Aksel the killer clown

It is worth remembering that nowhere in the task is the intended audience age for the clown show mentioned, and Olli is not present to answer any questions. All of the contestants make the natural assumption that they are performing for children (presided over by Olli), and plan their clown looks and acts accordingly. Aksel, however, goes in a much more Pennywise-like direction for his clown, painting blood splatters on his chest and underneath his eyes.

He stalks into the living room and glares silently at both men present in the audience, before placing a bin bag beneath Marvin’s feet and then one over Olli’s head.

Aksel then stands directly in front of Marvin and raises an axe over his head as if to swing it down on him, before the weight of the axe pulls him backwards, sending him crashing to the ground. Aksel attempts to take a few more swings at Marvin with the Axe, but misses each time, either hitting nearby furniture or slipping and falling over again.

When Olli announces that the time is up, Aksel begins to cry – the only sound he makes during his attempt – and then leaves [on the official Kongen Befaler podcast, Olli admitted that he had stopped Aksel’s attempt early, for insurance reasons, as while Aksel had good control over his axe swings, it still wasn’t 100% safe].

In the studio, Atle expresses his astonishment at Aksel’s decision, noting that normally the audience for a clown would have been a group of kindergarteners, and that the police would likely have been called and shut down production, once Aksel turned up.

Marvin awards Aksel third place, saying: “Uncomfortable, but well thought-out.”

(Written by Jenny R and proofread by Karl Craven)

(Illustrations collected by Jenny R and adjusted by David Fuller)