Fandom 50 (9/50): The Chase
Apr. 19th, 2026 10:15 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
yelpI was staying in a hotel for a few days and caught three episodes of The Chase (US gameshow). I'd seen some of the UK show before, but a few minor differences made this version strangely compelling to me, narratively?
It's a trivia game, where three normal contestants face off against a professional called the Chaser. (I love that there are trivia pros - basically Jeopardy stars and the like.) There are four regular Chasers on the show, and in each episode, one is actively "chasing" the contestants, while the other three sit in the back room and commentate, trading snarky remarks about the contestants and cheering on their Chaser comrade when things were looking tough for them. The Chaser pool when I watched was Mark from the UK version, and Ken and James from Jeopardy fame. (There was also one more guy but he wasn't the Chaser in any of the episodes I saw, nor did he make a single backroom comment as far as I can remember, so no idea about him!)
I admire the bravado of coming out here as the Chaser, consistently putting their reputation on the line. Anyone can have a bad day, but the Chaser always has to answer more trivia questions correctly than the normal contestants, operating with an often significant handicap, and in the final stage competing with them 3-to-1. But despite that, it looks bad for them if they lose. How could the top Jeopardy champion be beaten by a rando, right?
I also find it very funny that the Chaser has to adopt a villainous persona on the show, talking down to the contestants, boasting how easily he'll crush them. Even Ken, who always seems like such a sweetheart, tries his best to menace. In the first episode I watched, the contestants had a particularly good run and looked like they'd pose a significant threat. James's response? No sweat, because "I'm the best at what I do." Damn! I enjoyed James's playstyle too, locking in his answers immediately to put pressure on the opponent. Yet his banter definitely felt tight and forced, and he looked not too comfortable up there, blinking in the spotlight. He got some wrong here and there, but at the end when it really counted, he came out with this breathtaking display of skill to clinch it.
Sara was also very good as the host: sympathetic to the contestants, guiding them through the stages, and selling the Chaser as this intimidating force to reckon with.
One more game mechanic is that the Chaser can set options for the amount the contestant is playing for: a lower value but the Chaser gets a bigger handicap, or a higher amount and the Chaser starts much closer to the contestant. They seem to have a lot of leeway to make insultingly low offers for that extra breathing room, or to offer an obscene amount to tempt them to play riskier. Obviously, the Chaser wants the contestant to take the high-risk offer, to make it more likely he'll be able to catch them. But if the contestant manages to get away with it, then that's even more money the Chaser's letting them run away with and have to try to claw back later.
Even though I only watched three episodes of this, I found the dynamic very appealing. It's almost like a gladiator situation, skilled warriors forced to fight, repeatedly, in an unfavorable ring, only with brains rather than brawn. These four Chasers being sent out by the network against the opponents of the week, gambling that they'll catch them, the pressure and expectation to win. I like the idea that the Chasers are banded together in this, rooting for each other behind the scenes. I don't really know what to do with this but I feel like there is fic there.
It's a trivia game, where three normal contestants face off against a professional called the Chaser. (I love that there are trivia pros - basically Jeopardy stars and the like.) There are four regular Chasers on the show, and in each episode, one is actively "chasing" the contestants, while the other three sit in the back room and commentate, trading snarky remarks about the contestants and cheering on their Chaser comrade when things were looking tough for them. The Chaser pool when I watched was Mark from the UK version, and Ken and James from Jeopardy fame. (There was also one more guy but he wasn't the Chaser in any of the episodes I saw, nor did he make a single backroom comment as far as I can remember, so no idea about him!)
I admire the bravado of coming out here as the Chaser, consistently putting their reputation on the line. Anyone can have a bad day, but the Chaser always has to answer more trivia questions correctly than the normal contestants, operating with an often significant handicap, and in the final stage competing with them 3-to-1. But despite that, it looks bad for them if they lose. How could the top Jeopardy champion be beaten by a rando, right?
I also find it very funny that the Chaser has to adopt a villainous persona on the show, talking down to the contestants, boasting how easily he'll crush them. Even Ken, who always seems like such a sweetheart, tries his best to menace. In the first episode I watched, the contestants had a particularly good run and looked like they'd pose a significant threat. James's response? No sweat, because "I'm the best at what I do." Damn! I enjoyed James's playstyle too, locking in his answers immediately to put pressure on the opponent. Yet his banter definitely felt tight and forced, and he looked not too comfortable up there, blinking in the spotlight. He got some wrong here and there, but at the end when it really counted, he came out with this breathtaking display of skill to clinch it.
Sara was also very good as the host: sympathetic to the contestants, guiding them through the stages, and selling the Chaser as this intimidating force to reckon with.
One more game mechanic is that the Chaser can set options for the amount the contestant is playing for: a lower value but the Chaser gets a bigger handicap, or a higher amount and the Chaser starts much closer to the contestant. They seem to have a lot of leeway to make insultingly low offers for that extra breathing room, or to offer an obscene amount to tempt them to play riskier. Obviously, the Chaser wants the contestant to take the high-risk offer, to make it more likely he'll be able to catch them. But if the contestant manages to get away with it, then that's even more money the Chaser's letting them run away with and have to try to claw back later.
Even though I only watched three episodes of this, I found the dynamic very appealing. It's almost like a gladiator situation, skilled warriors forced to fight, repeatedly, in an unfavorable ring, only with brains rather than brawn. These four Chasers being sent out by the network against the opponents of the week, gambling that they'll catch them, the pressure and expectation to win. I like the idea that the Chasers are banded together in this, rooting for each other behind the scenes. I don't really know what to do with this but I feel like there is fic there.
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Date: 2026-04-20 02:49 am (UTC)Sounds like a prime Yuletide canon if you're looking for fic too, haha
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Date: 2026-04-20 03:26 am (UTC)I can't decide if I want fic of the show or to use this nerdy gladiator idea as like an AU of an AU for other characters!
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Date: 2026-04-20 03:45 am (UTC)Other characters, you say- How about Chishiya and Kuzuryu? Actually I'm shocked there hasn't been a game show game in Alice in Borderland yet - although a non-Borderland game show AU would be much less traumatizing for them :D
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Date: 2026-04-20 04:09 am (UTC)I feel like there was something about platforms outside a skyscraper that go up and down when they answer trivia questions (maybe manga only), which might be like a game show on steroids haha. Perhaps just people standing at a podium would be too tame for the Borderlands. Hmm, come to think of it, the Citizens/Players split is actually pretty perfect for chasers/regular contestants on the show. I just want to see a coliseum, forced to defend your title, taking down anyone they send at you with feats of intelligence. Yeah, Alice in Borderland setting actually works pretty well for that!
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Date: 2026-04-20 03:52 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2026-04-20 04:09 am (UTC)