Description

Impractical Jokers is an American hidden camera reality show with improvisational elements. Produced by NorthSouth Productions, Impractical Jokers premiered on truTV on December 15, 2011 starring the members of The Tenderloins: James "Murr" Murray, Brian "Q" Quinn, Sal Vulcano, and Joe Gatto.

A typical episode is a series of competitive games of dares in which each cast member, or "joker", receives either a thumbs up or thumbs down for his performance. At the climax, the joker who tallied the most thumbs down is the loser and is thereby subjected to a "punishment". The games are contrived scenarios in which one joker is challenged to embarrass himself by engaging with unwitting members of the general public, receiving commands from the other jokers who are orchestrating and surveying the bizarre scenario from behind the scenes with covert surveillance equipment. The most common premise is that a joker will immediately lose a challenge if he refuses to follow any instructions given by the other three. Some games involve all four jokers competing at once to be the first to reach a stated goal.

The intro describes the show as "scenes of graphic stupidity among (four) lifelong friends who compete to embarrass each other." The games are loosely structured, relying heavily upon improvisation. The show's comedic themes range from witty dialogue to slapstick routines, with the reactions of both the jokers and the members of the public serving as punchlines.