Season 13 • Episode 4
LatestProduced by Hitoshi Matsumoto, Documental pits ten comedians against each other. The objective is to make each other laugh in a closed room. Each contestant brings a one million yen participation fee. The last person to stay in the room without laughing wins. The winner is awarded a 10 million yen prize and bragging rights as the funniest comedian.
Writing
Custom bits designed to break specific opponents
Editing
Split-second timing on reactions, brutal slow-mos
Creator
Hitoshi Matsumoto
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Documental revived the 'owarai' tradition of competitive comedy battles that dominated Japanese television in the 1980s.
The '1000万円' prize became so iconic that losing comedians started selling merchandise featuring their own elimination faces.
JP
