Is the Game Show Fad Back Again?

Do you remember when Game Shows were popular in America? There are two major time periods that Game Shows ruled television networks: the 1970s/1980s and around the year 2000. Several years ago the Game Shows Who wants to be a Millionaire? With host Regis Phillman was one of the top rated and most watched shows in America. The American public tuned in to see if someone would finally win a million dollars. Alas, it could televise a little too much as the American public got sick of it eventually. A British talk show host starting doing the show and it went all downhill from there. However, I did manage to buy the computer game Who Wants to be a Millionaire which kept me entertained for a few months. The show Greed was also quite popular on television networks.

Now it seems in the year 2006 and approaching the year 2007 that game shows have come back on television and new themes have captivated the public. Two new schools called Deal or No Deal and 1 vs. 100 are getting increased viewers and higher television ratings. In fact on Christmas, Fox aired a holiday special episode of Deal of No Deal which is hosted by Howe. Deal or No Deal is pretty much entirely luck factored in as contestants pick a closed briefcase out of 30 to hold on to while they eliminate the other suitcases. The suitcases are held by gorgeous female models that are also great to look at if you are a guy and another reason to watch the show. I also enjoy watching the expressions on the faces of these women as they open the suitcase that the contestant picks. Their reactions are over the top as they are sad or very happy when they open the suitcase that contains a low number which is good for the contestant or a high number which is bad for the contestant. Like most Game shows, the idea is for the contestant to try to win 1 million dollars. A so called "banker" sits in a dark room high above the audience and calls in with the calculated amount he is willing to offer the contestant and the contestant must decide if they want to accept the banker's offer or continue playing to win a larger amount of money.

The Game Show 1 vs. 100 stars Bob Sagit who seemed to have fallen off of the planet after his hit show Full House went off the air. Now he is back and better than ever in his goofy funny self. The show actually requires some intellect, much like Who Wants to be a Millionaire did. The contestants have to answer questions of which they are given three choices. In total, there are ten questions that get harder as the contestant moves along. Unlike Who Wants to be a Millionaire, there are no safety nets. If a contestant gets a question wrong, he walks away with nothing. In one funny episode, a female contestant got the first question wrong she answered and her appearance entered quickly. Bob Sagit gave her $1000 because I think he felt sorry for her. Like Who Wants to be a Millionaire, you can walk away with the money that you have won at any given time but it must be before the question flashes on the screen.

The other premise of the hit show 1 vs. 100 is that the contestant faces off against "The Mob" which is made up of a random group of people. Some people are quite dumb as they chose Hooters waitresses and Go Go dancers who know absolutely knowing about anything really. In fact, in the early rounds when contestants get really easy question wrong, Bob Sagit will call on the person from the "Mob" and ask them why they got the question wrong. The "Mob" is made up of 100 random people, hence the name of the show 1 vs. 100.

The way the show works is that for each question the prize money for each Mob person that gets the question wrong increases. For example, if the question is worth $1000 and 10 people from The MOB get the question wrong and the contestant gets the question right, the contestant wins $10,000. The amount per question increases and the amount of people from the MOB who get the question wrong varies. Some people from the MOB are very bright. Ken Jennings who made history by becoming the contestant with the highest winnings on Jeopardy was a member of the MOB as was poker player Anne Duke. If a person from the MOB gets the question wrong, they are replaced by another person from the audience. The allure of being a person in the MOB is that if the contestant gets the question wrong and you in the MOB get the question right, then the contestant's winnings are split among the members of the mob. For example, if the contestant had won $100,000 and got the next question wrong while 20 people got the question right in the MOB, then each person in the MOB would be rewarded $5,000 while the contestant would walk away with nothing. Thus, people in the MOB are shouting at the contestant to keep going and answering questions so that the people in the MOB have a greater shot of winning money if the contestant gets the question wrong.

Bob Sagit is at his best and helps move the show along. Although I think Howie is slightly better and make his show more entertaining, both shows are worth watching as the theme of Game Shows is clearly back on television.