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Apparently, the sight of helpless people falling flat on their faces against fake mud is a joy that doesn't go away that easily. The goofy ABC reality-competition show
Wipeout drew in 9.5 million viewers on its second week, just a slight decline from its debut, and second only to NBC's
America's Got Talent. Amazingly,
Wipeout also topped the finale of
Hell's Kitchen by some 1.8 million viewers.
One of the producers of
MXC, a redubbing of a Japanese cult favorite
Takeshi's Castle, however, is not jumping for joy.
Wipeout is understandably reaping comparisons with
MXC, which, when you think about it really, is a ripoff in itself.
Your Take
ackermaniv said:
yeah, most of the laughs come from the first round and a half.... then it becomes tiring
buddytvgina said:
Wipeout usually starts off funny but then kind of dies out for me after the first 15-20 minutes. It should...
ncmacasl said:
Actually it is more of a ripoff of ABC's 1970s Summer show: "Almost Anything Goes" (hosted at one time by R...
In any case, Larry Strawther, one of the producers of
MXC, is crying foul over
Wipeout, which, all things considered, does look a lot like
MXC. According to him, he created a video showing side-by-side moments from the two shows to emphasize the similarities, but it was pulled from YouTube after five days. In its place, it says that
Wipeout producers filed a copyright violation, which Strawther will be fighting with a counter protest of his own.
Wipeout, which is looking to be this summer's surprise hit, features 24 seemingly normal, everyday people compete on an extreme obstacle course, with such contraptions like sucker-punch wall and a “dreadmill.” If they fail the stunt, they fall off, and land, mostly face first, into muddy water. The winner takes home $50,000.
-Glenn Diaz, BuddyTV Staff Columnist
Source:
LA Times,
Kansas City
(Image Courtesy of ABC)