Coming soon: A TV show encouraging barfing

Last week, we discussed poop as a viable subject for TeeVee entertainment (did anyone see "All About Dung" last night? Was it crappy?). This week, it falls upon us to examine another form of bodily elimination transformed into edifying programming, and this, on a weekly basis: Puking.

(Who knew that the elimination of human waste had the wherewithal to become a TV genre? Oh, that's right - there's reality TV in general.)

Cable network G4 will premiere "Hurl!" on July 15 at 9 p.m. It's not just about vomiting - it's a speed-eating competition show and, well, urping just happens to be a happy side-effect, apparently. Per the press release:

"Brave contestants consume massive portions of all-American favorites and are then strapped into nausea-inducing contraptions designed to shake them up. The contestant to hold his or her food down the longest claims victory and walks away with a cash prize and, most importantly, serious bragging rights. Challenge winners with the best time who complete all rounds without hurling at any point, earn the highly coveted and elusive 'Iron Stomach Award.' ...

"The competition consists of multiple rounds beginning with a speed-eating contest that features popular foods ranging from chicken pot pies to New England chowder, tuna casserole, hot dogs, blueberry pie and more. In the second round, contenders that ate the most in Round One move on to a physical challenge designed to cause even the strongest stomachs to rebel, including carnival rides, mechanical bull-riding and Sumo wrestling."

Now, that's entertainment of the finest caliber, and one can only hope that G4 is available in high-definition. Heretofore, the only program that induced vomiting was "According to Jim." (And, again, heartfelt thanks are due me for my remarkable restraint in the graphics department - you try a Google Images search on the subject and see what you find. Or better yet, don't.)