One of my favorite short stories of all time is "The Most Dangerous Game".

One of my favorite cartoons of all time is "Tom & Jerry."

One of my favorite video game series of all time is "Metal Gear Solid".

So it stands to reason that I would be tapped for this assignment, SciFi's "Cha$e."

The premise is simple. Ten contestants, or "Runners", armed with their wits and little else, are pursued by a team seven emotionless, ubiquitous "Hunters", seemingly programmed to do only one thing... Pursue and eliminate. Okay, so that's two things. The longer you stay in the game, the more equipment you stand to gain, the more money you make (up to $100 per minute), and the greater the challenges become. Runners are allowed to help each other, but ultimately, it's everyone for themselves, as only one person can pick up the grand prize, up to $50,000.

The primary objective, though... Make it from Point A to Point B without getting caught. And if you're caught... you leave the game with nothing. In that effect, it's less like a video game and more like high-stakes tactical espionage free-running.

Tonight's episode drops the Runners off at Terminal Island. This will be their playground for the next 60 minutes. The objective, obviously, is to stay alive. Aside from the cash you earn by staying alive, you also earn cash at one of many $25,000 money flags hidden in the game. The only way to keep your money and win the game is to find the hidden exit portal, which Trey will divulge info on toward the end of the game.

Each Runner is equipped with a pack.

And as the horn blows, the Cha$e... is on.

Let's meet this week's Runners.

LAURA; 30 Chicago personal assistant "I'm not the fastest gazelle in the field, but I'm definitely the smartest."	MECCA; 36 Anaheim, CA dancer "I'm used to guys chasing me, so it's no big deal."	CYNTHIA; 28 Pittsburgh personal trainer. "A lot of this game has to do with strategizing."	ARIELLE; 22 Oak Park, CA sales associate. "I do sales and I trick people into buying my stuff all day long."	CLEAVANT; 22 Los Angeles recent college grad Has chicken legs.
BILL; 33 Huntsville, AL financial analyst "My biggest fear in this game is getting caught by surprise."	DEMETRIOS; 35 Bronx, NY yogi and florist "My strategy is to be a ghost."	JASON; 37 Boston carpenter "I wanna win something."	BRYAN; 28 El Paso, TX IT consultant "I'm gonna be playing for all the computer geeks out there."	EVA; 47 San Antonio translator "I'm in better shape than most of the people here."

Challenge #1: Barrel Tops. Each barrel top is a piece of a puzzle. Your task is to stack the barrels so that they form a picture. When done correctly, they will give a Deflector, an important defense tool against the Hunters.

The players can't stop yelling on top of each other, but just as they get a flow of things, in comes Trey with info that the first two Hunters have been released onto the game board. And since we've met the Runners, and we're all about equal time, let's meet... the Hunters.

GRANT Sprinter Type "..."

VAZQUEZ Jumper Type "..."

ICEY Endurance Type "..."

AMAZON Speed Type "..."

SCOTT Agility Type "..."

KIM Speed Type "..."

WONG Stealth Type "..."

- Hunter Grant: Sprinter-type. "..."
- Hunter Vazquez: Jumper-type. "..."

Grant & Vazquez have initiated search mode as the Runners have unlocked the Deflector, one for each player. A Deflector can send a Hunter in the opposite direction, but they can only use it once during the hour, so they have to use it only when it's most advantageous.

The Runners begin hiding when Trey decides that in five minutes, he will release another Hunter... And she's waiting by a corner ready to strike.

It's quite a trek from one side of the dock to the other, so there are a couple of ferries to assist. Each ferry can only hold three Runners at a time. No Hunters are allowed, but once you're aboard, you stay aboard until the ferry reaches the other side. So now three Runners are on board, and Cleavant and Arielle are not one of them. Arielle goes the long way, and Cleavant just stands there hoping that she gets caught.

And Jason trips. Not a good thing when you're trying to outrun an army of faceless minions. Also not good, Bryan losing his map, which is still floating around on dry dock. He, Demetrios, and Cleavant are off the ferry, not knowing that just around the corner is Grant looking for a target.

Meanwhile, Eva collects a money flag worth $1000.

While Cynthia hides in a bush from a Hunter walking past... she now has bigger things to worry about, because the third Hunter, Hunter Icey (whom you may recognize from "Cram") is on the prowl.. and after Bill. TARGET SIGHTED. Deflector! And Icey soon is no longer a threat.

The Ferry Three see Grant running toward a target... then turning around and running towards them. TARGET(S) SIGHTED. Aaaaand DEFLECTED!

But Grant is not done yet. He spies Cleavant & Demetrios next to a dumpster... and then the two avert... and then we're running again. Only this time, Demetrios is separated. Bryan & Cleavant start hiding. And we're running again. TARGET SIGHTED... and Bryan is caught and neutralized. Shame, too. He had $2000.

Meanwhile, at the cannery, Arielle is not aware that Vazquez is already there. Vazquez... too aware. TARGET SIGHTED. Wouldn't you like to be invisible right now? Don't worry, Trey has something for that, too.

