#HTE

This Japanese Talent/Contest/Variety Show Demonstrates Wonderful Creativity

While living in Japan, I saw plenty of weird things. And with only a basic grasp of the language, part of the fun of watching a TV variety show was just trying to figure out what the hell was going on.

They’ve got a long-running show called Kinchan and Katori Shingo’s All Japan Costume Grand Prix, which is simply called Masquerade in English-speaking markets. I first thought it was a costume contest (the Japanese are awesome at Halloween costumes), then decided it was a sort of talent show. But what this Japanese analog to America’s Got Talent really excels at, is demonstrating creative ways for groups of people to emulate special effects through coordination.

You may have already seen some clips through GIFs and memes, and not realized they were from the show. Here are some examples of classic clips:

“Billiards Game”

“Pommel Horse”

“Matrix Ping Pong”

“Room Turns Into a Mess”

“Gymnasium Mirrors”

“Basketball Shadow”

The ones done by kids are impressively ambitious:

“Train Car”

“School Mirror”

“F1 Pit Stop”

This YouTube account dedicated to the show features tons of clips, all of them older. (Warning: It’s a total rabbit-hole.)

The show is now seeking participants from outside of Japan; if you’ve got an idea you’d like to pitch, click this link and you’ll find an e-mail button at the bottom (the page is all in Japanese).