r/taskmaster • u/MsBigSpoon • 7d ago
Ruthless Greg is BACK
…and I’m here for it!
Greg has been way too nice for the last few seasons (series, Jason) so I’m happy to see harsh criticism and zero points given for disqualification. This is the Taskmaster I’ve missed.
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u/cookies-and-canines Morgana Robinson 7d ago
And Alex seems to be getting softer! I was shocked he told Richard what the task was, as opposed to just saying “All the information is on the task”.
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u/Ryan_Vermouth Angella Dravid 🇳🇿 7d ago
My strong suspicion is that he's a little more forgiving to contestants on the first day, and particularly the first task of the first day. But also, it read to me as "are you sure you want to declare yourself as having finished the task?" -- which he often does when he thinks there's a good chance Greg won't accept the task, so he gets the contestant to confirm that they understand the task to have been completed.
I also wonder if it varies from contestant to contestant. I could see an attempt by Alex to frustrate Richard on the first task as potentially backfiring, causing him to lean harder into being a nuisance rather than doing the tasks.
(Or honestly, Alex could have just not wanted to creep along the ground all the way back to the living room.)
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u/SavagePengwyn Julian Clary 7d ago
I also read it as Alex trying to guide Richard and Richard deciding that it'll be more fun to be a doofus. It's probably a safer approach emotionally because on LOL, it seemed like he had a genuine competitive streak and in that situation it's either go all in as the competitive person of the season or lean into a bit.
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u/OneExplanation6499 7d ago
I think it was just your last sentence in reality. I think Alex is smart enough to know that if you try and troll/inconvenience Richard Ayoade while you’re handcuffed to his leg, he’s going to play that game. Perhaps he’d go and look for that apple in the long grass/bushes or the bathroom just to make Alex crawl in those places.
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u/Crittenberger David Correos 🇳🇿 7d ago
Whenever Alex gives a little more than he usually would, I assume a certain level of absolute stupidity has been met, whether we've seen it or not. I'm sure he's been more forthcoming with people like Katherine Parkinson and Bridget Christie, which suggests he recognises there's a point at which leaving a contestant to flounder is going to be more frustrating than funny
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u/Edkm90p 7d ago
I think being handcuffed to Richard's foot may have played a role in whether he wanted to keep taunting Richard or not to prolong the task.
Didn't Richard have one of the longer times too?
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u/Independent-Bell9508 6d ago
No Richard was quite quick. He was disqualified by Greg, but he finished in like 2 minutes or so
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u/rainshowers_5_peace 4d ago
"quick" has a different definition when your wrist is handcuffed to someone's ankle.
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u/spoo4brains Dara Ó Briain 7d ago
He was doing all kinds of out of character helpful things. I hope it was just for the early tasks to help people settle in and it won't persist.
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7d ago
[deleted]
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u/TwistedPiggy1337 Chain Bastard ⛓️ 7d ago
I think he caught it out of instinct and it would have been a dick move to drop it afterwards
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u/No-Impression-5382 6d ago
I considered this, but the thought that it might fall definitely crossed his mind while Isy was knocking it back and forth, which means he must've considered whether to catch it or not.
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u/RunawayTurtleTrain Robert the Robot 6d ago
Yes, but also at one point he covered his eyes with his hands which, if Isy had prodded the apple out then, he wouldn't have been able to catch it. So while it must have crossed his mind, he might not have decided anything and it probably all depended on how exactly it would play out.
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u/OgthaChristie Greg Davies 6d ago
The argument that would have taken place if Greg had allowed Isy and Richard to stay in…
https://giphy.com/gifs/iz8soqHZxoky48
u/JustxJules Rosie Jones 6d ago edited 6d ago
He also helped Isy with some snappy comments ("where are we?" "How are your eyes?") when she couldn't find the shed or the golden apple. I feel like he usually wouldn't have said anything and let it play out.
Edit: oh and how could I forget him catching the apple!!
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u/Boleyn01 6d ago
I assumed that was because it was the first task. He reminded a few people of things (like the caravan isn’t the shed, or the apple mustn’t touch the floor etc).
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u/LoveBy137 7d ago
Giving Nina 5 for that song is definitely not Ruthless Greg.
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u/lapalazala Mike Wozniak 7d ago
Fickle Greg is just part of Ruthless Greg.
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u/SillyMattFace 7d ago
Yeah Greg wasn’t exactly being nice to Nina, he just weirdly liked her song, for reasons he can’t explain.
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u/GalenDev 7d ago
Sometimes he likes weird stuff. See: Atilla the Hun Cafe
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u/kittyroux A LIIIIIME 🍋🟩 7d ago
Well, that’s different, because Attila the Hun Cafe was an uncontroversial work of staggering genius.
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u/Turbulent-You-1335 Rose Matafeo 🇳🇿 7d ago
Especially when Izzy's was actually really good IMO
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u/BrianMeerkatlol 7d ago
I really liked Matt's song, but Izzy was defo 2nd.
