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American Gladiators
Tonight is another night of American Gladiators. I’ve seen a few clips from the show and I have to admit…I don’t see the attraction. Last night I was flipping through the channels and saw a commercial for American Gladiators featuring the future Olympian Breaux Greer. His haircut definitely caught my attention and had me watching the rest of the commercial. Nevertheless, even Breaux and his great highlights didn’t tempt me into watching another hour of javelin duels, rock climbing, or other insane challenges. It seems more like a circus performance for people with overly muscular bodies. Hulk Hogan has made some guest appearances on the show, which only gives me another reason not to watch it.
Sorry if there are any American Gladiators fans out there, but these ridiculous stunts are just not my idea of entertainment! For all those who have seen it, do you think American Gladiators is a hit? Or does it fit in with these other crazy summer game shows like Wipeout or I Survived a Japanese Game Show?
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Jun 30, 2008 1:02 PM
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I use to love watching American Gladiators. My all time favorite gladiator was Tower....oh he was so good looking. But today's AG I don't know. The challenges are waaay over the top this time, and so is the eliminator. But I don't like how they immediatly interview the winner of eliminator and don't even let the viewers watch the other contender. finish the thing. Plus what is up with them wearing backpacks? And I am liking Wolf. He is cute in a weird way.
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Jul 1, 2008 4:44 AM
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I like it and watch it, but the old series (TOS) was better. I don't appreciate the amped-up theatrics. Yes, we should expect a little more of that today, especially with a major network budget, but they've bloated it and compromised the pace in the process. TOS kept the action going; there was rarely more than a minute between competitive rounds. I firmly believe if they cut out most of the hype, trash talk, insubstantial interviews, and countdowns to commercials (you know they're coming when the music swells and the clock doesn't appear), they'd have enough time to show us both genders competing in all the events. They wouldn't have to tell us to "go online to see the rest". Plus, with TOS's focus on action and more dignified commentary, it just felt more authentic, almost like a legitimate sporting event or even an Olympic meet.
That said, watching still gets me pumped and makes my mirror neurons twitch. I still want to do those stunts as much as I wanted to as a kid, especially Joust and Atlasphere--isn't that making a comeback this season? With luck I'll be able to train and get on the show while it still gets ratings! Of course, with the modern emphasis on competitor backstory, I can only hope I'm interesting enough...
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Jul 1, 2008 5:56 PM
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One nitpick to your blog, Gaby and Kami. Hulk Hogan is one of the hosts of the show, so he makes more than 'guest appearances'.
Overall I enjoy the show. It's a guilty pleasure that I can watch with my kids. I am a bit ticked that they use too much time for fluff and direct us to the web to see the other competitions. Not gonna happen!
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Jul 2, 2008 8:48 AM
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