This Season's Pryamid

[pyrfan]

Chris, I'm also not sick of your "yammering," for the same reason as above. It seems like the producers of the current version are trying so hard to make this version of "Pyramid" different from the previous ones that they have taken out almost every element that made the earlier versions so engrossing. It's so funny that they're trying to add drama and excitement everywhere (note the constantly changing camera shots and the ominous music and turning of the monitors in the winner's circle -- ooooh!) to a game that was already dramatic and exciting.

To me, the new show has a marked sameness to it. Most of Donny's comments during the show (through no fault of his own) have an "insert name here" quality to them. I feel like I'm watching the same show every day. I find it strange that the producers hired someone with as much screen presence, natural enthusiasm, and intelligence as Donny Osmond to host, yet he seems to be so locked into the cue cards. Besides the elements of the game being different, as has been discussed a lot here, the little discussions and comments interspersed throughout the game allowed the viewers to get to know the players -- both celebrities and contestants -- a little better and, therefore, root for them. Nowadays, at the end of the episode, I feel like I don't know anything about any of the players -- except for the website plug or whatever scripted discussion Donny has with the celebs. (Speaking of which, hasn't anyone there noticed that having the celeb interviews during the game itself slows down the players' momentum, which may account for the low-scoring second rounds that we frequently see?)

The biggest gripe I have with the current version, though, is the briefing of the celebs. As I said in my "Hollywood Squares" post a few weeks ago -- and I know I don't speak for everyone here -- the reason I watch celebrity game shows is to see celebrities out of their normal roles and more as themselves. We've talked about the briefing of the celebs on HS before, and while I feel it's excessive in the current version, it's at least understandable because I've always felt that HS was more of a comedy show than an outright game show. With a game like "Pyramid," the briefing is totally unnecessary and, in my opinion, compromises the integrity of the game.

This aspect of the new game seriously inhibits my enjoyment of the show. How am I supposed to get excited about one of my favorite celebrities helping their partner win $10,000 now, knowing full well that the clues they gave may not actually be their clues at all? How is watching "Pyramid" different from watching a sitcom or a drama now? I'm still seeing the performers deliver lines that were fed to them and not seeing their brains and knowledge at work, which is why I would tune in to begin with. Another poster mentioned Debra Jo Rupp and Rosa Blasi as good new celebs. Well, how do we really know that they're good? How much of what the celeb is saying during the game is actually their own thoughts? Do the producers actually have that little faith in the intelligence of the celebrities that they have to prep them so much with the actual game material? Hell, you might as well just have the celebrity coordinators as partners for the contestants. Why go through all the hassle of prepping the celebs at all? Just cut out the middle man.

I realize that things must change and that we could never have "Pyramid" like it used to be, given the 20- or 21-minute time frame of half-hour television these days. But it's the little things, and they all add up. The game lasted for 15 years on TV for a reason. I don't think it would hurt the producers to find out what made it work.


Brendan

[clemon79]

[quote name=\'pyrfan\' date=\'Nov 20 2003, 02:51 PM\'] (Speaking of which, hasn't anyone there noticed that having the celeb interviews during the game itself slows down the players' momentum, which may account for the low-scoring second rounds that we frequently see?) [/quote]
 I hadn't, but it's a damned good point. Once again, let's make it about the celebrities, and not the game....

Another poster mentioned Debra Jo Rupp and Rosa Blasi as good new celebs. Well, how do we really know that they're good?

I'm gonna defend Debra Jo by saying that a) she was a contestant on one of the Clark versions (I think I recall her saying that, anyhow), and b) I vividly recall her giving UTTERLY LEGAL AND BRILLIANT clues in the Winner's Circle, clues that would have been legal under Osmond, Clark, Cullen, OR Davidson.

I realize that things must change and that we could never have "Pyramid" like it used to be, given the 20- or 21-minute time frame of half-hour television these days.

That's the kicker, though. Yes, we'll never get the original format and pacing back, but the ESSENCE of the show can still live, and that what's being slaughtered here.

