Episode 28.12 - A Fistful of Turkey
November 28

Gordon: This is Gordon Pepper, and with all this activity, I feel pooped. I didn't even have a real turkey.
Chico: You mean you didn't see TPIR on Wednesday?
Gordon: Oh I did. That caused me to go out and buy a tofu-rkey
Chico: Yikes. It was that bad?
Gordon: There were so many turkeys on my TV that I felt sorry for the real creatures.
Chico: Guess we're going to go over all of them, aren't we?
Gordon: Sounds good from me. From somewhere in Gordon's 100% vegan oven this Thanksgiving, this week's version of WLTi...is...on!
Chico: Alongside Gordon Pepper, it's Chico Alexander. Hope you're having a wonderful holiday weekend.
Gordon: I do too. It would be probably less wonderful if you were watching Wednesday's The Price is Right



Chico: This Wednesday, TPIR celebrated Thanksgiving.... well, in typical fashion for a special episode. With an 0-5-1 record. That pretty much sucks. Still enough happened to pass the $3 million mark. Just a lot of really bad luck.
Gordon: And by that, Chico means really bad gameplay.
Chico: Si, senor. Big Bored?

Gordon: The Subject: The Turkey is Right
Chico: Let's start with game #2, Lucky Seven. You have $3 in hand with a board of $23,4__. What's the one thing you want to avoid doing.
Gordon: You want to avoid going to an extreme
Chico: Gold star, G.
Gordon: You know the last number is a 9
Chico: Right. And you want to allow as big a window as possible.
Gordon: you can only lose $2.
Chico: For the fourth number, straight up the middle works best.
Gordon: So anywhere from 3-7 is acceptable
Chico: So let's say I guess 3.... the number is 1, which leaves me with $1.
Gordon: Right. I'd say 3, because the 4th number is usually 1
Chico: That means I have to get the last number exactly right. So the car is a Jeep Wrangler Sport. And it's $23,41something.
Gordon: I'll go with 9
Chico: If I stick to the plan and guess 9... well, I'd still be wrong, but at least I would be farther than what the player went through. It was $23,417.
Gordon: Well I would have gone lower than what the contestant did. Let's play it out. I would go 2 for the 1st number and 4 for the second. That would give mt $6 for the last 2 numbers.
Chico: Then the plan works. :-)
Gordon: Sure does.
Gordon: You shouldn't have lost $4 on the first 2 numbers.
Chico: Really shouldn't lose $4 on any two numbers.
Gordon: You could on a high or low number, but not on a 3 or 4. Especially with the 2nd number
Chico: Right. Then there's Clock Game.
Gordon: How can you lose Clock Game?
Chico: Well, you know how Drew says "Be very careful what you bid?" The player, well, wasn't.
Gordon: Lets play. What am I bidding on?
Chico: First, you are bidding on a La-Z-Boy couch.
Gordon: ok. So the last number is going to be 9
Chico: Right.
Gordon: I'll bid 899
Chico: LOWER.
Gordon: 799
Chico: LOWER.
Gordon: 699
Chico: LOWER.
Gordon: 599
Chico: HIGHER.
Gordon: 649
Chico: CORRECT! Now I can tell you two places where our wayward player went wrong. 1. She started with $1200.
Gordon: Yipes
Chico: NOW... going back to the days of Barker, the rule on $1000+ items is that, although they are rare, the host will usually let you know when the price is above $1000.
Chico: Just easy.
Gordon: Right
Chico: And second thing, You don't make baby steps and you don't take so long with it. She took 29.5 seconds and 34 steps to get to $649. Gordon did it in five seconds and five steps.
Gordon: Yipes
Chico: Yipes indeed. Let's try your strategy with the second item. It's a Blu-Ray home theater system. Clock will start with your first bid.
Gordon: Using the same strategy... 899
Chico: LOWER.
Gordon: 799
Chico: HIGHER.
Gordon: 849
Chico: CORRECT!
Gordon: YAY!
Chico: Now usually the price won't end in _99 or _49
Gordon: Actually, yes it does
Chico: ...ok. it does. There are some exceptions, but this way you can hone in on it quicker.
Gordon: There's always exceptions
Chico: Just prepping for the exception. Double Prices is 50/50, so no real qualm here.
Chico: Grocery Game... simply comes down to knowing your prices. Player lost it by a PENNY.
Gordon: Lets play this What do we got?
Chico: Okay, on special... Trader Joe's 2% milk, Campbell's Cream of Mushroom soup, Westpac frozen green beans, McCormick black pepper, and French's fried onions. Scott Robinson is giving you the recipe for a Thanksgiving classic. Because he's SMART.
Gordon: He is. And I'm smart too. The first thing to do is select the largest item and work your way down. The pepper seems the biggest. Let's take 4 of those
Chico: Four peppers. Each one: $3.35. Four... $13.40.
Chico: You have $7.60 left to spend to get to $21.
Gordon: Let's go smaller. 3 of the beans
Chico: Each one is $1.89. Three...$5.67. Total of... $19.07. You have to spend 93c but not over $1.93. The question... What costs between .93 and $1.93?
Gordon: Cheapest thing there - I'l say 1 milk
Chico: That is... $1.29! That's a win!
Gordon: YAY!
Chico: Finally, Money Game. Let's go over the board before we reveal the prize...
Gordon: ok

15 40 83
92 16 04
58 17 76

Chico: Okay, first of all, you see that 40 in row #1? Let's get rid of that. that's a distraction, and I'll tell you why. