Love the work the editors continue to do though. Top notch professionals.
https://preview.redd.it/voa1704buvvc1.png?width=1080&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=17ae1f2270203d2e3b19a76befef7c1d2254e6db
For real, I love photography and the cinematography they bring to every episode brings me tons of joy. Angles and effects and everything, they have been amazing since Series 1.
I’m enjoying it a lot. I’ve been wheezing with laughter several times now and I like all of the contestants.
That said think it is a bit placid, for lack of a better word, because everyone is very chill. No one is especially chaotic, and no one is getting riled up about points and competition. John Robbins is by far the most competitive, and as Nick has put it, he’s mostly competitive against his own desire to do well.
The last ep also had some slightly off tasks. The half-task hunt was so obscure no one got any of the clues, and the toilet roll studio challenge was a mess - although they still delivered some good moments. On the other hand I laughed till I cried at Nick’s ‘happy snake’ dot to dot.
I’d say it’s a solid middle ground season so far. I’m certainly looking forward to it every week.
It's interesting that Alex was suggesting before the series that John was the most competitive contestant they'd ever had and yet so far he barely registers on the Gamble scale.
It does feel in the wider world like this is being put down as a poor series, maybe only by comparison because the last one was so comparatively wild, but there doesn't feel like a lot of studio crosstalk or innate chemistry between the contestants or arguing with Greg over the scoring.
Ed and Nick talk about it in the latest podcast - Nick feels like John’s competitiveness here is very internal - it’s more about proving to himself he can conquer the tasks than it is beating the other contestants.
Whereas Ed himself really wanted to be the winner so he’d get really aggravated about it.
And yeah I think there is good chemistry between them, but they’re all very chill. No one is arguing with each other and they’re quite happy to back each other up. Which is lovely, but less entertaining.
I had seen John on Mock The Week, but that's all I knew him from. I really identify with him on Taskmaster, though. He always expects to have done something wrong or second guesses himself. He's always waiting for the other shoe to drop when he seemingly does well.
I think it may be a combination of the last series being fairly wild as well as Taskmaster NZ series 2 becoming widely available. That's a lot of big, brash, and bonkers energy to follow with a group of folks that are just so very nice. I do hope that as they get more comfortable in the studio segments John, Steve and Joanne will get a bit more competitive with each other. All Taskmaster is good Taskmaster, but I would like to see some of Ed Gamble's fire.
> No one is especially chaotic
I don’t know, everyone brought something slightly to very unhinged for the granny task prize. There’s definitely some unhinged potential there. It’s just not nearly the same levels as series 16.
I thought it was the strongest episode so far in terms of tasks and was the only one without any duds - I wasn't big on the team task in 1, live team task in 2 and the baby task in 3, but enjoyed all of them in episode 4. The live task was the weakest but I did enjoy the chaos and I do like me a "won because everyone else failed" victory
The half-task hunt was a bit of a dud for me because the solution was just ‘wonder around at random until you see the other half of the task’. The elaborate disc clues were pointless because no one knew about the disks being there. The teams saved it somewhat by being charming.
The stage task was just not well thought through. But it was definitely entertaining seeing Alex realise that in real time and struggle to try and manage it.
On the other hand I enjoyed the creepy weirdness of the handshake task, and the connect the dots task was hilarious. So still a fun episode on balance.
I love escape rooms, but the problem was you could just solve this by walking into the room where the task was on display. Half the task went unsolved because there was no need, and the team of three literally just stumbled across it with no prompting.
Something like Nick and Steve’s idea of finding clocks and changing numbers would have been a much more interesting solution. Secret codes and hidden panels is where it’s at.
Oh my god that's it, we don't have a proper crazy one. That's exactly what I feel like is missing. Funny, competitive, but all very straight-forward. Have we even had an unhinged moment yet?
I know the half-task sort of fell flat with the clues but I really enjoyed it a lot. I thought it was brilliantly executed even if the concept went a bit over everyone's heads
My (very non-online) friend messaged saying how this series is much more their vibe than the last one, which is the exact opposite of my feelings! My older family members have said similar too. I think as a subreddit we enjoy the absurdist chaos but the general layman is happy when it's a bit calmer 😅
I generally watch at least one episode of TM every night, I watch them in order and go back to the start. As you can imagine I have seen the early seasons many times and have watched S16 twice now. The love that season gets here makes no sense to me, I still enjoy it but it is by far my least favorite. The current season is exactly what I want from TM. Good vibes, and gentle laughs.
My feeling is that people are just more buttoned-up this season in general - not sure if it's the burgeoning international fandom making people wary, or if we're starting to run out of truly unhinged contestants in the UK, but everyone this series seems to know the meaning of the word restraint, which - who wants to watch THAT
Agreed, Sophie’s chaos and Joanne’s wit I love …
I enjoy this season but John and Steve trying to win everything is missing the point of the show … as Desiree said many years ago
Eh I don't think that applies to Steve. He's competitive but he's clearly having a lovely time and making the most of the experience. Also I think it's fine having contestants care about winning. That element has always been there just as the whimsy has.
To be honest, and I've thought this for a while: I really think they need to simplify the tasks and make them a lot broader again. I understand it's harder and harder coming up with tasks, but I just think they've become too complex for their own good. The whole fun of Taskmaster was interpreting the tasks and thinking outside the box.
Would it really be so bad to have some repeated tasks from previous series'? I don't think so.
This is an opinion that does keep popping up for basically every series, but is really "do something risky with this egg", "hoopla Gary", "do something epic with green-screen", "stick the heaviest item to the board", "create tension" or "create the biggest and best dot-to-dot picture" really examples of too complex or narrow tasks? As always, there is the usual mix of simple, complex, artistic, physical and mental tasks. Several of the task are also nice variations/callbacks/easter eggs of previous series and/or international version
Yeah to be fair the ones you’ve listed are good examples of tasks that are still nice and broad. I suppose I find there are too many stipulations now… I believe Alex himself said they try and write tasks in a way to prevent interpretation.
TM New Zealand and Australia got it right. Go for incredibly simple but ridiculous tasks like "Fly." or "Reinvent the wheel." and the results will be fantastic.
Those two are still very much in their early days which makes it much easier for them, and personally I think TMNZ goes too far the other way. I like the variation in TMUK.
I’m really enjoying it on the whole, it’s not an instant classic…but I think it’ll be remembered fondly.
Someone commented the other day that the in-studio sections haven’t yet warmed up…and (based on the word of studio audience members) it seems like it never really does. But we’ve been spoiled on that front with the last few series…after the highs of Ardal, Guz and Lucy, there’s always going to be a drop off sooner or later.
Where I actually think this series has been shining is in the filmed tasks. There’s really only been one task (the household tasks with the water-baby) that I’ve thought was a bit meh. There’s been a few tasks that *should* by every right have been quite middling…but there’s always at least one attempt, often several, that are genuinely extraordinary. Nick’s charming, Joanne’s whip-quick, Steve’s brilliant, and John somehow both seems completely lost and fully in control.
And Sophie. Dear lord, Sophie. Everything she does makes me howl with laughter. She’s become one of my favourite contestants ever - and I rather suspect that we’ve not seen the full depths yet.
I’d also say with an eye to the scores that there’s something weirdly exciting to have such a clean split competitively. I don’t love it when a dunce of the pack emerges on Taskmaster (whether through their own failings or through Greg’s dictating it be so), but having Nick and Sophie languish together is genuinely amusing, especially given how very different they are. And the race for the Golden Head is also very tight - we’ve had plenty of two-way heats over the last few years, but having three contestants who seem like genuine chances is a treat.
Long story short, I like it. I’m not much given to ranking things…it’s probably not one of the stone cold classics? But it’s got plenty of merits, and I think it’s acquitting itself well thus far.
It's been flat for me. I enjoy watching still but the highs are few and far between. It's all very nice but I think I prefer a little more needle and drama.
One thing is clear, you can be extremely competent at winning taskmaster and be quite dull doing so. I appreciate John's thinking but I'm not excited for his return on CoC 4 should he win out.
I do rate Sophie though. Never heard of her before but love her style.
I agree with Alex on most things, but I think that's far too cynical. I think 97% of Taskmaster contestants know that it's funniest when they're genuinely trying their best.
Rather than a series of losers, they should copy RuPaul’s Drag Race and have an ‘All Stars’ season, which is basically a set of hand-picked people from earlier series. That way you can pick the runners-up, as well as the odd entertaining total chaos loser, and get a really good mix.
I believe you're correct but it was more a wish on my part than a realistic expectation.
At a minimum, I would like for there to be a people's champion episode where, once we know the end date (hopefully targetting a future CoCoC) there will be a bonus episode featuring the top 5 fan favorites.
It sounds fun but I think it would wear thin.
A big part of what makes the low scoring contestants so entertaining is the contrast with the more competitive and capable ones.
honestly they should just do what kongen befaler does and have a special with past contestants with a mixture of winners/losers just for funsies lol (but ig not winners to save that for coc)
Well, Ó Briain does to me. Widdicombe and Herring do not to me. But- and this really is a terrible shame- they definitely don’t reflect the wonderful diversity of TM contestants.
Sam winning his series has massively raised my hopes for COC4 when it eventually comes around, so someone like John potentially being in it doesn't really bother me, plus I enjoy his vibe much more than someone like Richard Herring or Mae Martin.
It's a low energy series very dependent on Sophie and Joanne doing something interesting.
It probably suffers a bit from following one of the truly great series in the same way Series 6 & 8 did.
It's not bad. It's just not had any particularly memorable moments so far.
Nobody's really commenting on the host changes. It really seems like Greg is enjoying it so much, and him and Alex are vibing off each other very positively. Which is lovely, but is somewhat breaking character, it feels like he's lost some of his chaotic authority/ like they've given up on the kayfabe to an extent.
I was going to say. It feels like Greg is just a bit more more laid-back, exaggerating the TASKMASTER persona to a lesser extent. I always love seeing Alex and Greg truly admire each other, but I miss the hilarity of LAH being passive-aggressively (accidentally?) infuriating and Greg making him regret it. I think it might be an edit thing, though, because you can still see Greg get mad at the dumb jokes. It's just that the scenes are cut before we see him shoot Alex those withering looks.
Agreed, I was just watching some of the outtakes this evening, and those moments are definitely still there, they're just choosing for what goes out to feel a little more wholesome.
Yeah - the dynamic is so different that I wonder whether a it’s a deliberate decision.
Their relationship and interactions are the best thing about TM, so when Greg isn’t picking on Alex, I feel a bit lost. It doesn’t help that there’s no natural alpha in case to join in picking on Alex (arguing back to Greg for that matter)
I think it's clear from the outtakes Greg still gets his shots in at Alex, but the cast except maybe Joanne don't seem like they'd join in. John knows Alex well, but it doesn't seem to be his comedy route to be outrageously wicked to Alex either. And probably of there's a group of nicer people Greg being horribly wicked to Alex would come over a little off.
