“Battle Of The Network Stars” Premiere Recap: TV Sitcoms Vs TV Kids

(ABC)

“Battle Of The Network Stars” premiered on Thursday. Gossip Cop has a full recap below!

“Battle Of The Network Stars” originally aired in the 1970s and 1980s. As the title suggests, it featured stars from different networks battling each other in athletic-based challenges. The show was a favorite among TV lovers and featured many iconic stars. Now the new revival is bringing together stars of yesteryear with current TV actors for a new set of face-offs.

Tonight’s first episode focused on TV Sitcoms vs TV Kids. On the TV Sitcoms team, led by DeMarcus Ware, was Bronson Pinchot, Tom Arnold, Dave Coulier, AJ Michalka and Tracy Gold. The TV Kids team, coached by Ronda Rousey, consisted of Joey Lawrence, Corbin Bleu, Nolan Gould, Lisa Whelchel and Kim Fields. Both Welchel and Fields, who solidified their place in TV history by starring on “The Facts Of Life,” previously competed on the original show.

The new edition kicked off with each of the participants arriving, although Arnold was late. The first task was a running relay, and Bleu pulled out a win for the Kids, giving the team one point. The teams went from the track to the aquatic center for the next three events. The swimming relay came first, and both Fields and Welchel were apprehensive, worried about negative social media comments. After a pep talk from Rousey, Fields agreed to team up with Gould for Kids, while Gold and Pinchot swam for the Sitcoms. And the point went to the Sitcoms, tying the score 1-1.

A kayak relay followed, with Bleu and Welchel against Coulier and Michalka. Welchel easily won it for the Kids, changing the score to 2-1. Next: The dunk tank! With Welchel sitting in the hot seat, Coulier had three chances to sink her as the teams traded trash talk. Lawrence joked to Arnold that he’d “miss on purpose,” and he actually missed all three shots. After additional pairings, and adding in the results from Coulier and Lawrence’s basketball face-off, as well as Gold and Field’s soccer match, the standings were tied at 4-4.

Michalka and Welchel also competed in tennis, Pinchot and Gould did archery, and Arnold and Bleu played golf, changing the score to 7-4 in favor of the Kids. Then there was the obstacle course, which was worth five points for the male competition and five points for the female competition instead of just one point each. Fields, who did the 1984 obstacle course, lost to Michalka, despite leading most of the way. And then Bleu easily won against Pinchot, so there was a victory and a loss for each team.

With the score now 12-9 Kids, all participated in the final task: Tug of war. It wasn’t pretty, but Sitcoms won not just the challenge but the whole shebang as 10 points was added to its total for a final score of 19-12. Next week: Team Variety vs. Team Sex Symbols!