Presented as one of the summer TV meetings, Intervilles Deal is already bowing this Thursday, July 25 on France 2. Despite a highly anticipated return, the cult game carried by Nagui did not fully convince, between nostalgic impulse and halftone reception.
Announced as one of the summer meetings on television, Intervilles is preparing to bow this Thursday, July 25 on France 2 at the end of a grand finale, who will see Saint-Amand-les-Eaux (North), Coulanges-lès-Nevers (Nièvre) and Gap (Hautes-Alpes) compete. A fourth and last show that is closing a month of antenna … and audiences in free fall.
Because, despite more than 10 years of absence on the antenna, the return of this cult game carried this time by Nagui, Bruno Guillon, Magali Ripoll, Valérie Bègue, Yoann Riou and Camille Cerf has not been able to seduce the telespectors.
The recipe was there, however: always more wacky tests, good -natured atmosphere, return of cowhoes (in the form of mascots). But this new version unfortunately did not really manage to regain its yesteryear.
A good start -up followed by a drop in audience
Presented as one of the strong bets of France Télévisions during its return to school conference, Intervilles was a flagship program for the group, in line with other successful television recyclages like The Bigdil or The right price.
To maximize the craze around this return, France 2 had therefore launched its communication in March, mainly focused on the nostalgia for the program, with a first teaser broadcast during the France-Scotland match of the Six Nations Tournament.
On social networks, mechanics was the same: Proust madeleine effect guaranteed with, in particular, the revelation of the new mascot, the Topa cow, via Instagram.
And the bet seemed to be off to France Télévisions: the first episode ofIntervillesbroadcast on July 3, who saw Beauvais and Coulanges-lès-Nevers compete, managed to attract 3.35 million viewers, 22% audience share. A very good score comforting the chain in its choice to relaunch the program.
A new version criticized by Internet users
But very quickly, the enthusiasm fell. From the second episode, broadcast on July 10, opposing Gap to Bourgoin-Jallieu, the audiences dropped to 2.41 million viewers. A week later, the telespectors were only 2 million in front of their posts to attend the duel between Wallers-Arenberg and Saint-Amand-les-Eaux.
On social networks, many viewers point to a lack of rhythm in the tests, too many animators, “who speak at the same time” as well as “cheap” sets far from the historic arenas of the original show.
“The sound is catastrophic. The prod is cheap. Nagui totally livid. The animators (who for some are not) lack cohesion. No explanation of the rules / no clear driver. It’s bad,” writes a surfer on X.
“It’s really zero. No atmosphere, null animators, too many people who speak at the same time making everything inaudible, a tiny playground. A cat,” abounds another.
“The Nagui intervilles’ is no longer ‘intervilles'”
This new version even caused the ire of one of the co-creators of the original game, Claude Savarit. In the columns of the Nice morning newspaper, the man to whom we owe the concept of several other cult programs – Treasure hunt, games without borders, gold at the call – rebellious after viewing the first episode ofIntervilles.
“It is scandalous to see what they did. The intervilles’ of Nagui, it is no longer ‘intervilles’!”, Ansures Claude Savarit, indicating that he “will make a lawsuit in Banijay (company which holds the rights of the program, editor’s note) so that they no longer use the name” of the game he imagined.
“They did not even violate the rules, they have ignored them. They have no idea how it works and staging. They are mistaken in everything. There is nothing. It is shameful,” he continues.
Claude Savarit notably points out the “low level of imagination” of Nagui and his team in the development of new events, which he describes as “small beach games”.
“Seeing teams picking up teddy bears is not serious. Why would we excite for such poverty? We, when a game did not work, we threw it on the trash before putting it on the antenna. They passed the program on the reel. We really laugh at viewers! It’s so disappointing,” he said.
Nagui “dream” of a season 2
While the grand final is broadcast this Thursday evening, everything seems to indicate thatIntervilles will not stack for a second season. However, his presenter Nagui refuses to give in to pessimism completely.
Questioned by Le Parisien, the host says he “was filled by the super job of all the teams”, welcoming the logistical challenge represented by the live filming and outdoors of the show, from city to city.
“It is not easy to move such a circus every week. ‘Intervilles’, it is tense flow. It is played in the second, without the possibility of second taking. We are far from the comfort of the Parisian TV studios,” he said.
As for the future of the program, Nagui entrusts “dreaming” of a second season, but remains lucid: “it does not depend on me”. It remains to be seen if nostalgia will be enough to make people forget the criticism or if the Topa cowhide is indeed condemned to say goodbye to the public this Thursday evening.
