VIKING Family Muscle 1

Intro
The Viking: Family Muscle (バイキング特別限定版家族の絆で1000万円!!ファミ筋, lit. VIKING LIMITED EDITION: 10 Million Yen Family Bonds: Family Muscle) was a 2006 sports variety competition that acted as the 2nd main spinoff to Viking, after Pair Viking. Family Muscle was centered around the idea of travelling the world, similar to Kinniku Banzuke's Neko de Drive 2.

Unlike previous VIKING competitions, Family Muscle featured teams of at least 3 completing stages in a manner similar to VIKING's main tournaments, as well as SASUKE. Teams as large as 13 players were seen in competition.

Family Muscle was the only true "Family VIKING". Many western fans erroneously called Pair Viking by the family name, however this was not the case. In the opening of Family Muscle, it states that Pair Viking 1 is nicknamed as "Team Viking: Parent and Child Version" and Family Muscle is nicknamed "Team Viking: Family Version". In addition, from Pair Viking 2, the tournaments did not have any requirement of being family, and advertised that couples and other pairs were eligible.

Family Muscle was first promoted during the March 19th, 2006 episode of VIKING. The official announcement text is as follows:"☆新たなるプロジェクト…☆ かつてないスケールのプロジェクトが動き出した. 挑戦者の愛と絆が試される新感覚のスポーツゲームバトル、その名は…、「ファミ筋スペシャル」. 芸能人、一般人、そしてトップアスリートが家族でエントリー.  全てのゲームをクリアすれば、なんと賞金１０００万円.  テレビ界にまた一つ、伝説が生まれる.""New Project Announcement""A project of unprecedented scale has been progressing. A brand new type of sports game battle, where the love and bond of the challenge is tested. The name is 'Family Muscle'. Entertainers, ordinary people and top athletes enter as a family. If they can clear all the stages, they can win ¥10,000,000. Another legend is born into the world of television."Further information was broadcast via the "Family Muscle and Viking Pre-Broadcast Report" on the evening of March 19th, 2006. This VIKING Navi featured promotion for Family Muscle 1 & 2, as well as Pair Viking 2.

Format
VIKING Family Muscle features 9 stages over what they call a "World Tour". A total victory only requires 7 stages be cleared, as teams may choose between two Stage 5's, and there is an Extra Stage after the final stage.

After each stage, teams may "CHECK OUT" (leave the game with their current winnings) or "CHECK IN" (Move to the next stage but risk losing their earnings).

In Family Muscle 1, an unusual editing format is present. Instead of progressing stage by stage, each team is followed through the full course until their elimination.

As with the Pair Viking tournaments, if any individual player within the team fails, the entire team will be eliminated.

In addition to the main competition, Family Muscle featured "Exhibition" runs. Exhibition runs are unofficial runs done for fun. In the case of Family Muscle, exhibition teams ran Stages 2, 3 and 6. Rather than a cash prize, each team represented a drama currently airing on television. For each stage completed they would earn a certain amount of seconds of time to promote their show during the broadcast.

Japan (日本) - Stage 1
The course mats for this stage are red and white, meant to mimic the Japanese Flag

Obstacles
① Family Spin ファミリースピン

Time Limit: 10 seconds

Greece (ギリシャ) - Stage 2
The coloration of this stage is blue and white stripes, matching the Greek flag

Obstacles
① Pythagoras ピタゴラス

Time Limit: 80 seconds

Egypt (エジプト) - Stage 3
This stage is colored using red, white and black, matching the Egyptian flag.

Obstacles
① Pyramid ピラミッド

Time Limit: 60 seconds

Australia (オーストラリア) - Stage 4
This stage is blue, white and red matching the Australian flag. Oddly, this stage features a snowy forest and the Leaning Tower of Pisa. It is possible this stage was originally supposed to be based on Italy.

Obstacles
① Harbor Bridge ハーバーブリッジ

Time Limit: 30 seconds

China (中国) - Stage 5A
This stage is red, matching the Chinese flag. Additionally, the ping pong balls are yellowish, representing the stars on the flag.

Obstacles
① Great Wall of China 万里の長城

Time Limit: 80 seconds

Brazil (ブラジル) - Stage 5B
This stage is primarily yellow, matching the Brazilian Flag

Obstacles
① Amazon アマゾン

Time Limit: 60 seconds

America (アメリカ) - Stage 6
Unlike the other stages, this stage's colors does not seem to match America in any way.

Obstacles
① Blackjack Target ブラックジャックターゲット

Time Limit: No Limit

Blackjack Target consisted of 5 sub-obstacles


 * Kick Target
 * 9 Hoops
 * Punch Out
 * UFO
 * Struck Out

Germany (ドイツ) - Final Stage
This stage is yellow and black, matching the German flag.

Obstacles
① World Cup ワールドカップ

Time Limit: Unknown

Obstacles
① Extra Challenge

Time Limit: Unknown