I can live with 6-in-20. Hell, in all honestly, Pyramid to me is about the Winner's Circle. You could put Treasure Hunt's front game up there, as long as I have my Winner's Circle, that's a half-hour of my day they can have. But, between making the audience shut up (to build suspense? You don't think the escalating applause and rumbling as they worked through the first five boxes wasn't suspenseful?) to the judging (WINNERS! MUST HAVE MORE WINNERS! WHO CARES IF THEY"RE WRITING A DAMN NOVEL IN THAT CHAIR!) to TOM CRUISE'S FRIGGIN' DENTIST (sorry, I can't let that go. That one's the absolute tops. Whoever is responsible for letting that one see air should be kicked in the crotch. Repeatedly.)

And ALL OF THAT IS FIXABLE. That all has NOTHING to do with the pacing of the show. They have to budget 60 seconds for the Winner's Circle. Once they've done that, the content of that 60 seconds is totally under their control. They COULD make it great. And throwing me a bone with "well, we'll let them decide whether to give or receive now!" just shows that they either Don't Get It, or Don't Care.

I'm with Matt in that it probably comes closer to Don't Care. Clearly, they are getting the numbers they want, they have found a way to appeal to a lower common denominator, the idiot who is hoping for a camera angle up Jillian Barbarie's skirt in the Circle, they clearly have consciously decided that they don't need me as a viewer.

[Steve McClellan]

[quote name=\'pyrfan\' date=\'Nov 20 2003, 01:51 PM\']hasn't anyone there noticed that having the celeb interviews during the game itself slows down the players' momentum, which may account for the low-scoring second rounds that we frequently see?[/quote]
Not to mention the fact that every time you see an interview during the game like that, they actually are shooting *two* of them right in a row and editing the one they don't like. Add this to all of the other assorted stoppages (judging, technical malfunctions, etc.), and there's definitely no way anyone's gonna get any momentum worked up. (This does, however, mean that the better player is at an advantage, which helps matters a bit.)

How am I supposed to get excited about one of my favorite celebrities helping their partner win $10,000 now, knowing full well that the clues they gave may not actually be their clues at all?

The clues are indeed their clues, but they have (presumably) as much time as they want before the WC to concoct them. So, they may not be spontaneous, but at least it isn't scripted by the show.

[Brakus]

-- I must admit that the background music they've added to the main game and end game is kinda of "Millionaire"-ish to me. Combined with the set that the late Randy Amasia once described as "leftovers from the Greed set" and "a set straight out of a rave", it certainly gives the show more of a contemporary feel than the prior two versions did, chasing lights and all.

-- The camera cutaways they do during the Winners' Circle this season are a lot more erratic than they were last season, even much more so than when Dick Clark hosted the show. I guess now that they have the "X to win" graphic on the screen now, they don't need to go to the wide shot of the Pyramid every time a subject is correctly guessed or passed. In Season 1, I liked the one-shot of the celebrity and the contestant, and then back to the more familiar 2-shot, then a shot of the Pyramid, and so on. IMO it gives the viewers a little more insight as to how the contestant sees the person across from them as they were giving clues.

For example, here's what happened on my show with THINGS THAT BURST:

[Shot on Picabo, then on me]
Picabo: An appendix.
Me: Things you take out.
Picabo: A balloon.

[2-shot]
Me: Things that pop. Things that explode.

[Switch to Picabo, nodding her head, then back to me]
Me: Things that explode, things that burst. *ding*

Let the record show that I really dislike the way they handle the Winners' Circle this year as compared to last year. At least the shots were much more static than this year.

-- As someone mentioned before, the show does two interviews with the celebrity and keeps the better one for the tape. Also, the players are asked about a specific thing in their life that the viewer might find interesting. Most of the time, the contestants have such normal, mundane lives that they find it hard to find something good to talk about. Even the other people that were playing on my tape date were kind of wondering what thing they want to talk about that might sound interesting. Luckily for me, I came up with the plug for DDR and the fact that I lost some weight while playing it, and came up with a good description of the game (as compared to the J! contestant not too long ago that really didn't do a good job plugging the game). I did that primarily to connect with all the folks in Southern California that know of and/or play DDR, and of course to connect with the DDR community where I live.

