Game Show Network: Why You Should Watch

The first time I saw this channel, it was the Prevue Guide channel. Remember that? That was circa 1993, and the channel wasn't actually purchased by TV Guide until 1999. It was in this year that everything about the channel began to change. Where before, the channel was half television channel information (a scrolling grid that displays what's airing on every channel in one and half hour blocks), half garbled nonsense (mostly infomercials), now it was truly a cable channel. When TV Guide bought the channel, they decreased the size of the scrolling marquee and increased the entertainment factor.

And by this time, hey, I was already totally hooked anyway. TV Guide channel originals began to air, many of them more like segments than actual shows. But this channel's original programming is actually excellent. One part entertainment news, one part celebrity gossip, one part behind the scenes, one part reality, and totally fun, this channel is absolutely one of the best (and yes, my personal favorite).

Don't know what to watch? Consult the TV Guide channel, where you can watch the original segment Watch This! And that's not all. TV Watercooler and InFANity keep you filled in on your favorite TV shows, or you can watch reality drama on Open Call (always funny).

Seeing Stars, the show where hypnotist Ricky Kalmon makes random people think they're celebrities or that they're seeing celebrities, is positively hysterical. He once made a woman believe she was on The Bachelor, and this chick proposed to a lamp post! Now, that's entertainment. But, really, it's the recent addition of Hollywood Showdown to the channel's lineup that's got me all worked up.

I love this game show. A GSN original that aired only one year (1999-2000), I never could understand why it didn't work out. In Hollywood Showdown, contestants had to challenge one another to a "question duel" of sorts. Each contestant, showdown-style, had to compete against one other to advance by answering three pop culture questions correctly. The questions focused on entertainment of all kinds. And I ruled at it when I played along, hence the reason I love the show. It's a really good show.

And it's on TV Guide channel, like so many other awesome original shows. Don't know what to watch? Watch the TV Guide channel, so you know what's happening on all the shows you're not watching.