Game Show from Woody Fraser Productions that ran on The Family Channel from 1995-97. Two families consisting of two adults and four children played against each other in a variety of rotating stunts and quizzes for points. The family with the most points after seven stunts won the game and "The Family Challenge Championship Cup".
In Season 2, the show moved to Universal Studios, became The New Family Challenge and Michael Burger took over hosting. Families now had two adults and three children playing. On Fridays towards the end of the run, Burger picked contestants out of the audience to do stunts.
This show provides examples of:
- The Announcer: Gene Wood in the first season (this would be his last show), Charlie Glaize in the second.
- Bragging Rights Reward: "The Family Challenge Championship Cup", won by the family with the most points at the end of the show.
- Butt-Monkey: Combs was sometimes on the receiving end of Covered in Gunge torture.
- Carried by the Host: Combs, even a year removed from Family Feud, as well as Burger.
- Color-Coded for Your Convenience: The Combs season had a red team playing against a blue team. The Burger version had different colors on each episode.
- Covered in Gunge: A staple of kids' shows at the time, usually having the kids getting their parents messy. The show also had the Gunk Tank, recycled from the Pie Slide on What Would You Do?.
- Excited Kids' Show Host: Both Combs and Burger were Type 3 examples.
- Game Show Host: Ray Combs in the first season (this was also his last show), Michael Burger in the second.
- Level Ate: Some stunts focused around food, such as the "Fast Food Relay".
- As Gene Wood sometimes noted in the credits, "All of the food used on "Family Challenge" is food that is no longer edible."
- Pie in the Face: Many stunts involved the family members pieing each other.
- Rules Spiel: Done to introduce each stunt.
- Slapstick: All team members are fair game for being Covered in Gunge, most often the adults.
- Stepford Smiler: Combs, who managed to be his joyful self even when faced with the problems that would lead to his suicide the following year.
- Strange Minds Think Alike: In a segment where Combs quizzes the family members on how much they know about each other, a team's mother predicted that her kid's favorite classical musician was Kenny G. She turned out to be right!
- Studio Audience: Present in both seasons. In the Burger era, audience members would be called down to participate on Friday shows.
- Timed Mission: Most of the stunts were timed.
