Ninja Warrior

The show originally began airing in Japan in late 1997 under the name SASUKE (1997), but was not broadcast in the United States until nine and a half years later, starting in February 2007. It consists of four stages which the competitors must complete. Each special is broadcast (in Japan) as a three hour event, broadcast in half hour segments. In the United States, the specials are heavily edited down, creating three or four 30 minute episodes for each season's competition.

Various mistranslations: The hometown of competitor Bunpei Shiratori, Inba, is sometimes called "Imba"; The Free Climbing obstacle is called the "Mountain Climb"; The Climbing Bars obstacle is called the "Bridge of Destiny"; The Prism See-Saw obstacle is called the "Prism Tilt"; The Cross Bridge obstacle is called the "Bridge of Blades"; The Lamp Grasp obstacle is called the "Globe Grasp"; The Pole Jump obstacle is called the "Super Vault"; The Pole Bridge obstacle is called the "Pillar Path"; The first Chain Reaction obstacle is called the "Chain Swing", however this may be intentional to avoid confusion with an unrelated obstacle used later also called the Chain Reaction; Competitor Koji Yamada is called "Yasushi Yamada".

Edited from SASUKE (1997)