[quote name=\'Matt Ottinger\' post=\'189797\' date=\'Jul 5 2008, 11:37 AM\']
[quote name=\'Robert Hutchinson\' post=\'189780\' date=\'Jul 5 2008, 09:42 AM\']
I would vote strongly (were this a voting matter) for keeping the Showcase Showdown and the big wheel. I think it's a big draw for a lot of people--just notice how many contestants, after they lose their pricing game, say "I still get to spin the wheel!"[/quote]
To whatever degree I'm really concerned about all of this (which isn't nearly as much as most of you), I fear it's exactly this sort of thing that will be lost. One of my favorite things about this show is all the little, subtle, almost elegant ways that the structure of it holds up so well. And when you start messing with the structure, it can fall apart in ways you really hadn't considered. That's what I think is going to start happening here.
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This pretty much echoes my sentiments. I don't understand all of the No Dob = End Of Show hyperbole, but maybe that's because the backstage doesn't interest me as much as what I see presented to me on the TV. But when I start hearing things like "Video Wall" and "No Contestant's Row," rumors though they may be at this point, that's where I start feeling a little bit of concern. There's nothing wrong, per se, with adding a video wall to the show. I do, however, take issue with using it to replace established elements. There have been discussions in the past ("Bingo America" is the most recent one which comes to mind) about how the use of a large screen can cheapen the feel of the proceedings, and even bring the game's legitimacy into question, to one degree or another. The Bingo America bonus round just doesn't feel right, because there isn't that tactile flip of, say, the Gambit or $OTC bonus boards. Waiting for the reveal on a 100-inch monitor isn't the same as hitting the big red button or pulling the lever. Good TV game shows aren't just about the games themselves; they're about flashing lights and smartly-designed, larger-than-life props. Oddly enough, as computer technology has advanced, the impact of such props, IMO, has increased. Any one of us can, with a quick download, re-create the set pieces of several game shows in our homes in rather stunning detail. But if Drew's up on stage telling a contestant, "Now, point your Wiimote at the screen and drag your chip to the top of our virtual Plinko board," then the vast majority of excitement and allure of the game has just been sucked away.
Taking away Contestant's Row and/or the Showcase Showdown would be huge mistakes. Changes in appearance and presentation are one thing; scrapping integral elements of the show which have been around over 30 years is a whole different story. That's removing parts of the show which have become ingrained in the pop culture lexicon: even someone who doesn't watch the show probably knows the $1 bid shtick and the Big Wheel. Get rid of that, and suddenly the whole "The show's just not what it used to be" argument gains legitimate traction.
For comparison's sake, I give you Wheel of Fortune, the other modern-day brightly-colored game show stalwart. There's been a lot of crazy crap added to that show over the years, both for better and for worse. And yet, the only significant, long-standing game play element that's been given the hook is shopping for prizes - which dragged the show's pace down to a crawl, and was really only a necessary evil to keep the show's budget down. Once all-cash in the front game was viable, the shopping got junked ASAP. Despite all the goofy tacked-on chrome, Wheel of Fortune is still spin wheel, guess letter, buy vowel, solve puzzle. Changing TPIR from its tried and true of bid on small prize, get up on stage to win larger prize, spin wheel for chance at even more prizes, opens things up to disaster way more than should ever be considered by anyone interested in keeping the show on-air.