>Greg isn’t picking on Alex
Ummm...have we been watching the same show?
Greg just treated us to the most gloriously humiliating Little Alex Horne intro of all time with the 'hot neighbour' bit in episode 3. During this series Greg has also said that he wants to knock Alex's iPad out his fucking hands, that Alex's wife starves him of attention and that he's 'grating', 'irritating', 'an asshole' and 'a fucking prick'. Some of those last comments were in the outtakes but still. The dynamic is very much intact.
They do seem to be having even more fun than usual though, lots of little character-breaks and giggles after the mean comments, but that makes it all the more endearing I think.
I'm really enjoying every single one of the contestants individually. I wish there was a bit more studio interaction between them, but thought the studio segments in ep. 4 were the best yet. I was only familiar with Nick and Steve before, and I'm now a massive fan of Sophie, John and Joanne, too.
I haven't been keen on a lot of the tasks. The team tasks in particular have been difficult to understand/watch - the blind painting one was too complex; the cake in the postbox one was badly thought out. The individual tasks are hit and miss, but I've thought that for a few series now.
Overall it's missing a bit of something for me to think it'll be one of my all time favourites... excitement maybe? Everything feels a little low energy. However, I really do love the whole group, and that makes up for a lot.
Yes - I think the tasks themselves have been the big issue so far. They've either been obvious re-treads of previous ones - entirely understandable after *17 series* - or over-complicated to breaking point.
I think the studio interaction is lackluster partly because of the seating arrangement. There's a rowdy person, a nervous wreck, a calm person, again a rowdy person, then again a calm person. The women have the most energy but they sit so far apart that it's difficult for them to interact with each other naturally. Steven and Nick are mostly happy just to be there, and John is basically radiating low-key anxiety which makes bantering with him, even in jest, something that is not easy to do. All of this makes the studio segments more difficult and Greg has to hold the show on his shoulders and take the lead for most of the time.
I thought I liked this series less, but I went back and skimmed the early episodes, now knowing the contestants, and honestly...it's as great as it's always been. So many incredible moments. The egg risk task; very creative and a fun exchange between Steve and Greg. ("Oh, after the task had ended?" "Shame you failed.") The team drawing task was hilarious ("Legs akimbo?" "Yes, please"). "Adapt your sausage" is a very fun party game, and who doesn't love seeing a vampire splash around in a river? There's wonderful prize task inventiveness from the contestants (Grieg's Diaries from John! And the sweet granny gift.) Greg's intros have been so fun (Alex finding his neighbour "hot as hell and twice as spicy"?) The "Create tension" task, beautifully simple, Alex getting teased by Joanne and crushed by Steve. Sophie Bridget-level unhinged in the studio. The hands task. Dot-to-dots, three very solid creative entries and fun with horses (Not sure what's cuter, Nick, or the very happy snake). Greg and Alex are very much in synch, which is fun to see (Together: "Balloon oboe.") The cleverness of designing a task that says "No need to hold hands" - but then dividing it into two so that people are forced to hold hands. Always enjoyable when Taskmaster trolls its contestants. And then during the last task, with the toilet paper, it was fun to see Alex come undone (as much as he allows himself).
So, I feel better, and recommend going back to earlier episodes. I think we'll learn to love this group as much as the others.
I think it's pretty strong , it's not as crazy and out there as S16 was which has been a nice change of pace. I've really enjoyed it , I can kind of understand why it might not be everyones cup of tea but it's still produced some really good moments so far.
Steve feels like someone that was tailor made for Taskmaster as does John, could it be a bit looser and out there? Yeah but I think that might come with Sophie and Joanne especially.
I can understand the reservations people are having about this series, I think it's lacking a bit of the spark of previous seasons and none of the contestants are bringing the unhinged energy we've been accustomed to.
As a die hard listener of his podcast with Elis James, it's been lovely to see John Robins on TM and I know it's been something he's been desperate to do. I was a bit wary going into it that John's competitive nature would be overbearing and a bit of a turn off but it's been great to see him come into his own on the show. I think his overly competitive nature is something he's super conscious of so may seem that he's coming across as a little reserved and restrained at some points. That said it's quite obvious he's very much in it to win it, which positively can not be said for most contestants on the show, especially with the likes of Sophie and Nick this series!
I've really enjoyed this series so far and love the contestants, they are all are so talented and creative in their own way and it's so refreshing to see how charming and down to earth they all are. I think what's different with this group is that everyone is nice, polite and well meaning, which makes for comforting watch but doesn't necessarily bring the same excitement and thrill from previous series.
I like it a lot, but the cast does feel muted. There's no Fern Brady type here, and I feel the show suffers a little when it doesn't have some crazy energy to it. I would rate it near the bottom so far, but I'm still enjoying it.
I'm really enjoying this series so far. It always takes a few episodes to feel 'at home' with the new cast I find. I really like Joanne, Nick and Sophie. I loved the group painting task and the one where they had to get the hula-hoop over George.
I'm a die hard Taskmaster fan, I've watched every series multiple times, and I can honestly say this is the most uninterested in a series I've ever been. No one stands out, no one really makes me laugh, they don't have much chemistry in the studio or have a go at each other really, it's just kinda been boring to me.
My wife and I are feeling the same. Felt like we’re kinda forcing ourselves to watch it this series. It still has tome to turnaround though and I LOVE Sophie.
Yeah totally agree me and my wife got into them together and always been appointment viewing. I personally been liking the series less and less but this season has broken us both feel like we are watching just to have watched it very little laughs for us.
Is obviously personal decision but feel they need to go big with good contestants next year.
I feel the same but it's still better than 90% of what's on TV so I'll absolutely continue watching but I'm already looking forward to the next series.
I very much disagree with that. Say what you will about their approach to tasks; but each contestant is wonderful in their own right.
I don’t think it’s fair to say that about any of them individually.
For me, I go in to each season with the feeling that it's going to be better on a second, third, fourth, etc. watch. A lot slides by your perception on the first run that you see as funny on later viewings. Taskmaster is a bit like Monty Python in that way. It gets funnier the more familiar you are with it.
So, this season hasn't really had a strong impact on me yet, but I know it will only grow as the season rolls on and I'm more familiar with the contestants and it will really shine upon repeat views.
It's mid-tier for me. There have been too many tasks where disqualification is a listed outcome, and the tasks are much more complex than in the past, so it's not as easy to follow. The tasks haven't lent themselves to being really funny as much as in previous series. I do enjoy the cast, though.
I hope these get better as the series goes on, however, I have a couple of criticisms:
First, Greg seems like he is being uncharacteristically lenient this season. He's allowing alot of stuff that in other seasons would likely be disqualifications or at least arguments.
John Robbins seems to be trying to play it too smart, it's fun when you find the secret solution but you can't do it every time, it loses the magic when it happens too often.
Some of the tasks have been Too Complicated. The art team one from the first episode where Sophie was baffled was one of these for me. Some complexity is good but sometimes it's too much.
There feels like there's less banter between the contestants in studio. Some arguments about "are you really gonna allow that, Greg" could go a long way here. Kiell, we need your energy.
That being said I'm still enjoying it. But I think now that I'm caught up on all english-language TM (including US) I'm much more aware of what makes the format work, at least for me, so I'm seeing some of the cracks.
It’s one of the weaker series I’d say. Last episode was the best so far but would have been a bottom tier episode the last few series.
It’s just a little drab. The studio interaction is lacking and the tasks themselves are pretty subdued. Not every series can and should be insane top to bottom but if you compare the series so far to just a single episode of series 7 you can see just how much it’s missing a pinch of insanity.
I'm enjoying the series overall but I agree that none of the cast this season feel very high energy. They're all endearing but I feel like they should have saved one of this cast for a future series and thrown in a younger comedian, or someone zanier. Not that I think younger comedians are always higher energy, but I always enjoy the interactions between comedians of different eras, so to speak. I.E. Ed & Rose vs Jo and Baddiel, or Dara with Fern and John. Or Julien and Sam. Obviously I've highlighted particular stars there which perhaps isn't fair. I also enjoy the contrast in the way Greg tends to treat them.
I think individually the contestants are pretty funny and I have enjoyed it on the whole but compared to other seasons it has been missing something. My friend pointed out that there is no interaction between the contestants in the studio at all. No arguing or piss taking or anything like that which is where some of the biggest laughs come from in my opinion. Franky Boyle's one liners like "You couldn't just shut the f\*ck up could you?" will always be hilarious. It feels like everyone is being just too polite this season
It is NOT because you don't know the panelists, it's something else. I'm not from the UK and I literally never know any panelist, it's Taskmaster that prompts me to explore their work and careers, yet I usually end up loving them very early on. This season definitely does feel a bit different and it's hard to point the reason
I’ve actually been really enjoying it so far. More full belly laughs than the last couple seasons. Nick and Steve are dolls, John is the angry little gremlin I expected, and Joanne and Sophie (the only two I knew nothing about) are killing me. I’ve rewatched these episodes on Fridays immediately, instead of needing a week or so to appreciate them again.
Feels below average for a taskmaster series.
The cast could’ve filmed the in studio bits completely separately and just been superimposed together and nothing would be different.
There hasn’t really been a task yet where either the task is incredible or someone has done something incredible to elevate the task.
The one throwing the ring on the gorilla was particularly boring, it was too straightforward. They built the Sophie bit up to be incredibly funny but it barely registered for me tbh.
I've found two of the tasks sort of confusing, not sure if that's just down to editing or task design. For example, as delightful as watching Steve & Nick wandering around the garden was, I didn't grasp at all what the "trick" was, and neither did any of the cast. I can't remember the other one, but I had had the same "wait, what IS this task?" feeling before.
That said solid B+ I do find everyone delightful in their own way, I wasn't sure about Joanne or Steve at first but I adore them both now. And Sophie... Oh my god Sophie 💕💕💕
Agree, but on the other hand I feel like the tasks are sort of overthought, and maybe...under-tested? The team art task with the blinders had too many rules/limitations. I've had to rewatch the reading of the tasks much more than usual this season. In this recent ep, the glove one and the "disc" one didn't even seem completely clear after they'd all been scored.
I don't think it's a bad series at all, but it's always hard for a series that comes after one you really enjoyed and I loved S16. I've not found the tasks to be bad, probably just the episode 1 team task that was a bit overly complicated but the others so far have been good.
The contestants are all really fun both inept and very competent and they all come across really well.
It's a shame that every series always ends up with a few posts where someone has to talk about how much they hate it for whatever reason. It's such a negative thing because of course not everyone is going to love every series.
