FULL RECAP - TPiR MDS 05/16/2007

[Joe_Capitano]

TPiR $1,000,000 Spectacular - Taped April 16, 2007 Bob: stage entrance First Four lineup: left to right Handoff: Rachel Models of the Day: Lanisha Cole, Rachel Reynolds and Gabrielle Tuite Wearing: Tony Bowls 1   Kawasaki Ninja 500R Motorcycle (G) BLYTHE *499 ROBERT 8000 FELECITY 9500 THOMAS 6500 ($5049) Blythe, a cute little Beach Bumette, gets to walk down the GOLDEN ROAD Knorr Garden Dill Dip Mix 91¢ Pathfiner Avenger 5 pc Luggage Set (L) *75 9 $ 975 * Yamaha Phazer Snowmobile (R) 6*98 7 6598 LOSS Dodge Viper (Std., V10, 6 spd., GPS)(G) 86*xx 2   Yamaha Nocturene Grand Digital Piano (R) JANICE 4500 +Robert 1400 +Felecity *1875 +Thomas 1199 ($3120) Felecity from Lynchburg, VA plays IT'S IN THE BAG - stakes raised 50% from daytime, provided we get there... $1,000 $ .55 * (4) (Nabisco Chips Ahoy) Cookies (snack) 2,000 10.97 * (1) (Citracal Plus) Supplement (150) 4,000 2.49 * (6) Renuzit Subtle Effects LOSS 4.21 X (5) Dial Springwater Soap (12 pk) 8.99 * (2) Purex Laundry Detergent (100 oz) (3) Tums Smoothies (60)($4.21) 3   Palermo Gld Fashion Ring (L-in the Row) Janice *1999 +Robert 3501 ROGER 3500 +Thomas 4200 ($3000) Janice plays MORE OR LESS Pulaski Excentrics Dining Group $4100 MORE $2700 WIPEOUT Bridgestone His/Hers Golf Equipment Family Guy Pinball Machine LINCOLN! MKZ (Std., AirBag, Sunroof, Wheels, GPS)(L) SHOWDOWN #1 $ 3000 Janice   95 stay .95 3,120 Felecity 100 1.00 *$10,000*   Bonus 45   Through to Showcase Round 12,622 Blythe   90 + 45 OV BTW: For tonight's spinnings of the Great and Humongous Wheel Full of Fun, the initial $1 on aggregate is worth $10,000, 5 or 15 in the bonus spin is worth $20,000. You know the rest. 4   DirecTV SatGo! Portable Satellite TV System (G) KARA 2500 +Robert 4100 Roger 3400 +Thomas 4101 ($2700) Kara from Rhode Island plays CLIFF HANGERS for an Dutchman Eco RV (R)($16,962) Auto Tool Kit $ 32 $ 25 7 to 7 13 oz Countertop Dispenser 37 33 4 to 11 Rechargeable Radio/Lantern 43 40 3 to 14   WIN! 5   Beachcomber Hot Tub (G&L) SCOTT 350 +Robert 4100 Roger *1499 +Thomas 1200 ($3495) STUPID BID Roger plays LUCKY SEVEN for a Ford Explorer XLT (Std., MP3, Stereo)(R) Picks: 6 4 3 5 Price:   $ 2 8 6 3 5 Bucks: 7 5 3 3 3 WIN! Even in Primetime, he, she or it who fail to escape the Row must face banishment ot the "First Four" Breakfast Club. The Primetime wing is even more dreary than the one for the daytime shows. Right now, Robert and Thomas are one misstep from experiencing the ultimate in humility, but one of them can avoid it. Who will it be, if any? 6   Cal Spas Stainless Outdoor Grill (R) Scott 2500 +Robert 4201 JEAN 4200 +Thomas *3100 ($3995) Robert heads off to the clubhouse while Thomas from Phoenix, AZ plays 5-Number PUSHOVER for a cruise to Vienna (via Amsterdam; NWA Vacations; Viking Cruise)(All) Setup: 2 1 1 3 7 1 6 5 0 Pick: 2 1[1 3 7 1 6] Price: $13,716   WIN! SHOWDOWN #2 $ 17,171 Thomas 45 + 50 .95 19,490 Kara 80 + 25 OV 32,130 Roger 15 + 60 .75 Through to Showcase Round SHOWCASE ROUND Thomas has the honor. SC1-Thomas THE HIGHLIGHTS OF BOB'S CAREER Sony Vaio Desktop Computer (L) "Happy Gilmore" DVD Robinson & Robinson Sofatrend Home Theater Group JBL-harmon/kardon 7.1 Home Theater System (G) 2 Ford Mustangs (Std., AT, AirBag)(L&R) BID $59,000 PRICE 56,368 DIFF OVER SC2-Felecity HOW PEOPLE PREPARE FOR AN MDS Inspire M3 Home Gym (R) Brass Beds of Virginia Mountaintop Queen Bed Strobel Supplepedic Sleep Set (L) Cadillac XLR (Std., V8, AT, GPS)(G) BID $60,100 PRICE 90,239 DIFF - 30,139 TOTAL $103,359 ...and no matter what Rich's copy said, I seriously doubt Barker has given away over $700 Million in prizes over the last 35 (or even 50) years. More like $300 Million, if that. Still downright impressive, though. BTW: They slid in two clips from TorC. Didn't know ol' Barker was adept at flipping flapjacks, didja? Today's Pricing Games: 3 for 6 Total Winnings: $187,772

