Knightmare - Series 6,7,8 (Knightmare)

Member Name: tom1clare

Product:	Knightmare
Date:	18/06/03 (289 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Well, well ahead of its time, Exciting, unpredictable, Each quest different from the last

Disadvantages: Episodes only 20 minutes each, It's not yet out on VHS/DVD

It's been a while since Knightmare was last shown on terrestrial TV - nearly nine years in fact. I have a few old episodes on tape but as I was only around six or seven when I was watching the majority of them, my memories are a little scattered. I'm going to tell you as much about the final three series of this incredible adventure show as I can recollect.
A team of four kids, three advisors and one 'dungeoneer', are challenged to beat a series of tasks and ultimately complete their quest in a role-playing adventure. The twists being that the dungeoneer can't see anything (blinded by the helmet of justice) and therefore have to be guided by their team, and that everything is set in a virtual-reality environment. Each quest is different from the last, and quests required fast, logical thinking and a bit of luck too.
This was not a forgiving gameshow - only eight out of seventy people who challenged the game ever won. This aspect just added to the appeal though as the less worthy dungeneers would meet their end in a nasty way - cut in half in the corridor of blades, falling of the imfamous floor-puzzles, or getting a spike up the bum from the chess-board spike path - it made seeing teams win all the more satisfying. Perhaps because there was a genuine uncertainty concerning the players fate, the game was so mesmerisng. Credit to the games makers for keeping the difficulty consistantly tough but not impossible, a difficult thing to achieve with the constant changes between series.
I would get home from school on a Friday chuffed that it was weekend but uncontrollably excited that Knightmare was on. Some episodes would end on a real cliff-hanger and you couldn't bear to wait a week for it continue. Unlike many kids shows of today, to win contestants really had to work - they had to understand clues given to them from scrolls, spy-glasses or other people who would turn up at certain times (jesters, monks, mages, wizards...). The teams
required not just intellegence, but also calmness under pressure and a good sense of direction. These may seem obvious but you won't believe how many teams met their end due to rushing/panicking when they heard the calls of goblins or the sight of a troll. Ah, memories...
The theme tune was also among the very best I can remember, obviously I can't describe it here but anyone who has heard it probably knows what I'm talking about.
Why was Knightmare axed in 1994 after eight extremely succesful series? Because CITV were dumbing-down their programme schedule, thats why. Tsk. It's such a pity that KMare hasn't found a new life on another terrestrial channel, just disjointed showings on sky.
If you remember Knightmare and wish to sign the petition to get the DVD's released (please do!) then look here: http://www.petitionpetition.com/cgi/petition.cgi?i d=5838.

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