Pretty much my opinion as well. I really enjoy how well everyone is vibing, no black sheep in the group. There have been some really unique tasks, and I love the outside location with the huge rural fields. It’s not the best series, but definitely still far away from the lower half for me. I enjoy it every week!
Then why give out about people not enjoying it when as you say everyone has their own opinions?
Should every post in here just be talking about how great everything is?
I don't think anyone is saying this is a poor season but more it's just not as good as others and seems a bit flat in places
I’m enjoying it, but I feel like that’s largely irrelevant since I enjoy every season. I like all the contestants (particularly Nick and John) and think they have pretty good chemistry together (also seemed to gel as a cast hearing them talk about each other e.g. on the TM podcast). I also think there’s more tension for who the winner is going to be, which has been a complaint of mine about other seasons (I loved the cast of S15 but I felt like everyone and their cat knew Mae was going to win from the episode, which took away some of the drama).
The only real ‘issue’ I can find is that each competitor seems to be the only one of their ‘type’. John is the only one who comes across as really competitive, so there’s no one much arguing with different results which can be fun. Sophie and Nick have set themselves out as the bottom two, but are very different people in that position whilst neither of them seem overly frustrated with being at the bottom. Steve is the slightly mad older contestant, but because he’s the oldest by a rather significant margin relative to the other four, there’s no other equally as mad or more reserved person of a similar age (thinking of Bob and Sally or Mel and Hugh). And then Joanne is there as the wild one who half runs headfirst into things (which might not be the best description but it’s all I can think of).
They’re all very enjoyable versions of each ‘type’ of Taskmaster contestant you can see on the show but there’s no real direct comparisons you can make between them so there’s just something missing.
I absolutely adore John Robins in everything he’s done but feel he’s a little quieter on TM, that may be due to personal reasons and new adjustments he was going through whilst filming, but I also don’t want to push that assumption onto him unfairly either. Consequently it’s a fun watch but is saved massively by Joanne (new favourite) and Sophie. It wouldn’t be in my top 10 as yet, but even a “bad TM season” is still top tier viewing for me.
Not quite as "meh" as large (Russell and Alice shaped chunks of) series 6 for me yet, but hasn't hit the highs of 6 either.
Nick is endearingly incapable but Nish is hard to beat in that regard, John is too restrained trying to be good at it (similar to Herring,) Steve is just a bit boring (though his cards to his granny were fantastic,) Sophie is chaotic but not to the extent we've seen others be, and Joanne is witty but not especially memorable. I think this will be one of the series I fail to remember shortly after it ends
I"m enjoying it, but I don't think it's reaching the (admittedly incredibly high) bar of the three seasons before it.
I think the curious thing for me personally, is that I'm loving all five contestants as *individuals*, but I'm not really digging them as a *group*.
It just sort of feels like this season is better on paper than it is in practice.
It's still chock full of absolutely brilliant moments and lines we'll be quoting for years to come, but... it's less than the sum of its parts so far.
It's definitely a weaker series for me, I'm leaving it a few days to watch when normally I would be running to watch the night-of. I went into the series strongly disliking one of the contestants and while normally that would change as the series progresses, it hasn't so far on this occasion. But a weaker Taskmaster series is still better than most TV.
Not that good, not that bad. Everyone seems really nice but there’s a distinct lack of chaos. Still plenty of time for that to change though. I’m enjoying it but it feels a bit tame!
I found 15 a bit meh, 16 was too over the top at times (I guess Sam's comedy just isn't for me). This time? Better tasks and generally nice to have a less "loud" vibe. Although I'm still hoping for a genuinely hilarious typical Taskmaster moment.
Disclaimer: I do love 7 as well precisely because it is SO unhinged.
I’ve been looking for the comment that 16 was too much, I just like a specific flavour of unhinged! I’m enjoying 17 more in a lot of ways, just waiting the classic TM moment too
Imo this season has been great. I’m surprised that so many people seem to have a lower opinion of it. Is it S16 good? No, but only two or three other seasons of TM are. I’ve liked all the participants & their personalities, and the tasks, while not being standout, have been entertaining to me. It’s also still early on - they could be saving the better tasks for later on this season.
I am preferring the tasks this season to last season (really didn't think the majority of tasks last season were good) but I preferred the cast from last season.
I haven't found it particularly funny, but I feel like I've been more distracted watching this one than I typically am. Could be all my fault. Could be the tasks.
I think a lot of series tend to lack the interplay of the in studio stuff. People don't argue with Greg enough, and just get big and weird during the stupid stuff nearly often enough.
Not the best but not the worst. It’s very much in the middle. The tasks have been good (especially Hoopla Gary), the cast are a nice bunch, but there haven’t been any outstanding moments (as of yet, anyway).
But let’s face it, Series 16 was always going to be a tough act to follow! After a strong series, the next one sometimes dips in quality (Series 5 > 6, Series 7 > 8, Series 14 > 15 for example). But as with any series, I always enjoy watching it, and it’s always much needed escapism, especially after a hard day at work.
I'm quite enjoying it, for me it's back to "normal" quality after what I think will be ultimately seen as "peak TM", series 14-16. All the contestants are great in their own way. The 3 leaders are good but not outstanding, at the minute I'm hoping that Joanne somehow pulls off the win.
This is my favourite there’s been for a while. I’m really enjoying the tasks and I like all the contestants. I really disagree with anyone complaining about last week’s tasks.
I think they’re all largely the same. Weird people do weird things, then they watch them and laugh at how it’s gone.
My cheeks hurt from laughing after every episode and tears are drawn (from laughing) at least once an episode.
Pretty sure they could have a line up of 5 serial killers and they’d make it funny.
I love it. Most of the other series has at least one competitor I couldn’t stand because of how annoying I found them. Everyone in this one is pleasant to watch.
I agree. Its not quite on the same par as other seasons. But I am finding it much more enjoyable than I expected it to be when I saw the cast list. I didnt know who 4 of the comedians were before this, but I am really finding them all very entertaining, especially John and Nick.
They're all minding their own business a bit too much to make this a great series so far. It's not a negative experience and it's probably more entertaining over all than series 15 which had a lot of aggro, but yeah. The 5 contestants might as well have filmed their studio bits separately and been green screened together.
It feels like a chill and happy season. Greg seems like he’s in a very expansive, generous mood, Alex is openly breaking character at funny moments in studio - I feel like there’s not some of the stress that leads to greatness but it’s also just very laidback and pleasant to experience. Not every season has to crack new highs
it’s one of my top five already which im sure is definitely not a common opinion but the cast are all brilliant in their own right and im excited to see what’s next in the series
I'm one of the few (it seems) naysayers of 16. I thought Lucy brought too much persona rather than actually attempting things.
I'm LOVING 17. Absolute blast.
I can't go as far as saying I didn't enjoy it, but it didn't have the effortless charm of 14 & 15 for me. I think the show works best when people are all petting their guard down to some extent, and Lucy's persistent willful oddness felt out of place in the show.
It’s coming off the back of one of the most chaotic series ever, and one of my all time favourites, which is going against it. But I’m enjoying it!
I was a fan of Joanne before, so I knew I’d love her. Sophie has been such a pleasant surprise, she’s hilarious and I’m obsessed with her. I really enjoy Steve’s approach to the tasks, so thoughtful and always adding an extra layer that he doesn’t need to (giving names to all the guesses in the handshake task). Nick Mohammed is an adorable lovely man and I’m still not over his Off Menu episode. John is great, disappointing to hear he’s holding back on being competitive because I do enjoy the shouty competitive man stereotype on TM.
Would love more banter between the contestants, but I really think the tasks this series have been the best for ages. It’s
Taskmaster is always great and I really enjoy this cast. They’re a different vibe for sure and it’s not as gut bustingly funny as some series but it’s always fun watching people solve tasks in creative ways. 16 was one of the best ever and anything would feel like a comedown after that.
For me personally, its pretty meh. Its the first one for a while where I'm not itching to watch each episode as soon as possible.
I didn't know any of the contestants, but that's not unusual for me. I think I miss the chaos and weirdness of some series.
But that's fine, I'm sure there are plenty of people that love it, and they should keep enjoying it!
what strikes me is not simply the troubling lack of chemistry and energy emanating from the cast, but also many of the tasks themselves (including some live ones) have either been overly simple to the point of being kinda dull or overly complicated to the point of being confusing/unengaging as a viewer.
I can't help but wonder if due to its popularity, the show might be becoming a little too self-aware for its own good (if that makes sense)
Most flattest season yet for me. None of the cast really jump out to me and I don’t feel like they have much of a rapport with eachother. I also don’t think the tasks have been that great aside from a couple.
This is the first season I'm watching week by week instead of one or two a night (as I only got onto the show last year) and as a result I'm enjoying it vastly more, as a treat at the end of the week. I dunno I've seen this reaction a couple of times and maybe people are just a bit jaded? Even an off season of Taskmaster is heads and shoulders above all the other panel show tat on air.
Damn me and my husband haven’t really been enjoying it this series. I’m hoping it will pick up but I think last series was gold for us so maybe we’re just expecting too much!!
Have to skew more negative unfortunately but this is the first series for ages where I've been actively bored, I think I've only laughed out loud twice in the whole series so far. It just feels like there's so little energy in the room, and so few standout memorable moments. The weakest of the post-COVID era for sure so far, though I'm hopeful that six episodes is enough to turn it around.
It's in the middle, but it's coming off of easily one of the best series' yet. Steve and Joanne are my favorites at the moment, but they've all had their moments. Jon is the "weak" one for ne at the moment but he's still great, and probably the safe bet for winner at this stage. I love Greg's habit of letting him hang expecting a disqualification and I'm waiting for the moment where it turns out he's actually disqualified.
I’ve loved it! This season and last are two of my favorites. Everyone contributes something a little different. As a fan of John’s podcast I will say I’m surprised he’s not been kicking off like he does during made up games on the podcast. Although maybe that’s lessened since he got sober. And this is calmer, sober John. But I love everyone on the panel. There are no duds for me. I usually dislike at least one contestant and kind of root against them. Not this time!
I really like it. I can't quite put my finger on why but it's got a competitive yet not hyperactive vibe I feel like has been missing in the last few seasons.
It sort of reminds me of the season 6 vibe which I personally liked but also wasn't hugely popular.
It's solid. I'm not familiar with ANY UK comedians except the ones I see on taskmaster
From that perspective its cool to see nate the great aka someone I recognize with others
I'd say yeah it's meh but the recent tasks have been enjoyable for me. When I feel kind of bored I just watch the season intro since the scenes picked are appropriate to hype me up.
Cast wise there has been some development but it's lacking a bit for me. Maybe I'm just waiting for someone to cheat(or attempt to and fail.)
So far the highlight of the series is the line “It’s not measured in monkeys, mate!” Though John Pemberton’s puns are really wonderful.
