Sasuke (TV series)

Sasuke (SASUKE(サスケ); /ˈsɑː.skeɪ/ SAH-skay; Japanese pronunciation: [sasɯ̥ke]) is a Japanese sports entertainment reality television show, airing since 1997, in which 100 competitors attempt to complete a four-stage obstacle course. Falling at any point during the course or running out of time on stages with set time limits, leads to elimination. Finishing the course by reaching the end and hitting the buzzer will grant competitors advantage to the next stage. Sasuke also has many international versions of itself, mainly called "Ninja Warrior", with 20 local shows.

Recorded at Midoriyama studios in Yokohama, it airs on Tokyo Broadcasting System (TBS), typically between Japanese television drama seasons. The show's name Sasuke is named after Sarutobi Sasuke, a fictitious ninja character in Japanese traditional storytelling. Each episode airs an entire tournament as a single special, ranging from 70 minutes to 6 hours. There have been 43 specials produced, with approximately one or two per year. The show is produced by TBS and began as a segment within the series Kinniku Banzuke (筋肉番付; 'Muscle Ranking'), another sports entertainment competition, which aired on G4 in the United States under the name Unbeatable Banzuke. Competitions generally start in the daytime and continue until completed regardless of weather or darkness. After Monster9's bankruptcy in November 2011, Tokyo Broadcasting System handed production over to the studio FOLCOM, who relaunched the show under the title Sasuke Rising. For the 35th tournament TBS renamed the show once again, to Sasuke Ninja Warrior, aligning with the worldwide Ninja Warrior brand. The show's logo would be changed for the 36th edition, with the new logo's year being updated for subsequent editions.