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Wipeout - the funniest game show ever?

Could this be the most hilarious thing we've seen on television screens since Maggie Thatcher had a go at George Negus? Since Won Casey smashed his water glass on A Current Affair, prompting journo-goddess Jana Wendt to utter the fabulous line, "Good evening Mr Casey" in a we-are-not-amused drawl? Since Fifi Box fell down the stairs on Dancing With The Stars? Or even since Molly tried to dance on the same show?

Wipeout (WIN, Tuesdays, 7.30pm) is a Yank rip-off of the Japanese game shows we've grown to know and love, like Takeshi's Castle and Hole in The Wall.

It only premiered in the US last month, so this is "fresh" out of the oven and remarkably up to date from a network like WIN/Nine, from whom we've come to expect more stale offerings.

An average 10 million Americans tune in every week to see fine upstanding citizens get the crap belted out of them in various, insane physical challenges.

On the night it debuted in the US, Wipeout rated through the roof and beat competitors that already have solid fan bases in Hell's Kitchen and America's Got Talent. And we all know how embarrassingly well the Australian version of the latter show has rated.

What makes it so funny? The voiceovers from hosts John Henson and John Anderson are a big part.

Dripping with sarcasm, innuendo, puns, put-downs and fake sincerity - they will have you laughing out loud.

The contestants are the strangest bunch of freaks you will see on TV and on this show, one thing's for sure - the cockier they are, the harder they fall!

But, mostly, the big red balls do it for me.

Four huge rotund masses of spongy rubber that stand between a mud-soaked, worn out contestant and the finish line. Gold!

In the words of the Beach Boys, "Ninganinganinganinganinganinga … WIPEOUT!"

- REBECCA MARSHALL