I watched TPIR94 religiously when it ran [IIRC, it was after school]. My thoughts at the time---
1) The refreshed look was awesome.
2) Burton was a great announcer [of course, today, I think he was over the top----proabbly would rather have him over George Gray, though!]
3) Doug wasn't bad. He just---A) wasn't Bob, and B) didn't have as much experience as Bob. TPIR is a tough show to host, there's a lot to learn, and I'm sure that affected Doug's performance. Didn't seem to hurt Tom Kennedy, though.....
I bet the Richards administration could watch a few episodes as a suggestion on how to freshen the show. The set and theme, in the very least, could probably work today, especially if they do another nighttime special at some point.