Season two of the reality show I Survived a Japanese Game Show premiered on ABC on June 17, 2009, and was the final run of the series. Like season one, it follows a group of Americans who leave the United States for Japan, where they compete in a Japanese style game show.
The number of episodes were increased from seven to eight for this season. Other significant changes from season one was that Tony Sano, who hosted the first season, did not return to host the second season, and the number of players was increased from ten to twelve. Also, while season one had only one group game before the elimination game, season two added a second group game, with the winning team from the first game gaining an advantage in the second game. Otherwise, the format remained the same from season one.
Originally, ten episodes were being produced, but due to the return of Who Wants to Be a Millionaire on primetime, the show was reduced to eight. At the end of Episode 7, there is a scene that features clowns and liquor but was never aired in time for the season finale. In the season finale that aired on August 5, Cathy Grosam, a 36-year-old "soccer mom" from Bartlett, Illinois, was declared the winner. Grosam also was a member on the winning team in every team game and thus participated in every reward event during the season. She won a cash prize of US$250,000.
Order of appearance in the opening credits: Brent, Cathy, Bobaloo, Yari, Dan, Debbie, Drew, Jamie, Justin, Kimberly, Linda and Megan.
The first episode aired on June 17, 2009.
Rabbit Fire (ラビットファイヤー) – Each team has three minutes to carry as many bento boxes across a narrow plank as possible while the opposing team fires sticky balls at them, attempting to knock boxes out of their hands or knocking players into the foam pit. If a player falls into the foam pit, none of the bento boxes they carry count. A player must cross over to the opposite platform before the next player can start crossing. The winner gets an advantage in the second game.
Wheel of Human Torpedoes (人間魚雷ボウリング) – One player sits in the middle of a spinning platform while three other players lie down flat while connected to the spinning platform. The sitting player must release the laying players in an attempt to hit one of several stacks of metal cans that are placed around the edge of the floor, attempting to knock as many cans as possible into a surrounding flour pit. Each "torpedo" must then hit a buzzer before the next torpedo can be launched. If a torpedo is launched before the previous player hits the buzzer, any cans that player may knock into the flour pit do not count. As a bonus, the winning team from game one had an extra torpedo available to be used if needed.
Big Spider Yanky Danky (ビッグスパイダーヤンキーダンキー) (Elimination game) – Contestants in spider suits and attached to bungees have three minutes to burst balloons which contain butterfly wings and butterfly bodies. The contestant must then walk up a sloped platform to several butterfly stands, having to place the butterfly parts onto the butterfly stands, matching body part colors to colors on the stands. However, players must place the butterfly parts quickly, as the bungee pulls the player back into the balloon pit at regular intervals. In the event of a tie, the player with the most complete butterfly bodies wins and the loser will be thrown out of the studio by the Sayonara Mob.
The second episode aired on June 24, 2009.
Party In My Pants (パーティーパンツ) – The teams have three minutes to pick up as many tennis balls that are shot at them with claw grippers and put the balls in their pants. Whoever gets the most wins.
Somebody Put Clothes On Bob (着せかえ ボブちゃん) – The teams must dress dummies of Judge Bob – a putting green tam o'shanter, a shirt, tie, vest, and pair of pants – inside packages inside a flour pit. Other packages have clothes that are not to be put onto the dummies. The first team to place all five articles of clothing properly wins. The winning team would get a five-second head start as their reward for winning the first game.
Lotion, Lotion, What's The Commotion? (ローション騒動) (Elimination game) – Each player gets drenched in baby lotion, and carrying a torch must go over slippery slopes, take an egg and carry it on their helmet to the opposite side of the area without breaking it, then go under another pool of lotion, then through a pool of bubbles and go over six sumo wrestlers and trade the torch for a gold medal, and then retrace their steps back to a buzzer to stop the clock. Whoever does this, in the fastest time, wins, while the loser gets the Sayonara Mob response.
The third episode aired on July 1, 2009.
Gopher Make U Crazy (たたいて邪魔してピンポンパン) – The players on one team spit out ping pong balls into wells while four players try to defend the areas with large hand-held noodles and the fifth, in Whac-A-Mole style with a powdered hammer, tries to stop them. The team with the most balls collected in two and a half minutes wins the game.
Four Near-Sighted Mice and Big Cheese (見えないネズミと巨大なチーズ) – Three players wear nearly blind goggles and boxing gloves trying to catch cartons of milk placed by a teammate on a conveyor belt while a fifth player, dressed as "The Big Cheese", swings from above and counts down to the players when the milk cartons will come to them. After a player catches the carton, they go to a container to deposit it. Whoever has the most milk in their container within three minutes wins the game. As an advantage, the winning team in the first game would have one player not wear boxing gloves.
