"Floor is Lava" - am I being whooshed?

Cafe Society
1

So I idly clicked on “Floor is Lava” on Netflix, just to see what it was. For the first few minutes I was highly amused, thinking it was a hilarious spoof of those stupid game shows where people struggle through ridiculous obstacle courses.

I kept waiting for the “real” show to start - perhaps about the people who run the game show - but when it didn’t after 15 minutes or so I stopped watching and searched the internet to find out what was going on.

And … it turns out it is a “real” reality show? Okay, it’s true that until recently I had watched very little TV. In fact I’ve never seen an actual reality TV show. But this thing is insanely over the top - it’s gotta be a joke.

It’s a joke, right?

Please someone tell me it’s a joke.

2

I thought it was pretty bad as well. Granted, I think kids would really like it, but it wasn’t for me. I stopped at the same time as you, right after the first family. I’ll admit, part of the reason for me stopping there was just due to them being kinda obnoxious. I also wasn’t a fan of a few other things. For example, they clearly knew their way around the course. There’s no other way for them to know (right away, without even thinking about it) to walk along the wall (next to the bugs) or that the tall thing would tip over and they could walk on it, or that they needed that stick (and called it by the same name as the narrator) or that the box they were standing on had a sliding top.
There’s a few other things as well, and they’ll likely get better as the show goes on, but at least in that first 15 minutes, it was far too contrived.

There used to be a show on called Race To Escape, that was much better IMO.

3

I put it on in the background while I was doing real stuff.

It seems real enough. Or it seems no more ridiculous than “Hole in the Wall” or “Killer Karaoke” (which I still giggle at).

4

Not sure why they want to call it a “reality” show unless you refer to all game shows as reality shows. It was pretty lame. Like they took a basic idea and when they actually started putting it together realized it was lame. Then tried to cover it by using the over-enthusiastic contestants with back stories bit ala The Wall, Deal or No Deal, etc.

5

Like Snakes on a Plane, I think the title was the pitch. It’s the kind of idea that’s only good for a ten second Family Guy cut-away.

6

That confuses me too. But since I have never watched an actual reality show, I don’t know what the accepted definition is.

7

IME, “reality show” typically means “we’re pretending this shit is totally unscripted but those who pay enough attention will notice there’s no way in hell all of this happens by chance.”

8

Hey, my 8 year old loves it I think she’s watched the whole season 4 or 5 times.

I agree that it’s a bit contrived and, in the early episodes for sure, it was clear the contestants had been pre coached a bit on what to expect in the room (and, it would seem, told they can’t all take the same route? )

The award ceremony and team stand ups that were clearly shot on a different day than the day they ran the course are so bad that it reminded my wife and me of hokey FMV cut scenes in late 90s PC games.

9

I kept expecting Tina Fey to come out and holler “cut” and then have a hilarious discussion with the director while the clueless participants said and did ever more outrageously stupid things in the background. Damn, that would be a funny show.

“Contrived” is pretty mild to describe some of what goes on. The line hollered by the twin son -
“Mom! There’s a REASON you do pilates!” was just way too good to be true.

Anyway, to each his own. I’m not going to pretend I’m too highbrow to watch it; I’m sure there are equally junky shows I enjoy, so I hardly think I’m superior to those who enjoy it. This one’s not my thing, though.

10

The very very VERY best reality/game show was MXC on the defunct Spike channel.

~VOW

11

Never heard of the show, but I used to play The Floor Is Lava when I was a little kid. (That, and Don’t Let The Balloon Touch The Ground.)

12

It looks like a cross between American Ninja Warrior style competition and the childhood game of “The Floor is Lava”. Seems pretty straightforward.

13

As someone who works in TV and has pitched TV shows, let me confirm that the title goes a long long way. If they had called it Don’t Touch The Floor or something it would have been a more difficult meeting.

14

It’s a great name. Something about leaving out the article gives it a humorous immediacy which is probably what attracted me to click on the show. Had it been titled “The Floor is Lava” it wouldn’t have had the same oomph.

15

I thought it was cheesy, contrived, and hilarious, and I’ll watch the entire season at some point. I loved the fact that the team I was rooting for won the first episode, and the obnoxious team got humbled.

16

Hell, we’ve already got “Ultimate Tag.” Next I’m expecting “Celebrity Hide and Seek” and “Extreme Red Rover.”

17

That’s already a show. It’s called Hunted.

18

I’ve seen a couple of episodes and I’m planning to watch the rest of the season. It’s just so silly and fun, and the glowing lava is quite beautiful.

19

The lava is cool looking and I especially like how they don’t show its victims reemerging. I wish they carried that conceit into the after interviews, letting the viewer pretend they were completely incinerated.

20

I thought the lava was a bit too CGI, or at least that whole room seemed way to red or bright or something. I also noticed that the person that fell in was just…gone. Between the look of the lava and the person not showing up again, my daughter had a brain fart and wondered if this was all real.