Challenge #2: Back Packs. The Runner Pack is actually an alarm. In 10 minutes, it'll make a loud noise that will alert the Hunters. To deactivate your Pack, locate another Runner and back-to-back him/her to deactivate your Pack. But once you deactivate your Pack, you can't deactivate another.

Several runners try to do this, but Laura & Arielle are separated while being chased by a Hunter. Meanwhile, two Runners realize that they have mirrors! That'll help. Laura deflects Vazquez, but now he's heading toward Arielle! Aaand deflected again.

Mecca and Jason are deactivated and have unlocked their Invisibility Glasses. Once these are on, they have two minutes of invisibility from any Hunter that crosses their path. Same with Eva & Arielle. Unfortunately, Bill and Laura have to fend for themselves, seeing as he's on the ferry and she's with her two lady-friends. Not a problem, as Laura syncs up with Cynthia.

Trey is releasing another Hunter... Amazon (whom you may remember as a former dodgeball player).

There are still three deactivated alarms with two minutes left. Cleavant, all by himself, suggests hiding... and sweating. Laura engages her Inivisiglasses. Cleavant is just going to walk back and forth for a while...

And right about now, there was a deafening noise... in three different places. And a helpful noise on the phones... Clues to the Exit Point.

CLUE: Stay seaside if you want to see the money.

Is the Exit on Seaside?

Cleavant is trying to outrun Amazon. And Laura is wondering why the ferry is gone at 28 minutes..

Thirty minutes down, thirty to go. Trey makes an offer... $3000 to the first Runner to drop out of the game right now. Jason is the first to call... and he opts out with $3000.

So that means that not only is Laura NOT out... she's looking at a Hunter who's looking for someone to hunt. Same with Demetrios, who is still holding onto a Deflector. Cynthia's fully loaded for the time being. Arielle only has the glasses, and she apparently thinks Amazon is a dude... Easy mistake to make. And time to run again. TARGET SIGHTED. Arielle uses her glasses... She's invisible... Can't say the same for Cynthia. TARGET SIGHTED. Deflect!

Back on the boat for Laura. Back off for Cleavant. He wants to stay seaside. Cynthia wants to stick with Eva and Arielle.

Trey comes in with the final challenge to unlock the Sonic Stunner, which gives Runners the power to freeze Hunters in their tracks for two minutes at a time. Again, it's a one-time-only AND a first-come-first-served. They're located in two places, the Harbor Light Diner or Marina Building #9.

Eva goes to the diner. Bill goes to the marina. Cleavant... is on the wrong side of the map. Eva, Arielle & Cynthia are about to get company. Times two. TARGETS SIGHTED. Glasses! Good for Cynthia... Bad for Arielle, who's caught and taken out of the game.

Bill finds the marina and enters a space marked "Hunter Access Denied." Great... except for the fact that there's a fifth Hunter, Hunter Scott, waiting for him. Same thing for Cynthia, who runs into a caged Hunter Kim. Trey then informs him of...

Challenge #3: Pedal for Your Life. Scott and Kim will be released in five minutes. Bill and Cynthia have to pedal half a mile on the bike provided if he wants the Sonic Stunner. But better hurry, because there's only one stunner at each location.

And no, hitting on the Hunter will not help. ANY.

Meanwhile, on the ferries, Laura and Cleavant run into each other. Mecca runs into Bill at the marina... armed with the Stunner. Cynthia grabs hers...

Meanwhile, Laura picked the wrong time to be too pooped to poop, because there's a Hunter who wants a wipe BADLY. Laura offers to shake at least. Gracious in defeat. Fifteen minutes left.... and two more Hunters have just been uncaged. Not only that, half of the game board has been closed. The remaining Runners now have five minutes to get to Quadrant A or C in order to avoid elimination.

Luckily for Cleavant, he finds Seaside Drive. Unluckily for him... so do a couple of Hunters. Even MORE unluckily for him... He's only got two minutes to get out of Quadrant B. And two minutes later, he's out of B... and into D. Another closed quadrant. That'll eliminate him.

Eva & Cynthia manage to outrun a Hunter, and everyone seems to have a grasp on the surrounds... until the final Hunter, Wong, is released. He's a spotter Hunter, meaning he can't catch you, but he can alert the others if he spots you.

And he's on a Spyder motorcycle.

And he's found Mecca. Which means the others are on their way. TARGET SIGHTED... Twice. Deflect! Invisiglasses! Should've used the latter first to protect herself from both at the same time. Oh well.

Now with five Runners remaining, it's time to head to the Exit Point...

EXIT POINT: Al Larson's Marina

You have two minutes to get to the Exit Point. First Runner to make it to the Exit Point takes home all the money they've earned. Fail to get there in time, and you leave with nothing.

The Hunters, by the way, are on their way as well.

Hunter Wong spots Mecca... again. So here come the Hunters to look for her... and anyone else that might get in their way. Mecca... Eliminated.

Amazon finds Bill... and FREEZE, DIRTBAG! And that helps him buy enough time to find the blue gate at the Marina... and Trey! He's done it! Bill has escaped the game and won $25,000! What's he going to do with the money? Invest it in a new home for his wife and kids.

Next week, another play area, and another 10 pets for the Hunters to play with. Until then... game over.