Every Sidemen Sunday of 2021 Ranked

As far as I’m concerned, The Sidemen have been the champions of the YouTube scene for at least the past couple of years. They’ve really made my lockdown experience more bearable with their frequent upload schedule, and every Sunday I can look forward to an entertaining video to end the week.

They released a Sidemen Sunday 52 times across the year (one a week, if you want to do the maths), but not all of them can be bangers. Granted, a lot of them were exceptionally well made, but certain constraints (thanks COVID) meant they couldn’t all be zingers. How would I rank them all?

I haven’t made a list quite like this before, so here’s a random selection of past blog posts that have nothing to do with YouTube at all:

Just an FYI: I’ve made some custom headings for this list – I’m sure it won’t be too hard to crack the code.

Could’ve Been MoreSidemen

All of these videos were stinkers compared to the standards that I know the Sidemen can do, and they probably could have just been MoreSidemen videos instead (and almost all of them were last-minute changes due to COVID).

52 – Top 100 Sidemen Moments 2020

It’s fair enough, I suppose, to do a quick montage video to give the lads a week off, but at the end of the day this was always going to be the weakest video.

There are countless compilation videos that do the same thing, but arguably better.

51 – Most Weight Lost In 24 Hours Challenge

I don’t care at all for any of the “Weight Lost” or “Calorie Battle!” videos, but somehow they seem to get tons of views.

I just find it so dull to watch them exercising for an hour straight, I can’t find a single moment of enjoyment in videos like these.

50 – 100,000 Calorie Battle – The Rematch!

Same as before, these types of videos are completely skippable.

I really hope they never do videos like these again; my heart sunk every time a Sunday Sunday like this popped up in my subscription box.

49 – Gogglebox

An unfortunate case of COVID ruining the plans for the week so the lads had to come up with a quick and easy Plan B, and in fairness it’s decent.

Maybe my standards were just so low going into it, but I found a couple of moments here and there to be worthwhile (especially the Godly Ethan / Harry combo of dreams). That being said, it’s just a glorified Sidemen Reacts at the end of the day.

48 – Eat Food From Different Countries 24 Hour Challenge

Basically just a calorie battle with an extra layer of pizzazz to it, but once again I couldn’t really care less.

It’s completely bare-bones in both concept and execution, and I feel the lads could have easily made it more exciting somehow.

47 – Extreme Bake Off

You could say this video was … undercooked.

This was easily the biggest disappointment of the year, as with a cast as strong as this I thought it could have made for some really iconic moments. In the end it just ended up being a bog standard episode of Bake Off, nothing special at all.

46 – Impossible $100,000 Footgolf Battle

Clearly this was meant to be a MoreSidemen video, so while it was reasonably fun I couldn’t put it anywhere else other than near the bottom of the list.

45 – Sidemen VS OnlyFans Olympics

I get the feeling the Sidemen had a lot more fun in this video than the viewers did.

Once you look past the pretty ladies, this is a completely forgettable sports battle. Vik “The Indian Speedboat” was funny, but that’s about it.

44 – Sidemen Abandoned Challenge

This must’ve been way more fun to film than to watch, as clocking in at nearly 2 hours this felt like a slog in places.

It’s a neat premise I suppose, but it goes on for far too long. Also, the Simon / Harry bus segment was a grim reminder than the majority of Sidemen fans are just annoying bratty kids, so points lost for giving me an existential crisis.

43 – Guess The Fake Couple

A fairly standard video, but I had a decent time with it.

I’m glad all of the couples were willing to play along with the ridiculous questions – their open-mindedness is what made the video work in the first place.

42 – Guess The Millionaire

The other of the two “Guess The [BLANK]” videos, so if I had to pick a favourite I would say this one … but only barely.

I think more so than the couple one, I felt there was an actual mystery involved this time around. I found myself knocking off suspects who said something that broke their story, mincing over their use of words carefully etc. and that interactivity really intrigued the detective in me.

Decent

These were all Sidemen Sundays that I enjoyed, and while they might not be too memorable in the grand scheme of things they still served up some decent entertainment.

41 – Spend $100,000 On Fans

It’s nice to see the Sidemen giving back to fans (especially adult fans who aren’t brain-dead kids), but it wasn’t the most entertaining video.

The fans they chose were actually good fun, and their banter with the Sidemen was enough to knock it up a tier.

40 – $100,000 Hot VS Cold Holiday

Cold Team’s vibes were far more immaculate than the Hot Team.