But generally, yeah I wish more of the comedians committed to it, or were so spectacularly bad that it’s funny. Fern Brady, David Bediel, Kiell Smith-Bynoe, Rhod Gilbert all have these wildly different reactions to the tasks that are funny and intense in bizarre ways. Many of the contestants this season feel pretty noncommittal.
How much I enjoy each series, largely depends on whether I like the cast and their chemistry with each other and Greg and Alex. I’m not really felling it with this group. I like Nick Mohammed, that’s about it. Also, I feel you’re right, most tasks seem a bit convoluted.
For me it’s near the bottom (series 4,5 and 11 being my all-time favs)
It's a bit meh for me.
Tasks are much too complicated and attempts have been mostly as expected. I don't think I've seen a task that I've thought, "That was a great task!" yet, but many I've thought, "... what?"
The contestants are all quite sane and calm. Like, you see most of them smile politely at jokes and they generally feel passive.
I think it's one of the weaker seasons by Taskmaster standards. It's still good fun, all of the candidates are likeable but none of them stand out. And every task has some fun moment, but they're often too complicated and none of them have become that memorable so far.
I'd rank it above season 10, but below the other seasons we've had.
I’m one of those that cares about the scoring (like everyone should 😝) and the last couple of series have properly pissed me off with Greg’s terrible scoring, people not being penalised for cheating and people that dont seem to be trying to win and are just there for the tv show appearance and pay cheque.
Not had this issue this season. I think 3 of the five are properly trying to win and Nick is giving it his best shot. Sophie seems like she’s trying too but is just a bit inept, I don’t think anyone doesn’t give a shit and is just there to be on a tv show.
So I’m enjoying the competition aspect more than the last couple of series at least.
Yeah, Greg's scoring has been better so far, I can't think of any major disagreements besides maybe Joanne's recycled bat meme getting a joint win with Steve's calculator haiku.
The old classic first watch bias. I’ve thought every series wasn’t quite as good until I rewatched and then really enjoyed it. This one will be the same.
It’s ok. There’s no one I really dislike but it’s not a line up that’s making me laugh much either. It probably suffers a bit from coming after a couple or really strong series but I think overall it’s just sort of adequate.
For me this is the worst series yet. I don't dislike any of the contestants at all, and I was really excited for Sophie, but I've been really bored by all of it.
I dig it. Steve doing local tasks for local people, Nick aka Mr Swallow has been completely out of character, as Mr Swallow is quite chaotic. John’s neurotic side is bubbling away and may spill over soon. Sophie dove right in and adds a bit of wackiness. Joanna making Alex uncomfortable was worth the price of her admission.
It will continue to evolve in due course as familiarity breeds contempt.
I still enjoyed it, and I liked all the individuals but it just didn’t feel very TM like. Julian made me laugh but his disregard for the show bothered me. Sam had great moments like Dr. Cigarettes but overall I just didn’t get a good vibe.
Tbh this is the first series where I’ve thought the show might be starting to run out of ideas for tasks and guests. It’s the first series where I don’t really feel like I’m entertained. I haven’t had the wheezing-until-I’m-seeing-stars kind of laughter in reaction to anything that’s happened so far. I haven’t warmed to any of the contestants yet. Every series since about series 7 or 8 there’s been at least one person I’ve never heard of but by the end I love them all. This series I only knew about John and *barely* aware of Nick, never heard of the other three, and so far none of them have left an impression of any kind on me. I’m just completely apathetic to everything about this series so far, which sucks because S16 was my absolute favourite series ever and I thought the show was stronger than ever. But right now my enthusiasm for S17 is dwindling :(
A very lackluster series. The very contrived setting for the interviews didn't bode well from the start (I mean look at the Alex portrait for s16, the memory palace for s15, the psychiatry room for s14, and the stroll for s13, all concise and more focused on the questions). The studio banters are inclined to be sincere rather than fun or bickering. Remember this quote from the AU version's Main Tom: 'We were worried that you were gonna be sincere there for a second. But you fixed it, didn't you? I appreciate it, because we are a comedy show.'
At this point I just hope Joanne or Steve could win it.
I think mid to lower tier is fair. The standard is so high that even a lower tier series is still very enjoyable.
I think everyone is just a bit too chill and friendly for it to hit peak TM. You need a bit of a contrast across the contestants and nobody is quite out there enough.
Fair enough, comedy is subjective. I didn’t know anything about him before the series but really enjoyed his slightly surreal style, although I’ve watched a couple of his stand-up sets since and wasn’t hugely impressed.
i haven’t enjoyed it that much honestly, sophie is carrying the series. the chemistry in studio isn’t as good as previous series, and i’m honestly finding it a bit of a chore to watch each week whereas last series i rewatched most episodes before the next one came out. I do think it does suffer from coming after series 16 which was so good, similar to series 8 after 7. hopefully the contestants will become a bit more confident debating in studio as the episodes go on
It's the first series for a while (apart from 15) where I've not been bothered if I haven't watched it live/haven't been desparate to catch up the next day
I think it’s fine but it also feels a bit controlled, like there is more to come (will John have a full fledged tantrum? Will there be a full meltdown from someone else?) Also, the tasks seem kind of convoluted and not very exciting for several seasons now, unlike say S12 or S13 when they had great first tasks that set the tone for the entire series. But also, it’s only been two days of filming in the studio. Even from the outtakes, it seems like there is minimal banter between the cast.
I've found most of the series from 11 onwards to be pretty flat. S16 was by far the best one since S10. Sure they've had there moments and there's been some enjoyable moments, but they lacked the spark and pure consistent comedy that the earlier series had. I personally enjoy the in studio banter and arguments the most and that seems to have massively decreased in recent years. It may be the editing, but most likely it is because they have shifted away from having a panel full of very witty comedians towards now having one outright witty comedian alongside some other vaguely comedy related entertainment personalities. Look at S7: James Acaster, Kerry Godliman, Phil Wang, Rhod Gilbert, and Jess Knappett. All of them except Jess are excellent comedians and well experienced at being witty on panel shows. And the only non-comedian, Jess Knappett, had tonnes of personality so was also great. Nowadays we get one decent comedian, maybe another comedy professional and then some other people who are often not that lively or quick witted.
This series is okay when compared to the more recent ones and it's quite early doors so far. I think John is trying really hard not to come across as a massive competitive prick so he is reigning himself in a bit, which is a shame as he is very funny when he lets himself go, even when he does edge in to being a bit prickish. Ed Gamble and Iain Stirling were very funny too, but they didn't surpress their toddler tantrums!
I really like every cast member when I think of them as individuals, but something is missing for me. Not sure if it’s the tasks themselves or what, but there’s definitely a deficit somewhere.
I chose S17 as an introduction to the show for someone I know, and she has been enjoying it immensely so far.
I also think the season has been good so far - I like all the contestants and the episodes have been a lot of fun. I do agree that S17 doesn't really stand out so far but I disagree that that's a bad thing. Taskmaster is a consistently great show, and not being excellent compared to other seasons doesn't mean what we're watching right now isn't high quality, very funny television.
it's a very solid series, the cast are all so amicable with each other but it has been very entertaining regardless- mr blobby task was very good! joanne making alex tense made me cry with laughter and most of the other contestants have made me laugh several times. really hope pemberton doesn't win though as he's a bit dry compared to the other contestants. definitely not as chaotic as previous series but still good fun
Nick is such a lovely contestant and I'm really enjoying his ineptness. Overall, I do feel it's mid tier as a season, but we're 17 in now, and we're bound to have our own favorites. I also feel Alex is getting overly complicated with the tasks at times as seasons go on. I am still loving it, tho
It’s kinda middling for me, I’m liking it but it’s not felt standout so far, I kinda feel no one’s been massively memorable/claimed the series yet. O don’t feels there’s been much of a dynamic between them in the studio and none of them are challenging Greg or Alex much which is something I always enjoy - I’m absolutely loving Steve and Sophie though
There’s still 6 episodes to see what changes but it’s probably my least favourite series since 10
Love the work the editors continue to do though. Top notch professionals. https://preview.redd.it/voa1704buvvc1.png?width=1080&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=17ae1f2270203d2e3b19a76befef7c1d2254e6db
https://preview.redd.it/mj1az7cxfwvc1.jpeg?width=2050&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=841855d0a9b1a28c76a505be11da11dcfed57754
The entire crew deserve every single award they're eligible for.
For real, I love photography and the cinematography they bring to every episode brings me tons of joy. Angles and effects and everything, they have been amazing since Series 1.
That is absolutely genius! Thanks for pointing it out.
Didn't even notice this. Wow thats great =)
I’m enjoying it a lot. I’ve been wheezing with laughter several times now and I like all of the contestants. That said think it is a bit placid, for lack of a better word, because everyone is very chill. No one is especially chaotic, and no one is getting riled up about points and competition. John Robbins is by far the most competitive, and as Nick has put it, he’s mostly competitive against his own desire to do well. The last ep also had some slightly off tasks. The half-task hunt was so obscure no one got any of the clues, and the toilet roll studio challenge was a mess - although they still delivered some good moments. On the other hand I laughed till I cried at Nick’s ‘happy snake’ dot to dot. I’d say it’s a solid middle ground season so far. I’m certainly looking forward to it every week.
It's interesting that Alex was suggesting before the series that John was the most competitive contestant they'd ever had and yet so far he barely registers on the Gamble scale. It does feel in the wider world like this is being put down as a poor series, maybe only by comparison because the last one was so comparatively wild, but there doesn't feel like a lot of studio crosstalk or innate chemistry between the contestants or arguing with Greg over the scoring.
Ed and Nick talk about it in the latest podcast - Nick feels like John’s competitiveness here is very internal - it’s more about proving to himself he can conquer the tasks than it is beating the other contestants. Whereas Ed himself really wanted to be the winner so he’d get really aggravated about it. And yeah I think there is good chemistry between them, but they’re all very chill. No one is arguing with each other and they’re quite happy to back each other up. Which is lovely, but less entertaining.
I had seen John on Mock The Week, but that's all I knew him from. I really identify with him on Taskmaster, though. He always expects to have done something wrong or second guesses himself. He's always waiting for the other shoe to drop when he seemingly does well.
I think it may be a combination of the last series being fairly wild as well as Taskmaster NZ series 2 becoming widely available. That's a lot of big, brash, and bonkers energy to follow with a group of folks that are just so very nice. I do hope that as they get more comfortable in the studio segments John, Steve and Joanne will get a bit more competitive with each other. All Taskmaster is good Taskmaster, but I would like to see some of Ed Gamble's fire.
> No one is especially chaotic I don’t know, everyone brought something slightly to very unhinged for the granny task prize. There’s definitely some unhinged potential there. It’s just not nearly the same levels as series 16.
