Fuji TV recently held a press conference to present their October TV program lineup and announced that popular cooking battle variety program �Ryori no Tetsujin� will be making a comeback on Japanese TV screens as �Iron Chef�. The program will be aired every Friday from 7:57pm to 8:54pm.

The program�s first incarnation ran for 6 years, starting in 1993, and achieved great viewership ratings despite its nighttime 11pm slot. Ratings averaged 14.8% and reached 23.2% at its peak. The program�s regular chefs, called �Iron Chefs� faced off against challenger chefs in an intense battle held in the kitchen studio. The winner was decided by a panel of judges. In 2004, the show format was bought by an American company and "Iron Chef" was broadcast in 80 countries.

At the press conference, Fuji TV expressed that �Iron Chef� is making a triumphant return. Director of production, Arai Akihiro remarked, "The show traveled the world, and has been polished up and weeded out. The new 'Iron chef' will be the world version that we can show now in the year 2012."

More details about the participants appearing in �Iron Chef� will be announced at a later date.

What other Japanese programs would you like to see on TV again?

Source + Image: Mantan Web