[megvela]

After one month, I finally got to see myself on TV as I watch my favorite TV show.

The taping for the MDS lasted for about 2 hours.  They stopped it a couple of times.  It is so different when you watch it live.  Even if I was just seated on the second row, I could hardly hear the bidding.  Among all the contestants, I got to talk to TOM (Thomas) the most.  We met since Saturday in the line.  I met Team BOB on Sunday.

Golden Road:  Blythe is full of energy.  She is awesome.  975 was obvious for the luggage.  The second digit for the snowmobile was tough.  

More or Less:  I said Less for the dining group.  I knew it was Less.  

During commercial break, Bob was so disappointed when nobody won in the first half.  He told the audience, they want to give all those prices.
 
Everybody was so excited and all were standing when Felecity was spinning for 1 Million Dollars.

Lucky Seven:  Roger did awesome on the 2nd, 3rd and 4th number.  I was shouting 5 for the last number like everybody else.  Congratulations again Roger.  I was so happy to see you again and the other members of Team Bob at LAX, and got to have pictures taken with you and John at MDW, and I mentioned Golden-Road.net.

When Tom finally won in the bidding, I was so happy for him, his wife and mother-in-law.  Minutes before the taping started, I told Tom I really hope he gets to be called as a contestant.  Anyone in their group is very deserving.  They were very helpful to everyone. Being the first group in the line, so many people asked them questions and they have been consistently patient in answering them.  They were very friendly.  

Here is a link from CBS.com's Innertube with behind the scenes video of the Million Dollar Spectacular.  I was beside Brian (FastCompany) when he said "Richmond, VA" (I was wearing a pink Chicago shirt.)

[CrimsonViper]

I found tonight's (OK, last night ) show pretty enjoyable, despite a not-so-pretty first half.  

Wow, did Golden Road ever surprise me!  That hasn't happened since... I got too lazy to check the almighty FAQ for the correct date.  And yay, the Viper was blue, not that hideous mustard yellow... of course I'd prefer the red one, but it's probably just me.  The second prize was a tossup, but considering that the same snowmobile was played for the day before in Coming or Going, it was the 5 that was right.  Such a pity.  

More Or Less was a real downer.  Just when I thought we might have the first win of the night, Janice blew it on the first guess and well, there goes that Lincoln.  And it was about time Price featured Family Guy.  

The first Showcase Showdown was pretty awesome.  High scores and a $10,000 win!  I guess it was realized that hitting a bonus section was hard and jacked up its payouts to make up for the fact that there is only a slightest chance of getting a million.  

Cliff Hangers was pretty easy, although I'm still wondering how such a dinky trailer costs $16,000.  It didn't even take up the whole door!  

Lucky Seven was also set up for a win, provided that you guessed in the mid-range for all the numbers.  Going all 5s would've done it, too.  Finally glad to see a car being won.  

The first Showcase's home theatre group and system must've been quite expensive; those were a lot of seats.  Either that or Thomas overestimated those Mustangs, as has happened time and time again.  