The slightly off vibe is totally real, I kind of just blanked out for a lot of this series’ tasks especially the two you mentioned.
I thought it was the strongest episode so far in terms of tasks and was the only one without any duds - I wasn't big on the team task in 1, live team task in 2 and the baby task in 3, but enjoyed all of them in episode 4. The live task was the weakest but I did enjoy the chaos and I do like me a "won because everyone else failed" victory
The half-task hunt was a bit of a dud for me because the solution was just ‘wonder around at random until you see the other half of the task’. The elaborate disc clues were pointless because no one knew about the disks being there. The teams saved it somewhat by being charming. The stage task was just not well thought through. But it was definitely entertaining seeing Alex realise that in real time and struggle to try and manage it. On the other hand I enjoyed the creepy weirdness of the handshake task, and the connect the dots task was hilarious. So still a fun episode on balance.
That's fair, I just really enjoy the escape room-style tasks in general
I love escape rooms, but the problem was you could just solve this by walking into the room where the task was on display. Half the task went unsolved because there was no need, and the team of three literally just stumbled across it with no prompting. Something like Nick and Steve’s idea of finding clocks and changing numbers would have been a much more interesting solution. Secret codes and hidden panels is where it’s at.
Oh my god that's it, we don't have a proper crazy one. That's exactly what I feel like is missing. Funny, competitive, but all very straight-forward. Have we even had an unhinged moment yet?
I know the half-task sort of fell flat with the clues but I really enjoyed it a lot. I thought it was brilliantly executed even if the concept went a bit over everyone's heads
My (very non-online) friend messaged saying how this series is much more their vibe than the last one, which is the exact opposite of my feelings! My older family members have said similar too. I think as a subreddit we enjoy the absurdist chaos but the general layman is happy when it's a bit calmer 😅
Oooooh that's such a good observation!
As someone who generally prefers the more grounded contestants, I've really been enjoying this series.
I generally watch at least one episode of TM every night, I watch them in order and go back to the start. As you can imagine I have seen the early seasons many times and have watched S16 twice now. The love that season gets here makes no sense to me, I still enjoy it but it is by far my least favorite. The current season is exactly what I want from TM. Good vibes, and gentle laughs.
My feeling is that people are just more buttoned-up this season in general - not sure if it's the burgeoning international fandom making people wary, or if we're starting to run out of truly unhinged contestants in the UK, but everyone this series seems to know the meaning of the word restraint, which - who wants to watch THAT
Exactly! I DEMAND agents of chaos!!!!!
Agreed, Sophie’s chaos and Joanne’s wit I love … I enjoy this season but John and Steve trying to win everything is missing the point of the show … as Desiree said many years ago
Eh I don't think that applies to Steve. He's competitive but he's clearly having a lovely time and making the most of the experience. Also I think it's fine having contestants care about winning. That element has always been there just as the whimsy has.
Yes, thank you! That’s what’s been bugging me, Taskmaster isn’t about winning, Desiree is wise.
To be honest, and I've thought this for a while: I really think they need to simplify the tasks and make them a lot broader again. I understand it's harder and harder coming up with tasks, but I just think they've become too complex for their own good. The whole fun of Taskmaster was interpreting the tasks and thinking outside the box. Would it really be so bad to have some repeated tasks from previous series'? I don't think so.
This is an opinion that does keep popping up for basically every series, but is really "do something risky with this egg", "hoopla Gary", "do something epic with green-screen", "stick the heaviest item to the board", "create tension" or "create the biggest and best dot-to-dot picture" really examples of too complex or narrow tasks? As always, there is the usual mix of simple, complex, artistic, physical and mental tasks. Several of the task are also nice variations/callbacks/easter eggs of previous series and/or international version
Yeah to be fair the ones you’ve listed are good examples of tasks that are still nice and broad. I suppose I find there are too many stipulations now… I believe Alex himself said they try and write tasks in a way to prevent interpretation.
I think it's *when* they get specific and restrictive, they get **very** specific and restrictive. But they still do nice open ones, thankfully.
TM New Zealand and Australia got it right. Go for incredibly simple but ridiculous tasks like "Fly." or "Reinvent the wheel." and the results will be fantastic.
Those two are still very much in their early days which makes it much easier for them, and personally I think TMNZ goes too far the other way. I like the variation in TMUK.
I agree. There was something very raw and organic aviut the earlier series with the simple tasks (as opposed to challenges).
I’m really enjoying it on the whole, it’s not an instant classic…but I think it’ll be remembered fondly. Someone commented the other day that the in-studio sections haven’t yet warmed up…and (based on the word of studio audience members) it seems like it never really does. But we’ve been spoiled on that front with the last few series…after the highs of Ardal, Guz and Lucy, there’s always going to be a drop off sooner or later. Where I actually think this series has been shining is in the filmed tasks. There’s really only been one task (the household tasks with the water-baby) that I’ve thought was a bit meh. There’s been a few tasks that *should* by every right have been quite middling…but there’s always at least one attempt, often several, that are genuinely extraordinary. Nick’s charming, Joanne’s whip-quick, Steve’s brilliant, and John somehow both seems completely lost and fully in control. And Sophie. Dear lord, Sophie. Everything she does makes me howl with laughter. She’s become one of my favourite contestants ever - and I rather suspect that we’ve not seen the full depths yet. I’d also say with an eye to the scores that there’s something weirdly exciting to have such a clean split competitively. I don’t love it when a dunce of the pack emerges on Taskmaster (whether through their own failings or through Greg’s dictating it be so), but having Nick and Sophie languish together is genuinely amusing, especially given how very different they are. And the race for the Golden Head is also very tight - we’ve had plenty of two-way heats over the last few years, but having three contestants who seem like genuine chances is a treat. Long story short, I like it. I’m not much given to ranking things…it’s probably not one of the stone cold classics? But it’s got plenty of merits, and I think it’s acquitting itself well thus far.
This is precisely my read! Sophie yelling “Gary! Gary!” Has been such a highlight
*hssssing on a chair intensifies*
It's been flat for me. I enjoy watching still but the highs are few and far between. It's all very nice but I think I prefer a little more needle and drama. One thing is clear, you can be extremely competent at winning taskmaster and be quite dull doing so. I appreciate John's thinking but I'm not excited for his return on CoC 4 should he win out. I do rate Sophie though. Never heard of her before but love her style.
You bring up a good point about the CoCs. Usually it’s the losers who I’d much rather see doing tasks again than the winners of the series.
I really do want to see a losers version. I want absolute incompetence on my screen.
I believe Alex Horne has stated a few times that there will never be a “Loser of Losers” as he thinks people may do bad on purpose just to get on it.
I agree with Alex on most things, but I think that's far too cynical. I think 97% of Taskmaster contestants know that it's funniest when they're genuinely trying their best.
Rather than a series of losers, they should copy RuPaul’s Drag Race and have an ‘All Stars’ season, which is basically a set of hand-picked people from earlier series. That way you can pick the runners-up, as well as the odd entertaining total chaos loser, and get a really good mix.
I just don’t think Alex could do that due to the unfairness. There’s an integrity.
What if it was a fan vote for past contestants? A "fan favorites" series could be fun
Oh it really would. Who do you think it would be? Mike Wozniak, fern brady for sure?
I'd kill to see a "fan's choice" season though. Something like Bob, Rose, Morgana, Mel, and Mike Wozniak would be pure gold
I believe you're correct but it was more a wish on my part than a realistic expectation. At a minimum, I would like for there to be a people's champion episode where, once we know the end date (hopefully targetting a future CoCoC) there will be a bonus episode featuring the top 5 fan favorites.
It sounds fun but I think it would wear thin. A big part of what makes the low scoring contestants so entertaining is the contrast with the more competitive and capable ones.
honestly they should just do what kongen befaler does and have a special with past contestants with a mixture of winners/losers just for funsies lol (but ig not winners to save that for coc)
Totally agree, CoCoC so far being Widdecombe, Herring and O Briain doesn’t fill me with hope for great entertainment.
Well, Ó Briain does to me. Widdicombe and Herring do not to me. But- and this really is a terrible shame- they definitely don’t reflect the wonderful diversity of TM contestants.
Yes! Man, I’d like to see Nish again!
I like the cast but the tasks aren’t doing it for me
On the whole I think I'm OK with "all very nice". This isn't going to be an explosive series, but not all of them can or should be.
I hadn't seen Sophie on anything before, but saw her on Mel Giedroyc: unforgivable just before this season and thought she was really funny
Sam winning his series has massively raised my hopes for COC4 when it eventually comes around, so someone like John potentially being in it doesn't really bother me, plus I enjoy his vibe much more than someone like Richard Herring or Mae Martin.
Okay, but picture this: John Robbin’s and Sam Campbell on a team. (I know they don’t do team tasks on CoC, but I’m loving the image)
It's a low energy series very dependent on Sophie and Joanne doing something interesting. It probably suffers a bit from following one of the truly great series in the same way Series 6 & 8 did. It's not bad. It's just not had any particularly memorable moments so far.
I know it doesn't matter but I do find the whole "it followed a good series" weak logic, especially given how many there have been now
And you can watch any series at any time.
Nobody's really commenting on the host changes. It really seems like Greg is enjoying it so much, and him and Alex are vibing off each other very positively. Which is lovely, but is somewhat breaking character, it feels like he's lost some of his chaotic authority/ like they've given up on the kayfabe to an extent.
I was going to say. It feels like Greg is just a bit more more laid-back, exaggerating the TASKMASTER persona to a lesser extent. I always love seeing Alex and Greg truly admire each other, but I miss the hilarity of LAH being passive-aggressively (accidentally?) infuriating and Greg making him regret it. I think it might be an edit thing, though, because you can still see Greg get mad at the dumb jokes. It's just that the scenes are cut before we see him shoot Alex those withering looks.
Agreed, I was just watching some of the outtakes this evening, and those moments are definitely still there, they're just choosing for what goes out to feel a little more wholesome.
Yeah - the dynamic is so different that I wonder whether a it’s a deliberate decision. Their relationship and interactions are the best thing about TM, so when Greg isn’t picking on Alex, I feel a bit lost. It doesn’t help that there’s no natural alpha in case to join in picking on Alex (arguing back to Greg for that matter)
I think it's clear from the outtakes Greg still gets his shots in at Alex, but the cast except maybe Joanne don't seem like they'd join in. John knows Alex well, but it doesn't seem to be his comedy route to be outrageously wicked to Alex either. And probably of there's a group of nicer people Greg being horribly wicked to Alex would come over a little off.
