Many formats are imported to us from abroad, but there is nothing more unnecessary and sad than “The Masked Singer”. The Masked Singer is an Israeli reality show broadcast on Keshet 12 and based on the American show “The Masked Singer” of the FOX network, which itself is based on the South Korean international franchise “King of Mask Singer”.
If you’ve seen the American version you know exactly what I’m talking about. There, at Uncle Sam’s in America there is something to work with. Inside huge, expensive dolls are hidden stars of an international standard that really surprise us: Caitlin Jenner, Drew Carey, Kelly Osbourne, Lil Wayne, Bobby Brown, Patti La Belle, Basta Rhimes, Kirstie Alley, Tori Spelling, Kermit the Frog (in my life) , Ricky Lake, LaToya Jackson, Joey Patton (The Backstreet Boys), Tyga, The Henson Trio, and more. And of course everything is live which adds to the thrill experience.
And what is here? Tired politicians, football players, chefs and people who have nothing or half nothing to do with singing, a simplified and jarring automated playback that accompanies the measured performance, because why bring people who really know how to sing? Among us, the one who really deserves credit is the poor audience who manages to clap and act as if they care.
But the really bad thing is that we viewers at home have no idea who the contestant is even after revealing their identity. Is anyone frustrated by this? After surviving twenty tedious episodes in which you have to hear Ofira scream, Tsadi mumble and Ben El growl the syllables, you have no fucking idea who the hell is the person under the mask?
Or alternatively you do have an idea but you just don’t care. Boaz Bismut, Maor Bozaglo, Yanon Magal, Sandra Sde, Itamar Grotto, Dodo Fisher, Sharit Pollak, Ho Gibez – A Pak? sorry for my french
The promot in itself is cute and entertaining, I remember that I watched it before it came to Israel and I was very enthusiastic, also by the strangeness of the concept but especially by the costumes and the production. Even then, a rumor crept into my ears that the show was going to come to Israel and I couldn’t imagine how this format would pass in the limited regions of our tiny country, the answer is – it won’t. After all, in a country the size of Bull there are really no celebs because you can see everyone in the grocery store wearing sweatpants buying zucchini and Nespresso capsules.
Beyond that, in Israel there is really no turnover of stars, the famous have been the same famous for millions of years. How much can we be moved by who we see all the time, always, everywhere? “What’s the matter”, Bar Refaeli, Yuval Samo, Assi Azer, Rotem Sela, Erez Tal and Dvir Bendak direct and star in every third commercial, so don’t expect us to get excited that now they are inside a broccoli doll singing “I will survive”
It turns out that the only ones who are really excited about the “masked singer” are the spouses and family of the contestants, because they managed to hide the participation in the program from them. They could just as well play “Secret Santa” and relieve us of this boredom. But beyond that, who is under the mask? who cares.