Thursday, 9pm,
ITV2
Ten contestants given fifty lives each to complete five very difficult challenges, whilst “hilarious commentary from Irish comedy duo The Rubberbandits” is promised.
It looks like a very lo-fi take on the slapstick physical comedy game, and we do have something to compare it to – we wrote a thing about the German show Crash Games here which is the same show but with a slightly different pairs-based format. I quite liked its sense of the absurd.
We’ve had it suggested to us that the commentary is quite similar to Come Dine With Me. Will it work? We shall see.
Edit: An official source clarifies the show’s origins:
We made the pilot of Almost Impossible in August 2013, for Comedy Central. While they were deciding whether to commission it or not, the pilot was shown to the whole international Endemol group. Endemol Germany were very keen on the idea, but couldn’t pitch it until we had the option back from Comedy Central. So rather than wait, they created an idea ‘inspired’ by it…
So similar DNA but actually a different show. Thanks!
I have a lot of time for the Rubberbandits ever since someone showed me bits of their work.Expect a bit of an MXC sensibility, but more grounded in reality which should work well.
My review: “No.”
Having said the above:
It is very well produced and edited, I’m impressed with that. It moves at a decent pace. The humour and styling are distinctive and some people will like it. I am not one of those people.
My main gripe is it’s too silly. Celebrity Juice can get away with it, this can’t. I can’t help feel that the contestants are making muppets of themselves, and that they weren’t fully briefed on the style of the show beforehand and feel that they regret taking part. I’m likely wrong and picking up on something else.
Overall: No.
Slight clarification – I feel like we’re laughing AT the contestants (like Balls of Steel), rather than WITH the contestants (like in 101 Ways To Leave Game Show). This doesn’t sit well with me.
The thing i hate most about it, the annoying, unfunny commentary.
Seriously its like nails down a chalkboard.
The show is not that bad but i think i prefer the German way of doing it.
It’s Lidl Wipeout!
Watched it with two others, and it had the general feeling of “This seems like rubbish” and “I hate these people” for the first five minutes. It took a while to warm to the commentary, though this may be short lived, while we were cheering on most of the contestants towards the end.
Yes, it’s cheap-looking and simplistic fare, but compared to some other things on the same channel… it’s actually pretty decent and is almost perfect for the pre-Celebrity Juice audience.
One major note: We don’t know what they actually win. Do they just get the cheap trophy, the congratulations, and an early shower for winning? Is there no ‘real’ prize for taking part? Are all the contestants being paid to do the show in lieu of an actual prize, so they can do it for laughs instead? Given how the games are, it wouldn’t have killed ITV2 to put up a cash prize, say £250 per remaining life left.
Still, it’s a good try at a Wipeout that isn’t Wipeout.
Yeah, looks like the trophy is it. You get €5k in Germany!
Hmm. Hmm. It’s International King of Total Wipeout.
I think if I was twenty I’d be all over this, but now I’m 34 and right at the upper end of the demo I’ve *really* got to be in the mood for it, it took me ages to warm to The Rubberbandits’ commentary (I really missed the German dryness) and the whole presentation package is a bit LOLRANDOM!
But Punch Yourself In The Face made me grin and I’m interested to see what they’ve come up with creatively and I thought the contestants were likable in the main.
I think I prefer the German formatting and humour (11 different games across an hour is good pacing and seemed to have a grander sense of irony), but I’m happy for this to exist and suspect it has a decent shout of finding an audience.
The commentary had some of the funniest lines I ve ever heard. Philosophy and intelligence mixed with silliness, very good . More please.
Couldn’t agree more. The commentary was inspired and redeemed the rest of the show. Little wonder they are building up such a following – there’s real substance to their humour.
Of course, it’s time that I get the complete format rundown from Andrew ‘Kesh’ Sullivan who does a great job at providing those rundowns for me.
Didn’t watch it. I’d personally rather watch paint dry than watch ITV2 as I’m not a fan of their programming. I’m sure one of the others can run it down for you, though
With that lives counter in the corner, it seemed a bit like The Cube for millennials.
