(Credits: Esquire Network / USA Network)

You might want to clear some time this week, because American Ninja Warrior: Ninja vs. Ninja is about to leave Netflix on October 19th. And if you’ve never seen it, this is your last chance to catch one of the most entertaining reality competitions to ever make obstacle courses look like an art form.

When it first aired in 2016, Ninja vs. Ninja (then known as Team Ninja Warrior) took the high-intensity energy of American Ninja Warrior and added a twist, which was teamwork. Instead of watching individuals race the clock, the show introduced three-person teams battling each other side-by-side on a mirrored course. It was followed by a mix of speed and strategy, and pure athletic showmanship.

The format was quite simple. You had two teams face off; one athlete from each side runs the same obstacle course, and whoever finishes first earns a point. But what made Ninja vs. Ninja so gripping was how it transformed a solo endurance test into a competitive relay, which is again, teamwork.

In this show, teammates could tag in mid-course and recover from mistakes. In fact, they can also block their opponents to slow them down. Suddenly, the show wasn’t just about strength or balance; it was about quick decisions, trust, and a little bit of mind games.

Ninja vs. Ninja was hosted by Matt Iseman and Akbar Gbajabiamila, with Alex Curry on the sidelines, and it ran for three seasons and 26 episodes. First, it ran on Esquire Network and later on USA Network. Each episode felt like a live sporting event, the kind of late-night television that was balanced with nail-biting tension with real camaraderie. It was less about perfection and more about watching people push themselves to the edge.

For long-time Ninja Warrior fans, Ninja vs. Ninja offered a refreshing shift in tone. It kept the signature obstacles like your warped wall and the salmon ladder, oh, and the floating steps. But they also added urgency and unpredictability. There were rivalries and underdog teams that came out of nowhere to dominate. Every race felt personal, not just athletic.

The show wrapped in 2018, but it still holds a special place for anyone who misses that era of straightforward competition TV. The time before everything became too polished or overproduced. It’s the kind of series you can jump into mid-season and instantly find yourself rooting for a team you didn’t know existed five minutes ago.

Now that it’s leaving Netflix, it’s unclear when or if it will return to streaming. So if you’ve been scrolling past it without giving it a chance, this is the week to fix that.

Ninja vs. Ninja is a reminder of why shows like American Ninja Warrior became such cultural touchstones in the first place, because watching people push themselves to the limit never really gets old. So before it disappears on October 19th, dive in for one last run.