Supermarket Sweep Revival

[thepriceis_J]

Honestly, while it's nice that they increased the budget to fit primetime, it cost the show a lot of its charm. Sweep was always a low-budget cable show, and that's what helped make the show what it was... the thrill of watching ordinary people run through the supermarket grabbing whatever they could get their hands on was the best part of the show. Who doesn't want to do that? This version lost that low-budget charm which causes the whole thing to feel off.

I think it's a necessary change unfortunately. This a big budget nostalgia property now, so there's no way they were still going to play it for $5,000. Honestly, for me, while the low budget was somewhat charming, it was also still stupidly cheap for it's era.

$25,000 is the cheapest prize on the ABC games (not counting whatever they give TTTT folks) and with the hype they were putting behind this version and the publicized bidding war they had to get the rights to air it, I'm not surprised they wanted the prize to be bigger than that. I don't think any cable network was going for it (Netflix was in the mix).

Is it just me, or did the Big Sweep seem like half of it was edited out? There was so much editing it felt like it ran way shorter than it was supposed to... and since the Big Sweep is the part of the show that everyone looks forward to, this isn't where you want to edit stuff out!

This is a very valid criticism, but also one that could be levied at the original as well. Perhaps it wasn't as obvious there, but having watched a bunch on Buzzr (and still watching) there are glaring misses such as teams taking off far quicker than the time difference between them and other teams, magical teleportations of players seen in one aisle and then seen across the market in the background of another player shopping and bonuses magically showing up at the checkout stand.

- The Big Sweep was one big gigantic mess. Like cu said, they didn't show the entire sweep. The first sweep was set at 3:20; I clocked it around 2:43. The second sweep was set at 2:50; I clocked it around 2:08. I know I'm being nit-picky but it's better to say anyways.

There's also been discrepancies in Sweep time and actual time in both directions on the original (extra time and cut time), but again, perhaps not as noticeable.

That said, it was pretty dumb of them to make a reference point of the episode the roses (to the point of naming the episode because of one contestant's interaction with it) and proceed to cut out any explanation of what that bonus even was. Definitely not a great decision to poorly edit out gameplay elements on your premiere episode.

I also agree that I miss the structured play-by-play style for the Big Sweep and I like the idea someone gave of doing traditional play-by-play, but having Leslie on as color commentary.

- Leslie is awful. She's loud, annoying, and puts herself over the contestants when the show is suppose to be about them. Shut up please.

I really didn’t like this, but I didn’t hate it enough to give up on it. Leslie Jones is too energetic, too over the top, it distracts from the game itself. The host’s job is to keep the game moving along, not to overshadow the game itself, and here Leslie absolutely overshadows the game.

Again, I know that Leslie's loud and brash persona wasn't going to be everyone's cup of tea, but this is honestly a criticism that can be lobbed at almost every game show host of the last 10 years. Unfortunately, the "game show host" is endangered. Execs got it into their head that if the host isn't someone really famous, the show has no chance of success. And thanks to the sustained success of TPIR, the moderate success of LMAD, and the uber success of Steve Harvey's Feud, the idea to have a comedian as host has basically become trendy. And it works for some shows, but for others, it becomes a problem because, being a comedian, they'd naturally want to inject themselves into the proceedings and try to be funny. The same thing being said about Leslie could apply to others.

[Spmahn]

I think it's a necessary change unfortunately. This a big budget nostalgia property now, so there's no way they were still going to play it for $5,000. Honestly, for me, while the
Again, I know that Leslie's loud and brash persona wasn't going to be everyone's cup of tea, but this is honestly a criticism that can be lobbed at almost every game show host of the last 10 years. Unfortunately, the "game show host" is endangered. Execs got it into their head that if the host isn't someone really famous, the show has no chance of success. And thanks to the sustained success of TPIR, the moderate success of LMAD, and the uber success of Steve Harvey's Feud, the idea to have a comedian as host has basically become trendy. And it works for some shows, but for others, it becomes a problem because, being a comedian, they'd naturally want to inject themselves into the proceedings and try to be funny. The same thing being said about Leslie could apply to others.

The difference is that I don’t ever feel like Steve Harvey, Drew Carey, or Wayne Brady ever try to make themselves the center of their respective shows. They stay back and interject where needed or where it makes sense. This show felt like Leslie was literally making the show about her. It was the Leslie Jones hour where they just happened to have some grocery shopping game in between her act.

