I hate game shows.

I used to dig them, totally. I used to get mindless pleasure out of seeing some no-name doofus from Boise, Idaho, win a new bedroom set by sinking a three-foot putt, egged on by Bob Barker and one of his "beauties." Yeah, I was a slave to The Price Is Right, but all that changed when I tried to get on the show last summer and, despite arriving more than three hours before doors even opened, didn't make it in.

I saw the drooling, selfish hooligans who did get in, pushing and screaming. I was sickened by the whole ordeal. I decided I would have rather seen them all being kicked or slammed around somehow. It was over between game shows and me until I got to see some pain.

That dream has finally come true with Most Extreme Elimination Challenge (MXC), a recent import from Japan that now appears on the Spike TV network. The show is based on a pretty simple, age-old premise; two teams go head-to-head in a series of athletic events to obtain some kind of recognition.

But this time, the greedy contestants get jacked. Severely.

MXC, as it is lovingly and illogically referred to by the hardcore fans, is one of those shows that can only really be understood by watching it. It's like a mix between Iron Chef, American Gladiators and America's Funniest Home Videos. It's not quite a game show and it's not quite a sports program, but it is probably the best showcase of human stupidity ever to hit the airwaves; and never have I wanted, no, needed to see it more.

In much the same way that Homer Simpson once took immeasurable joy in a film showcasing a man receiving a football to the groin, viewers of MXC can find infinite pleasure in the painful things the shows' contestants get themselves into. The sprawling, pathetic efforts of these people elicit an entertaining form of pity, the kind of laughter that you should keep to yourself but can't.