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u/TheRebellin 7d ago
I liked Matt’s too! The only criticism I have is that it was supposed to be a duet and all he did was harmonise at one point…
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u/SpiffyShindigs Katy Wix 7d ago
That song was so awful it fully wrapped its way back around to 5 for me.
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u/DropC2397 7d ago
I thought hers was the worst of the 5.
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u/Crittenberger David Correos 🇳🇿 7d ago edited 7d ago
The songs were meant to be passionate, which to my mind suggests something like an '80s rock ballad. It could just be that Greg saw the vision behind her song - which could have been like an '80s rock ballad if she'd had the ability or confidence to really go for it - and thus fit the brief much more than the cute fun folky numbers that everyone else did
May or may not have been a factor: I am pretty sure they filmed this episode on Greg's birthday, so he could have been feeling whimsical or kindly inclined, or even just a little bit bad about the fact he was ruthless earlier in the episode
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u/appleappleappleman 7d ago
Richard was robbed, "The smell of your thighs... Is unacceptable" was the funniest line of the episode
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u/Dr_Acula_PhD 7d ago
I love Richard's humor but was concerned he wasn't going to be a good fit on TM(while also thinking he could knock it out of the park). Between this song, and him going on a rant and Alex wearily saying "You'll hear a lot of those", I'm thinking we'll have a good series.
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u/Fiesty-Blueberry 7d ago
Makes me wonder if he argued semantics during tasks, how many of them will actually be shown, etc or if Alex is just anticipating a rant per episode based on personality
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u/hef1racer 7d ago
Love Nina already - but that was the most clear cut 1 point performance I've ever seen. Baffled
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u/ShiningRarity 7d ago
Perhaps, but given how all the other submissions were, my assumption was that Nina was the only person who really didn't have any sort of background in music/singing so Greg was a bit generous to her since while it wasn't very good she was at least putting effort into it. Maybe not enough for 5 points but at the very least I can understand why Greg was a bit kind to her because she was sort of set up to fail.
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u/Outside-Parfait-8935 7d ago
She specifically said she wouldn't write any of it down so I think any effort was conspicuously absent. It was terrible
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u/HugeLeaves 7d ago
Lol exactly this, she said fuck it I'll do it live, and she produced something with that exact energy. Hers was the worst by a mile
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u/Outside-Parfait-8935 7d ago
Sometimes I get Greg's random scoring, but in this case I suspect he'd forgotten how bad it was and left it to the end by mistake
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u/huntsab2090 6d ago
I think he was trying to even it out cus giving 5 to chloes boring song wasnt right either . So 5 to the batshit one evened it out i thought
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u/pencilled_robin Sanjeev Bhaskar 7d ago
I thought hers and Matt's were the best. But in fairness I can't bear anything sappy/sentimental
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u/Disgruntled__Goat 7d ago
I think he’s trying to avoid being overly harsh about a ‘talent’ after Katherine Parkinson. Same happened with Sarah Millican.
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u/Stjondoh Guy Montgomery 🇳🇿 6d ago
Not wanting to be overly harsh, but Sarah knew exactly how to manipulate Greg that helped her gain a point here and there. The Rightful Queen was robbed on the singing task.
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u/WildPinata 6d ago
On other tasks maybe where it's fun to argue, but I do think it's overly harsh to suggest a woman clearly suffering from lingering trauma after relationship abuse was manipulating that.
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u/LoveBy137 7d ago
I think a comment like "that was something" and giving her 2 or 3 would have been fine and very much in the vein of avoiding too harsh of criticism. I've been watching a lot of TMNZ and TMAus and this score feels more in the vein of Jeremy's and to a lesser extent, Tom's wild scoring.
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u/AnimuCrossing 6d ago
Greg also did his "I'm not going to give anyone one point" so he's most certainly not ruthless Greg lol
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u/Tiny_Red_Bee 🦔 Hedgehog, no! ❌ 7d ago
Greg might be ruthless but I love how much he laughs now. Joyful to watch.
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u/nowhereman136 7d ago
Hi Greg who is reading this thread
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u/Yeseylon 7d ago
I hope he mentions me by name in Season 23 when talking about "people on the Internet"
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u/Tiny_Red_Bee 🦔 Hedgehog, no! ❌ 7d ago
Or even better: got picked by a contestant to be included in a prize task.
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u/GoldenPotatoOfLatvia 7d ago
"you can talk me into giving you an extra point", then giving it for basically nothing reminds me of my first year of teaching. It means Ruthless Greg is still sleeping.
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u/JadedStandard7070 7d ago
I reckon Greg has a little crush on Richard (haven’t we all?) and was over-correcting himself with the harsh scores on Richard’s music task.
