HouseTV: Ninja Advisory

As many people should know, I'm a big fan of televised insanity. As those same people will probably know, I am a huge fan of Ninja Warrior. G4TV's adopted Japanese import of the show Sasuke has its own crazed and deranged fan base here in the states.

What I love about the show is that it basically writes itself. 100 competitors of various ages, occupations, and levels of physical condition run the obstacle course from hell. Four stages of progressively more greuling challenges that most of the course runners never even see.

Sure, there are many other shows that embrace the concept. Most recently, the US show Wipeout did a pretty good job of garnering my attention for the summer (and hopefully many more to come). But what makes Ninja Warrior stand out from the others is that despite the humor that shows up, the show takes itself seriously.

Sure, there are any number of competitors that are there merely to evoke laughs (some classic legends never make it past the first obstacle). But there are also the elite of the elite - the All-Stars. Repeat performers whose personal stories are just as intriguing as the course itself. Shingo Yamamoto, a man who can track the course of his carrer at a gas station (from attendant to manager) through his course appearances. Shiratori, Nagano, and the tradgedy that is Yamada... the all have a place in my heart. And to this day, I occasionally will still scream, "Paul Hamm!" as loud as humanly possible.

The only downside to the series is that it covers a competition that lasts for one day and occurs (at best) semi-annually. That means that after just a few months of wacthing the show, you can theoretically watch every single torunament that has ever happened (since each tournament covers only 2-5 episodes on average). So, having sadly caught up completely with all of the episodes, my only solace comes from when there is a new tournament in Japan. G4, in their infinite wisdom, bottles up each and every episode from said tournaments and airs them in one big money shot that they call Ninja Fest.

And said Fest... occurs tomorrow.

I want to tell you that I'm not a sucker for this, but I am. And on top of it, not only is there an American Ninja special that covers the adventures of the American challengers sent by G4 ("There's four this time, so one of them's bound to have a personality!"), but Attack of the Show (which I've already stated is a guilty pleasure of mine) is doing a one-hour special that they filmed in Japan. On top of that, both Kevin and Olivia are supposed to attack the Ninja Warrior course.

I don't think I can sell this any more than I have now. Four and a half hours of Japanese stuff, followed by some American guys breaking things with their bare hands. What more do you want out of life? Tivo the Knight Rider for just this one night and check it out. Or do the opposite like I probably will. But make sure to check it out.