SBS Weekly Review
| SBS Weekly Review | |
|---|---|
| Also known as | Music Television Weekly (1987–2006) |
| Genre | Variety Music Television Sketch Comedy Satire |
| Country of origin | Haesan |
| No. of seasons | 19 |
| No. of episodes | 451[a] |
| Production | |
| Running time | 85 minutes |
| Production company | SBS Productions |
| Release | |
| Original network | SBS |
| Original release | March 25, 2006 |
SBS Weekly Review is a Haesanite variety and music television show, known for its sketch comedy and political satire. The show, originally known as Music Television Weekly, has its origins as a music television program and retains aspects of its music competition show origins. SBS Weekly Review is broadcast in English in Haesan and a dozen other nations through SBS and its affiliate broadcasting partners. It is seasonal, typically airing in the fall and winter, but runs weekly on Saturday late evenings throughout its season. It is among the most popular English-language variety shows in the IDU by viewership.
Cast[edit | edit source]
SBS Weekly Review maintains a cast of repertory players, who appear in every week's episode, and featured players, newer members of the team which make limited appearances as they learn and develop into repertory roles.
| 2025–26 season cast | |
|---|---|
| Repertory players | Featured players |
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| ‡ denotes Weekly Review anchor | |
Show format[edit | edit source]
The show opens with a cold open, a sketch typically reflecting current affairs in either Haesanite or global politics. It follows with an opening monologue by the host of the episode. The monologue is followed by the first sketch, typically featuring the host of the episode and often co-written by the host. The first of two music breaks is next, featuring the winners of the Tuesday National Broadcasting and Wednesday Meridian Broadcasting music shows. A second comedic skit follows, often featuring a musical element. The second music break is next, featuring the winners of the Thursday SBS and Friday HBS music shows. The third skit is Weekly Review, in which two anchors satirize the previous week's news and ongoings with fictitious and often returning guest interviewees. The final segment is a callback stage for the music act which was voted the winner of the show by a mixture of judge, live audience, and television viewer polling methods.
Broadcast[edit | edit source]
SBS Weekly Review is broadcast by SBS in Haesan. It is broadcast on SBS affiliates across the IDU, and is streamable on various apps which SBS maintains partnerships with. In Haesan, the show airs concurrently at 22:00 WHT (23:00 CHT/00:00 EHT) across the nation. That timeslot abuts typical "family viewing" hours in Western Haesan, so regular broadcasting pauses at 21:45 to provide ample time for the channel to be changed for those viewing beforehand. Like most Haesanite television, there are no breaks for advertisements within the program itself, instead it is bounded by two five-minute advertising blocks, typically starting at 21:55 WHT and 23:25 WHT. The program has occasionally been delayed due to sporting events running long, most recently on October 28, 2023, when the program's start was delayed to 23:12 WHT due to an Astral Cup Finals game between the Saerom Rockets and AT Lunas going to 12 innings.
Reception[edit | edit source]
Reception for the show was generally positive in its opening years. Music Television Weekly provided high-profile cultural commentary which was welcomed by the public after decades of dictatorship. The program also saw experimentation with genres, and is widely credited as part of the origin of Hae-pop and as a key vector for its growth in Haesan and abroad. As SBS Weekly Review, the show has become iconic as one of the most influential television show brands in the IDU, even leading to short lived spinoff shows in Lauchenoiria and Slokais Islands. The show has gained controversy for its characteristically irreverent handling of many sensitive topics, including but not limited to Celestialism, Minjianism, the Littoral Marches, the Ambonar Church of God, the Patriarch of the Sanctarian Catholic Church, Empress Athena II of Opthelia, Empress Calhualyana of Xiomera, Suleman Chaher, the Jinyu Agreement, Hae-pop idols and military service, Hae-pop idols and dating, Hae-pop idols and restrictive dieting, the Choi Da-yeon impeachment scandal, plastic surgery, and Huenya Fried Chicken.[b] However, the show is still regarded as a landmark television show, rating #23 on the Democratic Times News Service's 2024 rating of the "100 Most Influential Television Shows of All Time".