Sasuke (1997– )

100 competitors test their skills against physically and mentally demanding four-stage obstacle course.

Stars:

Shingo Yamamoto, Katsumi Yamada, Keisuke Hatsuta

Cast

Series cast summary:
Shingo Yamamoto	...	Himself - Competitor (25 episodes, 1997-2010)
Katsumi Yamada	...	Himself - Competitor (23 episodes, 1997-2010)
Keisuke Hatsuta	...	Himself - Announcer (21 episodes, 1998-2010)
Toshihiro Takeda	...	Himself - Competitor (21 episodes, 2000-2010)
Kazuhiko Akiyama	...	Himself - Competitor (19 episodes, 1998-2010)
Makoto Nagano	...	Himself - Competitor (19 episodes, 2001-2010)
Naoki Iketani	...	Himself - Competitor (16 episodes, 1998-2010)
Minoru Kuramochi	...	Himself - Competitor (13 episodes, 2002-2010)
Ichiro Furutachi	...	Himself - Announcer (12 episodes, 1997-2003)
Kenjirô Ishimaru	...	Himself - Competitor (12 episodes, 2002-2010)
Masami Harashima	...	Himself - Competitor (12 episodes, 2003-2010)
Wataru Ogasawara	...	Himself - Announcer (12 episodes, 2005-2011)
Toyohisa Iijima	...	Himself - Competitor (11 episodes, 1997-2005)
Bunpei Shiratori	...	Himself - Competitor (11 episodes, 2002-2008)

Storyline

100 competitors test their skills against physically and mentally demanding four-stage obstacle course.

---

Genres:

Game-Show | Sport

---

Details

Official Sites:

TBS [jp]

Country:

Japan

Language:

Japanese

Release Date:

27 September 1997 (Japan)

Filming Locations:

Midoriyama, Aoba-ku, Yokohama, Kanagawa, Japan

Company Credits

Production Co:

Dreamax Television, Monster 9, Tokyo Broadcasting System (TBS)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

173 min

Color:

Color

Did You Know?

Trivia

Only three competitors have achieved "kanzenseiha" (i.e. completed all four stages) since the start of the competition: Kazuhiko Akiyama in Competition 4 (Fall 1999), Makoto Nagano in Competition 17 (Fall 2006) and Yuuji Urushihara in Competition 24 (Spring 2010) and second time in Competition 27 (Fall 2011). "Kanzenseiha" translates into English as "complete domination."

---

Connections

Spin-off Kunoichi (2001)

User Reviews

Takeshi's castle for serious athletes, also octopus man

This has to be one of my favourite shows on television these days, its got everything; action, drama, humour, Makoto Nagano and that other guy, you know the one i mean, always wears a petrol station uniform.

Anyway, the show consists of 4 rounds, each more dastardly than the last. Contestants face a barrage of fearsome obstacles such as the warped wall, the cliffhanger, the pipe slider and lastly their own incompetence. Unless that is, your name is Makoto Nagano.

While each round is difficult, stage 3 in particular separates the ninja warriors from the octopus men. Few have prevailed, and even fewer have went on to achieve total victory. Just ask Katsumi Yamada, the man who redefined the term 'runner up'. Despite never achieving total victory, he devoted his life to conquering the course, and eventually earned himself the title of 'Mr Sasuke', the uncrowned king of ninja warrior.

So watch this show if you enjoy watching athletes at the top of their game, performing stunts that wouldn't be out of place in a 1980's Jackie Chan movie. Alternatively, if you wanna catch a glimpse of the rare and illusive octopus man, this is perhaps the only place to see it.