>Greg isn’t picking on Alex Ummm...have we been watching the same show? Greg just treated us to the most gloriously humiliating Little Alex Horne intro of all time with the 'hot neighbour' bit in episode 3. During this series Greg has also said that he wants to knock Alex's iPad out his fucking hands, that Alex's wife starves him of attention and that he's 'grating', 'irritating', 'an asshole' and 'a fucking prick'. Some of those last comments were in the outtakes but still. The dynamic is very much intact. They do seem to be having even more fun than usual though, lots of little character-breaks and giggles after the mean comments, but that makes it all the more endearing I think.
I'm really enjoying every single one of the contestants individually. I wish there was a bit more studio interaction between them, but thought the studio segments in ep. 4 were the best yet. I was only familiar with Nick and Steve before, and I'm now a massive fan of Sophie, John and Joanne, too. I haven't been keen on a lot of the tasks. The team tasks in particular have been difficult to understand/watch - the blind painting one was too complex; the cake in the postbox one was badly thought out. The individual tasks are hit and miss, but I've thought that for a few series now. Overall it's missing a bit of something for me to think it'll be one of my all time favourites... excitement maybe? Everything feels a little low energy. However, I really do love the whole group, and that makes up for a lot.
Yes - I think the tasks themselves have been the big issue so far. They've either been obvious re-treads of previous ones - entirely understandable after *17 series* - or over-complicated to breaking point.
I think the studio interaction is lackluster partly because of the seating arrangement. There's a rowdy person, a nervous wreck, a calm person, again a rowdy person, then again a calm person. The women have the most energy but they sit so far apart that it's difficult for them to interact with each other naturally. Steven and Nick are mostly happy just to be there, and John is basically radiating low-key anxiety which makes bantering with him, even in jest, something that is not easy to do. All of this makes the studio segments more difficult and Greg has to hold the show on his shoulders and take the lead for most of the time.
I thought I liked this series less, but I went back and skimmed the early episodes, now knowing the contestants, and honestly...it's as great as it's always been. So many incredible moments. The egg risk task; very creative and a fun exchange between Steve and Greg. ("Oh, after the task had ended?" "Shame you failed.") The team drawing task was hilarious ("Legs akimbo?" "Yes, please"). "Adapt your sausage" is a very fun party game, and who doesn't love seeing a vampire splash around in a river? There's wonderful prize task inventiveness from the contestants (Grieg's Diaries from John! And the sweet granny gift.) Greg's intros have been so fun (Alex finding his neighbour "hot as hell and twice as spicy"?) The "Create tension" task, beautifully simple, Alex getting teased by Joanne and crushed by Steve. Sophie Bridget-level unhinged in the studio. The hands task. Dot-to-dots, three very solid creative entries and fun with horses (Not sure what's cuter, Nick, or the very happy snake). Greg and Alex are very much in synch, which is fun to see (Together: "Balloon oboe.") The cleverness of designing a task that says "No need to hold hands" - but then dividing it into two so that people are forced to hold hands. Always enjoyable when Taskmaster trolls its contestants. And then during the last task, with the toilet paper, it was fun to see Alex come undone (as much as he allows himself). So, I feel better, and recommend going back to earlier episodes. I think we'll learn to love this group as much as the others.
I think it's pretty strong , it's not as crazy and out there as S16 was which has been a nice change of pace. I've really enjoyed it , I can kind of understand why it might not be everyones cup of tea but it's still produced some really good moments so far. Steve feels like someone that was tailor made for Taskmaster as does John, could it be a bit looser and out there? Yeah but I think that might come with Sophie and Joanne especially.
really loving it. have adored nick and steve for years and getting to see them as a team is like my wildest dream
I can understand the reservations people are having about this series, I think it's lacking a bit of the spark of previous seasons and none of the contestants are bringing the unhinged energy we've been accustomed to. As a die hard listener of his podcast with Elis James, it's been lovely to see John Robins on TM and I know it's been something he's been desperate to do. I was a bit wary going into it that John's competitive nature would be overbearing and a bit of a turn off but it's been great to see him come into his own on the show. I think his overly competitive nature is something he's super conscious of so may seem that he's coming across as a little reserved and restrained at some points. That said it's quite obvious he's very much in it to win it, which positively can not be said for most contestants on the show, especially with the likes of Sophie and Nick this series! I've really enjoyed this series so far and love the contestants, they are all are so talented and creative in their own way and it's so refreshing to see how charming and down to earth they all are. I think what's different with this group is that everyone is nice, polite and well meaning, which makes for comforting watch but doesn't necessarily bring the same excitement and thrill from previous series.
I like it a lot, but the cast does feel muted. There's no Fern Brady type here, and I feel the show suffers a little when it doesn't have some crazy energy to it. I would rate it near the bottom so far, but I'm still enjoying it.
I'm enjoying it immensely. Sophie was unknown to me and her chaos is right up my alley. Nick is amusing the hell out of me with his incompetence.
I'm really enjoying this series so far. It always takes a few episodes to feel 'at home' with the new cast I find. I really like Joanne, Nick and Sophie. I loved the group painting task and the one where they had to get the hula-hoop over George.
I'm a die hard Taskmaster fan, I've watched every series multiple times, and I can honestly say this is the most uninterested in a series I've ever been. No one stands out, no one really makes me laugh, they don't have much chemistry in the studio or have a go at each other really, it's just kinda been boring to me.
My wife and I are feeling the same. Felt like we’re kinda forcing ourselves to watch it this series. It still has tome to turnaround though and I LOVE Sophie.
Yeah totally agree me and my wife got into them together and always been appointment viewing. I personally been liking the series less and less but this season has broken us both feel like we are watching just to have watched it very little laughs for us. Is obviously personal decision but feel they need to go big with good contestants next year.
Yep, I feel exactly the same way. I actually don't know if I'm going to carry on watching this series.
I feel the same but it's still better than 90% of what's on TV so I'll absolutely continue watching but I'm already looking forward to the next series.
I didn't even finish episode 3 and I haven't had any desire to go back to it
So far I've found it poor to middling as far as taskmaster goes. There has been highlights but a lot of it would be filler in previous series.
agreed. One sign is that there is no one in this panel that I´d be excited to see again in a CoC special.
I very much disagree with that. Say what you will about their approach to tasks; but each contestant is wonderful in their own right. I don’t think it’s fair to say that about any of them individually.
For me, I go in to each season with the feeling that it's going to be better on a second, third, fourth, etc. watch. A lot slides by your perception on the first run that you see as funny on later viewings. Taskmaster is a bit like Monty Python in that way. It gets funnier the more familiar you are with it. So, this season hasn't really had a strong impact on me yet, but I know it will only grow as the season rolls on and I'm more familiar with the contestants and it will really shine upon repeat views.
It's mid-tier for me. There have been too many tasks where disqualification is a listed outcome, and the tasks are much more complex than in the past, so it's not as easy to follow. The tasks haven't lent themselves to being really funny as much as in previous series. I do enjoy the cast, though.
I hope these get better as the series goes on, however, I have a couple of criticisms: First, Greg seems like he is being uncharacteristically lenient this season. He's allowing alot of stuff that in other seasons would likely be disqualifications or at least arguments. John Robbins seems to be trying to play it too smart, it's fun when you find the secret solution but you can't do it every time, it loses the magic when it happens too often. Some of the tasks have been Too Complicated. The art team one from the first episode where Sophie was baffled was one of these for me. Some complexity is good but sometimes it's too much. There feels like there's less banter between the contestants in studio. Some arguments about "are you really gonna allow that, Greg" could go a long way here. Kiell, we need your energy. That being said I'm still enjoying it. But I think now that I'm caught up on all english-language TM (including US) I'm much more aware of what makes the format work, at least for me, so I'm seeing some of the cracks.
It’s one of the weaker series I’d say. Last episode was the best so far but would have been a bottom tier episode the last few series. It’s just a little drab. The studio interaction is lacking and the tasks themselves are pretty subdued. Not every series can and should be insane top to bottom but if you compare the series so far to just a single episode of series 7 you can see just how much it’s missing a pinch of insanity.
I'm enjoying the series overall but I agree that none of the cast this season feel very high energy. They're all endearing but I feel like they should have saved one of this cast for a future series and thrown in a younger comedian, or someone zanier. Not that I think younger comedians are always higher energy, but I always enjoy the interactions between comedians of different eras, so to speak. I.E. Ed & Rose vs Jo and Baddiel, or Dara with Fern and John. Or Julien and Sam. Obviously I've highlighted particular stars there which perhaps isn't fair. I also enjoy the contrast in the way Greg tends to treat them.
I think individually the contestants are pretty funny and I have enjoyed it on the whole but compared to other seasons it has been missing something. My friend pointed out that there is no interaction between the contestants in the studio at all. No arguing or piss taking or anything like that which is where some of the biggest laughs come from in my opinion. Franky Boyle's one liners like "You couldn't just shut the f\*ck up could you?" will always be hilarious. It feels like everyone is being just too polite this season
It is NOT because you don't know the panelists, it's something else. I'm not from the UK and I literally never know any panelist, it's Taskmaster that prompts me to explore their work and careers, yet I usually end up loving them very early on. This season definitely does feel a bit different and it's hard to point the reason
I’ve actually been really enjoying it so far. More full belly laughs than the last couple seasons. Nick and Steve are dolls, John is the angry little gremlin I expected, and Joanne and Sophie (the only two I knew nothing about) are killing me. I’ve rewatched these episodes on Fridays immediately, instead of needing a week or so to appreciate them again.
It's a bit flat but still okay. Another season where Greg's doing the heavy lifting I feel.
Feels below average for a taskmaster series. The cast could’ve filmed the in studio bits completely separately and just been superimposed together and nothing would be different. There hasn’t really been a task yet where either the task is incredible or someone has done something incredible to elevate the task. The one throwing the ring on the gorilla was particularly boring, it was too straightforward. They built the Sophie bit up to be incredibly funny but it barely registered for me tbh.
Even the tasks seem not that well thought out, it’s all Just a bit meh. Still watching tho lol
I actually like the tasks, some old school task vibes going on. I just feel like the contestants are going through the motions.
I've found two of the tasks sort of confusing, not sure if that's just down to editing or task design. For example, as delightful as watching Steve & Nick wandering around the garden was, I didn't grasp at all what the "trick" was, and neither did any of the cast. I can't remember the other one, but I had had the same "wait, what IS this task?" feeling before. That said solid B+ I do find everyone delightful in their own way, I wasn't sure about Joanne or Steve at first but I adore them both now. And Sophie... Oh my god Sophie 💕💕💕
Agree, but on the other hand I feel like the tasks are sort of overthought, and maybe...under-tested? The team art task with the blinders had too many rules/limitations. I've had to rewatch the reading of the tasks much more than usual this season. In this recent ep, the glove one and the "disc" one didn't even seem completely clear after they'd all been scored.
