Taskmaster is back in session this week, using a loose “school curriculum” theme as a flimsy excuse for its usual brand of inspired lunacy. Airing Thursday at 9:00 PM GMT on Channel 4, the episode demonstrates yet again that the show’s genius lies in watching reasonably intelligent people fail spectacularly at seemingly simple objectives.
The tasks are framed around school subjects, leading to some very specific forms of humiliation. Stevie Martin is forced to relive a painful childhood memory, Fatiha El-Ghorri finds herself retching into a balloon for reasons that only make sense in the Taskmaster universe, and Mathew Baynton completely misreads a hip-swaying mime from Rosie Ramsey. It’s a catalogue of misinterpretation and poor execution, all dutifully recorded by Alex Horne and judged with performative disdain by the Taskmaster himself, Greg Davies.
Meanwhile, Jason Mantzoukas continues his season-long streak of applying brute force to problems that require finesse, apparently resorting to violence for the twelfth time this series. This running gag has become a reliable part of the season’s comedic rhythm. While the school theme provides a structure, the joy comes from the contestants’ individual approaches, from clever loopholes to outright incompetence.
Taskmaster continues Thursday at 9:00 PM GMT on Channel 4.