Really disliked it at first, almost to the point of turning it off, but I was strangely compelled to keep watching to see if anyone could actually beat the challenges. Then, surprisingly, Lick-A-Word made me smile. A lot.
Don’t know that I’ll make the effort to watch them all, but it’s (mostly) harmless enough.
I didn’t watch Total Wipeout at the time because I found Hammond’s and Byram’s commentary irritating. However, having watched this I find the Rubberbandits even more so. Although a jackpot wasn’t specified, I’d’ve suggested for £100 per life and £1,000 per game but only if they win the show. If the BBC can offer £10,000, the commercial channel definitely can.
174,000 (0.8%). 62.3% down on quarterly slot average.
Cheers Paul.
In other news 1.2m (6%) for Hunted. And Decimate holding steady at 0.8m, but with a very strong 17% share, and a 200,000 viewer lead over Judge Rinder.
Not bad for a format so very straightforward that some of us at CPL nicknamed it “Answer Some Questions”.
Decimate is doing OK considering it’s the dullest show in the world to actually watch (I’m actually mildly annoyed about this, but at least it’s not 15-1), I’m interested to see if Judge Rinder picks up with these new episodes – it was the saviour of ITV afternoons not so long ago!
Judge Rinder only started again on Monday so will take a couple of weeks to hit its stride. I’ve not seen it promoted at all this time. It does seem very low though, I think repeating the same episodes over and over didn’t help. Be interesting to see if it can pick up again.
Awful for The Almost Impossible Game Show. Hunted doing very poorly as well.
Decimate is only on for another week…then I’m suspecting The Edge starts it’s 25 episode run.
Do you like Judge Rinder?
Yes I do, but not repeats of it.
The editing on Hunted is a bit odd. Just as someone’s story starts getting interesting, they snuff out that thread.
Talking of which Hunted has been picked up by CBS for a US remake.
Remember the Prized Apart discussion thread? Specifically, the bit where Jon claimed we’d found the worst show of the year? Sorry, Jon, this is many times worse.
Unfunny, dull, bad production decisions, contestants who clearly want to punch their producers, and all filmed on a damp weekend in the middle of nowhere.
I cannot remember the last time I stopped watching a new show after less than half an episode.
I’d watch this again in the right mood, but you’d probably have to pay me to watch Prized Apart. Just because Prized Apart ‘looks’ like a normal gameshow it gets a pass from some people despite being one of the most boring gameshows in history. The Almost Impossible Gameshow doesn’t aim high, its a cheap gag, but it works on occassion.
I have really come round to this, I feel it would be remiss not to point out.
I have just seen one episode, but I genuinely like it. It’s not ingenius, but I could see myself watch it if nothing spectacularly good is on elsewhere.
Episode three effectively an episode one redux. Not good enough really, this sort of thing needs a regular fresh injection of ideas.
On the Sunday morning ITV2 are showing a version with all the language edited out. No idea who watches ITV2 on a morning, but still.
I watch that one show then because of the removed swearing, and I’ve asked ITV to put it online. Episode Three includes no new games that I haven’t seen in the first two.
The thing that is funniest about this show is the fact that these people have signed up for this show probably getting paid knowinh forwell what they are getting into. So damn right i am going to laugh my ass off as they attempt to earn money. The commentry is pure genius. The irish see the world without goggles and when you tell it as it is with an irish accent commenting on the fact some numpty has fallen flat on his face while attempting to take a bite out of a yum yum with no hands while in a giant tred mill wearing a leatard there is only one possble outcome and that is pure comedy. If you see the show for what it is then you will have the time of your life eapecially after a couple of bevvies.
Sadly, the contestants probably weren’t paid.
Actually, that’s a good point – given I haven’t watched this since last year, is there a prize for the winner? If not… then there is a chance they were paid.
Does anyone know any more?
You get a trophy for winning.
I suspect most of the contestants are not bothered about reward.