The team in Iceland definitely salvaged this video, and there wasn’t much entertainment value for the viewer otherwise. It’s obviously very lovely to see them all enjoy themselves on a good holiday for once, but the amusing thing is usually that good vs bad team dynamic that was sorely missing from this.

39 – Sidemen VS 100 Kids Football Match

Some very funny moments in this one, but it’s almost ruined in places by kids just being the annoying kids you’d expect.

Still, you can tell everyone involved had a great time, and part of that rubs off onto the viewer.

38 – 5 Minutes To Spend $100,000

A video that’s only really entertaining in the final third, but it all came together brilliantly by the end.

Harry’s Talia insult is by far the most memorable thing from this, but the last few minutes of present giving are also very funny.

37 – Buying One Colour For 24 Hours

Another one of those videos that doesn’t pick up until the end, but once all the lads are in the same room the real magic can begin.

Watching them all get dressed up in ridiculous outfits was a concept I didn’t think could be this funny, and Harry’s “Deep Throat Man” is clearly the MVP.

36 – Crystal Maze

I don’t think many people outside of the UK are that familiar with the Crystal Maze TV show, but it was one of my favourites growing up.

Sadly, a great TV show doesn’t necessarily make for great YouTube content, and while I’m sure it was fun to film it wasn’t the most scintillating viewing.

35 – All Sports Golf Battle

This one had MoreSidemen written all over it, yet somehow there are enough funny moments to bump it up a tier.

All of the lads brought a great competitive energy to the game, and every time one of them messed up the reactions were priceless.

34 – $50,000 A-Z Drinking Challenge

This video went from zero to hero in the blink of an eye, as the actual drinking challenge part was a bit of a snooze-fest if I’m being honest.

The last bit is what makes the video, as all of the roof games and shenanigans was proof that if you just stick all of the Sidemen in the same place and let them mess around you’re bound to strike gold.

33 – Women Rate The Most Attractive Sidemen

A concept ripped straight off of Jubilee or Cut, but having the Sidemen in it will always make it better than those original videos.

A fair few of the questions were pretty mundane, but the juicy questions led to lots of great banter – fair play to all of the strangers who went along with it.

32 – Hide & Seek On A Jumbo Jet

Hide & Seeks are always going to be fairly fun videos (one of my least favourite recurring videos, but still alright), but this one was definitely the worst of the year.

A jumbo jet is such a weird place to choose to do a video like this on, and it becomes apparent immediately that there aren’t all that many places to hide.

31 – World’s Most Expensive Mukbang

Same as with the Hide & Seeks, Mukbangs are always a decent recurring video that acts as a good filler for when an idea falls through for a main channel video.

That being said, this is definitely the weakest mukbang. They hardly get any really expensive food to justify the video title, and there aren’t really any funny conversations or moments.

30 – £500 Car Challenge

This video had the potential to make the top 10, but unfortunately it fell apart at the end – through no fault of their own, I might add.

The first two thirds are absolutely fantastic, and they’ve clearly been inspired by some prime Top Gear, but that last challenge fails spectacularly. They didn’t get the chance to film what they wanted before nightfall, so the video just ends on a really limp tone.

29 – Hide & Seek In A Castle

This was the most middle-of-the-road Hide & Seek possible, and I can barely remember anything from it at all.

The addition of Calfreezy makes it ever so slightly better, although I actually quite like Josh’s input in these videos so it’s a shame he couldn’t make it.

28 – Extreme Tag

This was a video that was always going to bring in views with the star power, but I’m glad they also included some other of their friends like Randy and Callux to add another interesting dynamic.

It’s the type of video where there’s no action for 15 minutes and then it all kicks off for a minute, so while it’s definitely entertaining it’s not entirely gripping all the way through.

27 – Hot Tub Mukbang

Other than “World’s Most Expensive Mukbang”, this was the only mukbang that didn’t really grip me when I was watching it.

There were certainly some funny moments, like KSI freaking out when a wasp appeared (I can relate), but on the whole it was a very by-the-book instalment in the mukbang series.

26 – Sidemen VS Arsenal Women’s Team

This felt more like a low-budget classic Sidemen video compared to the high-concept stuff we get nowadays, and fair play to the Arsenal Women’s team for bringing a fun energy to the video.

At the end of the day this is just a simple football video, so while it was great to see them score some great goals it’s hardly anything worth writing home about.

25 – Hide & Seek In A Nuclear Bunker

A nuclear bunker could have been a complete flop of a location, like the jumbo jet, but the individual moments are what make this one.

I especially liked Ethan’s plan of hiding in plain sight, and Simon’s revelation when he finally finds him made the whole escapade worth it.

