Erikoisjoukot
GenreReality television
Based onSAS: Who Dares Wins by Minnow Films
Starring
Narrated byMikko Leskelä
Country of originFinland
Original languageFinnish
No. of series1
No. of episodes10
Production
Executive producerAlex Laszlo[1]
ProducerMaija Maukonen
Running time45 minutes
Production companyBanijay Finland
Original release
NetworkRuutu
Nelonen
Release2 January 2023 (2023-01-02)
Related
International versions

Erikoisjoukot (finnish for 'Special Forces') is a Finnish quasi-military training television programme based on the British SAS: Who Dares Wins format. The show first premiered on streaming service Ruutu in 2022 as an "Original Series", and later premiered on Nelonen network early 2023. The second season is set to begin to air in spring 2024.[2]

Format

Following the premise of the original, British adaption, a group of celebrities are put into a shortened version of the Special Forces’ selection course. Over the course of two weeks, the recruits must face their fears and complete in various tasks designed for those who aspire for the Finland's Defence Forces' Special Forces. At the end of the course, Chief Instructor and his fellow Directing Staff will decide, who has passed the selection process.

The conditions of the recruits during the course are considered rudimental as they reflect a real combat base. They will not receive any special treatment, but will be completely at the mercy of the Directing Staff. Unlike many other reality competition series, there are no straight eliminations. However, the recruits can be culled by the DS, or withdrawn, in case of any injuries or medical reasons to be quitted from the course. The recruits can also decide themselves, to voluntarily withdraw from the competition, if the pressures are getting too high – and hand their armband to one of the Directing Staff instructors.

Cast

The Chief Instructor ('Pääkouluttaja') is Janne Lehtonen, an ex-Finnish Navy Special Operation Forces operator, Marine Scout Sniper and Combat Medic in Counter-Terrorism contracts, with 13 years of experience on the fronts.[3] The other Directing Staff instructors are: Jan Knutti, a former Navy Combat Diver and Finnish Border Guard's Officer for the Counter-Terrorism unit; Matias Petäistö, a former Pioneer and team operator for the Utti Jaeger Regiment and Robin Hendry, a former Navy Combat Diver and leading Combat Medic.

Name Position Series
1 (2023) 2 (2024)
Janne Lehtonen Chief Instructor Main
Jan Knutti Directing Staff Main
Matias Petäistö Directing Staff Main
Robin Hendry Directing Staff Main

Seasons

Series overview

Season Episodes Originally aired
First aired Last aired
1 10 2 January 2023[lower-alpha 1] 27 February 2023
2 12 March 2024 TBD

Winners

Season Winners
1 Elias Kaskinen, Amanda Harkimo, Viivi Altonen[4]
2 TBA

Season 1 (2023)

The filming began on early August 2021 at Abandoned Limestone Factory, in the city of Lohja, Finland. Fourteen well-known finnish Celebrities took part in this Season.[5]

Recruits

Recruit Celebrity Known for Episode left Status
1 Ville Lång Badminton player 10 Voluntarily Withdrew
2 Henna Virkkunen Member of the European Parliament 4 Voluntarily Withdrew
3 Sauli Koskinen Media personality 7 Voluntarily Withdrew
4 Amanda Harkimo Reality TV star, DJ 10 Passed
5 James Nikander Rapper, "The Black Barbarian" 3 Culled
6 Sara Chafak Miss Finland 2012 1 Voluntarily Withdrew
7 Heikki Sorsa Snowboarder 7 Voluntarily Withdrew
8 Sami Jauhojärvi Former cross-country skier 6 Voluntarily Withdrew
9 Amin Asikainen Former professional boxer 6 Culled
10 Sunneva Sjögrén Beauty entrepreneur 1 Voluntarily Withdrew
11 Kimmo Ohtonen Journalist 10 Culled
12 Tom Packalén Member of Parliament 7 Medically Withdrew
13 Viivi Altonen Miss Finland 2020 10 Passed
14 Elias Kaskinen Singer-Songwriter 10 Passed

Episodes

No.Title (in English) [6][7]Timeslot (EET)Original air dateAver. Finnish viewers [8]
1"Character"Monday 9:00 pm2 January 2023 (2023-01-02)N/A
2"Fear"Monday 9:00 pm9 January 2023 (2023-01-09)N/A
3"Aggression"Monday 9:00 pm16 January 2023 (2023-01-16)N/A
4"Control"Monday 9:00 pm23 January 2023 (2023-01-23)N/A
5"Decisionmaking"Monday 9:00 pm30 January 2023 (2023-01-30)N/A
6"Sisu"Monday 9:00 pm6 February 2023 (2023-02-06)N/A
7"Trust"Monday 9:00 pm13 February 2023 (2023-02-13)N/A
8"Power of Mind"Monday 9:00 pm20 February 2023 (2023-02-20)125,000
9"Survival"Monday 10:00 pm27 February 2023 (2023-02-27)64,000
10"Pressure Tolerance"Monday 11:00 pm27 February 2023 (2023-02-27)N/A

Season 2 (2024)

The Celebrity recruits of the second season will be revealed in the early 2024. Like the first season, this season was filmed at the abandoned Limestone Factory in Lohja, during 2023.[2]

Recruits

Recruit Celebrity Known for Episode left Status

Episodes

No.Title (in English)Timeslot (EET)Original air dateAver. Finnish viewers [8]
1TBATBAMarch 2024 (2024-03)TBD

Reception

Awards and nominations

Year Awards Category Nominated Result Ref.
2022 Golden Venla Tracking Reality Erikoisjoukot Nominated [9]

See also

Notes

  1. ↑ The show was first introduced on Ruutu streaming service in summer 2022, and the first episode actually aired on television that year. However, the full official run on TV, with all episodes, started in January 2023.

References

  1. ↑ "Nyt puhuu Erikoisjoukkojen vastaava tuottaja: "Sarjassa ei leikitä sotaa"". iltalehti.fi (in Finnish).
  2. 1 2 "Tältä näyttää Nelonen Median kevään 2024 TV-tarjonta!". Nelonen (in Finnish).
  3. ↑ "Entinen eliittisotilas Janne Lehtonen paljastaa, millaista Suomen erikoisjoukoissa oikeasti on – vain harva tietää totuuden salatusta ammatista". Ilta-sanomat.fi (in Finnish). 31 May 2022.
  4. ↑ "He läpäisivät karmaisevan Erikoisjoukot-ohjelman – yksi kokelaista purskahtaa vuolaaseen itkuun". Ilta-sanomat.fi (in Finnish). 25 July 2022.
  5. ↑ "Erikoisjoukot on Suomen tv-historian rankin kilpailu – nämä julkkikset osallistuvat". iltalehti.fi (in Finnish).
  6. ↑ "ERIKOISJOUKOT – program info". telsu.fi (in Finnish).
  7. ↑ "Erikoisjoukot – Ruutu". ruutu.fi (in Finnish).
  8. 1 2 "Finnpanel – TV Audiance Measurement". Finnpanel.
  9. ↑ "Tässä ovat Kultainen Venla 2022 -ehdokkaat". seiska.fi (in Finnish). 8 December 2022.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.