American Gladiators (1989–1996) User Reviews

Guilty pleasure

[buddhadan-1 · 7/10 · 10 September 2006]

I'll admit that as a person who does not count themselves a sports fan and who shies away from almost all shows involving actual real physical activity, the American Gladiator show pulled me in from nearly the beginning.

I think that the part I truly enjoyed was all of the interesting contests and the changes to the contests that made it different from everything else out there. I mean, anyone can watch a group of football players who have been training and practicing for this one sport since they were children, but the gladiator contestants were every day people who had no idea what specific events they were going to have to do when they joined.

The fun names of the players, the interesting and yet fairly safe events, and the excitement of seeing the person you've rooted for take home the prize. Yes, I would very much like to see the show on the air again, or even on DVD.

I got hyped watching this show

[view_and_review · 8/10 · 3 November 2021]

I used to get so hype off of "American Gladiators." You had a couple of athletic contestants who had to do various competitions such as jousting or the ball shoot and they'd have to deal with these larger-than-life bodybuilders. I was always rooting for the contestants just because they were such underdogs. It was a fun game show.

The king of competitive game shows

[gridoon2024 · 8/10 · 20 September 2023]

"Gladiators" is the peak of televised sports entertainment. Sorry WWE and pro-wrestling in general, I'm not doubting what those people put their bodies through, but let's face it: the outcomes are fixed, and all those involved are pros. In "Gladiators", there are the pros but there are also the everyday regular people (in great shape, of course) facing them and each other in a wide variety of competitive events where the outcome is uncertain and there are no givens; every success has to be earned with sweat and (figurative) blood. Plus, it is "Gladiators" and not WWE which pioneered women's athletics (and bodybuilding) in mainstream weekly television. The American version may be a notch below the British one in production values or even the personalities of the gladiators, but it still offers countless hours of easy entertainment. And it still holds up. 8/10.

I'd Love for the Show to Come Back

[RestlessRust · 17 February 2005]

After discovering the show sometime around '94, I watched every episode, including the reruns that were on at the time. The varied competitions made it something of an athletic game show, and it was always entertaining. My favorite was always the Eliminator.

Some people have expressed uncertainty as to why this show left the air. Well, watching the reruns you will never realize it, but the big problem with the show was that near the end new episodes became something of a rarity. The "International Gladiators" specials became more and more common, which eroded their mystique and made them somewhat dull. But in the end it seemed like every week (and I mean EVERY week) was a rerun--especially of the episode with Dean Cain, which must have shown at least twenty times. (An exaggeration perhaps, but not much of one.) So yes, the show was canceled without much fanfare, but that's because most viewers thought the show was already over. One new episode every couple of months isn't enough to hold viewers--I don't care how popular the show is.

I was just thinking about the show the other day and how neat it would be to have a traveling version of Gladiators that would work similarly to American Idol. Perhaps it's just nostalgia on my part, but I think it would be quite cool.

Gladatorial Fun

[hellraiser7 · 10/10 · 14 February 2017]

This show my favorite game show of all time and it's another child hood gem. It also believe or not was one of the things that inspired me to take up fitness training. I remember as a kid seeing this always thinking that when I grow up I'll train real hard so I grow up big and strong but also become a contestant on this show.

There really isn't much to say, it's all really just simple physical contests but that why I love it because it's a show that is all about doing and action. The theme song of the show is fantastic it's one of my favorite theme songs of all time, the fact it's done by one of my favorite composers Bill Conti makes it all the more cool that's another great track on the list.

I really like the Gladiator ensemble from old to even new, each of them are colorful, have unique personas, and are really fearsome from how big and strong they are. For the male gladiator my favorite was always Gemini as he's really showed a lot of personality and even says some cool things. For my favorite female Gladiator it is Crush whom is MMA champion Gina Carnino, she is so fraking hot and of course can kick a lot of ass.

But what really makes this show are the physical games which are all unique, different, and most importantly exciting. And sometimes in each season they update them just to keep the games fresh. I remember in each of the games I was always jumping or even standing up from my seat just cheering the contestants or sometimes the gladiators on to get to the finish, get that guy or girl, get that ball in the container, knock the guy or girl out, just about anything that happens. This sort of gave the show a participator factor which I don't see or have often in game shows let alone sports.

There are so many events I'll just state a few of my favorites.

