Top 10 Floor is Lava Wipeouts That Will Make You Cringe
Top 10 Floor Is Lava Wipeouts
Who knew a children’s game could make for such compelling television? Welcome to MsMojo, and today we’ll be counting down our picks for the Top 10 Floor is Lava Wipeouts.
For this list, we’ll be looking at the absolute best wipeouts from the inaugural season of this Netflix competition series. Please note, while there have been some epic, bone-crunching leaps from one obstacle to another, we’re only considering true wipeouts - moves that landed competitors in the lava!
#10: Nick
“The Basement: Level 2”
These three brothers came in talking a big game. But though they seemed battle ready, The Basement had other ideas. Nick, the eldest of three, makes the risky move of climbing the pyramid, which seemingly never ends well. He manages to knock over the obelisk, but getting there is a different story. His attempted launch fails spectacularly, and he instead goes skiing down the slope, smacking into the base of the obelisk instead. When we first met the Battling Bros., we were told that they work in the church and serve in the military. Weeell in the Old Testament, Egypt and first born sons have a messy history. Nick went from pyramid to obelisk only to wind up in the red sea!
#9: Steven
“The Kitchen: Level 2”
The Karaoke Crew certainly looked dressed for success! Nothing says we came here to win like tuxedo t-shirts! With one of his team members, Todd, already lost to the lava however, Steven’s got a whole lot of pressure on his shoulders. The only thing standing between him and Jason, who successfully completed the obstacle course, is just one little leap. Okay… it’s not so little. Stephen has to bridge a gap that’s notably longer than he is tall. He gives it his all and he manages to land on the second step - which just so happens to already be covered in about a foot of lava. It’s too little too late, and that landing can not have been easy on his ankle.
#8: Mike
“The Bedroom: Level 1”
This wipeout doesn’t look especially painful. But it sure is painful to watch! If Mike can get himself on to the trunk, he’s basically home free. His foot unfortunately slips on contact, but he looks like he’s caught himself. That lava is slippery stuff though, and with nothing to grip onto, he eventually slips into the lava. He was the first of the Little League Dads to take the plunge, but not the last! Teammate Scott launches himself from the spinning bed onto a table, only to take it on the shoulder with a sickening thud and tumble into the lava. And while Andy may have managed to stay on dry land, many of his transitions made us wince with pain.
#7: Xavier
“The Planetarium: Level 1”
Part of the fun of watching any sort of competition show is that, as a viewer, you become something of an at-home expert. And if we learned anything from watching “Floor is Lava”, it’s that you never get on the pyramid or the telescope. Xavier was the first competitor to make contact with the latter obstacle, and though he plans to give it a bearhug, the moment his feet make contact, its instability becomes painfully clear. Xavier tries to pivot and change course, but all he does is throw himself face-first into a wall of rock. With Nick having already taken the plunge, it’s all on Kay. Inexplicably… she too goes for the telescope, which promptly tosses her into the lava.
#6: Dan
“The Planetarium: Level 1”
Well… it was certainly an ambitious approach! After carefully stepping onto the first planet, Dan attempted to cover two obstacles in one fell swoop, despite the fact that he was taking off from a squishy sphere. The flat earth (as host Rutledge Wood likes to call it) is a notably slick surface, making it an all-around terrible halfway point to push off from. Dan essentially falls off the flat earth only to land on a boulder. It’s clearly an uncomfortable landing, but since the rocks here are soft, it doesn’t look too painful. Sadly, Dan isn’t in the clear. And it’s him clinging for dear life before unceremoniously dropping into the lava that really earns him this spot.
#5: Joezen
“The Bedroom: Level 1”
Wipeouts are half the fun of this show; we suspect that many viewers are rooting for the lava rather than the actual teams! It’s fascinating to see the many creative ways a body can go down, but when two competitors wipe out in short succession on the same obstacle, that’s a rare treat. Alec and Joezen both need to go from the fireplace to a slippery trunk. The second Joezen makes contact with the surface, his feet slip out from under him and he lands hard on his back. The trunk is basically a slip ‘n slide, which promptly carries him into the lava. Alec, for his part, misjudges the gap and never even makes it to the trunk, smacking his arm on the way down.
#4: Zach
“The Bedroom: Level 2”
On “Floor is Lava”, until you actually land on an object, it’s really hard to judge what sort of surface you’re going to be dealing with. When Zach was sizing up that table, he likely wondered just how much grip it had to offer. Given that it was covered in slick lava and the same could be said for him, the answer was “not much”. This fall doesn’t look especially painful. But let's pretend for a moment that that’s actually lava. Before the plunge, he basically boiled his head! In reality, the temperature of the so-called “lava” poses no threat, but this wipeout is just so cinematic that we felt it deserved the honor of fourth place!
#3: Nick
“The Kitchen: Level 2”
At first glance, you might be wondering how the contenders on “Floor is Lava” are able to walk away from the show rather than being carried out on a stretcher. If you look closely, however, you'll notice that many of the obstacles are made of materials with a certain amount of give to them. That’s all well and good, but when you’re dropping from this high and breaking the fall with your face… it’s gonna hurt no matter what that Island is made of. Nick tries to swing from the pot-rack monkey bars and seems well-positioned for success. Unfortunately, he misjudges the counterswing of the hanging pot-rack and comes down hard, his body parallel to the lava, right on the edge.
#2: Mitchell
"The Basement: Level 1"
This is the sort of wipeout that, even as a viewer, you can’t help but worry that you’ll be feeling for days. And, adding to insult to injury, it happened right at the finish line! It can be hard to tell these triplets apart, so we’ll just have to take Floor is Lava host Rutledge Wood at his word here when he identifies this poor competitor as Mitchell. He tries to swing from the cargo to safety, but his momentum is all wrong and so he instead falls - from a rather great height we should add - and absolutely wrecks himself on the steps. Brother Sean soons joins him in the lava, another victim of the pyramid. It’s a memorable wipeout, but Mitchell’s was downright brutal.
Before we unveil our top pick, here are a few honorable mentions.
Lyndsey, "The Bedroom: Level 1"
A Bold Leap That Fell Short & REALLY Must’ve Hurt the Armpits
Karl, “The Planetarium: Level 1”
Shoots for the Moon, Makes an Impact, But Can’t Come to Grips with His New Environment
Alyssa, “The Bedroom: Level 2”
Misjudges the Chaise Longue & Smacks the Armrest in Style
Katy, “The Basement: Level 1”
Slams Into the Obelisk But Also Half in the Lava
Jen, “The Kitchen: Level 1”
Falls Short of the Table Despite Putting Her Body Into It
#1: DJ
"The Kitchen: Level 1"
The single most important takeaway from season 1 of “Floor is Lava”? Under no circumstances should you ever set foot on a bar stool. You might make it on (which is a feat unto itself), but it’s a one way trip. We already saw Todd go down and take the key with him. Felicia tried a chair-to-chair transfer to no avail. But DJ’s encounter with the bar stool is the one that really sticks with us. He takes off like a flying squirrel...but a flying squirrel who tried to jump from a swivelling bar stool. DJ gets tons of height, but it doesn’t translate to distance and he comes down hard. Thank you for your service, doctor!