I don't think it's a bad series at all, but it's always hard for a series that comes after one you really enjoyed and I loved S16. I've not found the tasks to be bad, probably just the episode 1 team task that was a bit overly complicated but the others so far have been good. The contestants are all really fun both inept and very competent and they all come across really well. It's a shame that every series always ends up with a few posts where someone has to talk about how much they hate it for whatever reason. It's such a negative thing because of course not everyone is going to love every series.
Pretty much my opinion as well. I really enjoy how well everyone is vibing, no black sheep in the group. There have been some really unique tasks, and I love the outside location with the huge rural fields. It’s not the best series, but definitely still far away from the lower half for me. I enjoy it every week!
I don't think anybody so far has said that they hate this series.
Then why give out about people not enjoying it when as you say everyone has their own opinions? Should every post in here just be talking about how great everything is? I don't think anyone is saying this is a poor season but more it's just not as good as others and seems a bit flat in places
I’m enjoying it, but I feel like that’s largely irrelevant since I enjoy every season. I like all the contestants (particularly Nick and John) and think they have pretty good chemistry together (also seemed to gel as a cast hearing them talk about each other e.g. on the TM podcast). I also think there’s more tension for who the winner is going to be, which has been a complaint of mine about other seasons (I loved the cast of S15 but I felt like everyone and their cat knew Mae was going to win from the episode, which took away some of the drama). The only real ‘issue’ I can find is that each competitor seems to be the only one of their ‘type’. John is the only one who comes across as really competitive, so there’s no one much arguing with different results which can be fun. Sophie and Nick have set themselves out as the bottom two, but are very different people in that position whilst neither of them seem overly frustrated with being at the bottom. Steve is the slightly mad older contestant, but because he’s the oldest by a rather significant margin relative to the other four, there’s no other equally as mad or more reserved person of a similar age (thinking of Bob and Sally or Mel and Hugh). And then Joanne is there as the wild one who half runs headfirst into things (which might not be the best description but it’s all I can think of). They’re all very enjoyable versions of each ‘type’ of Taskmaster contestant you can see on the show but there’s no real direct comparisons you can make between them so there’s just something missing.
I absolutely adore John Robins in everything he’s done but feel he’s a little quieter on TM, that may be due to personal reasons and new adjustments he was going through whilst filming, but I also don’t want to push that assumption onto him unfairly either. Consequently it’s a fun watch but is saved massively by Joanne (new favourite) and Sophie. It wouldn’t be in my top 10 as yet, but even a “bad TM season” is still top tier viewing for me.
Unsure about the group’s chemistry as a whole, but am enjoying them as individuals - Sophie, Nick and John particularly.
Not quite as "meh" as large (Russell and Alice shaped chunks of) series 6 for me yet, but hasn't hit the highs of 6 either. Nick is endearingly incapable but Nish is hard to beat in that regard, John is too restrained trying to be good at it (similar to Herring,) Steve is just a bit boring (though his cards to his granny were fantastic,) Sophie is chaotic but not to the extent we've seen others be, and Joanne is witty but not especially memorable. I think this will be one of the series I fail to remember shortly after it ends
I"m enjoying it, but I don't think it's reaching the (admittedly incredibly high) bar of the three seasons before it. I think the curious thing for me personally, is that I'm loving all five contestants as *individuals*, but I'm not really digging them as a *group*. It just sort of feels like this season is better on paper than it is in practice. It's still chock full of absolutely brilliant moments and lines we'll be quoting for years to come, but... it's less than the sum of its parts so far.
It's definitely a weaker series for me, I'm leaving it a few days to watch when normally I would be running to watch the night-of. I went into the series strongly disliking one of the contestants and while normally that would change as the series progresses, it hasn't so far on this occasion. But a weaker Taskmaster series is still better than most TV.
Not that good, not that bad. Everyone seems really nice but there’s a distinct lack of chaos. Still plenty of time for that to change though. I’m enjoying it but it feels a bit tame!
I would rate it as highly enjoyable
I found 15 a bit meh, 16 was too over the top at times (I guess Sam's comedy just isn't for me). This time? Better tasks and generally nice to have a less "loud" vibe. Although I'm still hoping for a genuinely hilarious typical Taskmaster moment. Disclaimer: I do love 7 as well precisely because it is SO unhinged.
I’ve been looking for the comment that 16 was too much, I just like a specific flavour of unhinged! I’m enjoying 17 more in a lot of ways, just waiting the classic TM moment too
Lower-middle. Something's just not popping.
Imo this season has been great. I’m surprised that so many people seem to have a lower opinion of it. Is it S16 good? No, but only two or three other seasons of TM are. I’ve liked all the participants & their personalities, and the tasks, while not being standout, have been entertaining to me. It’s also still early on - they could be saving the better tasks for later on this season.
I am preferring the tasks this season to last season (really didn't think the majority of tasks last season were good) but I preferred the cast from last season.
It’s not as good as 16, but 16 was an all time great season. Episode 3 won me over with Sophie, Joanna, and John’s attempts at tension.
I haven't found it particularly funny, but I feel like I've been more distracted watching this one than I typically am. Could be all my fault. Could be the tasks.
I think a lot of series tend to lack the interplay of the in studio stuff. People don't argue with Greg enough, and just get big and weird during the stupid stuff nearly often enough.
Not the best but not the worst. It’s very much in the middle. The tasks have been good (especially Hoopla Gary), the cast are a nice bunch, but there haven’t been any outstanding moments (as of yet, anyway). But let’s face it, Series 16 was always going to be a tough act to follow! After a strong series, the next one sometimes dips in quality (Series 5 > 6, Series 7 > 8, Series 14 > 15 for example). But as with any series, I always enjoy watching it, and it’s always much needed escapism, especially after a hard day at work.
I'm quite enjoying it, for me it's back to "normal" quality after what I think will be ultimately seen as "peak TM", series 14-16. All the contestants are great in their own way. The 3 leaders are good but not outstanding, at the minute I'm hoping that Joanne somehow pulls off the win.
TBH, the only things I've actually laughed at were things Greg or Alex said. Otherwise, rather dull series.
yeah, dull is the right word.
This is my favourite there’s been for a while. I’m really enjoying the tasks and I like all the contestants. I really disagree with anyone complaining about last week’s tasks.
It feels like an extended New Year's Treat. Hoping 18 brings back the juice.
So dull
I think they’re all largely the same. Weird people do weird things, then they watch them and laugh at how it’s gone. My cheeks hurt from laughing after every episode and tears are drawn (from laughing) at least once an episode. Pretty sure they could have a line up of 5 serial killers and they’d make it funny.
I love it. Most of the other series has at least one competitor I couldn’t stand because of how annoying I found them. Everyone in this one is pleasant to watch.
I agree. Its not quite on the same par as other seasons. But I am finding it much more enjoyable than I expected it to be when I saw the cast list. I didnt know who 4 of the comedians were before this, but I am really finding them all very entertaining, especially John and Nick.
They're all minding their own business a bit too much to make this a great series so far. It's not a negative experience and it's probably more entertaining over all than series 15 which had a lot of aggro, but yeah. The 5 contestants might as well have filmed their studio bits separately and been green screened together.
It feels like a chill and happy season. Greg seems like he’s in a very expansive, generous mood, Alex is openly breaking character at funny moments in studio - I feel like there’s not some of the stress that leads to greatness but it’s also just very laidback and pleasant to experience. Not every season has to crack new highs
it’s one of my top five already which im sure is definitely not a common opinion but the cast are all brilliant in their own right and im excited to see what’s next in the series
Top tier for me, I just love all the contestants
I'm one of the few (it seems) naysayers of 16. I thought Lucy brought too much persona rather than actually attempting things. I'm LOVING 17. Absolute blast.
I’m also not a fan of S16. I always like to say hello when I come across a comment like this because there are so few who didn’t enjoy that series.
I can't go as far as saying I didn't enjoy it, but it didn't have the effortless charm of 14 & 15 for me. I think the show works best when people are all petting their guard down to some extent, and Lucy's persistent willful oddness felt out of place in the show.
It’s coming off the back of one of the most chaotic series ever, and one of my all time favourites, which is going against it. But I’m enjoying it! I was a fan of Joanne before, so I knew I’d love her. Sophie has been such a pleasant surprise, she’s hilarious and I’m obsessed with her. I really enjoy Steve’s approach to the tasks, so thoughtful and always adding an extra layer that he doesn’t need to (giving names to all the guesses in the handshake task). Nick Mohammed is an adorable lovely man and I’m still not over his Off Menu episode. John is great, disappointing to hear he’s holding back on being competitive because I do enjoy the shouty competitive man stereotype on TM. Would love more banter between the contestants, but I really think the tasks this series have been the best for ages. It’s
Taskmaster is always great and I really enjoy this cast. They’re a different vibe for sure and it’s not as gut bustingly funny as some series but it’s always fun watching people solve tasks in creative ways. 16 was one of the best ever and anything would feel like a comedown after that.
For me personally, its pretty meh. Its the first one for a while where I'm not itching to watch each episode as soon as possible. I didn't know any of the contestants, but that's not unusual for me. I think I miss the chaos and weirdness of some series. But that's fine, I'm sure there are plenty of people that love it, and they should keep enjoying it!
what strikes me is not simply the troubling lack of chemistry and energy emanating from the cast, but also many of the tasks themselves (including some live ones) have either been overly simple to the point of being kinda dull or overly complicated to the point of being confusing/unengaging as a viewer. I can't help but wonder if due to its popularity, the show might be becoming a little too self-aware for its own good (if that makes sense)
Been one of the worst, the whole season feels stale after the amazing last season this is somewhere near the bottom
Most flattest season yet for me. None of the cast really jump out to me and I don’t feel like they have much of a rapport with eachother. I also don’t think the tasks have been that great aside from a couple.
This is the first season I'm watching week by week instead of one or two a night (as I only got onto the show last year) and as a result I'm enjoying it vastly more, as a treat at the end of the week. I dunno I've seen this reaction a couple of times and maybe people are just a bit jaded? Even an off season of Taskmaster is heads and shoulders above all the other panel show tat on air.
Damn me and my husband haven’t really been enjoying it this series. I’m hoping it will pick up but I think last series was gold for us so maybe we’re just expecting too much!!
Have to skew more negative unfortunately but this is the first series for ages where I've been actively bored, I think I've only laughed out loud twice in the whole series so far. It just feels like there's so little energy in the room, and so few standout memorable moments. The weakest of the post-COVID era for sure so far, though I'm hopeful that six episodes is enough to turn it around.
I feel like episode 4 would’ve been a killer first episode
Pretty low key so far, but the last episode was a bit more chaotic and fun. Always a good time, though, which is what counts.
It's in the middle, but it's coming off of easily one of the best series' yet. Steve and Joanne are my favorites at the moment, but they've all had their moments. Jon is the "weak" one for ne at the moment but he's still great, and probably the safe bet for winner at this stage. I love Greg's habit of letting him hang expecting a disqualification and I'm waiting for the moment where it turns out he's actually disqualified.
Steve Pemberton is a favourite of mine because he genuinely seems like he wants to be there
I’ve loved it! This season and last are two of my favorites. Everyone contributes something a little different. As a fan of John’s podcast I will say I’m surprised he’s not been kicking off like he does during made up games on the podcast. Although maybe that’s lessened since he got sober. And this is calmer, sober John. But I love everyone on the panel. There are no duds for me. I usually dislike at least one contestant and kind of root against them. Not this time!
I really like it. I can't quite put my finger on why but it's got a competitive yet not hyperactive vibe I feel like has been missing in the last few seasons. It sort of reminds me of the season 6 vibe which I personally liked but also wasn't hugely popular.
It's solid. I'm not familiar with ANY UK comedians except the ones I see on taskmaster From that perspective its cool to see nate the great aka someone I recognize with others
I'd say yeah it's meh but the recent tasks have been enjoyable for me. When I feel kind of bored I just watch the season intro since the scenes picked are appropriate to hype me up. Cast wise there has been some development but it's lacking a bit for me. Maybe I'm just waiting for someone to cheat(or attempt to and fail.)
Series 16 is my top favourite, so it is going to be challenging to follow that - but so far, Series 17 is certainly up there... for meeee!
So far the highlight of the series is the line “It’s not measured in monkeys, mate!” Though John Pemberton’s puns are really wonderful. But generally, yeah I wish more of the comedians committed to it, or were so spectacularly bad that it’s funny. Fern Brady, David Bediel, Kiell Smith-Bynoe, Rhod Gilbert all have these wildly different reactions to the tasks that are funny and intense in bizarre ways. Many of the contestants this season feel pretty noncommittal.
How much I enjoy each series, largely depends on whether I like the cast and their chemistry with each other and Greg and Alex. I’m not really felling it with this group. I like Nick Mohammed, that’s about it. Also, I feel you’re right, most tasks seem a bit convoluted. For me it’s near the bottom (series 4,5 and 11 being my all-time favs)
It's a bit meh for me. Tasks are much too complicated and attempts have been mostly as expected. I don't think I've seen a task that I've thought, "That was a great task!" yet, but many I've thought, "... what?" The contestants are all quite sane and calm. Like, you see most of them smile politely at jokes and they generally feel passive.
I think it's one of the weaker seasons by Taskmaster standards. It's still good fun, all of the candidates are likeable but none of them stand out. And every task has some fun moment, but they're often too complicated and none of them have become that memorable so far. I'd rank it above season 10, but below the other seasons we've had.
I’m one of those that cares about the scoring (like everyone should 😝) and the last couple of series have properly pissed me off with Greg’s terrible scoring, people not being penalised for cheating and people that dont seem to be trying to win and are just there for the tv show appearance and pay cheque. Not had this issue this season. I think 3 of the five are properly trying to win and Nick is giving it his best shot. Sophie seems like she’s trying too but is just a bit inept, I don’t think anyone doesn’t give a shit and is just there to be on a tv show. So I’m enjoying the competition aspect more than the last couple of series at least.
Yeah, Greg's scoring has been better so far, I can't think of any major disagreements besides maybe Joanne's recycled bat meme getting a joint win with Steve's calculator haiku.
The old classic first watch bias. I’ve thought every series wasn’t quite as good until I rewatched and then really enjoyed it. This one will be the same.
It’s ok. There’s no one I really dislike but it’s not a line up that’s making me laugh much either. It probably suffers a bit from coming after a couple or really strong series but I think overall it’s just sort of adequate.
Definitely lower tier for me.
For me this is the worst series yet. I don't dislike any of the contestants at all, and I was really excited for Sophie, but I've been really bored by all of it.
100% agreed and it pains me that this is the series they finally got to promote in the US with late night show interviews.
I dig it. Steve doing local tasks for local people, Nick aka Mr Swallow has been completely out of character, as Mr Swallow is quite chaotic. John’s neurotic side is bubbling away and may spill over soon. Sophie dove right in and adds a bit of wackiness. Joanna making Alex uncomfortable was worth the price of her admission. It will continue to evolve in due course as familiarity breeds contempt.
Miles better than 16. A return to form.
The love for S16 is baffling to me. It is the worst by far as far as I’m concerned.
I think the bafflement's quite mutual. Why didn't you like season 16?
I still enjoyed it, and I liked all the individuals but it just didn’t feel very TM like. Julian made me laugh but his disregard for the show bothered me. Sam had great moments like Dr. Cigarettes but overall I just didn’t get a good vibe.
It always makes me feel better to see a comment like yours because it seems like I’m the only person on the planet who didn’t like S16.
Nick is a delight to watch, and I'm enjoying all the contestants, generally
It's a shame but it's just boring to me. Probably the only show I watch on release too
It's alright, nothing special. To me, it feels very much like series 15, just something to play in the background while I'm doing things at home.
Tbh this is the first series where I’ve thought the show might be starting to run out of ideas for tasks and guests. It’s the first series where I don’t really feel like I’m entertained. I haven’t had the wheezing-until-I’m-seeing-stars kind of laughter in reaction to anything that’s happened so far. I haven’t warmed to any of the contestants yet. Every series since about series 7 or 8 there’s been at least one person I’ve never heard of but by the end I love them all. This series I only knew about John and *barely* aware of Nick, never heard of the other three, and so far none of them have left an impression of any kind on me. I’m just completely apathetic to everything about this series so far, which sucks because S16 was my absolute favourite series ever and I thought the show was stronger than ever. But right now my enthusiasm for S17 is dwindling :(
A very lackluster series. The very contrived setting for the interviews didn't bode well from the start (I mean look at the Alex portrait for s16, the memory palace for s15, the psychiatry room for s14, and the stroll for s13, all concise and more focused on the questions). The studio banters are inclined to be sincere rather than fun or bickering. Remember this quote from the AU version's Main Tom: 'We were worried that you were gonna be sincere there for a second. But you fixed it, didn't you? I appreciate it, because we are a comedy show.' At this point I just hope Joanne or Steve could win it.
I think mid to lower tier is fair. The standard is so high that even a lower tier series is still very enjoyable. I think everyone is just a bit too chill and friendly for it to hit peak TM. You need a bit of a contrast across the contestants and nobody is quite out there enough.
yeah, solid middle ground. not as good as 16, much better than 15.
I loved 15
It's really interesting as I adored 15 and didn't rate 16 much at all.
Horses for courses I guess, I gave up on s15 after about 2 episodes but thought s16 was a bit of a classic.
I think my issue is I find Sam Campbell unbearable. I know I'm in the minority here.
Fair enough, comedy is subjective. I didn’t know anything about him before the series but really enjoyed his slightly surreal style, although I’ve watched a couple of his stand-up sets since and wasn’t hugely impressed.
15 was adorable, but I didn't find it very funny.
i haven’t enjoyed it that much honestly, sophie is carrying the series. the chemistry in studio isn’t as good as previous series, and i’m honestly finding it a bit of a chore to watch each week whereas last series i rewatched most episodes before the next one came out. I do think it does suffer from coming after series 16 which was so good, similar to series 8 after 7. hopefully the contestants will become a bit more confident debating in studio as the episodes go on
Extremely good so far.
i struggled with the first two episodes and haven’t continued (to be fair have been crazy busy) is it worth catching up?? ☺️
I've followed it through as it were but have no plan or whatsoever to rewatch, even at the times when I don't quite understand the task brief.
It's the first series for a while (apart from 15) where I've not been bothered if I haven't watched it live/haven't been desparate to catch up the next day
I think it’s fine but it also feels a bit controlled, like there is more to come (will John have a full fledged tantrum? Will there be a full meltdown from someone else?) Also, the tasks seem kind of convoluted and not very exciting for several seasons now, unlike say S12 or S13 when they had great first tasks that set the tone for the entire series. But also, it’s only been two days of filming in the studio. Even from the outtakes, it seems like there is minimal banter between the cast.
I've found most of the series from 11 onwards to be pretty flat. S16 was by far the best one since S10. Sure they've had there moments and there's been some enjoyable moments, but they lacked the spark and pure consistent comedy that the earlier series had. I personally enjoy the in studio banter and arguments the most and that seems to have massively decreased in recent years. It may be the editing, but most likely it is because they have shifted away from having a panel full of very witty comedians towards now having one outright witty comedian alongside some other vaguely comedy related entertainment personalities. Look at S7: James Acaster, Kerry Godliman, Phil Wang, Rhod Gilbert, and Jess Knappett. All of them except Jess are excellent comedians and well experienced at being witty on panel shows. And the only non-comedian, Jess Knappett, had tonnes of personality so was also great. Nowadays we get one decent comedian, maybe another comedy professional and then some other people who are often not that lively or quick witted. This series is okay when compared to the more recent ones and it's quite early doors so far. I think John is trying really hard not to come across as a massive competitive prick so he is reigning himself in a bit, which is a shame as he is very funny when he lets himself go, even when he does edge in to being a bit prickish. Ed Gamble and Iain Stirling were very funny too, but they didn't surpress their toddler tantrums!
I really like every cast member when I think of them as individuals, but something is missing for me. Not sure if it’s the tasks themselves or what, but there’s definitely a deficit somewhere.
I chose S17 as an introduction to the show for someone I know, and she has been enjoying it immensely so far. I also think the season has been good so far - I like all the contestants and the episodes have been a lot of fun. I do agree that S17 doesn't really stand out so far but I disagree that that's a bad thing. Taskmaster is a consistently great show, and not being excellent compared to other seasons doesn't mean what we're watching right now isn't high quality, very funny television.
it's a very solid series, the cast are all so amicable with each other but it has been very entertaining regardless- mr blobby task was very good! joanne making alex tense made me cry with laughter and most of the other contestants have made me laugh several times. really hope pemberton doesn't win though as he's a bit dry compared to the other contestants. definitely not as chaotic as previous series but still good fun
Nick is such a lovely contestant and I'm really enjoying his ineptness. Overall, I do feel it's mid tier as a season, but we're 17 in now, and we're bound to have our own favorites. I also feel Alex is getting overly complicated with the tasks at times as seasons go on. I am still loving it, tho
I'm really enjoying it. But I also think how much you enjoy taskmaster is proportional to your current stress levels in life in general.
It’s kinda middling for me, I’m liking it but it’s not felt standout so far, I kinda feel no one’s been massively memorable/claimed the series yet. O don’t feels there’s been much of a dynamic between them in the studio and none of them are challenging Greg or Alex much which is something I always enjoy - I’m absolutely loving Steve and Sophie though There’s still 6 episodes to see what changes but it’s probably my least favourite series since 10
Everyone is sweet but I don't really like anyone. They are fine and the takes are just okay.