Japanese Gladiators
Bang! Bang! Bang! (バン!バン!バン!)

The Japanese version of Gladiators came about due to the success of the American Gladiators being broadcast on TV Tokyo in the early 1990's, it was known as 'Clash! American Muscle Battle' (激突!アメリカン筋肉バトル).

A version of Gladiators was then incorporated into a brand new variety show television format called 'Bang! Bang! Bang!' on the Fuji Television Network in 1996.

The show was split into 3 key parts and tested three teams of three Contenders (mainly celebrities) on their intuition, inference and fitness. The Gladiators featured in the third fitness segment of the show and the Contenders competed in two events against the Japanese Gladiators. The two highest scoring teams would then compete in the Eliminator, which would ultimately decide who would win the show.

A selection of American Gladiators, including Zap, Diamond, Nitro, Hawk and Laser, travelled to Japan to feature in a special episode of Bang! Bang! Bang!.

Bang! Bang! Bang! was presented by comedian and radio personality George and Japanese fashion model Silvia. The referee, Mr. Kotetz, was a Japanese professional wrestler.

The show was broadcast every Saturday evening from 13th January 1996 until the 14th September, with a prize money of 1 million yen.

Produced: Fuji Television Network & Bee Brain Inc.
Broadcaster: Fuji Television Network