NBC's Newest Game Show Offering, "Identity", is a Sad Social Commentary at Best

One would hope that the creative team of producers who brought us the popular and totally engaging game show Deal or No Deal, would be able to follow up with something more palatable than their latest offering, an hour long show called Identity. Lacking both the genuine excitement of the game and charm of the cast so successfully exhibited by "Deal or no Deal", Identity serves mostly to throw light on a shameful aspect of human nature.

The premise of the game is simple enough. One contestant stands in front of a gallery of 26 strangers, each one on his or her own pedestal, and is challenged to guess the identity of each of the 26 based solely on their appearance. 26 different possible identities are given to the contestant who, by process of elimination and using powers of deduction, must assign the correct identity to each gallery member one by one, and collecting a cash prize for each accurate assignment.

There is an opportunity here for some good laughs or even a clever challenge or two if the possible identities were well thought out by the show's creators. Unfortunately, we are offered neither humor nor a cerebral challenge but are subjected to such lackluster identity choices as "Circus Performer", "Janitor", "Female Wrestler", and even the slightly offensive choices of "Rabbi" or "Priest."
Imagine the embarrassment felt by one recent contestant who actually had to figure out which woman in the gallery had the identity of being "seven months pregnant" or the one who was "57 years old?" In any other setting getting either of those wrong would be committing a serious social faux pas which would probably haunt most of us for months.

The look of complete discomfort on the face of the show's host, the outrageous and talented magician/comedian Penn Jillette (of Penn and Teller) pretty much sums up the pathetic nature of this game. Jillette, usually in his element while performing feats of magic bordering on sensationalist, seems to be trying his best to muster up some enthusiasm for the game, and to connect on any level at all with the contestants. Where Deal or No Deal's host, Howie Mandel, easily establishes a rapport with contestants during the course of the game, Identity's host appears to be struggling to stay focused through each and every round. Who could blame him? The uneasiness felt by everyone from the contestants to the gallery members, and even by the studio audience, is nothing short of palpable.

Think it can't get any worse? It can and it does. The contestant is offered help in the form of advice given by a panel of three "experts", such as a psychologist, an actor, and a politician. These three, when asked, get to throw in their two cents about which identity belongs to whom. Listening to their arguing, like wannabe versions of American Idol's Simon, Paula, and Randy, is almost more painful than listening to the "everyman" contestants trying to reason things through. There seems to be nothing that actually qualifies these three "experts" to make any more of a snap judgment than the rest of us can make. As an added attraction of the game, the panel of experts fails dismally.

So what's my beef with Identity? I know the show is meant to be fun and entertaining, and I suppose we could all see the lighthearted intent of its creators if we really (and I mean really) tried. But in this era of political correctness, shouldn't we be offered a concept that's just a little more enlightened than this? Don't we, as an audience, deserve fare that is just a bit easier to swallow? And since it's our dollars the show's advertisers are after, can't we expect to be offered something less offensive by a major network during prime time programming hours?

For all of the parents, teachers, and anyone working tirelessly to teach every new generation that we should be tolerant of each other regardless of outward appearance, to be accepting of our differences, and to embrace the concept of individuality, Identity proves to be a harsh comment on our apparent failure to get across our message. Apparently, not only do the executives at NBC want us to go right ahead and judge that book by its proverbial cover but they plan to reward us with cash for doing so. Nice message, don't you think? Not. If our best response is to turn the channel and find something else to watch, I highly suggest reaching for that clicker with lightning speed.