Joust: This one is simply knocking the other guy or girl off the platform by fighting with giant Q tips. The key is really to make the opponent lost his or her balance while maintaining your own. It's no doubt not that easy as some of the hits the gladiators deliver are really hard ones, let alone you have very little platform to balance on. This always made me in suspense hoping one or the other won't fall till time is up or manage to somehow knock the other guy down.

Eleminator: It's the final challenge of the show and it's awesome as it's a giant obstacle course where each obstacle you have to do something in order to get from point A to B. Like running uphill on a moving upward treadmill, the hand bike which I'll admit is a little trick to get the right motion let alone have upper body strength for, the gauntlet which is my favorite it's just fun trying to push though all that obstacle. And in each season they sometimes change the Eleminator up replacing and adding a new kind of obstacle which keeps this event fresh.

Assault: This is my favorite event in the show as it's a shootout. Where you not just try to run from point A to B without getting hit by any of the tennis balls but you have the opportunity to take the shooter out to earn extra points. It's just always cool seeing the contestants use the different kinds of Nerf Weapons like a bazooka, sniper rifle, grenades whatever they can get their hands on. It's suspenseful to as they have limited time to do all this and just hope they can hit the shooter before he or she hits them.

American Gladiators is Gladatorial Fun.

Rating: 4 stars

Engaging Show

[jamoteo · 9/10 · 3 February 2021]

This show is part of the reason I was inspired to become a gym rat. And I think it had to have inspired many others to take charge of their health and fitness too. Simple challenges and glamorous gladiators drew in people with no interest in sports whatsoever. And if you WERE a sports fanatic, this show helped fill the void between games! I was very sad when it ended its run, but grateful for the 7 seasons it aired.

Thought it was great

[mickeyadamo · 10/10 · 22 July 2023]

I was a kid during the 90s and spent quite a few nights watching this show. In fact when we stumbled upon this documentary I was like oh look Gemini!!

I thought it was really cool to get a behind the scenes understanding of the show, its beginnings, climax and then descent. I particularly enjoyed some of the reenactments of gladiators, via cartoons or otherwise. It was very well crafted and keeps the viewer interested, I would think even if they had never seen the original show.

Was a shame to learn some of the ways these gladiators got screwed by the producers and owners of the show, but also not surprising - jacked up industry of rich idiots trying to churn out a profit for themselves at the expense of others, but I digress. Was also sad to see that some of the gladiators had a less than glamourous ride off into the sunset.

I think the show could make a comeback with the right approach to current culture, but it would be a task. Either way, was great to relive that moment in time.

A+ would recommend.

Lotsa fun!

[The Fox-2 · 4 April 2001]

The first time I saw "American Gladiators," I was skeptical. The show seemed cheap and I didn't think it would last. I mean, they stopped a Powerball game to staple a scoring bucket back together! From such humble beginnings came one of the most successful syndicated shows of the '90s, not to mention one of my personal favorites.

"AG" was a whole lot of fun to watch, with competitors from all walks of life competing against each other and the colorful Gladiators to prove their athletic superiority. Though the Gladiators wore glitzy red, white, and blue spandex outfits, their own personalities were allowed to shine, instead of adopting some carefully crafted persona like a professional wrestler would have. I think that it made them feel more real. In later years, they would profile some of the Gladiators, which further showed that Gladiators were people, too.

As the show gained popularity, the sets became more elaborate and sophisticated. Gone were the flimsy Powerball cylinders and shrubbery that was often a contender's undoing in Assault. New games were also added; from the bungee craze-inspired Swingshot to the shoulder-popping Whiplash. And from season to season, more grueling versions of the final event, the Eliminator, were born.

By the mid '90s, international versions of the show popped up in the United Kingdom and Australia, and other countries like Germany, South Africa, Russia, and Finland had their own versions, which seemed to cement the broad appeal of the Gladiators concept.

"AG" seemed to just fade from TV screens all of a sudden, and the Gladiators were reduced to performing in dinner theater shows in Orlando. I don't know if they even do THAT anymore. I wish that someone someday will see fit to release the shows on video.