Big Penguin Belly Flop (ペンギンたちの腹ばい) (Elimination game) – Players have two minutes to pop as many glop-filled egg balloons as they can by "belly flopping" onto them. The player with the most eggs popped wins and stays in the game. The loser gets a phone call from the Sayonara Mob.
The fourth episode aired on July 8, 2009.
Snap Attack! (スナップアタック!) – Players from both sides sit sight unseen across from one another and pull rubber bands that must hit player in the body to count. The first player in each zone to hit the opponent twice wins that zone and a point for their team; the first team to three points wins.
Paint Splash Madness! (狂気! しぶき! ペンキ!) – Three players spin on a turntable pulling cords with paint inside buckets falling in them. A fourth player sits on another turntable and wears a canvas-like backdrop on their face and a bucket below their chin. The team that gets the most paint in their bucket in three minutes wins. As an advantage, the winning team has one extra bucket for a player to use.
Alien Took My Teddy Bear (エイリアンは私のテディベアを取った) (Elimination game) – The players have two minutes to traverse across a conveyor belt, three turntables and another conveyor belt while carrying a giant stuffed toy panda to the other side. If a player falls into one of two flour pits at either end, they must start over. The player with the most bears when time runs out wins, the loser gets a bearhug from the Sayonara Mob.
The fifth episode aired on July 15, 2009.
Soccer Time With Grandpa (ジジババサッカー) – Players wear distortion goggles while trying to kick a soccer ball into a goal. The team that scores the most goals in two minutes is the winner, and earns an advantage in the second game.
Stuck On Golf (ミニゴルフ べっとり マスターズ) – One team places as many balls as they can onto a sticky "putting green." Two players try to take off any balls on the sticky stuff; they have 30 seconds to defend the green. They then switch out with the other two players, who also have 30 seconds to defend the green. Finally, all team players join in for the final 30 seconds. The advantage for the winning team is that one of the losing team's players will have his or her legs shackled. The team with the fewest balls left on the green wins.
Stretchy Squid Face (イカパンスト) (Elimination game) – The players race within two minutes to take off as many squids as they can wearing a panty hose mask attached to a bungee cord. The player who gets the most wins while the loser gets busted by the Sayonara Mob.
The sixth episode aired on July 22, 2009.
Brain Freeze Fish Breath! (極寒でキ〜ン魚!) – The teams dunk their heads into icy cold water and grab as many dead fish as possible using only their mouths. The team with the most fish in their containers in two and a half minutes wins.
Baby Go Boom Boom (ねんねんころりYOおころりYO) – Team members dressed as babies sit in a giant spinning crib, getting dizzy. One at a time, players exit the crib and fill two cups with milk. The player must run an obstacle course carrying milk to a giant baby bottle. The course consists of spinning platforms, a spanking machine and crawling; that combined with the dizziness causes the players to spill some of their milk. After finishing the course, the player must press a button beside the crib enabling another player to exit. The team with the most milk in their bottle in three minutes after the spinning stops for the first player wins. This is the first game that was originally played in Season 1 to be played in Season 2. The advantage for the winning team is that one player on the losing team will be dressed as a grandma with a baby on their back; the costume reduces the wearer's ability to maneuver.
Up Your Nose, Dragon (アップユアノーズドラゴン) (Elimination game) – Players go head-to-head sliding down a wall attempting to throw balls into holes where the nostrils of a dragon would be before hitting the ground and soap suds all over the landing area. The player with the most balls in two and a half minutes survives, while the loser is escorted out via the foam-covered, 24-legged Sayonara Mob (as a riddle).
The seventh episode aired on July 29, 2009.
Sour Milk For Kitty (仔猫のサワーミルク) – The players stand on a vibrating platforms while dressed as cats and wearing bowls on their heads. One player scoops "sour milk" onto their bowl, transferring to their teammates one at a time into a container at the back of the third player. The team that has the most milk in two minutes is the winner.
Big Foot Bang Bang (デカ足バンバン) – In this game, one player serves as a goaltender against a soccer goal dressed as a cactus (with their teammmates controlling them on a rope pulley system) against the opposite team, dressed as various fruits and vegetables (a carrot as a kicker, a bunch of grapes as a setter and a tomato as the kickers' swinger) attempting to score goals using large balloons into a soccer goal. Should a balloon be shot at the cactus, it is popped. The team that scores the most goals in three minutes is the winner. As an advantage, the winning team will get a free kick to start their round.