It's official: If I can't get a Viper, I'll take that dashingly hot looking red Cadillac XLR, thank you very much!  

[crazypackersfan]

I liked the featuring of the newest game, More Or Less, in this Spectacular. It was disappointing to see the three early losses, but things got better starting with the $10,000 win.

I was shocked when I heard how much the trailer was... it looked way too small to cost that much.

I loved the first showcase... but I'm glad I didn't have to bid on it, where I would have embarrassed myself by going way over (I guessed $70,000, forgetting how Mustangs aren't that expensive).

Overall, a great show (although I guess I always think every TPIR episode is great). I was sort of heartbroken to not see the million won... I wanted it to be won at least once with Bob hosting, but it was not to be. I can't wait for Thursday night's episode.

[GoldenBulldog]

First off, before I get to doing my usual review for this show, I would just like to thank Bob Barker for the many accomplishments he has acheived in 50 years on TV and 35 of those on TPiR.  I had the chance to see him in person this year, and let me say that it was the most magical experience one could ever have.  The other thing that made my trip to TPiR so special was that I took it three days before my 25th birthday (March 24).  Second, I would like to personally thank Marc, CGJ, Robert, and the rest of the G-R.net gang for inspiring me to take the journey.  Here's to Bob's wonderful legacy, and here's to the greatest season in "Price is Right" history!  

Now, on with the review:

Golden Road:  WHA?!?  A "Stage Entrance" for Golden Road?  I don't believe it's happened since the early to mid-80s.  As for the gameplay, anyone of those numbers, besides the 7, could've fit the snowmobile's price; this setup wasn't tricky, but it wasn't easy either.  

It's in the Bag:  This was a bad break for Felicity; the minute she put the soap in the $8000 bag, I smelled a tough loss.  

More or Less:  Awwwww...that was just plain E-V-I-L!    Notice also that they didn't cue the "MRRRRP" for this loss, unlike the first few playings of this game on daytime.  WOO-HOO...The Big Banana goes primetime!  *insert dancing bananas here*

Showcase Showdowns:  Now that was a WONDERFUL idea to give away $10,000 for getting the dollor in one or two spins!  I loved the new graphics too...  

Cliff Hangers:  That little travel trailer costs over $16,000!?!  CSS players, pay attention!  Nice win for Kara there.  

Lucky Seven:  Nice win on a very tough setup for Roger!

Push Over:  A European Adventure is new on me...

Showcases:  "The Dob" really pulled the rabbit out of his hat with those two EVIL MUSTANGS!    The "Happy Gilmore" reference in SC-1 was a nice touch.


OVERALL SHOW GRADE:  A-

[Mallory16]

Well, it wasn't the greatest Million Dollar Spectacular we've had.  Not the worst, either.  A good episode still, with a pretty amazing lineup.  Golden Road, It's in the Bag, and the return of Cliff Hangers in prime time!  Yay, Cliff Hangers!  Just kinda' wish they could've swapped Push Over's and Lucky $even's slots.  Lucky $even just kinda' belongs sixth.

Golden Road first?!  How the... oh wait.  Golden Road is always first.  But Golden Road after a regular door entrance:  that was amazing!  Nice as it is to see Golden Road, it's all the better when Golden Road shows up when you're expecting Triple Play!

Yay for Blythe's favorite game being Golden Road!  She really seemed like the most excited contestant there tonight, and knew Golden Road, and... well, did as well as she could.  I thought the snowmobile would be $6798 too.  Just looks so... patterny.  And yes, heels, yes
On one hand, as well as Felicity played It's in the Bag, it's too bad she lost--she made the exact same choices I would have.  Guess she made up nicely later on, though... $10,000 and a convertible!  Not bad, eh?

How the heck did Janice manage to lose More or Less on the first prize?!  That was clearly set up to be won... well, the dinette anyway.  I'm guessing the golf stuff and pinball machine were also as easy as they looked.  Car could've been, too.

Speaking of More or Less, I was shocked that game showed up tonight.  At first.  Then I thought more about it... and it actually made sense.  A game where Roger can offer three nice prizes and a car, and could easily make it easy, unlike Temptation, which would almost have to be at least somewhat hard.  Or at least it should have been easy tonight....

