The Joys of Wipeout, by Brian Buxton

How often is it that you can truly say you “belly laughed?” I mean, laughed so hard that tears came out of your eyes, snot dribbled out of your nose, and your sides hurt so bad because your diaphragm hasn’t had that hard of a workout since you decided to “start” your intense workout regiment and all those crunches when the clock struck midnight 2000-whatever? These have been the offerings this show has provided me over the past two summers. But, beyond the laughs (which is central to my enjoyment of the show), I like ABC’s “Wipeout” beyond that reason.

First, I step aside to answer the question some of the readers might ask: “What is ‘Wipeout?’” At its very essence, it is a television game show where each week 24 contestants compete through a series of obstacles in hopes to win $50,000. The show has three hosts: ESPN’s John Anderson, comedian and former Talk Soup host John Henson, and Jill Wagner who actually is the only host that engages with each contestant that will compete; John Anderson and John Henson commentate on the circumstances of each contestant, ultimately creating “characters” for the audience to personally getting connected with. Much in the vein of Japanese game shows such as “Sasuke” or “Takeshi’s Castle,” “Wipeout” proves to be a show where anything that can happen will happen.

Every time I mention my affinity for the show I am always confronted by people who either love the show or by people who hate the show. I seldom find people who exist on the middle ground. Ok, I’ve never found people existing in the middle ground; I only say seldom because I know sooner or later I will find someone who sits on the fence. For the “lovers,” it’s very easy to have a conversation about certain episodes, reminiscing on certain wipeouts that were either painful, ridiculous, or both; and it is not uncommon for us in the conversation to be swept back into the visuals locked in our memories and return to those glorious tears that originally fell. For the “haters,” I’ve had people blatantly denounce the show for its stupidity, but also I’ve had people question my own sense of taste and judgment based on my love for this show. To the “haters,” I have to ask if they had actually seen the show, which 85% of the reply is “No” because they have no desire to watch people act stupid and look stupid.

True, this show is a game show that truly exemplifies “schadenfreude”—a German word which stands for “happiness at the misfortune of others”—but isn’t that what inspires laughter? We see it all the time on our favorite sitcoms or movies; people getting themselves into outrageous scenarios where we find ourselves laughing at their attempts to get themselves out of their ridiculous circumstances. This was also the purpose of the once-hit TV shows like “Candid Camera” or “America’s Funniest Home Videos”—capture life’s funniest and most random moments showing the misfortunes of other people (or even animals) on video to share with the rest of the world. Yes, “Wipeout” may be different as it purposefully creates those “misfortunes” and documents each contestant’s attempts to overcome obstacles such as the elusive “Big Balls,” “The Sweeper,” “The Dizzy Dummy,” or “The Wipeout Zone” but the element of surprise is the reactions, both physically and/or verbal, of the contestants. Who knows the outcome for each individual? Every contestant—regardless of age, sex, height, weight, ethnicity, and even level of intelligence—will all have a different outcome as they seek to pursue the prize of $50,000. The wipeouts are not planned per se, only encouraged, and it is that randomness which brings tears of joy in laughter.

Beyond just the personal gratification of the show, I’m happy to see a show that can be enjoyed by all ages. In an era of time where the majority of TV shows available to watch are rated above the TVPG marking, “Wipeout” finds itself existing in a realm of family-friendly TV, which is far and few between. This can be a show for everyone. You can finally watch a show with your grandmother in the room without having to wince at something she may not approve of. In the case of this show, I’m sure she’d laugh just as much as you would. For some reason, all of us innately comprehend the foolishness of people’s actions and/or reactions as being funny. Watch a child’s reaction to a cartoon or slapstick humor, even they understand foolishness found when unsuspecting circumstances occur to someone else. Watch any guy’s reaction (and woman’s reaction to the guys) when something gets smashed between their legs—even the mere mention of this perhaps is making the male readers grimace at such a though. Regardless of age or education, everyone understands physical humor. And because of the appeal to all ages and its wide diversity of humor, I’ve heard and even seen this show bring families together, mine included.

Last summer, the final summer before my younger brother and myself would finally move out of our parents’ home and also when the show first premiered, I started watching and DVR-ing the show. I was the only one excited about the prospects of this show while my dad, mom, and brother all thought it was stupid. As I would watch the show, I would laugh out loud so hard curiosity began to peak interest. It wasn’t until a couple of weeks into the season that I finally convinced my younger brother to actually sit down and watch the show. I’ve never seen my brother laugh so hard, but what’s even more awesome is that this would be the beginning of a closer relationship with my younger brother than I have had in the past. Tear jerking stories aside, my brother persuaded my dad to finally watch the show; to hear my dad laugh with such gusto brought so much joy into my life. I don’t know, nor care for that matter, how many times I watched the first five episodes, but I enjoyed the time of togetherness my dad, brother, and I shared. We would enjoy the rest of the summer every Wednesday night at 8PM together; yes, my mom finally started watching the show. She couldn’t enjoy watching something else on TV when she knew the rest of us were having a blast in the living room. Though to this day, she still adamantly abhors the show and its “stupidity,” but even she could not resist laughing, even snorting, by the things she saw on TV.

Yes, I understand that “Wipeout” is not intellectually stimulating programming, nor does it cleverly seek out wit and sarcasm to create perfectly created jokes. But compared to the majority of comedy programs or comedians out there who rely heavily on explicit sexual innuendo or crude language to be “funny,” I say this show is a fresh alternative for an opportunity to laugh. At a time when our economy sucks, divorce rates are high, stories of crime and murder pervade our streams of consciousness in all forms of media, when depression can easily set in, the list can go on and on, isn’t it good to have something that can bring us together and make us laugh, bring us back around the water cooler, or provide an opportunity to bring family together, even for only an hour of syndicated TV programming? Happiness and joy are two qualities that make living much more easy, releasing heavy burdens for just a moment, to escape and not have to think about all the things we have to do. By no means am I’m not suggesting escapism as a way to live life, rather I’m suggesting that it is good to find opportunities to set aside the cares of this world and find a bit of freedom from them. Jesus said he would give us rest on our journey through life, and for me, while I don’t know nor am able to speak on God’s behalf of this show, I find Wipeout to be an enjoyable oasis from all the cares and troubles this world has to offer.

To end this piece, I must pay my utmost respects to the show: “I’m Brian Buxton. Good night and Big Balls!”