[urbanpreppie0004]

The difference is that I don’t ever feel like Steve Harvey, Drew Carey, or Wayne Brady ever try to make themselves the center of their respective shows. They stay back and interject where needed or where it makes sense. This show felt like Leslie was literally making the show about her. It was the Leslie Jones hour where they just happened to have some grocery shopping game in between her act.

So she cracked jokes. This isn't Jeopardy, Split Second or even Sale- the game is still why people are watching, but there's others that watch to have fun.  And let's be honest, the game isn't the most cerebral or most engaging thing. They focused on the contestants running, some light trivia, and some comedy bits- some funny- some that didn't work.

[pricefan18]

So she cracked jokes. This isn't Jeopardy, Split Second or even Sale- the game is still why people are watching, but there's others that watch to have fun.  And let's be honest, the game isn't the most cerebral or most engaging thing. They focused on the contestants running, some light trivia, and some comedy bits- some funny- some that didn't work.

Drew used to in his early days too.....let's not forget that. He still even now cracks jokes on some small prizes, but he's far more reserved now from when he began.

[thepriceis_J]

The difference is that I don’t ever feel like Steve Harvey, Drew Carey, or Wayne Brady ever try to make themselves the center of their respective shows. They stay back and interject where needed or where it makes sense. This show felt like Leslie was literally making the show about her. It was the Leslie Jones hour where they just happened to have some grocery shopping game in between her act.

I love Wayne Brady's LMAD, but it's essentially The Wayne Brady Improv Game Show Hour. They do a good job balancing their hijinks with focusing on the contestants because what they do usually affects the contestant's decisions, but they do plenty of comedy and it's hilarious. They won an Emmy for making up a song.

Steve Harvey definitely makes himself the center of his show when he gets a dumb/crazy answer he can guffaw at. He cares about the families he likes, but he definitely cares about being able to crack jokes off of them as well.

And I'm not here to say I love everything Leslie does, I'm just placing her into the perspective of what the role of game show host has become.

[imhomerjay]

That's because of how pop culture has evolved. Personalities, "name brands" so to speak, sell the product. They cut through the noise of a gazillion entertainment options. The interchangeable (almost always white male) hosts of the 70s and 80s worked for that era. It's a new era. New realities.

What's more, it's not like someone is "born" a game show host or goes to game show host college. They have skills that are translated into hosting, same as it happens now.

[tpiradam]

I feel like I'm part of the minority but I actually thoroughly enjoyed the reboot! Leslie's energy matched the show very well and the overall concept didn't really stray too far from the original show. I like the riskiness of the bonus round and how the first 10 second bonus was a free for all. Can't wait to see what next week's episode brings!

[pricefan18]

Steve Harvey definitely makes himself the center of his show when he gets a dumb/crazy answer he can guffaw at. He cares about the families he likes, but he definitely cares about being able to crack jokes off of them as well.

And funny enough too, which I was kinda thinking about earlier, even in the Feud's Golden Age (or second one I guess you could say), Ray Combs was much the same, being a comedian first before he ever got that job. So what Steve is doing now isn't all that different, if a little jazzed up from then.

[gamesurf]

Just caught the premiere on my DVR, a few delayed thoughts:

The Good

• They pretty much perfectly checked off everything I wanted from an hourlong primetime Sweep:

Spruce up the Round 1 set, give the Big Sweep winner a guaranteed prize for winning the game, bump up the bonus round payouts to $50K or so, and it's ready to go. I'd be happy if they were able to take advantage of an hour-long timeslot and get another minisweep or two, an extended Big Sweep round of 4:30ish or so, and a bonus round that lasts longer than 60 seconds. (Or just do two games in an hour. Either way I'm happy.)

Didn't feel stretched, didn't feel rushed. They got more sweep action in but they held back enough to whet my appetite for more.

• I like Leslie as a host. She's energetic, she's loud, she's quick, she doesn't feel too rehearsed or ADR'd. I get the complaint that she's overshadowing the game, but Supermarket Sweep has always been a game show with far more "show" than "game". Her style of comedy (mostly) fits here.

• More importantly, I also like Leslie as an EP. While other hosts like Alec Baldwin and Joel McHale are having fun doing their shows, you can tell they were tapped for the job. This is obviously a passion project for Leslie, and it feels fresh. A lot of the new additions and production decisions feel like hers, and a lot of them work. I don't mind the "supporting cast" doing little comedy bits like the florist or the security guard.

