Documental

We had no idea what we were getting ourselves into, I just saw it had comedians from another country (we are US), and we like comedy (husband and myself). I read the synopsis, but totally sprung the show on him w/o warning. Episode 1 is an intro, you'll want to have watched it if you continue. Then it's not holds barred in a room with 10 professional comedians, all who will do anything to make the others laugh. ANYTHING. Each season has it's surprises. And don't discount anyone. Translation to Eng subs works great, jokes come across just fine. I highly recommend this show, we are dedicated fans now. Also, a great way to get aquatinted with Japanese comedy, and comedians. **I can't keep a straight face typing this review, there's too much funny**

Language is no barrier to laugher. Loved this show. I laughed so much. Definitely worth a look. 1st episode is just introductions but stick with it, it hots up from episode 2.

Only problem is that it gets less funny as the end gets near and all the really funny ones get eliminated but hopefully the second season is better.

I have watched 5 seasons of this so far and look forward to watching more.

I have tried watching the Australian, Mexican, Indian, Spanish, German and Italian versions of this show and they are all terrible in comparison. The Japanese, although not known for comedy, do this show best.

One major problem I find with the other versions is that they include kooky music and sound effects which make the shows unnatural. The awkward silences or sounds of in Documental add to the hilariousness.

A great concept and the first two seasons were great, with occasional problems. The last episodes of every season tend to be less funny because the worst comedians can resist without laughing better than the funny ones. Sometimes the dynamic between comedians is awesome, but other times the outcome is pathetic. And sometimes there are too much abuse (and far from funny).The third season was too lame and the racists and sexist jokes about Chinese prostitutes were so disgusting that I think I will quit for season four.

Documental thrives on it's strong premise of comedians trying to not laugh at each other, but gets less funny as each season lingers on.

The psychology behind the show is quite fascinating. Some go the deadpan strait man route, some absurdist, some self-deprecating-there isn't one way to win. It's pretty apparent when a competitor is "trying too hard" to get a laugh, which is why many of the predictable props & costumes bomb hard in the later rounds.

Overall, there's some funny moments and you're likely to have a couple favorite comedians that you are rooting for by the time that it's over.