Board of Excitement 24th-30th April 2011

By | April 24, 2011
32 Comments

Not much happening:

  • It’s Easter! Yum. (Sunday)
  • The Cube – last week’s episode was very very good indeed. Series 3 discussion here. Note the earlier time, there’s a special episode of Coronation Street on after. (6:30pm, ITV1, Sunday)
  • Celebrity Total Wipeout – The last episode of series four. (5:30pm, BBC1, Holiday Monday)
  • The Voice – it’s big in Holland so that means it’s also going to be big in the US, don’t forget this is going to be NBC’s biggest reality hit in years (not my words you understand). Needless to say we’re ready with fair and impartial graph making equipment. You can’t say NBC aren’t trying, they’ve been airing extended clips before Jay Leno and Saturday Night Live this week and given what they’ve apparently paid for it they need it to be a hit really. It’s a pity then they’ve decided to launch it towards the mid-late stages of American Idol which hasn’t really collapsed, then. (Tuesday and a repeat on Wednesday after the highly-rated Minute to Win It, NBC)
  • The Royal Wedding – because when you think about it, marriage is like the ULTIMATE gameshow isn’t it? (Basically all week on all channels)
  • The Million Pound Drop – Actually it’s on at 9pm on both Fridays and Saturdays now, which seeing as it seems to do better at 10pm is another winning move from Channel 4. In case you’re wondering, the following shows on the next two Fridays are a repeat of My Big Fat Royal Gypsy Wedding from the night previous and Jimmy Carr: Telling Jokes. (9pm, Channel 4, Friday and Saturday)

Show discussion: Don’t Scare the Hare

By | April 23, 2011
91 Comments

Well it’s been a long time coming and the road has been torturous but finally this evening we will see if Don’t Scare the Hare was worth bothering with in the end. It looks like a, er, very different proposition from the rather more straight-laiced pilot of legend from about 18 months ago. It’s likely to appeal to kids, but in this weather will any be watching? And despite putting out a big press release saying Miranda Hart was going to be involved, she’s not actually in it at all.

It starts at 5:25pm on BBC1.

Testing Testing 123

By | April 23, 2011
5 Comments

If you are into that sort of thing you’re probably aware that Portal 2 was out this week on various video game devices. It is, of course, the sequel to the brilliant original whereby you as a test subject are subjected to spatial awareness puzzles that try to kill you under the guise of testing for science by a sentient and increasingly disturbing computer AI by the name of GLADoS. It’s a short game, but it’s challenging and frequently very funny, a neat puzzler involving story by stealth, and the sequel is like the original except there is a bit more of it. The original came out in 2007.

It therefore makes us sad that Solitary, beginning in 2006, never really invaded the US public’s conciousness despite being popular enough on the Fox Reality cable channel to get four seasons. In it, test subjects are subjected to physical and mental endurance challenges under the guise of testing for science by by a sentient and increasingly disturbing computer AI by the name of VAL. There were two main tasks on each episode, a frequently frustrating test, the winner of which didn’t have to partake in VAL’s treatment where the first person who couldn’t take it any more and hit the red button went home. For whatever reason there isn’t much up of it on Youtube (back when we did videos we put up a brilliant challenge involving sleep deprivation before we had to take it down) however this video from the final series is quite funny.

Show discussion: The Million Pound Drop – Live! Spring 2011

By | April 22, 2011
30 Comments

I don’t know what number series they’re calling this so I’m playing it safe.

Anyway, the lovely Davina’s back for six more weekends of drop drama and tonight’s first episode is set to feature Andrew Flintoff and partner. It’s on 10pm on Fridays and 9pm Saturdays.

Reports have suggested that someone who beats the online game this series will get to go and play for real – Google will never know what’s hit it. You can play that here.

Things

By | April 20, 2011
41 Comments

Come back in a bit, I’ll have done the You Don’t Know Jack HD iPad review and if I have the time, Ellen’s Know or Go.

In the meantime, Twitter has just announced that The Cube is coming back for a fourth series, so well done The Cube.

Edit: Here’s You Don’t Know Jack.

And 12 Yard’s Holding Out For a Hero has apparently been comissioned for the autumn, so well done them.

Right, and here’s Ellen’s Know or Go HD. If you don’t know Know or Go is, think Russian Roulette if it was done in the same style as Channel 4 non-hit Sabotage. Why isn’t there a verison of Russian Roulette (as in the TV show) on the app store, eh? Anyway, here’s a video.