Stefan Raab's new show is a best-of of the Raabiverse

Raab plays giggle clips, jokes about Peter Maffay and takes small games deadly seriously. Television in 2012? No, streaming in 2024. Stefan Raab has opened the duel with his old home channel on RTL+.

Hürth – One time in the time machine please: Stefan Raab has presented his new show for the first time, picking up directly from the time before his long TV break. On Wednesday evening, the streaming service RTL+ released the first episode of “Du gewinnst hier nicht die Million bei Stefan Raab”, which the presenter had touted as the “first entertainment quiz competition hybrid show in the world”. As it turned out, it is a kind of best-of mix of his old hits “TV total” and “Schlag den Raab”. The duel with Raab's old home channel ProSieben has thus begun.

It was the first time since 2015 that Raab had hosted a show again. At that time, he had actually said goodbye to the screen and hung up his “TV shoes”, as he put it. On Saturday, however, he returned to the limelight, had a third (unsuccessful) exhibition fight with boxer Regina Halmich and then announced that he would be presenting shows again. Only those in the know know what he has been doing in recent years.

The whole time that has passed since 2015 seemed to have been erased in his new format. Blue shirt, jeans, white sneakers – Raab also looked exactly the same as he did in his earlier TV days. “Here I am again. It's that simple!” he said without saying much – and then it started. The off-screen narrator joked that the “Raabinator” was back “after almost ten years of summer break”.

“TV total” reloaded

You had to take that literally. The first part of his show seemed like a “TV total” reloaded. It all started with stand-up comedy and firing off little funny clips at the push of a button. Raab used to control the giggle films using buttons on his desk (called “nipple”), but now he has a small pocket computer called a “meme pad”. “We also need to move forward a bit in terms of technology,” he explained. The sound that announces the clips now sounds like a bicycle horn.

The target of his jokes: “Traumschiff” captain Florian Silbereisen, entertainer Jürgen Milski from the 2000 season of “Big Brother” and musician Peter Maffay. All of them were very well-established characters. Raab underlined punch lines with his typical “Soo!” at the end. At the same time, it was striking how much fun he seemed to be having. There was no sign of a certain listlessness that critics accused him of at the end of his last TV phase on “TV total”. Raab was in a great mood and well prepared.

Raab rants like before

In the second part, the show then tipped towards “Beat Raab” 2.0, with elements of “Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?” (“Then it's a bit like the evil version of Günther Jauch,” RTL program director Inga Leschek had explained beforehand). Raab asked candidates quiz questions and competed against them in small games. One of them involved changing car tires. He puffed away as he screwed and – we all know this – always sensed great discrimination. “Can someone tell me whether it's correct that there is no brake on the front?” ranted Raab. Answer: It was correct.

Anyone who beats the presenter in enough games can win a million euros. No candidate managed to do this in the first edition of the weekly show. The premiere candidate Oliver, a service worker from Karlsruhe, had to admit defeat when he tried to throw tennis balls at an office chair. The show is only available via streaming on RTL+ and is scheduled to be released every Wednesday.

“You won't win the million here with Stefan Raab” is a direct attack on ProSieben and Sebastian Pufpaff, who now presents “TV total” there and can also be seen on Wednesday evenings. Anyone who switched back and forth between Raab and Puffpaf could see two strategic approaches. While Raab acted as if the competition didn't exist, Pufpaff hit back with jokes.

Imitating Raab, he walked pathetically down a show staircase on ProSieben, accompanied by two assistants with measly table fireworks in their hands. He was introduced with the words: “He was gone for seven days. We didn't see him for seven days. Nobody knows whether he's really coming. And if he does come: what will he look like? Here is – but only maybe – Sebastian Pufpaff.” An allusion to the fuss that was made about Raab's return at the weekend.

Puffpaff and the elephant in the room

At the same time, Puffpaff was obviously keen to address the elephant in the room, but to exude routine. When discussing the duel, he quickly moved on to the now resolved question of the CDU and CSU's candidate for chancellor and other events.

However, the Heavytones had to be disbanded. This was the show band that was once put together for Stefan Raab, but which was later also heard on Pufpaff and other ProSieben shows. As has now become clear, it is once again Raab's regular orchestra and accompanied him on his singing performances on Wednesday. Pufpaff presented a new band around the musician Jan Klinkenberg.

During one of Raab's games on RTL+, the show's commentator wisely explained: “There are very, very few things in the cosmos that Raab cannot do.” Whether that includes turning back time will become clear in the coming weeks. dpa