The Masked Singer on Fox is a show based around 12 famous people singing in elaborate costumes. Robin Thicke, Jenny McCarthy-Wahlberg, Ken Jeong, Nicole Scherzinger and at times a celebrity guest attempt to guess who is singing based on clues given and the person’s voice. The first season just wrapped up on February 27, and it has been renewed for a second season of which a date is yet to be announced.
I watched The Masked Singer with my parents. Initially it was just me, but the first episode got everyone enticed. Every week we sat and guessed who was behind the mask. Quickly my mom was on the internet reading what others had thought, all of us agreeing on some of the guesses. I love the concept and feel like it was executed wonderfully, people are judged on who they are before they are judged on what they can do. My family and I are very much looking forward to the next season and can not wait to try to figure out who the next celebrities will be.
-Sam
The Masked Singer felt like more than just a competition. It felt like an interactive event. Every week I would tune in and try to guess who was singing under the mask. It took a bit of detective work trying to match voices to clues, all while getting some right, and being completely flabbergasted by others. Not knowing who was singing and trying to guess who it was gave the show a level of fun like no other show I have seen before.
-Melanie
I want to preface this by saying that I’m not a fan of game/talent shows. Crippling secondhand embarrassment keeps me far away from American Idol, Jeopardy makes me question my intelligence, and just the commercials for the new Mental Samurai give me anxiety. Admittedly, when I first heard the concept behind The Masked Singer, I was unimpressed. I think I may have actually uttered the words: “It won’t last past the first season.”
I’m definitely not above admitting when I’m wrong. I was one of the people not intending to watch The Masked Singer, only turning the first episode on one day for my husband and I to see what all the buzz was about. It became a bonding experience for us, giving us a chance to spend a little time together between our differing schedules. We were in friendly competition with each other to figure out who was behind the mask before the other, resulting in the occasional gloating and tossed pillow. It became one of the highlights of our week.
The Masked Singer made me feel emotions I was entirely unprepared for. It’s a weird phenomenon to be crying tears of joy and be unable to explain why. It did finally hit me at the end, though, that this show is, above all, a second chance. It’s an opportunity for celebrities to redeem themselves, a chance to show the world that they have more to offer than what their reputation or careers might showcase. While it’s true some of the performers were much better than others, every person that participated was more talented than I ever would’ve guessed myself. The performers genuinely seemed to be having a good time, which in turn made the show that much more fun to watch. Their joy was truly palpable.
I will impatiently await season two, and in the meantime, I might even re-watch the first season in a desperate attempt to relive the emotions each episode gave me. -Sydney