Japan is a country that is infamous for pushing human comfort levels and no show exemplifies this notion better than Susunu! Denpa Shonen. This reality show reeled in viewers by focusing on the suffering of a naked contestant who was locked up in a small space without food or basic amenities.

The contestant was a little known Japanese comedian called Nasubi (real name Tomoaki Hamatsu). He landed this unusual gig when he and a number of other hopefuls auditioned for a vague up-and-coming showbiz event.

Thereafter, he was whisked away to an unknown location, relieved of his clothing and told to win $10 000.

As if that feat was not challenging enough, he was supposed to achieve this by winning mail-in contests.

The show itself started on January 1998 and it took close to one year for Nasubi to nab the $10 000.

He won his first meal two weeks after the show had started. He got his first recreational accessory, albeit an antenna-less TV, four months into the game and his first two rolls of toilet paper towards the end of his ordeal.

To this effect, the show appears to have thrived by exploring lengthy periods of anguish and brief moments of joy.

In fact, it is possible that show creators might have withheld some prizes in order to manipulate the flow of the show.

After all, that Nasubi never won anything that might have provided him with the most basic comforts – e.g. clothes, dishes, soap, a bed, sheets and blankets, pots and pans.

That such a strange show was conceived and implemented is not that unusual. As it is, Japan has a genre called gambaru which focuses on pushing human tolerance levels.

The “claim to fame” possibilities tied to gambaru is probably the reason why Nasubi accepted the terms so readily. It could also be why the show was immensely popular in its heyday.

And so it happened that when Nasubi finally reached the sum total in December, the show producers were reluctant to give up their cash cow.

It was for this reason that unsuspecting contestant was whisked off, without explanation, on a celebratory and somewhat baffling tour of Korea after which he ended up in the same dilemma.

Except this time, he was cooped up in a room in Korea and had to win the ticket money back home.

The comedian had finally had his fill and probably realized he had in fact won.

After many pleas, he was taken back to Japan. And then dropped into the middle of a live audience in his trademark pose – in the nude and adorning only a confused expression.

That was when he realized that he had became a famous celebrity and that his ordeal had been broadcast without his knowledge.

Nasubi has since given up such comedic ventures and tried his hand at stage shows. While he has not been overtly critical of his experience, he has noted moments of extreme despair.

“I thought of escaping several times… I was on the edge, especially towards the end.”

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By shinigami on 26-08-2009