Very entertaining show (My ONLY sports show)

[Skragg · 9/10 · 5 October 2006]

One thing that always makes me roll my eyes is hearing about "real sports" versus "dumb sports" - the difference is such a matter of OPINION that it makes me side with the "dumb" ones. So, I might've watched American Gladiators for THAT reason, if no other, since it was DEVOTED to "dumb" sports, including - indirectly - bodybuilding, since so many of them came from that sport. But it was very entertaining in general. But, there was one bigger reason for me - it was full of FBBs (female bodybuilders), and I had just become a thorough-going fan of them, a short time before the show started. So, there was actually a weekly "FBB" SHOW (apart from a very good magazine show on ESPN), even though "Gladiators" wasn't actually promoted that way, of course. It should've been impossible to have a favorite female Gladiator, if it weren't for Lori "Ice" Fetrick. But they were all great.

Watched it almost every Saturday Night

[Brian Blueskye · 22 March 2000]

I remember this show very well. When I was around 12, I watched this almost every Saturday night. It was a very amazing show. The events were great, it couldn't bore you, it was a very high-technical show. To me, it was almost olympic like. I don't think there will ever be anything close to it.

Ridiculously awesome

[vagabondjonson · 4 December 2007]

This show is so ridiculous it's maybe the most entertaining show in syndication.

This show has everything that you love about a good pretentious meaningless contest like the Superbowl or meetings of the House of Representatives. The best thing about this show is when the gladiators get beat. While it's extremely hilarious to see the gladiators gloating over their rather teenage-looking opponents, it's also funny to see the gladiators get beat because to hear them talk they are very close relatives to God himself and these puny contestants don't stand a chance in hell of beating them. And occasionally they would cut to them lifting weights and working out in the training room to emphasize their extreme bodily tautness. And while we all got the impression that the gladiators were using performance enhancing drugs that didn't stop us from enjoying the good old-fashioned pretentious fun.

The nature of the competitions also lent to the humor. These contests weren't designed so that the skills that regular people develop in real life would help them. "We won't just have them run, we'll have them run inside a huge hamster ball that they have to power with their own momentum and try to get the ball to stop on top of a man hole." I suppose this is what generated the fun.

So anyway, if you like bulky man-parts in tight fitting clothing or bulky woman parts in tight fitting clothing for that matter, it's in syndication on ESPN classic.

Awesome.

[blackarachnia2 · 22 June 2002]

This was the highlight of my teenaged years. To sit down on a Saturday morning and watch American Gladiators. My favorite gladiators were Blaze, Siren and Nitro. I liked Siren because she never let her disability get in the way of becoming a gladiator. She seems normal in every way except for the fact that she can't hear but she could use her other senses , sight; taste and smell, and that's something that I really admire her for. I like Blaze because she's a very strong woman, and she doesn't take any crap from anybody. I thought Nitro was a BABE! Hubba! Hubba! A teenaged girl's delight. :)

a classic has been cancelled by the hands of ruthless executives

[DuctTapeMahn · 18 November 2002]

when i was a kid, i dreamed of being a contender to face the gladiators in 8 rounds of competition. but all i can do is watch reruns on TNN and watch people with mullets and frizzy hair from the early 90's period battle it out. and there is never a dull moment. no show can ever match this one. whats more fun than watching washed up football players giving play by play as gladiator sized men and women stop contenders from earning points which are needed for the all important ...!!ELIMINATOR!!... but why must the good shows be cancelled.

Watch the show

[hockeyfan_12 · 16 July 2002]

Its great that gladiators are back on TNN i know its the old stuff but its the good stuff. I didn't know that rico constitano is "rico" from the WWE. Turbo rocks.

Awesome show!

[CreeperKamikaze · 23 August 2002]

When I was a little kid, I used to love watching the show. I enjoyed all of the different events that they had such as Assault, the Eliminator, and The Wall. I was hoping that one day I could be on the show, but the series ended in 1997, so I guess appearing on the show won't happen. I sure hope they bring back American Gladiators, because watching reruns on TNN isn't as fun as it would be watching it today.

Contestant update

[damnbigfeet · 27 January 2004]

Contestant Rico Constantino, winner of an American Gladiator series went on to work for the WWE under his own name. As of the beginning of 2004, Rico has performed as the fashion designer/manager of Chuck and Billy, two later-shown-to-be-false homosexual wrestlers, and is now wrestling on his own as a flamboyant wrestler of questionable sexual orientation. He is managed by Jackie Gayda.