You Look Funny Stuck On Wall (ぴぅたんこバンバン) (Elimination game) – The second game from Season One to be played in Season Two. Players, wearing velcro suits jump off a trampoline and attempt to stick to the sticky wall within a body-shaped outline. The player judged to be most within the outline wins a point. The first player to score four points wins the game, while the losing player is peeled off the wall and carried away by the Sayonara Mob.
The eight and final episode aired on August 5, 2009.
Dude! Where's My Luggage? (おーい, オレの荷物どこだよ!?) – Players run on a conveyor belt carrying luggage, and throw luggage with a blue tag into a luggage bin next to the belt. As an advantage for the team that has the least amount of players, one member of the other team would wear a carrot suit and boxing gloves to level the playing field. The team with the most points in three minutes is the winner.
Balloon Assassin (風船の暗殺者) (Elimination game) – Players must pop large confetti-filled balloons hanging from the studio ceiling using bungee cords and a trampoline by using gorilla arms with pins in their hands. Yellow balloons are worth one point, and blue balloons are worth two. The player with the least points in three minutes is bounced out by the Sayonara Mob.
You Stand Still! No, You Stand Still! (くらくら鍵パッカン) – A Season One game that sees two players – one dressed a princess and the other as a pirate – start out spinning in chairs to get dizzy. After the chairs stop spinning, the players must cross a narrow balance beam over a pool of flour and a pair of spinning floor tiles. They exchange costumes on the spinning tiles, and then go back to get the opposite's prop (the pirate hat for the pirate and the crown for the princess), and then both must return to their original chairs. The fastest team wins.
T-Shirt Torture (拷問Tシャツ) (Elimination game) – The players wear a large number of T-shirts with a letter on the back of each one to spell out a phrase. However, distractions such as water, flour, milk, and even seaweed rain from the ceiling to hinder their progress. The player that hits the buzzer and correctly guesses the phrase (which was I NEED TO WIN THIS GAME TO BE SAFE!!!!!) advances to the finals; the loser is swept away by the Sayonara Mob.
At this point, all teams were abolished, and the three remaining players competed individually in the last two games:
Making New Friends In Japan (世界に広げようむちゃぶりの輪) – In another Season One game, the finalists go out into the streets of Tokyo, but this time, dressed in sailor fukus and pink wigs to accomplish five tasks in the following order:
- Get someone to bow 10 times;
- Get someone to put on lipstick provided to them and kiss them;
- Get someone to tickle them by saying a phrase in Japanese;
- Borrow a cell phone and call the studio;
- Get five people to do the can-can dance.
After completing the tasks, the contestants head to the Tokyo Tower; the last contestant to return leaves with his/her enemy: the Sayonara Mob.
Super Majide! (超本気で!) (Full title: "Twelve Americans Came, They Worked Really Hard, They Ate Squid, They Wore All Kinds Of Things, They Went Through Much Pain, Now Two People Remain For SUPER MAJIDE!") – The two finalists compete head-to-head on an obstacle course which combines elements from the series' previous challenges. They start out in a fox pajama costume and begin on conveyor belts to a flour pit filled with balloons, which they must maneuver through to get to the other side. Then they must deliver ten bento boxes across a slippery beam while tennis balls are being shot at them. After all ten boxes have been delivered, they move to a sticky floor where the fox kigurimi costume is eventually removed to reveal a tank top and bicycle shorts, and must remove five squid heads with their mouth only. Then, they slide on a lotion covered platform and therefore torpedoed into a stack of boxes. Then, they must fill a cup with paint from an overhead bucket by pulling on a cord while standing on a spinner. They must transfer the paint into a jug, which if heavy enough, will force a lever down and a pin up to pop a balloon which contains a key. After the player obtains this key, they must use it to open a door and press the buzzer inside. The player who completes this first wins the grand prize ($250,000 and a large trophy) and gets congratulated by the Omedeto ("Congratulations") Mob (The Sayonara Mob dressed in white suits.)
Games with a pink background indicate elimination games.
t – Tied.
The show faced three other reality contests: America's Got Talent on NBC, So You Think You Can Dance? on Fox, Hitched or Ditched on The CW through July 8 when repeats of America's Next Top Model replaced it and reruns of Criminal Minds on CBS. In the first week, it faced Law and Order on NBC; the reason the season started earlier (as opposed to the original July 8 date) was the date and time change of Mike Judge's The Goode Family to Fridays at 8:30 pm ET/PT due to lower than expected ratings on Wednesdays. On July 22, it ran against a repeat episode of CSI: NY on CBS and The Philanthropist on NBC.