[to be continued because this board has a stupid limit on how long these posts can be]

[Brakus]

-- You must consider that Pyramid had been off the airwaves (not counting GSN of course) since 1992, and unlike most of us manaiacal game show otaku, much of the general public -- as well as the celebrities themselves -- may have forgotten what Pyramid was all about. Whenever I'm with people and they bring up that I was on a game show and I tell them I was on Pyramid, most of them have to ask me, "What's Pyramid?" And I need to give them a 10-second description of the game to them. "It's that word game that was hosted by Dick Clark a long time ago, it's now by Donny Osmond, it's on every morning at 10 on Channel 3." The fact that they let the celebrities give all season 1 and most of season 2 is an advantage to the contestants because of the briefings the celebrities give them, most of whom have not seen Pyramid since it went off the air in 1992. As far as I understood it when I was there, they briefed them on what things might come up in the Winners' Circle, and they were told how to give good, legal clues for such categories. I think it's a good thing because if they let these celebrities go blind  giving clues in the Winners' Circle when they haven't watched the show in 10 years, there would be much less money given away every day.

Again, it's all just my opinion, however jaded it may be considering that I was chosen to appear on the show and all, but still, if it bothers you that much, then just don't watch. Let the rest of the public judge for themselves if it's a good show or not; considering it's in Season 2 and doing admirably in the ratings, I think most of them have approved of this new version.

[Jimmy Owen]

Of course, no one remembers "Pyramid."  It was never called just "Pyramid" before.  If you said "The $25,000 Pyramid" then people would know.  That's like saying "Hey they're bringing back 'Question'. What's 'Question'?"  The show was repeated on USA till the demise of their game show block so it hasn't been totally off the radar (or TV) screens.  I will admit the show is unlike the previous versions.

[clemon79]

[quote name=\'Brakus\' date=\'Nov 20 2003, 04:46 PM\'] but still, if it bothers you that much, then just don't watch. Let the rest of the public judge for themselves if it's a good show or not;





 [/quote]
 So you're saying I should vote with my remote, instead of speaking my mind?

The problem with that, Jeremy, is that if I applied that philosophy to all facets of my life, the idiots would complete their takeover of America and it wouldn't be worth living anymore. TV is being programmed towards utter morons these days, and the people in charge needs to know that there is a market segment that won't stand for it before they'll consider changing that formula.

considering it's in Season 2 and doing admirably in the ratings, I think most of them have approved of this new version.

That's what frightens me.

Fear Factor does boffo numbers, too, but I don't think the Emmy people are gonna come knocking anytime soon.

[Brakus]

[quote name=\'Jimmy Owen\' date=\'Nov 20 2003, 07:13 PM\'] Of course, no one remembers "Pyramid."  It was never called just "Pyramid" before.  If you said "The $25,000 Pyramid" then people would know.  That's like saying "Hey they're bringing back 'Question'. What's 'Question'?" [/quote]
 Nope. I might say to someone my age or slightly younger, "$25,000 Pyramid". They will still ask me, "What was $25,000 Pyramid?" And not everybody had cable, or were knowledgeable of the wonderful game show block that USA Network had for years.

Please, stop assuming that everybody else remembers what we game show otaku never forgot.

[Brakus]

[quote name=\'clemon79\' date=\'Nov 20 2003, 09:42 PM\'] So you're saying I should vote with my remote, instead of speaking my mind?

The problem with that, Jeremy, is that if I applied that philosophy to all facets of my life, the idiots would complete their takeover of America and it wouldn't be worth living anymore. TV is being programmed towards utter morons these days, and the people in charge needs to know that there is a market segment that won't stand for it before they'll consider changing that formula. [/quote]
 Of course you should speak your mind in addition to voting with your remote, if you feel so strongly about it. However, directing your thoughts towards the producers of the show as opposed to this forum would be much more desirable.

And of this "market segment that won't stand for [the crappy way they've treated this wonderful game show]"? It's relatively and realistically smaller than any other market segment they want to take into consideration. It's only you and a whole bunch of other people on this forum, really, that have been yapping about how this version of Pyramid is drastically different than what we all have been used to seeing. Realistically, it's just a drop in the bucket compared to the rest of the viewing population who chooses to watch Pyramid.