• I love, love, love, that they did a terrific job keeping the live feel. Contestants talk over each other. There are camera shots that aren't perfect. There's a little pause when the judge has to make a snap judgement call when the contestant says "Breath Mint" but the anagram spells "Breath Mints". Crew members & camera ops don't always stay hidden behind the fourth wall. They could have stopped tape to reshoot Leslie accidentally dropping the card during the second bonus sweep, but they kept it in.

• The contestants talk and reason like real people and not rehearsed products out of central casting. Their chatter seems real. It doesn't feel like a smooth finished perfect product--it's a wish fulfilment show, but it feels real.

The Bad:

• Big Sweep doesn't really have a narrative. It's kind of a cluster editing-wise; it's just a bunch of things happening at once without any attempt to pull some sort of visual story out of it.

The advantage of Johnny/Randy reading copy meant you had a narrative to follow and you got enough time to process what was going on. They're attempting to show everything, but it's all happening so quickly I don't really know where everybody is in relation to each other, or if people are doing good or bad. "Those hoses are $18 each, and he's got five of them!" at least gives me something to compare other shoppers to.

I appreciate that they're taking a different production approach, and Leslie's spontaneous reactions are often good, but something was lost here.

• Bonus Sweep "risk it" dilemma doesn't fit the tone of the show. You shouldn't go from being excited they got their hands on the money and won $25,000 to being disappointed they lost it 60 seconds later.

If you absolutely need to have a risk element, play the first three clues for $10,000 (and make it easy), then give them a free shot with the time remaining to play three more clues and play for a super bonus. They can choose to play for $25,000, $50,000, or $100,000, and they get 30, 15, or 0 seconds added to their time remaining depending on what they choose. They keep the $10,000 no matter what.

The Weird:

• As much as I've praised her here, an hour of Leslie is really potent without much to break it up. I like the idea of having her as color commentator to a more traditional PxP, but it would be nice to have a few minutes where the attention isn't on her.

• I kind of like having three players on the mini-sweep, but they have to shoot/edit it in a way where we can tell where everybody is. The first one was pretty confusing to follow.

• Leslie needs to wait a beat when revealing the Big Sweep totals--it seems like she's reading off the card as quickly as she can get it over with. It's the little things.

But overall, I'm very happy with this and will be tuning in next week. I still get jealous of the contestants running through the aisles, and it still feels like Supermarket Sweep, and not a faux-dramatic primetime game show.

[pricefan18]

If you absolutely need to have a risk element, play the first three clues for $10,000 (and make it easy), then give them a free shot with the time remaining to play three more clues and play for a super bonus. They can choose to play for $25,000, $50,000, or $100,000, and they get 30, 15, or 0 seconds added to their time remaining depending on what they choose. They keep the $10,000 no matter what.

I like this. I also think that they could make it interesting by having the 3 super bonuses in envelopes, with the one they get to play perhaps picked by them beforehand in a nod to the original run. It'd add an element of suspense to that part of things. I might say go from 3 clues to 2 though, to keep it winnable. 3 more would be impossible IMO, even with easier clues.

[Plinkoman]

OK, I decided to give it a second chance and I feel better about it. I like Leslie and I think she has potential if she calms down a bit. I like all the contestants and I believe she wants them to do well, but she just needs to take it down a notch (she seemed better this week).

I still like the games they have to build up sweep time. I think this new series may grow on me. These last two couple of episodes seemed more tolerable than the first two. Less yelling and cursing from Leslie this go-round.

I also had a margarita before watching, so maybe that helped too. 
Anyway, I think if the show stays like it did this week, it may turn out okay.

[Roadgeek Adam]

Leslie definitely was a much improved person Sunday. I was much impressed.  I think there were some smart changes (grabbing coffee cup over waiting for a barista). Glad to see one of the old games return for the Round Robin.   

[TPIRFan1995]

Just watched the first 2 weeks of shows with my mom. Leslie's doing a great job for her fist game show hosting gig!!!! I can tell she's having tons of fun!!! It's nice to know contestants go home with the money they won during the game if they don't win the jackpot!!!! Great big money wins on the jackpot during the first two weeks!!!!

[JayC]

The contestants on the Lifetime/PAX version took home the money they won from the Big Sweep and the amounts won for the first and second products if they didn't win the $5,000 prize as well.

[TPIRFan1995]

The contestants on the Lifetime/PAX version took home the money they won from the Big Sweep and the amounts won for the first and second products if they didn't win the $5,000 prize as well.

Totally forgot, and watched it as much as possible!!!! Oops!!! Sorry, David!!! Lol!!!!