Above:Lego Masters contestants Maddy Tyers (left) and Jimmy James Eaton (centre) with host Hamish Blake (right)
LEGOMASTERS: REALITY TVWITH
A DISTINCTLY LOCAL FLAVOUR
Liz GiuffreWhilethere’snothingparticularlyAustralianaboutLegoorreality
TV, there’ssomethingbeautifullyAussieabout the first seasonof
LegoMasters. Originallydevelopedin 2017 for Britishtelevision
by Channel4, in partnershipwith Tuesday’sChild and The Lego
Group,theshowhassincemadeit toGermanyandAustralia,
with a debut on Americanscreensnot far away. Its premiseis a
crossmarketingdream:show off as much Lego as possibleto
a group of wouldbe masterbuilderswhile also inspiringthe audi-
ence at home to dust off their old sets (or, better still, get out and
buy more,more,more!).
TheAustralianversionofLegoMasters, whichpremieredonthe
Nine Networkthis year, is hostedby comedianHamishBlake.The
tasks requiredof the realityTV host are quite specific– build drama,
mediatebetweencompetitorsandthecompetition,drawtheaudi-
ence in. Blake successfullydoes all of these,but he also provides
metacommentary,regularlybreakingthe fourthwall to talk directly
toviewers(somethingusuallyreservedforcontestants)anddraw-
ing attentionto realityTV’s conventionsby settingfake challenges
and artificialdeadlinesas well as addressingthe ‘hiddencamera’.
Towardsthe end of the first season,Blake even inviteshis own mum
onsettoprovide‘supportfroma lovedone’– a stuntthatis particu-
larlyfuntowatch,butperhapsa littlecruelforthoseactuallycaston
theshow.Afterall,the‘supportfroma lovedone’tropetendstobe
invokedwhen a trappedcelebrity,isolatedcontestantor housebound
competitoris givena littlerelieffromtheirreality-TV life through this
reminderoftheworldoutsidethestudio.
Anotherexampleof Blake’suniqueapproachto realityTV host-
ing is seen in the episode‘The Bridge’,whichtasks contestantswith
buildinga bridgemadeofLego;thestructurethatcanbearthemost
weightwouldwin the challenge.Upon the bridges’completion,Blake
and the show’sjudge,Ryan ‘Brickman’McNaught,go about testing
eachcreation– butit soonbecomesclearthattheseries’producers
have underestimatedhow much weighta Lego bridgecan take. The
prearranged 1 , 2and 5kilogramweightsare easily withstood,
and, soon, 10, 15and 20kilogrampieceshave to be found.While
this scramblefor additionalweightsis the kind of thing that might
have otherwisebeen pretestedor editedout in other realitypro-
grams,Blake embracesthe apparentchaos.‘We actuallydon’t
have a plan B,’ he proclaims,with a distinctlack of the confidence
that realityTV hosts are meant to display.
BrickmanjoiningBlake providesviewerswith a perfectTV pairing.
As one of only fourteenLego CertifiedProfessionalsin the world,and
the only one basedin the SouthernHemisphere,Brickmancertainly
possessesunusualcredentials.Buthisexperiencein andpassionfor
buildingextremelycomplexitems out of Lego combineto make him a
captivatingcharacter,too. Unlikethe archetypal‘meanprofessional’on
otherrealityshows– theIdolfranchise’sSimonCowellperhapsbest
exemplifiesthis – Brickmanoften appearslike a puppyecstaticover
the chanceto go for a walk. This is not to say that his masteryisn’t evi-
dent, as displaysof his own work, includinga lifesize car made solely
out of Lego, are just outstanding.Rather,like Blake,Brickmanhas a
particularunaffectednesstohisscreenpresence.A reality-TVjudgeis
expectedtobestoic,strongand,ultimately,impartial– perhapseven
somethingof a smilingassassin(think:MasterChef’s GordonRamsay,
orevena pre-presidentialDonaldTrumponTheApprentice). However,
duringLegoMasters’ first eliminationround,Brickmanbecomes nos-
talgic,evenvisiblyteary,whenpresentinghisverdict.
Bynow,realityTVhasbecomea well-troddeninternationalform.
It’swidelysyndicatedandfranchised,meaningthatlocalversionsare
difficultto identify– in fact, outsidethe UK,LegoMastersis ownedby
theEndemolShineGroup,aninternationalproductionpowerhouse
specialisingin whatit calls‘non-scriptedsuperbrands’suchas
MasterChefandBigBrother. ButLegoMasters’ Australianiteration
does give us somethingdistinct:that Aussiebrand of irreverence,evi-
dent in Blake’sand Brickman’sendearingpassionand disregardfor
convention.There are plentyof jokes, but they’renever at the expense
ofanyoneparticipating– offeringrarelittle moments of joy for both
contestants and audience.•••
RochelleSiemienowiczis a writerandcriticwitha PhDin Australian
cinema.Sheis a journalistforscreenhubandwas co-host of the long-
running film podcastHell Is for Hyphenates.Dan Goldingwas, from 2014to 2017,the directorof the Freeplay
IndependentGamesFestival,and is a seniorlecturerin mediaand
communicationsat SwinburneUniversityof Technology.He is also a
freelancearts and videogamesjournalist,and the co-authorofGame
Changers:FromMinecrafttoMisogyny,the Fight for the Future of
Videogameswith Leena van Deventer.Dr Liz Giuffreis a seniorlecturerin communicationat the University
of TechnologySydney as well as a freelance arts commentator
and journalist. m128 • Metro Magazine 201 | © ATOM