Ken Jennings VS. The Rest of the World

[Jimmy Owen]

Three words: Doctor Ralph Doty.

Failing that, if Ken is gonna get all the questions right, how about an "equalizer" for the world in the form of a skill contest, i.e., dart-throwing or hoop-shooting, in which the team could catch up without any book lernin'.

[beatlefreak84]

The show will be taped in NYC. With the lack of a high payout, they aren't going to get many people flying in from around the country to challenge Ken, so the challenge will be even greater for them.

This is a certainly understandable position, but I don't necessarily agree with that.  WBSM certainly had a lot of formidable foes willing to try against Ben even with a low payout.  I think the show needs to catch on a little bit first like WBSM did.  Eventually, people will want to try out for the show not so much for the money (which will probably do nothing more than pay travel expenses) but to be able to say that they took on Ken Jennings and won.  I knew a lot of people in high school when the show was popular who just wanted to play WBSM just to beat Ben; if KJ's show catches on, many others may be thinking the same thing.

And another thing:  I noticed a lot of comments about the format of the show being flawed and how Ken is essentially going to wipe the floor with everyone.  Two comments here:

1.  What was reported for the pilot may not necessarily be the final format of the show.  It may be tweaked.  Plus, what looks horrible on paper may actually be a well-presented, well-executed game (ex. "Match Game '7x!").  I, for one, will not pass judgment until I actually see it on air.
2.  Even if Ken wipes the floor with everyone, it's not that big a deal.  I love "Stump the Schwab," for example, but only 4 out of 26 contestants who played the bonus round (not counting tournament games where no one beat him) actually did beat the Schwab this past season, and those who didn't got NOTHING for their efforts!  Yet I love the show.  Same goes with WBSM; I knew many people who watched it in its original run (including myself) and no one seemed to mind that Ben would win all but a handful of games each year.  If the game and the show are entertaining enough, this potential "disaster" will be overshadowed, IMO.

I, for one, am looking very forward to seeing this show when it finally hits the air.  I think it will be very enjoyable, but, then again, I'll hold my breath until I actually see it...

Thanks for reading!  

Anthony

[JenKennings]

Reasonable minds can differ on what is or isn't "fatally flawed" in terms of game show formats, but I think the prizing setup here is actually pretty sensible.  As currently planned, the show's big prize is the gift basket that one player receives just for making it to the endgame.  This isn't just Rice-a-Roni and 1,000 Flushes Blue.  This is going to be good stuff, with a four-figure total market value.  The shared "pot" that all the contestants get to share in is, in reality, much less valuable, since we forecast that winning the endgame won't be an everyday thing (not to compare, but if you insist: a la WBSM).

[Kevin Prather]

Whoa, hello! Welcome back, Ken!

[goongas]

The payout is lower than on WBSM, although I don't know how much the prize basket will be worth.  Also, it depends on how your team members do if you do not make it to the finals. With not a lot of questions asked and having to beat in a lot of people, one may have to get lucky in order to reach the final round (I got lucky and reached the final round in my run through, but I don't think I was the best player on my team).

[Dbacksfan12]

[quote name=\'beatlefreak84\' date=\'Aug 1 2005, 06:54 PM\']2.  Even if Ken wipes the floor with everyone, it's not that big a deal.  I love "Stump the Schwab[/quote]
Ugh.  I still can't understand how anyone likes this show.  You're entitled to your opinion--albeit a bad one...but I don't understand how the Schwab is likeable at all--he has the personality of a scouring pad.

[clemon79]

[quote name=\'Modor\' date=\'Aug 2 2005, 06:26 AM\']You're entitled to your opinion--albeit a bad one...but I don't understand how the Schwab is likeable at all--he has the personality of a scouring pad.
[/quote]
Oh, c'mon, now. He appeals to every sports wonk (and I don't mean that in a derogatory fashion) who knows exactly what Don Mattingly hit in 1983 and can rattle off every member school in the Big East, ordered by the year in which they entered the conference. And there are a fair amount of people like that out there.

He's like Zach, except without the Cliff Clavin-esque tendency to interject with inane crap just so he can feel like he's part of the group.

[TLEberle]

[quote name=\'Modor\' date=\'Aug 2 2005, 06:26 AM\']Ugh.  I still can't understand how anyone likes this show.  [/quote]Chris gave you lots of examples.  I'll add some: it was an interesting format, lots of different games, the whole 'sports statistics' thing, and the nifty end game.  If you don't like it, that's fine, but don't dump on those who do.

You're entitled to your opinion--albeit a bad one...

Gee, when we agree with you, it's OK, but when we don't, it's a 'bad opinion'.  I'll take "Double Standards" for $30, Art.

but I don't understand how the Schwab is likeable at all--he has the personality of a scouring pad.

[snapback]92997[/snapback]

He doesn't have to be likeable.  For the contestants, he is the enemy: the person those people are there to beat.  If he's all smiles and rainbows, then no one will want him to lose.  They got it just right.

[Matt Ottinger]

[quote name=\'goongas\' date=\'Aug 1 2005, 11:05 PM\']The payout is lower than on WBSM, although I don't know how much the prize basket will be worth.  [/quote]
If the game ends up having any of the appeal of WB$M, there will be a decent number of trivia-heads who will want to do it just for the challenge.  A great number of successful Jeopardy players challenged themselves against Stein.  He was quoted somewhere saying that he didn't understand why people wanted to do it for a relatively small payout, but the truth is that many of your best Jeopardy players will say that the money was secondary to the experience even on that program.

[goongas]

Matt is probably right.  In another board I read, I often read about potential contestants not wanting to lose their one year game show eligibility (e.g., waiting for Super Millionaire to come back) to win a small amount, but it is not representative of the general population.