By popular demand, here’s the feature on Tokyo Friend Park II I put up last year.
Looking through the new Argos catalogue, I note that there’s a The Cube electronic game out. Anyone seen it in action?
Iconic One Theme | Powered by Wordpress
By popular demand, here’s the feature on Tokyo Friend Park II I put up last year.
Looking through the new Argos catalogue, I note that there’s a The Cube electronic game out. Anyone seen it in action?
Google yields nothing about the ‘The Cube’ electronic game. All I can find on it is the Argos page. At some point, I’m thinking of getting hold of one and providing a hands-on review of it.
If you wanted to do that that would be brlliant – I’d give you the front page for it if you wanted. I would have bought it myself, had I a) room in my bedsit and b) not done quite a lot of money on the poker table the night before.
I might be getting it today… ITS A REVIEW RACE! ARGH!
I wouldn’t have been able to get one until Monday anyway, so if you want to review the game, go right ahead 🙂
At the moment, it doesn’t seem like I might be getting it today!!! The race is still on lol
Scratch that, writing a review now
The first references to “Tokyo Friend Park” made it sound like it could be a ripoff of “The Crystal Maze”. However, from your description, that description might not be quite fair. The time frame is right, but would a Japanese TV exec had had the chance to see “The Crystal Maze” on some business trip to London?
Your full description, however, makes this sound like the quintessential–or stereotypical–Japanese game show–right down to the heavy quantities of slapstick comedy.
It does sound like a format that would travel about as well as any of the Japanese formats have traveled.
I could misremember the backstory because it’s close to fifteen years old, but the tape with that episode came from Ben Tritle, then a USAF officer stationed in (I think) Hong Kong, most recently one of four producers zonking ’em on the current US Let’s Make A Deal revival. They were able to pick up some Japanese broadcasts, including TFP2, but also a local Hong Kong broadcast of The Crystal Maze, which he enjoyed. I’m more inclined towards coincidence than towards tribute; it could be at least as much a studio-based tribute to Fort Boyard, if that’s not a massive contradiction in terms.
Filling in said blanks…I was stationed in Misawa, Japan. But, yes, now zonking them up (and also prizing them up) on Let’s Make A Deal…a natural job progression, to say the least.
Despite the ‘theme park’ theme, it’s just a regular studio, with the games wheeled in and out. No massive or realistic set like the Crystal Maze.
I’ve since found out what Tokyo Friend Park [1] was… Exactly the same as TFP2. I think the show originally ran from 1992 – 1993, but ended because the ratings dropped. They then brought it back in 1994 and has now lasted over 16 years. You’d think they might have dropped the “2” by now, but no!
Considering how popular it must be, to still be on at 7pm every Monday after all these years (that being a peak slot in Japan), I find it a bit surprising that there hasn’t been a version made elsewhere. Well, not that I know of anyway. TBS have always had the format advertised on their corporate site.