“We Are the Champions” Review

Story posted November 24, 2020 in CommRadio, Arts & Entertainment by Nicholas Mancuso

From chasing cheese down a hill to a yo-yo championship, Brian Davis, Nick Frew and Martin Desmond Roe provide all of this and more with their new show “We Are the Champions,” which shows audiences the most obscure competitions, providing an in-depth look into the lives of the champions of these competitions.

“We Are the Champions” is a documentary series that shows a wide variety of competitions. From dog dancing, to trying to catch the record distance in frog jumping, this six-episode show brings life to the contests that don’t get that much recognition.

As they examine the different types of competitions, the audience is guided by narrator Rainn Wilson, who is most well known for role as Dwight Schrute from “The Office.”

Davis, Frew and Roe all take an approach to this show that gives the audience a deep look inside the lives of these champions in order to understand what these competitions mean to these people.

All of the episodes provide different storylines for these competitors and film their genuine reactions of emotion in order to make the audience feel like it were with them winning that championship.

Viewers of the show will enjoy the theme and the idea, but it’s not a show they will likely go back and rewatch when they finish it.

“The Tiger King”, being another huge documentary series released in 2020, made audiences return for each new episode with its in-depth story of all the obscurities of Joe Exotic. But “We Are the Champions” isn’t like that, jumping from episode to episode with a new competition, a new storyline and new egos each time.

Audiences that watch each episode get to understand a new perspective on these quirky contests, but there isn’t really anything new that would draw them back in time and time again.

The stories of all of the competitors do compel audiences to keep their eyes on the documentary for the whole episode to see which competitor wins and which one will go home disappointed, but that’s about the extent of it.

Perhaps “We Are the Champions” would be more compelling if the directors took a different approach and could find more interesting stories about the competitors. Hearing a champion simply talk about frog jumping just isn’t enough for the audience to gain a full appreciation for the frog-jumping champion.

As it stands, “We Are the Champions” is a quirky show, but it doesn’t have enough weight or intriguing premises to keep audiences coming back.

Rating: 2/5

 

Nicholas Mancuso is a junior majoring in broadcast journalism. To contact him, email nbm9@psu.edu.