 |
Thanks for Playing!   |
|
||
|
|
||||
|
MONDAY | TUESDAY | WEDNESDAY | THURSDAY | WEEKEND | PRIMETIME | SCHEDULE | ARCHIVES: 30 90 | WLTI | STATE OF PLAY | ABOUT |
||||
|
Previous Columns: |
|
Copyright
Statement Powered by 1&1 Internet |
 with Chris Wolvie |
| Million
Dollar Money Drop Now You See the Million, Now You Don't |
Earlier
tonight, armed guards picked up one million dollars in cash from a
secret vault. It was transported under maximum security to our protected
set, where the entire million will be handed over to one couple. Their
challenge? Hang on to it through the most heart-pounding game ever
imagined! I'm Kevin Pollack and this is the... SHOW:
Million Dollar Money DropAIR DATES: December 20, 2010 to February 1, 2011 CREATOR: Remarkable Television PACKAGER: Endemol USA HOST: Kevin Pollack WATCH IT HERE: YouTube From the Netherlands to the UK to the USA...to practically everyone else. The "Drop" series of game shows has, much like others before like "Wheel of Fortune", "Deal or No Deal" and "Millionaire", conquered the world. While only seven countries still do the show (including the UK after a two-year hiatus), there is barely a country in the so-called "first world" that hasn't had an edition. Sadly, when it came to America, "Million Dollar Money Drop" was plagued from the get-go. Oh, not that the show wasn't thrilling. After all, the contestants had the million in hand before the game STARTED and their job was to hold on to as much as possible. No, the show had a controversial first game and they were unable to get out of the stigma for it. Plus,...well, it was on FOX...same guys who did "Greed", "The Chamber" and "Rich List", so... HOW WAS IT PLAYED? Two people with a current relationship (married, family, BFFs, etc.) play the game. They are shown $1,000,000 in 50 bundles of $20,000 apiece. At the end of the game, whatever money is left is theirs to take home. The game is played in seven rounds. In each round, the team picks between two categories. They are then shown possible answers on monitors beside "drop zones" and then given the question. They are given a certain amount of time to place the bundles on the drop zones beside what they think are the right answers. They must follow two rules for each question: 1) every bundle MUST be on a drop zone before time expires (any bundles not on a drop zone are lost), and 2) at least one drop zone must not have ANY bundles on it (thus making it possible to lose all their money on any given question). After time expires, all drop zones beside wrong answers are opened and the money on them "drop" and is lost. The next question is played with the remaining bundles. The first three questions have four possible answers and the contestants have 60 seconds to place the bundles. The next six have three possible answers. The fourth and fifth questions give the contestants 75 seconds to place the bundles and the sixth gives them 90 seconds. Once during the first six questions, the contestants can do a "Quick Change", getting another 30 seconds to move bundles if they don't feel confident enough. The final question has no time limit initially and only two possible answers, meaning the contestants go "all or nothing" on the final answer. After the bundles are placed on one of the two drop zones, the host gives a "Final Fact" about the question. They then have 60 seconds to either change their answer or leave it alone. After the final drop zone is opened, the contestants take home any money left. If, at any time, they lose all the money, the game ends and they leave with nothing. WHAT WORKED? Never before (outside of the pricing game "Temptation" on "The Price is Right") has contestants been GIVEN the prizes before being asked to play for it. This goes against everything game shows stand for. But that's what makes this show so unique. You don't have to EARN the money; you have to KEEP as much as possible. And, like "Millionaire", it was hard AF to keep the million...if not impossible. Only thing is I kinda wished the "bundles" were unbundled as they fell. Seeing stacks of bills drop isn't quite as "making it rain". Kevin Pollack was a good choice for hosting duties. He was serious when he needed to be and he made everyone laugh when he could with his impressions. Sure, he was in his 50s when he hosted but he looked and acted almost as veteran as any of the game show dieties you could name. The first episode intro was pretty cool, too. Not since "$1M Chance of a Lifetime" were armed guards brought in to protect the cash. Made the game sound more intriguing than it already was. WHAT DIDN'T WORK? Let's get the obvious out of the way. On the first game, sixth question, the couple was given a question about what was sold in stores first: Macintosh computer, Sony Walkman, and Post-it Notes. The couple piled $800,000 on Post-It Notes...and it all dropped when the answer was revealed to be the Walkman. Then the internet - being what it is even back than - commented that Post-It Notes were "launched" a few years BEFORE the Walkman but FOX backed their own story...until they didn't. And Pollack was all like, "They wouldn't have won anyway!" And I'm sure THIS was the reason people turned it off. The couple WAS offered a chance to play again...but the second season never happened for them to cash-in on that second chance. That being said, one problem I had was the way they stacked the money after each question. For the first, it was all in one nicely stacked pile. But the "hostesses" would then take the bundles and spread them out one bundle high, making it harder for the contestants to gather them in the time required. As stated before, it was hard AF to keep the million...or, for that matter, ANY money. Half the couples left with nothing...and the other half won a grand total of $660,000, with the largest being the last couple at $300,000. No big surprise that, with every possible million dropping out of sight, the ratings likewise dropped out of sight. WOULD IT WORK TODAY? Well, that's what Michael Strahan is banking on. At the time of this column's posting, he and Endemol Shine North America are trying to develop a remake of the show. As long as it's on one of the original "big three" networks, it'll probably be a big hit. After all, Strahan DID bring back "Pyramid" to ABC and "Joker's Wild" to cable so...who's to say it won't fit in with, say, "To Tell the Truth" or the like on ABC? Just keep it from FOX or cable and it should be golden...as long as they, y'know, RESEARCH their answers! NEXT TIME: Who-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o are you? Who-who-who-who? Chris Wolvie drops it like it's...mild to temperate, really. Follow him on Twitter @ChrisWolvie and e-mail him at chriswolvie@yahoo.com. |
 |