I'm not so sure how much this topic has been done to death, as I joined the club not a month ago but... If you have yet to see NBC's Millionaire-killer, "The Weakest Link," save yourself. Your life may be better (mis)used for that hour in so many ways." The show is truly a cross between Millionaire and Survivor. (What better way to feign creativity than to hybridize?) From the former it steals sets, lighting, music, and general aura, from the latter the backstabbing, "so long, sucker" 'tude. While first-grade dodgeball is being outlawed (in the aftermath of Columbine and Santee), full-grown sharks gladly compete for the root of all evil, money. (Did I forget to put Marx/Engel on my reading list? Oops.) Okay, excuse my rhapsody, but the show is dumb, even on a more practical plane. The questions are h.s. bowl standard fare in terms of the "academic" stuff and the pop stuff really weak, even from the p.o.v. of someone who has yet to attend a trash tournament. The hostess (gray cells are better reserved for the titles of obscure Ibsen plays) is calculatingly rude, demeaning, and affected in a British school-marmish way. She really does make Regis look a lot less phony at being the nicest guy in the world than she is being a b*tch. I don't who her anti-charisma would appeal to, save the whipping crowd. As for the contestants, they are typically weak and certainly not the brightest of those who tried out. The psychology involved with them guessing who amongst them is the worst in any given round is simply not entertaining. >From both entertainment and trivia perspectives, Jeopardy! and Millionaire are infinitely preferable, and even with $$$ at stake, I would not try out for it.
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