More power to you if you don't like the show because of the stuff they've done to it, but your comments (and other's comments also) would be more useful if they were directed to people who actually have a hand in the production of this show.

[clemon79]

[quote name=\'Brakus\' date=\'Nov 20 2003, 07:49 PM\'] Please, stop assuming that everybody else remembers what we game show otaku never forgot. [/quote]
 You'd also do well to review the literal definition of "otaku" as used in Japan before you apply it to yourself, much less anyone else here. I, for one, bathe and socialize with others regularly:

http://www.casualotaku.net/about/otaku.htm
http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=otaku

[Jimmy Owen]

[quote name=\'Brakus\' date=\'Nov 20 2003, 09:49 PM\'] [quote name=\'Jimmy Owen\' date=\'Nov 20 2003, 07:13 PM\'] Of course, no one remembers "Pyramid."  It was never called just "Pyramid" before.  If you said "The $25,000 Pyramid" then people would know.  That's like saying "Hey they're bringing back 'Question'. What's 'Question'?" [/quote]
Nope. I might say to someone my age or slightly younger, "$25,000 Pyramid". They will still ask me, "What was $25,000 Pyramid?" And not everybody had cable, or were knowledgeable of the wonderful game show block that USA Network had for years.

Please, stop assuming that everybody else remembers what we game show otaku never forgot. [/quote]
 How do the youngin's remember PYL so well, having gone off most CBS affils in January of 86?

[Robert Hutchinson]

[quote name=\'Brakus\' date=\'Nov 20 2003, 09:59 PM\']More power to you if you don't like the show because of the stuff they've done to it, but your comments (and other's comments also) would be more useful if they were directed to people who actually have a hand in the production of this show.[/quote]
At least one person who has a hand in the production of the show is also a member of this forum--or, at least, he was a few weeks ago.

[quote name=\'clemon79\'] You'd also do well to review the literal definition of "otaku" as used in Japan before you apply it to yourself, much less anyone else here.[/quote]

Well, the American/English-speaking use of that word is significantly less harsh than the current Japanese use of it, but the current Japanese use of it is significantly more harsh than the original Japanese use of it.

======

I'm going to have to disagree with the "no young people really remember (The $XX,000) Pyramid" theory. Sure, it doesn't hold the same place in the collective TV  subconscious as your Cheers or your M*A*S*H, but I think you could get a significant portion of that age group to at least remember it as "that charades game with Dick Clark and the cuckoo". Nostalgia, she is a growing market.

[Dbacksfan12]

[quote name=\'Jimmy Owen\' date=\'Nov 20 2003, 10:31 PM\'] [quote name=\'Jimmy Owen\' date=\'Nov 20 2003, 07:13 PM\'] Of course, no one
How do the youngin's remember PYL so well, having gone off most CBS affils in January of 86?[/quote] [/quote]
 More than likely from the USA reruns that ran until 1995.  If you were born in 1987, you would have been 8 then; old enough to remember.

[Jimmy Owen]

Thanks for proving my point.  Therefore, they should also remember "$25,000 Pyramid."

[clemon79]

[quote name=\'Brakus\' date=\'Nov 20 2003, 07:59 PM\'] However, directing your thoughts towards the producers of the show as opposed to this forum would be much more desirable.
 [/quote]
They're reading.

It's only you and a whole bunch of other people on this forum, really, that have been yapping about how this version of Pyramid is drastically different than what we all have been used to seeing.

That you know of. Maybe I'll get someone to think. Even if they think, and STILL disagree with me, at least they're thinking, which is better than the average person I see these days.
[quote name=\'Robert Hutchinson\' date=\'Nov 20 2003, 11:54 PM\']Well, the American/English-speaking use of that word is significantly less harsh than the current Japanese use of it, but the current Japanese use of it is significantly more harsh than the original Japanese use of it.[/quote]
It being a Japanese word, I'm significantly more interested in the Japanese interpretation, not what Americans have decided they would like it to mean. (And it's been my experience that the mass majority of people who fight for the American interpretation tend to fit the profile of the Japanese one rather accurately.)