Top ten game shows, eh? Well...kind of unfair seeing as I haven't seen every game show in existence, but neither has anyone else here. Still, while there's a tremendous number of shows I've yet to see, for now, I settle on these at my top ten favourites.
10. Jeopardy! - I'm not really into it or Wheel anymore, but of the two, this one is certanily still watchable today. It's ever-endurance with the contestants giving the questions instead of the answers has proved to be a gimmic that's remained enjoyable to this day.
9. The Pyramid Series - The CBS $25,000 and the first $100,000 versions were the pinnacle of the series, but all the other versions (besides Osmond's) were very enjoyable as well. The game was exciting and enjoyable right through every round, and I can't say there's a game show with a more suspenceful end game.
8. Whew! - Killed way too quickly is what I say. This game's front game may have been difficult to get the rules around completly, but it had such rushing excitement and suspence with the Charger against the Blocker. It was so original in every facet...shame it had to go so fast.
7. Beat the Clock - Game$how Marathon introduced me to this hilarious stunt challenge, and when I got around to seeing the original, it was only that much better. This show was laugh-a-minute. The couples looked so very hilarious trying to stumble their way through some crazy task dressed in their Sunday's best, and the twist that put on almost every stunt made them that much funnier.
6. Family Feud - The ABC version was terriffic, but the CBS version was even better. You can tune in halfway into this show and not be lost with what's going on. The pitting of family versus family makes for very good watching, and it's so compatable to play along with at home. I only wish the current version could be executed as well as the former versions.
5. Chain Reaction - Only recently was I introduced to this classic, and I've come to love it a lot. Like Whew!, this one was also killed way too quickly. This game has such an excellent front game and a good bonus round too once they finally got a good scoring system for it. The format for the NBC version was impeccable. The USA version proved that formats can be tweaked and still be watchable. The GSn version, however, holds nothing.
4. The Password Series - Easily the best word-association game out there, and all the versions had something unique going for it. Super Password would rank as my favourite incarnation of the game, with Password +Plus right behind. The CBS version, while very simplistic, was also good to watch; and the ABC version made it so much better with the addition of the Betting Word, a feature I wish was carried to later versions. The end format of the ABC run was a bit ambiguous, and Password All-Stars...I'm convinced that it was never supposed to last more than a few weeks anyway.
3. Card Sharks - I'm partial to the NBC version. Not simply because it's the version I've seen the most of, but because it had the best of the formats of the four versions. The later versions added too many extras to the game. In the original, the game was kept simple, and it was suspence behind every card turn, which Jim Perry always milked for what it was worth. Plus, the toss-up questions added intrest to the show with it's focus on judging human nature. It made for such a good combination.
2. Press Your Luck - I am conviced that had CBS not moved it around timeslots, this show would have easily lasted another five years. Suspence rode on every spin. If you never decyphered out the board patterns, every spin was a mystery. The Whammy added extra charm to this fantastic game that implored you to see how far you could go.
1. The Price Is Right - I could never rank it less. This has easily been the most diversified game show in television history. Every episode has more diversity to it with the many different pricing games. Plus, it's longevity has lead to thousands of episodes with many fabulous contestants; and I don't neglect the Cullen versions. While it has the same underlying concept, this and the current version seem hardly the same game; yet they're both original and enjoyable in every way, and it has certanily stood the test of time to earn number one.
