For lack of better terminology, this show SUCKS. Too many changes for the sake of changing, and not good changes at that.

The Knock-Off rounds are a direct “Knock Off” of Wipeout, and Paramount should sue the hell out of 20th and Fremantle for stealing it. The fame game is a 90% ripoff of Wheel of Fortune’s toss-up rounds. It seems like whoever pieced this format together does not have an original bone in their body.

What, I ask, was so wrong with either Australian Temptation or US 80’s $ale that warranted such massive retooling?? Aussie Temptation consistently wins its time slot. 80’s $ale stayed on the air for 6 1/4 years. Obviously, something worked with those two series. Even with a smaller prize budget, such sweeping changes were unwarranted. If it ain’t broke…

As far as Rossi Morreale, he never met a consonant he liked. He seriously needs to slow down and maybe try to add a little suspense to the game.

All in all, Twentieth and Fremantle screwed up a major opportunity to bring an internationally respected game show back to its native shores. Instead, they morphed it into a hyperactive, unoriginal, cheap mess that should be put out of its misery.

“The core flaw is that they are using traditional crosswords, where there are too many uncommon “filler” words.” These words, often known as “crosswordese” are words that most crossword solvers are familiar with. I don’t think that ELAN and EMCEE, though, fit in to that category (ORT probably does.) But, this rewards both contestants and home viewers that actually work crosswords. I honestly believe that the average “Jeopardy!” viewer does know what EMCEE means, mainly because some of the clues on “Jeopardy!” are much more difficult and esoteric than crosswordese.

“In a real crossword, those “project” words and phrases are ones you work toward with the opposite check words…you don’t go at it with a wild guess.” I agree that in a REAL crossword that would be your strategy. On this show, I believe a good strategy would be to either A. figure it out very quickly (1%) or B. not ring in (99%). But, why should they still ask those in the main game? Because every clue shown in the main game, whether answered correctly or not and whether edited out of the final showing or not (this happens to strings of difficult clues) gets entered into the puzzle, thus helping out the contestant in the bonus round. And, if you happen to solve an 11+ letter word with only 1 letter given, then it’s just like solving a tough “Wheel” bonus round where the letters you called have not shown up.

“The Spoilers gimmick is too random, and the rule where the spoiler doesn’t get a choice of podiums if one of the two main podiums misses first doesn’t help. The kind of people this show is supposed to attract, I think, don’t like these kinds of gimmicks.” Personally, at first, I was not the biggest fan of this facet of the show. However, the more I think about it, I see that, while the best player may not win every time, it adds a competitive air to the show that you’d like to see in “Jeopardy!” but rarely do. Yes, players are still in it until the last possibly second, but how is this different from “Family Feud’s” scoring method? I think that the show is doing it’s best to ensure that it is a competitive episode each time. Also, it makes it a harder game for the contestants to play - sure someone is guaranteed to win, but how can I ensure it’s me? There’s a lot of unseen strategy going on at this point - it’s not as clear cut (for now) as it is with some of the “veterans” of the industry.

Those are just some of my thoughts that look at it from the positive perspective - sure the show has its flaws, but they all do - there is no PERFECT game show. I think it’s too early to judge whether or not the show will last through to Fall 2008. I can definitely see why it wouldn’t, but I can also see why it has a good shot at making it. And as far as “Temptation” and “That’s the Question” go, my cabe doesn’t get GSN or MNTV :(

I just catch M. G. Crosswords today on WYTV (Youngstown’s Oh ABC Affiliate) and I feel that this is a really great show. Though they should have s returnung champ to spice things up a bit. Overall I think merv’s final project was one of his best works next to Wheel and Jeopardy. I planing to go to LA next year on vacation so I might just try out. As for temptation, boring, stick to the old format. Enough said.

*Yeah, the name sounds like a cheesy soap opera…but I think it actually fits the show more than the snazzier old-school name, $otC. Will you be tempted to give up your lead for prizes or money? Will you be tempted to return as champion or go for the safe prize in “Shopper’s Paradise”?

*Would like to see more mini-games and more variety introduced, but I don’t think it’s a bad way to spend a half-hour.

I did catch a couple of minutes last night and I think Rossi needs to cut down saying ‘temptation dollars’ — just say dollars and move on. I also don’t like the singing lyric trailer.

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