As for the commercial breaks... wow.  Tonight's show was actually treated like a normal primetime show, with the luxury of the fewer commercial breaks normal primetime shows get.  Can't tell you how surprising it especially was when Bob had Rich call down another contestant right after Lucky $even!  Cool!

GoldenBulldog wrote:  More or Less: Awwwww...that was just plain E-V-I-L!

No it wasn't!

[JT]

Didany one notice that they played Golden Road without the road (the gold discs on the floor) - I don't think that ever happened. Bob probably wanted to do the stage entrance rather than get mauled by the audience coming in from the back which is fine but they could have had the discs on the floor like the old days or edit the tape and then get the set ready for game #1 with all the props.  They obviously did not want a win in More or Less - I think human nature will be to always say "more" on the first prize whatever it is - moving forward they should make the first prize real easy to win as in Golden Road.  I was also annoyed that when the wheel was spinning for $1 Million the camera was on the contestant most of the time saying hello to people at home.  We at home don't care about her people at home when the wheel is spinning for the million bucks!!

I was surprised no direct references that this was Bob's last Million $ special.  Wouldn't it be cool if Bob came back for the next 2 years or so and just did the Million Dollar Spectaculars?  Yes, I know it's  a longshot but people do come out of retirement, even in their 80s!

[Mark]

Gemma wrote:
Here is a link from CBS.com about the behind the scenes video of the Million Dollar Spectacular.  I was beside Brian (FastCompany) when he said "Richmond, VA".

I'm going to beat Heels, and designate you to be a "MDS Hottie"!

[Briguy]

Not a bad show, IMO. The three wins after the three losses were nice, and I was shocked that Thomas went over with his Showcase; I watched the show with the sound almost turned down, and thought these were top-line Mustangs loaded to the hilt.

Which leads to my next point — I was a little disappointed at how cheap some of the cars were, however. This is a MDS, and I would have expected at least a top-line Ford Explorer (not the XLT, but the Limited model and fully-loaded), and perhaps the Saleen versions of the Mustang (or the fully-loaded Premium or Cobra models at the very least).

And (*sniff*) they never gave away the $1 million on the Big Wheel! Unless they do end up continuing the MDS specials under the new host, we shall never see someone win the million.

Brian

[GoldenBulldog]

Frank15 wrote:

GoldenBulldog wrote:  
More or Less: Awwwww...that was just plain E-V-I-L!

No it wasn't!

Well, I'll retract that statement and say that it wasn't too easy, but it wasn't too hard either.  That MoL setup really looked like it was going to go right down the middle.  

[PaulMiller]

Did any one notice that they played Golden Road without the road (the gold discs on the floor) - I don't think that ever happened.

Just in from the CalTrans website: Golden Road was closed for repaving.  Detours run on Fairfax, Wilshire, and La Cienga.  

I was surprised no direct references that this was Bob's last Million $ special. Wouldn't it be cool if Bob came back for the next 2 years or so and just did the Million Dollar Spectaculars? Yes, I know it's a longshot but people do come out of retirement, even in their 80s!

Ain't gonna happen, son.

[thewhammy_2000]

Golden Road: Since Bob entered through the doors, I did not expect this to appear. We know why this was a little shocking for some of us. For the snowmobile, I was torn between 7 and 5. Either one could have worked. I just did not know.

It's in the Bag: I would have busted with the $2.49 bag with the worthless Dial soap. At least I had the Tums right, though.

More or Less: I can understand some dining groups costing more than $4100, but defintely not this one. Pure bust this one is.

Showcase Showdown 1: Since Bob said that the initial 100 was worth $10,000, I predicted the green sections would be worth $50,000. But I was wrong there. $20,000 is still good. Also, since the million-dollar spin was supposed to be suspenseful with the music and everything, Felecity's shout-outs kinda distracted me from that.

One Bid 4: I want that!

Cliff Hangers: I had sheer confidence Kara was going to win this one. I probably would have done as well has her.

Lucky $even: Ah, so much better than the previous playings. Liked how Bob said how the remaining two dollars can be used for half a gallon of gasoline.

One Bid 6: Will Robert be the last Primetime inductee? We'll see.

