Reviews of the 2009 Game Show Awards

[Don Howard]

Did any of you keep track on what the ratio was between the running time of the show and the total time of the commercials?
The awards will return? Did they leave?
With a two and a half hour show (minus the ultra reminders about Big Saturday Night or whatever it's called), there wasn't time to announce all the award winners? Only the first year for this and already they have trophies being handed out at a separate ceremony off-camera?
Did you wonder what this would have been like had it been presented live?
During the Bob Barker LEGEND! build-up, did the rest of you lose an audio track?
Did you notice that Diane and what's-his-face congratulated Bob Barker on his LEGEND! award before he received it, yet he held the award in his hand?
Marjorie, if Mr. Blackwell was still living, he'd have had a field day reviewing that dress.
Joyce Bulifant has grey hair instead of blonde, but beyond that, she looks and sounds the same.
So now we've had a Richard Dawson sighting for the 21st century.
The Monty Hall segment was terrific!

[TheInquisitiveOne]

I came into this show with very low expectations, and because of that alone, the show could have been worse than what it was.

The fact that 5th Grader got the rub for best show and host proves the "awards" portion of the show was nothing more than a cash-in, and was simply a matter of who showed up to the party. Granted, AYSTA5G is a fun show to watch, and I like Mr. Foxworthy, but against the caliber of shows that were nominated (and snubbed)? Come on!

The special portions of the show (Barker, Goodson, and Hall) were done in good taste, but Bobby has quite the inflated ego. "The Legend?" Wow...

This was a pretty choppy presentation from start to finish, and I would have given this a pass if it were simply a salute to game shows with the games interspersed with the show. But the stuff I saw was just mediocre, at best. Granted, this was a first show, but it could have been done a hell of a lot better, with a lot more polish and a lot less plug.

The Inquisitive One

EDIT: it was Howie Mandel, and not Jeff Foxworthy, that won for best host...my mistake. The above statement, however, still stands.

[carlopanno]

I posted this in the other thread, but this thread seems a more appropriate place for it:

This show is dreadful. If it improved a bit, it could suck.

If you don't like game shows, and you don't know anything about game shows, why on earth would you produce an awards show for game shows?

To honor Mark Goodson and not Bill Todman? To break up the "honors" with stupid games that give prizes to "contestants" in the audience? It's okay to not like game shows -- a lot of people don't like game shows and they're fine people -- but don't waste your time and ours doing a mockery of game shows on GSN.

I'm very disappointed.

--c

[ChrisLambert!]

I wasn't insulted. Unfortunately, neither was I entertained.

[chad1m]

Too much poorly executed GSN's 2009 Game Show. Not enough Awards.

[catnap1972]

I dozed off after the Monty Hall tribute.

[Matt Ottinger]

[quote name=\'catnap1972\' post=\'217422\' date=\'Jun 7 2009, 07:51 PM\']I dozed off after the Monty Hall tribute.[/quote]
Says the user with the name 'catnap'.

[vtown7]

[quote name=\'Don Howard\' post=\'217373\' date=\'Jun 6 2009, 11:18 PM\']During the Bob Barker LEGEND! build-up, did the rest of you lose an audio track?[/quote]

It would appear that Betty did a bit more than just a cameo in the Mark Goodson tribute...

Ryan

[Speedy G]

The only thing I haven't quite figured out is if GSN's intention all along was for the show to be a send-up on the genre, or if the production was just so bad that it seemed that way.

For every awful thing they intended to do (Angel Barker?  Glorified Double Dare stunts?  Howie "remembering" the models' names?), there was another unintentional disaster (Howie has to vamp because someone can't operate a glorified Powerpoint WoF puzzle?  Lost audio during the Bob Barker tribute piece?  "Backstage" pieces arranged with complete disregard for continuity?).

If their Big Saturday Night stuff ends up looking as lost as this looked, GSN is in for a world of hurt.

[tvwxman]

Can someone explain Ross the intern to me? Please? Cause I don't get it.

[clemon79]

[quote name=\'tvwxman\' post=\'217447\' date=\'Jun 7 2009, 08:00 PM\']Can someone explain Ross the intern to me? Please? Cause I don't get it.[/quote]
Well, you see, he's flamingly gay.

[Matt Ottinger]

[quote name=\'Speedy G\' post=\'217444\' date=\'Jun 7 2009, 10:36 PM\']The only thing I haven't quite figured out is if GSN's intention all along was for the show to be a send-up on the genre, or if the production was just so bad that it seemed that way.[/quote]
Exactly.  And when you ARE the Game Show Network, and your viewers can't tell whether or not you like game shows, there's a fundamental flaw in the business model.

It's possible to respect your genre while at the same time making sure people realize you don't take it too seriously.  TV Land does it all the time, and their "awards" are the standard for that sort of serious/not-serious blend.  I had thought that these producers were also the ones who put that together every year.  If so, the joke they made of this is all the more disappointing.  But as someone else said, not really all that surprising.

[golden-road]

[quote name=\'clemon79\' post=\'217450\' date=\'Jun 7 2009, 11:04 PM\'][quote name=\'tvwxman\' post=\'217447\' date=\'Jun 7 2009, 08:00 PM\']Can someone explain Ross the intern to me? Please? Cause I don't get it.[/quote]
Well, you see, he's flamingly gay.
[/quote]

And someone who started as an actual intern for the Tonight Show during the Leno run. Jay sent him on various "assignments", and the rest is...

[tvwxman]

[quote name=\'golden-road\' post=\'217459\' date=\'Jun 7 2009, 11:53 PM\'][quote name=\'clemon79\' post=\'217450\' date=\'Jun 7 2009, 11:04 PM\'][quote name=\'tvwxman\' post=\'217447\' date=\'Jun 7 2009, 08:00 PM\']Can someone explain Ross the intern to me? Please? Cause I don't get it.[/quote]
Well, you see, he's flamingly gay.
[/quote]

And someone who started as an actual intern for the Tonight Show during the Leno run. Jay sent him on various "assignments", and the rest is...
[/quote]
absurdidly bad typecasting on television.

[JasonA1]

Quick review from my girlfriend's dad - "Oh, you missed the Game Show Awards. It was about 90% giving out lifetime achievement awards..."

As for me, color me another viewer not impressed. Caught 30 to 45 minutes on a replay. Howie did his usual good job, but I couldn't exactly dig the live games. At least the games chosen for the broadcast. Flipping by and seeing "Game Show Awards" on your guide, or that big awards stage on the usually rerun-or-call-in-show-filled GSN gives some cache to the channel it might not otherwise get. A stop-and-start evening with frequent commercials takes it away. The production was lacking in spots. Like Speedy G, I too was unsure of the tone of the evening.

How did TV Land pull off doing this sort of thing more than once? And on that note, how should GSN go forward? Not even do another one? If they do, what would be kept, and what should be changed?

-Jason