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Sometimes when I watch television in Japan I think I must be missing something. Surely, I think, television can’t be this bad! Of course, like everywhere, there is good television and bad television, but having watched Japanese television for a number of years now, I find that overall I am pretty disappointed with it. I think the area that irritates me most is that of the game show. In the U.K., game shows aren’t my favourite kinds of shows either, but, from what I remember, members of the public would often compete to win money or prizes, and if celebrities were competing they would win money or prizes for certain charities. Not so in Japan. Last week, I watched some well-known celebrities compete on the Japanese version of Who Wants To Be A Millionaire? and although the jackpot is only ten million yen, or about fifty thousand pounds, the celebrities competing got to keep the loot. And from watching several game shows this would appear to be the norm – our viewing pleasure is provided in the form of watching people who are primarily famous for nothing more than simply being regulars on panel and game shows compete to win money and prizes for themselves. I’ve asked a few Japanese people if they think this is a bit odd, and none of them do. I suppose they might wonder why we would enjoy watching ‘normal’ people on television. Perhaps they have a point and that is why we feel the need to make “celebrity” versions of shows like Big Brother.
But what annoys me most about the game shows I have seen in Japan is the quite simply stunning ignorance that is shown by the celebrities taking part. And the accompanying lack of any kind of embarrassment at being so woefully uninformed about matters. Last night, I watched a quiz show called Nep-League. This is a show in which teams of five celebrities compete against each other in answering a variety of questions. The first section is called Brain Tower in English. The name suggests that some kind of cerebral exercise might be required but Mastermind it is not. Rather, the contestants are shown pictures of things and simply have to say what they are. But the objects are not obscure household items at whose use one could only hazard a guess. No, the things I have seen shown on this section include, but are by no means limited in simplicity to, a corkscrew, President Bush, and a giraffe. Can you imagine that on a game show aimed at adults in the U.K.? Being shown a picture of a giraffe and being asked “What’s this?” and then seeing contestants whooping with joy when they correctly identify it as being a giraffe?
At the time this show was aired, there were huge pro-democracy demonstrations in Myanmar. On the show a team of five celebrities were asked which country used to be known as Burma. Not one of them knew the correct answer. Two thought it was the Philippines, one said Malaysia, and one said Syria. I fear that the other said Oceania but I am going to have to assume I really did mishear that. In another section of the show one celebrity failed to name the capital of Iraq. For heaven’s sake, in this day and age how can an adult not know the capital of Iraq! Quite frankly I was astounded, almost as much as I was a couple of months ago, when a team of five newsreaders were asked the capital of Lebanon and only one of them had any idea. Yes, newsreaders!
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