Push Over: I don't know what triggered it, but I fell on the kitchen floor, crying (no tears) after Thomas' win. Besides, 13716 made more sense than the other possibilities.

Showcase Showdown 2: I just did not like how the artifical audience was added during the spins.

Showcases: I have this strange thought that a copy of "Happy Gilmore" should be a default door/consolation prize for everyone who participates on the show or in the audience. Just a strange thought. The prizes in Thomas' Showcase and Felicity's Caddy were very impressive.

I just felt so relaxed (tense at times), just laying against a wall of tapes as the credits ended Bob's last MDS.

[MrDeePay]

I was expecting Triple Play to be played tonight and even thought that even more when Bob came through Door #2 (he usually enters through the audience if Golden Raod is to be played that day, for those who are wondering). But I guess not, since the bigger prizes were suited behind the doors and the stage didn't have the golden road, so to speak.

I'm disappointed that Golden Road was lost, mostly because it was played for a Vipe, a car I would love to have one of myself.  Losing the game on the second prize made it even worse for me.

Seeing the fourth item wrong on It's in the Bag sucked, especially when everything else was right.

More or Less was wipeout in every sense of the word.  Getting the FIRST price wrong when it screamed "LESS" in big red letters coupled with the first two losses just gave me a headache.  No really, it did.  For some reason, I don't see More or Less lasting much longer.

The small prizes in Cliff Hanges tripped me up.  My guesses were 32, 40 and 50.

Lucky $even was set up for a win; just pick the 5 four times.  Though I'm a bit surprised that the game didn't play for a 30-40 thousand dollar car like on the season premier.

I thought Push Over had a tricky setup.  Anything but 37,... would've seemed like a decent guess.

For the first time in God knows how long, I actually enjoyed the second half of the pricing games more than the first. The wins did it for me.

...That was one massive underbid on the second Showcase.  Conversely, the was a devastating overbid on the first.  Then again, I would've guessed in the 60,000-70,000 dollar range.

[JokerFan]

Golden Road: A stage entrance?  I would’ve preferred an audience entrance like what is normally done.  I guess that was why they had the golden dots missing.  Would I be correct in saying that the last time there was a stage entrance for Golden Road was before Bob made audience entrances?  Too bad Blythe didn’t make it to the final prize.

More or Less:  Two car games in the 1st half?  All right!  I said less on the dining group and was right.  I thought the price was either in the upper $2000s or the lower $3000s.  I wanted Janice to go all the way; it would have made the 1st half better if she would have at least won the first three prizes.

Cliff Hangers: An easy game to win if you know the prices are in ascending order.  I was desperate for a win and was excited when this game was won.

Lucky $even: For the last number, I was worried since some of the last playings resulted in a 1 or a 9 as the last number.  However, since this is a MDS, the setup would be easier on the daytime show, I suppose.

SCSD:  I also thought the green sections should be worth $50,000 after hearing that getting $1 in a regular spin was worth $10,000.  Just add a 0 to the daytime amount.  I wish this would have been done in previous MDS.  Too bad no money was won in the bonus spin.  I’m hoping that despite tonight’s primetime special is using the 1/2 hour format, the winner of the Showcase can spin for a million dollars (although I’m almost positive that this is not going to happen).

SC1:  My Bid: $55,415 / ARP: $56,368 / Diff: $953
SC2:  My Bid: $62,180 / ARP: $90,239 / Diff: $28,059

I was surprised there was no break between the 2nd and 3rd game rather than the 1st and 2nd game.  I was also surprised that the props for It’s in the Bag could be taken away and the props for More or Less could be placed on the stage in that short of time.  Or was there an edit?
What surprised me even more was that the last half of the pricing games was done without any commercial breaks.  With this in mind, I wouldn't have been surprised if the Showcase was done without any commercial breaks.

[megvela]

I agree with you thewhammy_2000.  Felecity should have greeted when she was spinning the first time like most people do, not when she was spinning for $1 Million Dollars.  It would have been more exciting if the focus was just on the wheel if it will land again on 1.00 and someone would be a millionaire.  I can't even remember that she did a greeting.  The lights changed when she was spinning for 1 Million and all of us were up on our feet, it was so tensed and there was so much excitement and anticipation.