Deep in my heart of hearts I have long known that no matter how bizarre and fucked up Reality TV gets here in the US, the Japanese will undoubtedly find a way to top it. I now have my proof that this is true.
I would summarize, but you really do have to read this to understand the full impact.
Note for Lukas: Remind you of anything in particular?
Comments (12)
As wacky and stupid as some US programming has become, I don't think even Mark Burnett would do stuff like that show.
Posted by Brian | May 29, 2005 3:45 AM
Posted on May 29, 2005 03:45
Give it time and boobies, and it will happen.
Posted by Erik | May 29, 2005 8:20 AM
Posted on May 29, 2005 08:20
Oh my. I'm so torn as to which is more bizare.
Posted by Lukas | May 29, 2005 9:43 AM
Posted on May 29, 2005 09:43
I really hope that all they did to nasubi was in his contract.
Otherwise it seems very illegal to me.
Posted by gus | May 30, 2005 8:39 AM
Posted on May 30, 2005 08:39
Reminds me of the Stanford Prison Experiment.
Although ...
"A doctor's visit in May, after five months in the room, revealed Nasubi to be in perfect health! No scurvy, no fleas or lice, and no signs of malnutrition."
I suspect they were feeding him a bit on the sly.
Posted by Ed | May 30, 2005 2:58 PM
Posted on May 30, 2005 14:58
They must have been.
Jeez, even I like my alone time, but that would drive me insane. O.o
Somehow I think I've heard of this or something like it before. Meh, it'll come to me in a couple hours I bet.
Posted by Sonja | May 30, 2005 5:07 PM
Posted on May 30, 2005 17:07
CBS' Big Brother has the potential to be this cruel. Already, contestants have to win their food, and they're forced to do humiliating things to win prizes (including things that result in that "blur effect"). All you have to do is isolate them in different rooms, and we'd be well on our way to our own Japanese cruelty fest.
Posted by Eric | May 31, 2005 5:40 AM
Posted on May 31, 2005 05:40
Well, he has to have had running water, if the description on that page is remotely true - a human being cannot go two weeks without drinking water. I'll assume he had a shower, too, which would keep away fleas and lice, if there were any to be found in the apartment they dumped him in.
Probably they were giving him a little food when the cameras were off, but not necessarily a whole lot. Either way...
Posted by Jason | May 31, 2005 2:12 PM
Posted on May 31, 2005 14:12
Also, Ed, please tell me more about the Stanford Prison Experiment. A link, maybe?
Posted by Jason | May 31, 2005 2:13 PM
Posted on May 31, 2005 14:13
Not to steal Ed's thunder, but by some odd coincidence, I've had discussions about the Stanford Prison Experiment with three different groups of friends in the past month or so. The official website for it is here: http://www.prisonexp.org/
Posted by Lukas | May 31, 2005 3:27 PM
Posted on May 31, 2005 15:27
Thanks, Lucas.
In brief: the SPX turned the basement of a Stanford psych building into a prison. They got one group of students and told them they were guards, and another group of students and told them they were prisoners. The prisoners and guards had appriopriate uniforms, including mirror shades for the guards (to prevent eye contact).
Very quickly the prisoners, guards, and the professors fell into their roles. At one point the prisoners tried planning an escape and the professors obsessed on stopping it. Everybody forgot that this was an experiment, and all the prisoners had to do was to say "I no longer want to be part this experiment. I am leaving now."
I wonder if Nasubi forgot that this was a show, and forgot he could stop any time.
Posted by Ed | May 31, 2005 3:44 PM
Posted on May 31, 2005 15:44
I read about that experiment as well. It was interesting how some Guards were bent on breaking rebellious students.
Posted by gus | May 31, 2005 4:02 PM
Posted on May 31, 2005 16:02