Whether they prefer to watch singers perform while submerged in ice-cold water, or contestants contorting their bodies to form strange shapes to fit through wall cutouts, audiences have more reasons to stay glued to their TV sets, as listed GMA Network, Inc., and Lopez-led ABS-CBN Corp. have both launched new game shows to bolster their programming lineup.
GMA Network has just brought back its widely successful game show Hole in the Wall. The show, which airs Mondays to Fridays at 5:30 p.m., kicked off its third season yesterday.
Still hosted by the wacky tandem of comedians Michael V., and Ogie Alcasid, Hole in the Wall gives contestants a chance to win as much as P100,000 daily. In the show, teams of three face various Styrofoam walls speeding towards them with crazy cutouts. If they fail to fit through the cutouts, they are knocked back by the wall into a pool of water.
Hole in the Wall is an adaptation of the Japanese game show Brain Wall (nicknamed “Human Tetris” by fans on YouTube). GMA Network first aired Hole in the Wall in April last year. The first season was such a hit that the network renewed the show for a second season the same year.
“Hole in the Wall became a huge hit around the country for its comedic appeal with viewers of all ages,” Michael V. told reporters in the vernacular last week.
Hole in the Wall took over the timeslot vacated by the dating game show Take Me Out, which ended its 12-week run last Friday.
Airing against Hole in the Wall is ABS-CBN’s original trivia game show called Panahon Ko ‘To! Ang Game Show ng Buhay Ko. The show, which began airing on June 28, is hosted by Luis Manzano and Billy Crawford.
Each game starts with five teams of three members each who come from three different generations (13-19 years old, 20-45, and 46 and above). Each member will be in charge of answering questions or puzzles about their respective generations to advance to the next round.
Mr. Manzano said the show promises a fun yet nostalgic experience as it takes viewers down memory lane and back with questions from as early as the 1960s to the present era.
“In the show, you only need to look back at your previous experiences to find the answer. And in the process you also remember memories from the past, which makes the show a lot more fun because Filipinos just love to reminisce,” he told reporters.
Mr. Crawford, who was the host of the recently concluded Pilipinas Got Talent together with Mr. Manzano, hopes the new show will also be another ratings winner for ABS-CBN.
“This is the type of show that you want to watch if you want to bond with your friends or family. You don’t only get to remember nice things about your generation but also learn the fads and popular things during your parent’s or grandparent’s time,” he said.
Another new game show on ABS-CBN is Twist and Shout, which had its pilot telecast last Saturday.
This is a singing competition with a twist hosted by singers Martin Nievera and Gary Valenciano. This is their first time hosting a show together.
“I’ve never been a game show host. This is my first time, but I have Martin (Mr. Nievera). I know we’re both going to learn from each other, we’re ready for the challenges,” Mr. Valenciano told a press conference last week.
“ABS-CBN has created a lot of game shows but the core element in Twist and Shout is not to try to be a game show and us hosts not to be like Edu Manzano, Cesar Montano, or Kris Aquino. We will just be Martin and Gary,” Mr. Nievera added.
Twist and Shout will feature celebrities singing top hits while facing distractions such as running on a treadmill, being dipped in ice-cold water, or getting sprayed continuously with hot air.
In each episode, two celebrity teams with three players will undergo three rounds with different distractions. Each team member will tackle one round with the goal of continuously singing despite the distractions for two minutes. Judges Aiza Seguerra and Jimmy Bondoc, as well as a weekly celebrity guest, will give the contestant points and the team with the highest number of points will proceed to the final round.
The winning team must again sing for two minutes while trying to stay on top of a rotating platform to be able to win P200,000.
Twist and Shout is a franchise from Zodiak Entertainment, an international production and distribution group, which aired the format in countries such as France, India, and Indonesia.
Meanwhile, GMA Network’s sister TV station, Quality Television (Q-11) is conducting a different kind of game show in which chefs around Metro Manila try to outdo each other by coming up with the best-tasting dishes.
Since last month, host Zoren Legaspi, annotator Issa Litton, and chef judge Sau del Rosario have overseen Kitchen Battles which features two chefs who strive to cancel each other out in a cook-off.
“Using the star ingredients which are only revealed to them on the actual competition, the chefs come up with recipes on the spot, and cook them under time pressure,” Ms. Litton told reporters last week.
Mr. Legaspi said around 200 chefs from various restaurants and hotels in Metro Manila and nearby provinces auditioned earlier this year for a chance to join the show. “Out of that, only 12 chefs were short-listed to be part of the show as kitchen warriors,” he explained.
There are three rounds of cooking showdowns each week, with Mr. Legaspi acting as the “mastermind” of the battles — the one in charge of thinking of the secret ingredient for each face-off. Ms. Litton gives TV viewers updates on what the chefs are cooking. Messrs. Legaspi and del Rosario, as well as a guest judge taste the dishes to determine the winner.
Kitchen Battles may appear like a local version of Iron Chef, which originated in Japan, but Ms. Litton said the Q-11 program is “much tougher.”
“In Kitchen Battles, the chef works alone. Unlike in Iron Chef where the chef has two assistants including sous chefs to help them,” she said.
Hole in the Wall airs weekdays at 5:30 p.m. on GMA Network’s Channel 7. Panahon Ko ‘To! Ang Game Show ng Buhay Ko airs weekdays at 5:30 p.m. on ABS-CBN’s Channel 2. Twist and Shout airs Saturdays and Sundays at 8:45 p.m. on Channel 2. Kitchen Battles airs Sundays at 7:45 p.m. on Q-11.