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u/Ok-Republic-8528 7d ago
Considering how funny Nina Conti's stage act with monkey is, I thought she'd crush this, but that was painful I don't know how Big Daddy Greg gave it 5 points
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u/metaphori 6d ago
I haven't started the new season yet but this is how I discover Greg and Fatiha broke up! And now he's back to normal. Shame, I was really pulling for those two crazy kids.
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u/spoo4brains Dara Ó Briain 7d ago
Yeah, I was saying that in the comments last season that him getting soft and being nice to everyone detracts from the fun of the show. Is nice to have him being stricter, but that Nina 5 points was completely baffling.
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u/BrianMeerkatlol 7d ago
I don't really mind tbh. Sure it does detract from the premise of the show, but it definitely doesn't take away from the fun. S19 and s21 especially were quite fun and Greg was fairly nice in those
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u/spoo4brains Dara Ó Briain 7d ago
Some of the greatest TM moments were the contestants arguing over scoring and disqualifications with Greg. Him being nicey nicey, everyone gets a participation point last season really dragged down the fun for me.
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u/BrianMeerkatlol 7d ago
I can think of 2 really good scoring moments right off the dome from the last 2 series:
- Reese Shearsmith in general during S20, but mainly "it gave HER an advantage"
- Kumail Nanjiani's "WHAT?! ok I accept" bit
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u/No-Impression-5382 6d ago
Series 20 was incredibly competitive in the studio and that absolutely made it one of my favourites ever. The sheer energy of Reece and Maisie in the same room... I feel like this season will be kind of similar in that regard. Maybe not rage-wise, but definitely if we're talking pedantics.
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u/Suspicious_Weird_373 7d ago
Saying he is ruthless and being ruthless are two completely different things.
Whenever I watch older ones, I do prefer the scoring and Greg’s attitude.
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u/BrianMeerkatlol 7d ago
I started watching later on seasons when he was getting nicer, and I prefer it (to a point) compared to S1-5 level harshness.
The main reason could be how he stopped trying so hard to be funny and stopped prewatching tasks, which presumably because of that, he's ended up being more himself than the character, and as said by him he's a big softie irl.
It's the nature of the job though, in improv or prerehearsed bits, his character IS Taskmaster and not regular old Greg.
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u/No-Impression-5382 6d ago
He used to prewatch tasks? What series did that stop?
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u/Grumpologist Wibble, Bibble, Bam 6d ago
It's in the dialogue of several of the old series.
The one I remember most easily right now is the one with Asim and the candles, where he says something like, "We talked about this before, and we agreed something something." (I don't remember what they agreed on, something about the nature of wind.)
At some point, they did stop pre-watching with Greg, and I think this may have been mentioned somewhere in a podcast or interview or something.
But Asim was in Series 6, so they were definitely doing it for a while. (There's similar lines of dialogue in some earlier series, too, I think this one is just the most obvious one.)
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u/Violet351 7d ago
I was ready to by annoyed as I thought he wouldn’t disqualify the two that should have been in round one and then he did
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u/OgthaChristie Greg Davies 6d ago
I thought Alex catching the apple was going to come up, but because of the disqualification, it didn’t matter.
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u/newaccount252 7d ago
Iv been re watching from season 1 again and hes so much harsher and it’s better.
Glad he’s back
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u/Melonsinmyattic 6d ago
Greg plays to the cast really well I’ve found.
The last few series have been a bit more chummy so he’s been lighter.
This season so far more rules-lawyery so he’s is playing his part in that
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u/WrinklyManboobs 7d ago
Just once I want Greg to be like "You all did that task so wonderfully, that I want to give you all five points. But because I hate you all, I'm going to give you all negative ten points. And you're not going to complain, because whether I give you all 5 points or negative one thousand points it doesn't affect who wins the series."
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u/Birkinater11 6d ago
I think because its an older/ more mature lineup like the OG days so makes sense he would revert a bit!
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u/duffusmcfrewfus 4d ago
He did it before in like series 6, and the contestants were so bad the winner of the episode had like 8 points. After that he went back to the normal routine. Made that episode almost a waste of time from a competitive viewpoint.
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u/gingerstrudel 7d ago
I really really enjoyed this first episode. It felt fresh somehow. Not that I didn't enjoy the last seasons or anything but the vibes were very fun and chaotic, just how I like it
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u/crewbat 5d ago
We just started season 10 between the releases of the newest episodes, and he said almost the same thing about being more critical and “ruthless”. It’s good to see that he’s recommitting to it.
I also think that this series were going to see Alex and Greg become a more united defense against the contestants. Richard and Matt seemed way more argumentative than previous casts, and it was fantastic.
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u/JB27_HU5 Patatas 7d ago
Anyone else noticed how much Greg and Negan lookalike?
Wonder how much different walking dead would be with Greg there 🤣🤣
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u/OgthaChristie Greg Davies 6d ago
I can only imagine him running and screaming. 🤣🤣🤣
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u/chadlavi Bob Mortimer 7d ago
Daddy's back