24 – Hide & Seek In The World’s Biggest Toy Store

While it can be great to watch the lads try to find the best hiding place, sometimes it ends up being funnier when all seriousness goes out the window and they just mess around instead.

I found it hilarious how they were all just messing about out in the open, and yet it took ages for them to be caught in the end.

23 – The Price Is Right

A great video concept with a fantastic set, you can tell the Sidemen are starting to join the money leagues.

Not too many funny moments if I’m being completely honest, but the production value and general whimsy of it all make it good.

22 – Barber Shop (Gone Wrong)

Whoever came up with the concept of this video is an absolute lunatic, yet somehow the people that agreed to take part are even crazier.

I’m not complaining though, as it was so funny seeing the most ridiculous hairstyles realised on unsuspecting victims. There are some truly outrageous trims here, and I can only imagine what their excuses were to their friends once they were done.

21 – Hide & Seek In The Most Expensive House In London

This was a great location to do a Hide & Seek in, and there were plenty of great moments to keep me invested.

Ethan just giving up and going swimming was great, Ali-A basically just stuck in a cupboard the whole time was funny to me for reasons I can’t explain, and that moment of JJ finding Josh but unaware Simon was behind him was an all-time great Hide & Seek moment.

20 – The Wheel: Sidemen Edition

This is almost definitely the highest production value that the Sidemen have ever had, and Stephen did an exemplary job as host, so those are reasons enough to put it in the top half of the list.

However, I don’t find videos like this to be particularly interesting. It was almost too mainstream for my tastes, and it really felt like the whole cast had to be on their best behaviour (which isn’t what I come to a Sidemen video for).

Banger

All the videos in this tier were fantastic, and I had a great time watching each one – whether that was because of individual funny moments or just being consistently entertaining.

19 – Extreme Fishing VS Logan Paul

While the concept alone isn’t exactly riveting, the sheer amount of banter and jokes between and within teams is what makes this video so great.

Logan Paul and his crew were a lot more palatable than I thought they would be, and you can tell everyone was having the time of their lives just messing around on those boats. It ran on for a bit longer than I would have liked, but on the whole it was a quality piece of entertainment.

18 – Extreme Robot Wars

Another example of astonishing production design – The Sidemen have really made it big nowadays.

While it might not be most people’s cup of tea (as evident by it being the worst performing video statistically of the year), I really liked watching Robot Wars as a kid, so watching the lads do it was just as much fun as I thought it would be.

17 – Christmas Mukbang

The last video of 2021, and at the time I was a little disappointed that it was just a measly mukbang to close off the year.

Luckily, they made it a mukbang with a purpose. The Secret Santa aspect was a fun opening, and the YouTube award ceremony to end it off was a great way to cap off a fantastic year of Sidemen content.

16 – Extreme Punishment Pool

I can’t imagine many people would consider this one of the best of the year, and to be fair it was a little by-the-numbers on the whole. The pool part was a bit boring (obviously) and a couple of the punishments were a little underwhelming, but some of the other punishments made for the funniest moments of the year.

Vik’s cheap shot punishment was surprisingly funny, the water balloon fight was great, but my pick for funniest Sidemen moment of the year has to go to Ethan being tickled. I’ve never laughed so hard at a YouTube video, so I just had to put the whole thing way up there on my list.

15 – $10,000 VS $100 Hotel

I really like all of the $10,000 vs $100 videos, and even though this was my least favourite of the year it was still lots of fun.

It’s a little bit of a shame that the bad team ended up experiencing some of the good team’s benefits, as it felt like it cheapened the whole premise of the video.

14 – Hide & Seek In A Dungeon

The best Hide & Seek of the year, JJ was on particularly hilarious form (or hilariously incompetent form, maybe).

The sheer number of times he missed an obvious person was staggering, but it was so funny to watch unfold. The extras running around were also a great addition, there should be more Hide & Seek videos like that in the future.

13 – $100 VS $10,000 Birthday Party

Since two of the Sidemen have birthdays at similar times, I’m surprised it took them so long to come up with the concept – but they executed it really well.

The bad team were by far the funniest part, as all of their shenanigans were great. Evan is one of the best random strangers they’ve ever had, and Phil is always a nice burst of chaotic energy.

Similarly to the Hotel video, it’s a shame the bad team ended up bailing on the video too early and just ended up joining the good team anyway (I’m all for the Sidemen having a good time, but it does unfortunately come at a compromise of good content as well).

