NBC's Spy TV - Review

07/05/01

  I've been watching Spy TV since it started and it gets more and more edgy.  There was a great gag in the last episode where food delivery guys go to an apartment where two men dressed as doctors are performing what we presume is an illegal operation. Some delivery men get freaked out, some help hold the anesthesia mask but the great one is one guy who acts cool and then freaks out, kicking the glass out of a window and jumping out of the second story apartment window! I can't wait to see what else these sadists come up with!

06/22/01

  Inspired by reality based shows like The Tom Green Show, Spy TV mixes Candid Camera with revenge and comes up with one mean-spirited but funny show.  The gags are so severe that I wonder how long it will be until someone has a heart attack or starts a fight.
  The first prank was done on a guy who's friends say he drives recklessly (see picture at top). So they set him up to go on a test ride for a car. The driver first avoids two accidents (barely) and then starts to run from the cops with our victim in the passenger seat.  Pretty funny stuff as we can see the victim squirming and then screaming to be let out.  Just a reminder to choose your friends wisely.
  The next prank is pure Tom Green with an out of control wheelchair bound guy preying on the kindness of strangers.

  Two fights almost break out when a guy cuts in line at the supermarket and then wins a million dollars for being the millionth customer.  The guys who let him cut in line get furious and you can see their blood pressure rise (see picture above).
  A man is annoyed with his wife's addiction to telephone psychics. So what does he do? He calls Spy TV to pull a prank on her.  A meeting with a psychic leaves his wife thinking she has the power to move objects with her mind. Things start to get freaky when objects start flying around the room.

  Spy TV promises to have more revenge pranks and Candid Camera stunts in the future.  This is a great show for the summer but I doubt it could get ratings during the regular season.  If you like mean pranks, you'll like this show but I suspect the novelty will wear thin very soon.  They're going to have to be more and more creative as the season goes on and trying to continuously outdo yourself will be very difficult.
  Spy TV tapes their show on the road in different cities so think twice before helping out that old lady or letting someone cut in front of you at the store. As if people in the real world weren't rude enough...

Rating : 3 1/2 stars out of five.

Click here to visit NBC and the official Spy TV web site.