Saturday (8:15pm) and Sunday (8pm) for two weeks then Sunday nights,
ITV1
Gary Lineker invites ten celebrities to get inside yellow boxes which will be placed before a challenge, opened, and the celebrities will quickly have to work out what the challenge is and then get on with doing it as fast as possible, scoring points based on position. There’s an individual challenge and a team challenge, and the lowest scoring pair of contestants will have to face off in an elimination challenge.
I’ve seen some Boksen, not the original Norwegian but another Scandinavian version and… it’s fine! And I’ve no reason to believe this will not be perfectly entertaining. Challenges in the original tend towards outdoors-y pursuits, but doesn’t preclude a bit of puzzle solving or unusual situation. It sounds a bit like this version is pushing unusual situations a bit more – there were poorly AI rendered logos for audiences required for a celebrity debating show, dance-off and soccer showdown around the South Coast floating about around the time of filming last year, but some of these things suggest a degree of preparation which is not really what the show is about, we’ll have to see.
The yellow boxes all lined up and arranged is quite a striking visual. This very much feels like the sort of thing that would have been a reasonable returnable hit twenty years ago but probably doesn’t have quite the killer instinct to break out today which is a pity but we are where we are. Let us know what you think in the comments!
Quite excited for this, as it seems to have a bit of Aleskunner DNA. I hope the more setup challenges like debating keep the spirit of unpreparedness in their implementation.
Of course, nothing says confidence like keeping it on the shelf for 10 months…
I’m not sure being on the shelf is as much of an indication as it used to be – going out in September, traditionally new season, is probably a better sign of confidence than going out in late Spring – but yes it never *feels* like confidence, even if it’s mainly for an accounting trick.
First two episodes up on ITVX already.
This is I think a bit of a shame. I really don’t think this makes a great first impression, way, WAY too overdramatic in the edit, it is not a show that requires breathy gothy cover versions for what it basically completing mini tasks in an industrial ground, the first twenty minutes of episode one quite a challenge to sit through. And the real reason this is a pity is because when the show is being lighter and mischevious it can actually be pretty good – the egg and spoon race was fun. The Take A Seat task in episode two played out interestingly. The Battle Of The Bands, even if it breaks what The Box should be about really, was funny. It’s a better show when it has more of a lightness of touch, and I fear the first impressions of episode one might do quite a lot of damage.
Speaking of that first challenge, I understand that’s the standard Challenge 1 the format uses worldwide and in itself is fine, but in simplifying the format in the UK they’ve lost some of the nuance and strategy that the original’s points-based format provided – really the only thing that mattered here is who put their token in position 1 and who put their tokens in positions 9 and 10. The Duel Arena I can take or leave – the Danish episode I watched didn’t have it, just the last two people competing in their own challenge on location – I guess this way saves on location scouting, but the Duels are pretty underwhelming thus far – Carrot in a Box and a chess clock maze game that absolutely should not have been on a chess clock mechanism.
Lineker elicits more chuckles than I was expecting. Some of the unexpected celebrity chats at the Box Base were quite fun.
I am definitely interested enough that I will keep watching, but I will also cringe at all the bits where it shoots itself in the foot.
I thought episode 2 was a huge improvement over episode 1. Better duel game and better team game for sure.
However the whole let’s go through a game just to get a bottom 2 so they can pick players in the team game seems like a huge waste of time. The individual game this far has been almost completely irrelevant. I want the individual game to have more relevance. Maybe it will in future episodes.
So far I have enjoyed what I have seen.
Actually think this is quite decent – much better than some other revent ITV efforts and crucially gas it’s own identity rather than feeling like they’re trying to capitalise on another format, usually The Traitors.
This is a much better format than the likes of The Neighbourhood and Genius Game and even though I enjoyed Nobody’s fool; The Box might be ITV’s best attempt at a new reality show. Despite the first episode having games which didn’t really stand out and set a tone for the series the second episode was much more interesting the maze battle in particular was good fun to watch it’s the kind of challenge i’d like to have a go at.
I actually think you see a softer side to Gary Lineker in this since his move away from Match Of The Day, it’s nice to see him back on our screens, I like the growing bond between him and Joey Essex!
So many people across twitter are slagging it off but anyone that watched Episode 1 and gave up it’s worth sticking with it. actually a really enjoyable format. The i360 challenge looks epic on next weeks episode so definitely one to watch.
Four episodes in, I know it’s meant to feel like a load of unconnected unusual challenges but it really *feels* like a load of unconnected unusual challenges and not quite in a good way, I think there needs to be a stronger throughline underpinning it all, it doesn’t feel like the individual task *matters* all that much and I think the show needs a better sense of a goal other than “to be the winner of The Box”.
Debating whether cats are better than dogs at the Oxford Union. Full marks for a creative idea (although it doesn’t really work in this format), no marks for remembering this is going out on ITV on a Saturday night. In fact there are quite a few challenges that fall into the “we’ve had an idea, but you really have to squint a bit for it to work as a game” really. The height and swimming challenge reduced to ping pong. The yellow card challenge largely stops being interesting once one person has worked it out, as the other will pick up on it seconds after, so cumulative time isn’t interesting. I did like the buzz wire pursuit though.
Also why is the truck still driving ten boxes around when there are less than ten celebrities left? What a waste of petrol.
Who the hell looked at the format for episode five, where the only person immune is one of the people who came last in the individual challenge, and thought that wasn’t fucking nonsense?
For what it’s worth, my mother is oddly finding the show more enjoyable as it progresses, saying that it feels like it’s had a slow burn but is now starting to actually show some teeth, with interesting challenge ideas and genuine drama. She says it reminds her of the first series of The Traitors, where it actually took a few episodes before it started truly developing into the hit it’s become.
The last few episodes of this were alright so it’s a pity the first half (or so) felt like it was a bit made-up-as-you-go-along.
The task on the boat was similar to an elimination task on the Danish episodes I saw, where they came out to a theatre full of people and had to count the garments to come up a phone number to ring the host up. Fastest won.
I’ve stuck with it throughout the whole series and really enjoyed it. I kind of like the format point where the contestants are given minimal or no instructions it makes it a guessing game for the viewers at home to try and figure out if their doing the right thing or not, it also makes it funny when the celebs do random/silly things which there not supposed to be doing for the task. I honestly think Gary is in his element here when he’s doing a show which doesn’t relate to his profession like The Box and his previous game show Sitting On A Fortune I feel he let’s go a bit, the way he gets involved in some of the game play, for example that boat game blending in with the rest of the passengers and the game of sardines where he was hiding in the wardrobe. The cast have been good probably better during the later episodes after John Bercow was eliminated! I would personally like a second series it’s been the most enjoyable reality/game format ITV have done this year which has felt like a success even if others don’t agree.
This show was definitely a slow burner but improved over its run and became really compelling by the end. I also stuck with it, and I’m glad I did! And that final, you just couldn’t have written such a tense finish!