American Gladiators are Back in the Ring and Ready to Rumble

Is America ready? Is the Gladiator ready? Well, ready or not, the American Gladiators are back from mid-90s cancellation, complete with enough muscles and spandex to make even superheroes feel out of shape. Is the revival of the show, reminiscent of the gladiator games in the Roman Coliseum, meant to placate and distract the public from the writers’ strike? Will its appearance benefit society or continue to rot its foundation?

And the real question is, why is American Gladiators coming back now in the first place?
Many would believe that NBC is airing this show because of the WGA Strike. However, a revival of the show has actually been in talks since as early as August 2007. Even so, American Gladiators seems like a perfect substitute for all the shows off the air at NBC since it does not require unionized writers, is a fan-favorite from years ago, and is wildly entertaining. “It’s truly what’s not in the TV landscape right now. While everyone’s zigging. I’m attracted to doing a zag,” said Craig Plestis, executive vice president of alternative programming, development, and specials at NBC entertainment, to Variety last year.

What exactly is so unique and “zagging” about this show? For those who do not remember the original American Gladiators, which ran from 1989 to 1996, the premise of the show is basically the same as Nickelodeon’s Guts. The idea is two teams of amateur athletes (firefighters, tax collectors, lawyers, etc.) compete against each other and against the program’s own “Gladiators” in events that test strength, agility, and endurance. But it is one of those shows one has to see in order to receive the full experience.

The 2008 American Gladiators is not a complete simulacrum of the original. The show’s traditional bright-colored uniforms and arena—normally consisting of red, white, and blue—have been replaced with blacks and silvers. In fact, the arena itself has much less lighting than the original, which gives the set a dungeon-like feel. Some of the old events, like “Hang Time,” “The Eliminator,” and of course, the “Joust” (which consists of two people beating each other up with giant Q-tips), are back. The most important new aspect of the show is a greater focus on the contenders’ sympathy-seeking backstories. There is a lot more emphasis on their families and personal lives. Some contenders compete to help their parents retire, others in honor of a loved one who has passed on.

There definitely is a certain amount of ridiculousness to the show, mostly coming from the Gladiators and hosts, Hulk Hogan and Laila Ali. Gladiator Wolf, whose hair and facial hair have been styled to resemble—guess what!—a wolf, once responded to the question, “Gladiator, ready?” by saying, “I’m gonna eat you.” Also, after a contender named Venus won the grueling obstacle course, “The Eliminator,” Hulk Hogan said to her, “The Sun, the moon, Jupiter, and Venus were aligned for you tonight!” With original Hogan lines like that, who needs writers?

Throughout the course of the competition, the viewer inevitably roots for somebody or something—whether it is the contender, the Gladiator, the cheesy lines, or the massive tennis ball shot 100 mph out of a cannon that receives so little recognition. A person can’t help but enjoy this spectacle of simultaneous decadence and inspiration.