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Are You Game?
Chan 5, Weds, 8.30pm.

Game, Set, Outmatched

By Ho Ghim Khoon • UrbanWire
• email reporter • email story • printer friendly

Kudos to Channel 5 for getting into the game, no pun intended, and trying to start a reality show based on the popular American reality television show, The Amazing Race, after paying a good sum for the rights. But after watching a few episodes, we realised Are You Game? is no successful copycat. Here’s why.

1) Never name a show that’s similar to one that was a flop (read: Are You Hot?) Clearly, someone lacked imagination.

2) Never let the viewers know that the show lacks money. This show is definitely budget travelling 101. While the Americans race around the world in The Amazing Race, 5 teams in Are You Game? race around…Singapore. Wow!

3) Celebrities are playing as well in an obvious attempt to attract viewers. The downside is that the producers picked 2 relatively unknown ones (Huang Shi Yu and Felicia Chin) to provide that shot in the arm.

4) Gender Bigotry. Transport never seems to be a problem with the all-girls teams. The girls always manage to get free rides from male drivers. Similarly, the celebrity team will have no trouble hitching ride thanks to the sweet pleas from girl-next-door Felicia Chin. That leaves the all-guys team with the most difficulty.

5) This isn’t a reality TV show. This is a health education cum home economics show. The contestants are required to find food products with healthier choice symbols and deliver the food to various homes as the “road block” challenge. The producers of the show were probably hungry when they came up with the show’s concept.

6) I’m no longer game to watch another episode of Are You Game?

Rating: 2 out of 5 stars

Here’s more information about the show, that is, if you’re even bothered to continue watching.

The elimination round is only carried out after like 3 - 4 rounds of racing. After all, with only five teams to start with, what else can they do?

The remaining teams are asked to take more public transport, as they didn’t have to do that in the past.

This show is probably the government’s last desperate attempt to warn the public to eat correctly and have good hygiene habits. An example will be to cut off the fat meat off the pork before cooking it. As if we don’t already know that.

Health Promotion Board is the major sponsor of the show because the Healthier Choice symbol keeps appearing at all the places the teams went, from start to finish.

The grand prize is just a European vacation. Yes, I was guilty of thinking it was $1 million too.

Images taken from www.mediacorptv.com