MXC (Most Extreme Elimination Challenge) was a show that launched with the TV network, Spike TV, back in the early 2000s. It was a redubbed version of a Japanese game show called Takeshi’s Castle in which contestants would go through rigorous and goofy obstacles to achieve victory. I don’t know what the reward was for going on the show and possibly getting injured. I know that it was similar to Ninja Warrior and American Gladiators, but the contestants were just regular people who didn’t necessarily work out every day to have the perfect athletic physique that is often required to compete in those sorts of shows.

The thing that made MXC so great and unique was how the show was re-dubbed for TV in the US. Rather than simply translating the original Japanese directly to English, the creators of MXC took a more comedic approach. There is probably not a single thing that happens in the show that was directly translated. All the dialogue of the cast and participants of Takeshi’s Castle was rewritten to create funny referential jokes and characters for the made-up themes of the episodes.

While the jokes of MXC would be considered far too tasteless by today’s standards to ever allow it to air on television in 2021, it’s a nostalgic piece of comedic gold for me that is still funny when I watch it, nearly 20 years since I first saw it. Maybe that means I haven’t matured much, but if you’ve never seen it for yourself, and you have an open mind towards the comedy of the early 2000s and the slapstick humor of watching people dramatically fail on obstacle courses, you might enjoy it.

To add to the fun, here’s a drinking game to enhance your experience. Of course, DagonDogs.com and all affiliated do not endorse binge drinking and ask that you drink responsibly. You can always play this game with just water and stay hydrated.

Hair of the Dog: MXC (Most Extreme Elimination Challenge) Drinking Game

Right You Are, Ken

This is truly the only rule you need for how often it will happen in every episode. As the episode progresses, Kenny Blankenship will be providing his usual color of commentary consisting heavily of puns and sexual innuendo. His partner, Vic Romano, will often respond to Kenny’s comments with the phrase: “Right you are, Ken.” Of course, neither of these people actually exists and this is only the color commentary written for MXC. Nonetheless, the frequency with which Vic says the phrase is so excessive, I’m fairly certain you will finish your drink within the first half of the episode with this rule.

• Take a sip of your drink whenever Vic says “Right you are, Ken.”

For the sake of just writing a little more, I’ll add some bonus rules to this game.

Baba Ganoush

From Google:

Baba ghanoush, also spelled baba ganoush or baba ghanouj, is a Levantine appetizer of Lebanese origin consisting of mashed cooked eggplant, olive oil, lemon juice, various seasonings, and sometimes tahini

While this sounds like a delicious dip that I’ve never tried, this has a lot to do with MXC for one reason. In every episode, there is a contestant, regardless of the team they are supposed to be on, who has the name of Baba Ganoush, or Swarma Ganoush, or something similar. It may be an inside joke among the writers that we’ll never be privy to knowing. It might just be a word that someone thought was funny as a person’s name. Regardless of the reason, a Ganoush is in every episode, even though it’s a completely different person every time. Every so often, the person dubbed a Ganoush manages to actually complete the challenge, so you can add on to the rule if you like.

• Take a sip of your drink when a Ganoush makes an appearance in the episode.

• Take another sip if a Ganoush manages to complete the challenge.

Let’s Go, Captain!

Aside from Kenny Blankenship and Vic Romano, there are a few other recurring characters on each episode including Captain Tenneal and Guy Le Douche. The Captain starts each episode by greeting the contests, asking them all a question, and then promptly telling them that their answer is incorrect. It’s a tradition that rarely falters. Likewise, he’ll start the game with a wave of his cane and a shout of “Let’s go!” Then, when it’s time for each event to start, he blows his whistle and simply says, “Get it on.” These are all very simple things about MXC that you can count on happening in practically every episode. So, if you somehow don’t think the other rules quite cut it, you can also follow these rules specific to the Captain.

• Take a sip of your drink when the Captain says, “Well, you’re wrong.”

• Take a sip of your drink when the Captain says, “Let’s go!”

• Take a sip of your drink when the Captain says, “Get it on.”

What a Douche

As I mentioned in the previous rule, Guy Le Douche is a recurring character. His bit is to be the smarmy, gross guy who is always thinking about sex and constantly overstepping the personal boundaries of the contestants during his interviews with them. Of the four recurring staff that appear with regularity on MXC, Guy shows up the least but is still almost guaranteed to appear in each episode and interview someone with his fake French accent.

• Take a sip of your drink when Guy interviews someone.

• Take another sip of your drink if the person responds to Guy and his questions in a positive manner—as in they don’t just call him a ‘sicko.’

What Do We Always Say?

Closing out this short list of rules is something that closes out every episode. As each episode ends, the question above is asked, to which the team responds with “Don’t get eliminated!” Perhaps it’s not the most creative or interesting rule, but it’s a great way to polish off your drink at the end of an episode and decide whether you really need any rule other than Right You Are, Ken.

• Take a sip of your drink when the group shouts at the end of an episode: Don’t Get Eliminated!

There you have it. A short and sweet list for a simple show. It seemed unnecessary to come up with a bunch of different rules for something as reliable and constant as MXC. Not to mention, I tested out the rules of this game myself and found that there was really only one rule I needed to follow before noticing that I had imbibed my whole beer only half-way through an episode. So why add more fuel to a dangerous fire with more rules? If you have any other suggestions, there is a comments feature. Let me know!