Top 10 Worst Sasuke (Japanese Ninja Warrior) Events
While the Japanese version of Ninja Warrior has many great events, there are also quite a few bad ones.Here are the top ten worst Sasuke events of all time.
Anyone who has watched Sasuke 19 knows how bad it was. This event had the opposite problem of Sasuke 27: it was way too hard. The Jumping Spider and Flying Chute were both excessively difficult. The only two competitors who passed Stage 1 must have gotten lucky because they both had terrible performances in Stage 2, with both failing on the second obstacle. One even almost timed out on it. Many consider this the worst Sasuke ever.
Only the worst because of how uneventful it was.
The worst broadcast ever. Nagano's run and retirement ceremony were cut. Takeda's run was also cut, and the good competitors were cut in favor of jokes and comedians.
While some may disagree, in my opinion, 2003-2006 was one of the best periods in Sasuke history, right behind the Shin-Sasuke Era (between the 2nd and 3rd kanzenseiha). Of this time period, Sasuke 16 was the worst of the bunch. The Rope Reverse, Reverse Fly, and Grip Hang were atrocious. Stage 1 was ridiculously easy, with ten completions in a row, and it would have been more if Yamamoto hadn't messed up the Jump Hang.
The issue with Sasuke 16 was, like Sasuke 18, baffling stage design. Stage 3 was fine, but Stage 2 got the incredibly unintimidating Delta Bridge, and Stage 1 was even worse. Besides the Sextuple Step, the new obstacles didn't seem very challenging - maybe even possible for kids.
Coming off of a kanzenseiha (forgive my potential grammar issues), Sasuke 25 should have been really good. Unfortunately, they dropped the ball with this one. First, many of the obstacles were pretty bad. The Dome Steps, Bridge Jump, and even the Rolling Log felt out of place. Second, the redesigned Stage 1 was barely any harder than before.
Plus, it had the lowest completion rate of any Sasuke at 7.5%. Stage 2 was better, but it barely changed at all, and the new Slider Drop was the worst first obstacle of Stage 2 ever.
Unlike most entries on this list, this one isn't here due to bad obstacles or being too hard or too easy, but because of one of the cheapest eliminations of all time. Unfortunately, an unlucky Nagano Makoto (the names are said backward in Japan) was the victim of an incident known as the Grinding Ring Incident (not really, I just made that term up), where the Gliding Ring, which was supposed to slide down the track, got stuck, causing him to fail.
However, despite the blatant malfunction, it was still ruled that Nagano had failed, making it the cheapest Sasuke ending of all time. Plus, Levi Mewenburg failed on the Salmon Ladder, which was fun.
If there was ever a time the Sasuke course looked easy, this was it. The course's difficulty was reduced considerably, leading to 27 Stage One clears. But that was only the beginning. While Stage 2 was perfectly fine, Stage 3 was even more nerfed. The Roulette Cylinder and Doorknob Grasper were both replaced with the pathetic Arm Bike, and the Ultimate Cliffhanger became the third obstacle.
None of the other obstacles after it were any more difficult, as only one person who beat the Cliffhanger failed the stage. Then the Final Stage was the worst ever. It was just a rope climb that gave competitors way too much time. In fact, the winner managed to clear it with over six seconds left. Shortly after this event, Monster 9, who owned the rights to the event, went bankrupt.
The first Sasuke event was definitely not a great beginning. The scenery was extremely generic, and several Stage 1 obstacles were stupidly easy. The Spinning Log, Rapid Descent, and Hill Climb were just pathetic. Stage 2 was better, but the Reverse Conveyor Belt was terrible. Stage 3 was the worst, though. Not a single obstacle was difficult. I could clear it.
As the first event, it obviously had to set a standard that didn't exist prior. Even still, the producers could have made the courses a little harder. Stages 1 and 3 were total jokes. Stage 2 was fine (though nobody would fail it now), and the only reason no one won was because no one knew what they were getting into.
The Newcomers
Plenty of flaws were caused by odd obstacle design: The Rope Glider injured a bunch of people (which is especially egregious considering it was the first obstacle of the first stage!). The Net Climb took up space that could have been used for a harder or more time-consuming obstacle. The Bungee Bridge wasn't much of a threat (though it looked kind of cool), and I bet the Shoulder Walk wasn't nearly as hard as the Wall Lift.
Most abhorrent of all was the returning Arm Bike, the obstacle that survived multiple competitions without anyone ever failing it. They didn't even modify it to make it harder. However, Sasuke 18 introduced a bunch of excellent obstacles, like the Jumping Spider and the Salmon Ladder.
My biggest complaint, however, is Makoto Nagano's Stage 3 disqualification. It wasn't unwarranted, but things would have gone differently that night if he hadn't grabbed the wrong part of the Cliffhanger. I genuinely believe he could have won back-to-back tournaments.
Like Sasuke 21, this was a controversial event. Why? Because once again, Nagano Makoto got screwed over due to a malfunction. But this time, they let him restart, and he ended up almost achieving kanzenseiha once again. Sadly, Urushihara (sorry about any misspellings) failed in Stage 2, making his last attempt look like a fluke.
This event was on this list for one reason specifically: Yamamoto Shingo falling off the Spider Climb in the Final Stage.
This was also a very controversial event due to the heavy rain that fell on the course, causing many people to fail much sooner than they would have if it were dry. This potentially prevented Kane Kosugi from achieving kanzenseiha. This caused him to become frustrated, and coupled with his unauthorized use in a recent video game, he never competed again.
It suffered from one fatal flaw: the weather. Another commenter said Kane Kosugi could have won the tournament if it hadn't rained that day, which is a very interesting "what if" for a show I've never heard "what ifs" about before.
Step Slider = Good job. Hazard Swing < Log Grip. Rolling Escargot < Jump Hang. Jumping Spider and Warped Wall = good job. Giant Swing = just an L. Final Climb is just how it is. No new Stage 2 stuff. Can't really say much about Stage 3 because we didn't see anybody pass the UCH. Stage 1 was just bad, and they cut over half the Americans. It's super hard finding footage from ANW.
I actually like the obstacles introduced in this tournament, but why did they modify one of them before it was even attempted? Also, the original Giant Swing didn't pose a threat at all and seemed like a somewhat pointless inclusion in Stage 1.
Let's not forget G4 cutting out over half the runs in Stages 2 and 3!
Sasuke 36 was the least creative course ever! There were NO new obstacles and 2 modified obstacles! Consider this one of the worst tournaments ever!
Sasuke 34 had lots of nobodies running the course, and there were NO new obstacles!