Japanese Game Shows - Reanimating a Dead Topic
Arashi-sama
I am quite sure there have been many, many posts with this very topic,
but I am here to beat this subject even further into the ground.
I am desperately wanting tapes of Japanese game shows. I caught some
while I was in Tokyo this past April, and need a fix!!
I've always liked Takeshi's Castle, Endurance and Denpa Shonen.
Any information on how to get video copies (for US VCRs) is well
appreciated!
Thank you very much in advance,
Makino Tsukushi
Chris Lemon
news:bec22948.02051...@posting.google.com...
> I've always liked Takeshi's Castle,
Is this the one that features Chairman Kaga Takeshi from Iron Chef with the
little girl?
RMK
In NY, and I'm sure other major cities, there are blocks of 'leased
time' programs leased by Fujisaki Communications, Rai Italiano, and
other foreign broadcasters which sometime feature foreign gameshows.
Chris Lemon
"RMK" <sal...@ix.netcom.com> wrote in message
news:a7e3b2fc.0205...@posting.google.com...
Thank you. However, that doesn't answer my question.
Arashi-sama
Hi!
Nope, this show stars Beat Takeshi, quite a famous chap who is a movie
director and a host for a number of tv programmes.
Since it is so much easier to show you what it is, please go to this
link, and maybe you'll be able to understand why I am addicted! ^_^
http://www.geocities.com/gensmola/Castle.html
Jaa,
Makino Tsukushi
TheShredder
I'm wondering if someone could identify this thing, that I've only seen a
few minutes of. All I remember, is that it was a game of musical chairs,
played with a LIVE Firecracker. I don't remember how the firecracker came
into play, but it was one of the damndest things I've ever seen..
Too bad it wasn't subtitled.
peacock
> link, and maybe you'll be able to understand why I am addicted! ^_^
Heh... I just *knew* an anime smiley would pop up in this post!
-- Cactus Bob, who gets cold feet just mentioning anime
--
Bobby Peacock, Imaginational Chameleon and Anthro Artist (-:
Name me three things uglier than Dale Jarrett's car
SEPTEMBER 11, 2001 -- Its days are numbered!
Apologies to Emi Melissa Briet. I was just having fun.
Chris Lemon
Thank you for the link! Reminds me a little of a show we had here in the
States called "American Gladiators". :)
Chris M. Dickson
Arashi-sama <dread_m...@yahoo.com> writes
>I am quite sure there have been many, many posts with this very topic,
>but I am here to beat this subject even further into the ground.
Not really. I'd guess it comes up no more than monthly - probably rather
less frequently than that. Many people here are rather parochial.
>I've always liked Takeshi's Castle, Endurance and Denpa Shonen.
>
>Any information on how to get video copies (for US VCRs) is well
>appreciated!
While I can't help directly, here are some leads which might possibly be
of some interest.
You might want to try to get a copy of "Storm the Castle", a one-off
pilot based on Takeshi's Castle aired on XYZ on (insert date from EoTVGS
here). A little over half the games on the show seem to have directly
been taken from Takeshi's Castle and most of the rest are very similar
in style as far as I can tell. I still think it's one of the best - and
most underrated - US game shows I've seen yet.
There was a commercial UK video with clips from Endurance which you
might get from time to time. (Of course, you'll then have the PAL ->
NTSC conversion to consider, but that's another matter.) A copy of said
tape was up on EBay last week and bought by someone approximating to
Nick Gates - which will make sense if you're on the ukgameshows list. Is
Za Gaman still being produced and broadcast? I thought it was a 1980s
curiosity only, though I'm sure many similar shows have followed.
Likewise, you might be interested in "Endurance UK", a native British
production along similar lines. From what I understand, the emphasis is
rather different; in the Japanese original, you were representing some
association to which you belonged and making sure you didn't let them
down, but in the British show it's very much every man for himself. I
think there are some NTSC versions of episodes at large on the trading
circuit.
Can't help you with Denpa Shonen, I'm afraid, though
http://www3.tky.3web.ne.jp/~edjacob/tv.html
has mentions "Japanarama" - a US tape of "psycho TV from Japan".
For reference, as far as I can tell, there are at least as many, er,
restrained game shows in Japan as there are extreme ones.
Have fun,
Chris
(learning Japanese at night school once a week)
--
Chris M. Dickson, Middlesbrough, Great Britain; ch...@dickson.demon.co.uk
ukgs-l, the UK Game Shows mailing list | The New UK Game Show Page
http://www.qwertyuiop.co.uk/u/ | http://www.qwertyuiop.co.uk/gs/
Nick G
> pilot based on Takeshi's Castle aired on XYZ on (insert date from EoTVGS
> here). A little over half the games on the show seem to have directly
> been taken from Takeshi's Castle and most of the rest are very similar
> in style as far as I can tell. I still think it's one of the best - and
> most underrated - US game shows I've seen yet.
Nngh, ten families is an awful lot to keep up with, Michael Burger
annoys me...
> There was a commercial UK video with clips from Endurance which you
> might get from time to time. (Of course, you'll then have the PAL ->
> NTSC conversion to consider, but that's another matter.) A copy of said
> tape was up on EBay last week and bought by someone approximating to
> Nick Gates - which will make sense if you're on the ukgameshows list. Is
> Za Gaman still being produced and broadcast? I thought it was a 1980s
> curiosity only, though I'm sure many similar shows have followed.
As I recall it only had two series. I'll find out for sure when I get
the video :)
> Likewise, you might be interested in "Endurance UK", a native British
> production along similar lines. From what I understand, the emphasis is
> rather different; in the Japanese original, you were representing some
> association to which you belonged and making sure you didn't let them
> down, but in the British show it's very much every man for himself. I
> think there are some NTSC versions of episodes at large on the trading
> circuit.
Also there are many things allowable on Japanese television that you
just wouldn't get away with doing to contestants here. Hence Endurance
UK had a bit more of a premium on unpleasantness rather than outright
torture (eating Chinese 100 year old eggs, racing on exercise bikes
with a tablespoon of mustard powder in your mouth, trying to hold on
to a bungee rack whilst molasses and maggots are poured onyo your
face... that sort of thing - and many people who got onto series one
also applied and got on to series 2 which just goes to show something,
I'm not sure what).
Bye!
Nick