's bewildering I Survived... challenge dressed contestants as bride and groom before sending them across narrow bridges to meet and consummate their union like it's 1499. The catch(es)? They're surround by a sea of powder and the floor is spinning, both literally and figuratively. Before the challenge starts contestants are spun until they can barely stand, and during the (chastity belt?) unlocking are stumbled atop separate rotating platforms, making their simple task almost impossible.

The challenge works just as well as a spectacle and a marriage allegory. Spinning with excitement, you dress in odd, uncomfortable clothes and march down a narrow path. When you finally meet, you regain your composure and stand across from each other. Later, still drunk on optimism and champagne, you clumsily ratify the union in the eyes of the (evidently medieval) Catholic church. Confused and frustrated, you crawl back to your respective chairs and sit, wondering how you ended up where you are and how you can get out. Which is sort of how the cast members of this show must be feeling right now.

Anyway, here's a bonus pic of the co-host who is not very impressed with the host's awesome MC Hammer dance routine:

Stay tuned (to your Giz) for weekly coverage of the 45 seconds of this show that is actually worth watching. [ABC]

I Survived a Japanese Game Show: Shooting Balls, Breaking Faces

John Herrman — Wed, 23 Jul 2008 21:52:23 EDT

This week's over-the-top I Survived... challenges didn't have as much gadgety goodness as usual, but were strangely satisfying nonetheless. First, Velcro-clad contestants were dangled in front of of a teammate, who would try to pass them Velcro balls to catch. The objective was for the dangler, manipulated by two other contestants, to collect as many balls as possible without getting hit too many times by their opponent, stationed behind a cool pneumatic ball cannon.
Sort of boring, right? Well the second challenge was way better. Fans of MXC (Takeshi's castle, for non-Americans) will recognize the false door game, where contestants have to get through a series of doors, some soft and fake, some real and hard. ISJGS takes it to the next level, forcing contestants to swing - not run - into the doors.

This whole concept of this show depends on humiliating its participants. The producers, though, must have caught on to something more: everyone on this show is pretty annoying. Shrewdly, then, ISJGS smashes them into wooden doors. Thanks, ABC!

I Survived a Japanese Game Show: Spinning Babies, Spilling Milk

John Herrman — Wed, 16 Jul 2008 14:50:00 EDT

This week's ridiculous I Survived... challenge ran contestants through a relatively simple obstacle course. The catch? They've been dressed as babies, dizzied on a playground carousel and given two cups of milk to take along with them. The objective is to fill the team baby bottle at the end of the course.

If this challenge is a metaphor, I'm a little lost. Even more lost, though, are the contestants, who apparently don't fully grasp that they are on a show called I Survived a Japanese Game Show, asking questions like "Where do they come up with this shit?" Stay tuned for more game show gadgetry next week. [ABC]

I Survived a Japanese Game Show: The Three-Person Exercise Bike

John Herrman — Wed, 09 Jul 2008 20:20:00 EDT

In this week's episode of I Survived... contestants found themselves on an elaborate interconnected exercise bike/conveyor belt contraption. The object of the game is for the tricyclist, peddling on and against a moving belt, to remain in the prize zone for as long as possible. His or her teammates peddle on stationary bikes beside the belt, and the faster they go the slower their triker is, uh, conveyed. When the belt goes too fast or the contestants wear out, the tricycle rider is dumped into a pool of freezing water.

The concept seems more like a Greek mythological punishment than a game show challenge. The crime: conspiracy to further destroy American television. Stay tuned for more game show gadgetry next week. [ABC]

How I Survived a Japanese Game Show: The Gigantic Human Prize Claw Game

John Herrman — Fri, 04 Jul 2008 11:30:00 EDT

The new episode still follows most of the tired reality show conventions and spends too much time on the stunningly boring contestants, but the brief game show events still impress. This week's challenge: become a human claw game, picking up prizes as teammates control your x, y and z axis movement. This challenge aired much to the chagrin of Claw Machine Boy, whose chronic PTSD triggered hard when this episode aired. Stay tuned for a weekly review of the 45 seconds of this show that is worth watching. [ABC]

How I Survived a Japanese Game Show: So Far, Lame But With a Touch of Gadget

Brian Lam — Thu, 26 Jun 2008 21:00:46 EDT

The new ABC show this week, How I survived a Japanese Game show, combines the Japanese entertainment staple with an American reality TV series, featuring your usual cast of Jerry Springer rejects. Besides the weirdness and bright vibe typically found in such gameshows, there is the tech. The premier episode featured a conveyor belt that contestants had to run on with plate of mochi on their head. You either run long and fast enough to feed your team member and earn a point, or fall into a pit of flour. It's kind of hard to explain, but we have a video.

Lisa, who grew up watching them will probably write about how shitty and tacky and how culturally out of context the show is on her blog. But we did enjoy when the host would make fun of the Americans in Japanese. See, it's better because everyone is making fun of everyone.

I just hope next week's contraption is a little bit crazier because that's what does it for me. What did you guys think of the show? If anyone knows the crew members who design and build these contraptions, please email me. I want to quit my job and work on these sets! [ABC]