12 – $10,000 VS $100 Mukbang

This was my favourite mukbang of the year, as I really liked how they integrated the $10,000 vs $100 aspect and had people constantly switching teams.

There were some truly iconic moments in this, mainly revolving around the bin at the back of the room – both the KSI and Harry parts with the bin were so funny to watch unfold.

11 – Sidemen Speed Dating (EXTREME)

Any sort of Sidemen dating / interacting with strangers / seeing how incompetent they are around women videos are always among my favourites, and “Speed Dating (EXTREME)” was no exception.

All three dates were good for various reasons: Tommy T’s interactions with the first lady was great, Theo was the MVP of the episode for his date with the second flirtatious lady, and the third woman was a complete savage and I was all for it.

10 – Are You Smarter Than A 10 Year Old

Points docked for having some annoying kids at times, but otherwise this was a classic Sidemen video.

It felt like a bit of a throwback by Sidemen standards to have a low(ish) production value, but it added to the overall experience – and of course it’s always going to be funny to see the Sidemen being schooled by some 10 year olds.

9 – Who Wants To Be A Millionaire 2

Harry as host made this far better than it had any right to be, as it could have easily been in the lower half if not for his quips and outrageous jokes.

The drinking to bypass questions aspect was funny if not a little cheaty as it went on, but that ending with Josh and JJ (spoilers) going all the way was extremely entertaining.

Elite

Videos in this category will go down as some of the most memorable Sidemen videos ever, and have an insane level of re-watch ability.

8 – Extreme Cook Off

This video might have been a disaster on the surface, and one where nothing went to plan and everything went wrong, but that’s exactly why it turned out to be this damn funny.

Phil is always a welcome addition as far as I’m concerned, but my MVPs were the judges that featured – especially when they dragged a poor lady from the street into the video, I couldn’t believe what I was seeing when that happened.

7 – Tinder In Real Life 3

It seems weird to say that this was probably my least favourite Tinder video so far, but c’mon … it’s Tinder. Of course it’s bloody hilarious.

Chunkz, Filly and HP were fantastic additions to the video, and their energy was unrivalled throughout the whole thing. There weren’t as many zingers as in other Tinders, but the overall vibes were enough to make it amazing.

6 – $10,000 VS $100 Camping

The best $10,000 vs $100 video of the year, the gulf in comfort between the bad and good teams were what made this one comedy gold.

The energy on both teams was elite, but especially the good team with their golf cart are what I’ll remember. It was also hilarious when someone would have to swap teams, because you know that one team has it so much better than the other.

5 – Pub Golf (Europe Edition)

The original pub golf is quite comfortably in my top 10 Sidemen videos ever, and while this isn’t quite as good I still had a fantastic time watching the lads getting battered.

My only gripe was how easily they all made it through the “holes” with practically one gulp each, but all of the shenanigans in between were priceless.

4 – 20 Women VS 1 Sidemen: KSI Edition

All of the 20 vs 1 videos are elite, and while this one wasn’t as good as the Harry one I still think it was better than Ethan’s video.

KSI is such a great candidate for a video like this, as he will quite literally do anything – even crawl up on a lady and pretend to be a baby (even though not a single person asked him to).

You can tell he’s not quite as uncomfortable as the other Sidemen who have taken part, though, so it never gets truly awkwardly hilarious.

3 – Silent Library

This was easily the most unexpected hit of the year, so full credit has to go to Toby for creating and executing this idea flawlessly.

I don’t think there was a single moment in this video where I wasn’t laughing, and the addition of Randolph made it even better. I’d love to see them do a sequel to this at some point, and hopefully it can recapture the magic of this one.

GOATed

These two videos are quite comfortably in my top 10 favourite Sidemen videos ever, and I had the most fun watching them out of any of the videos.

2 – 20 Women VS 1 Sidemen: Harry Edition

One of the best “Sidemen interacting with strangers” videos ever, Harry was always going to be the funniest candidate for a social experiment like this.

His awkwardness around women (and people in general) make every interview iconic, and the suggestions from the rest of the lads completely derail any chance he had at mustering up any sort of normal conversation. There are too many iconic moments to mention, and I’m sure it’ll go down in Sidemen folklore as one of their best.

1 – Sidemen’s Got Talent

There were some really funny moments in this – some of my favourite moments of the year, actually – but equally I was taken aback by some of the raw talent on display, and that made this by far the most entertaining video.

The Wealdstone Raider, a crazy magic act, the best beat-boxing I’ve ever seen … it all comes together to create the best Sidemen video of the year, and one of their best ever.

Aaand that’s my list. You can check out some of my latest blog posts below: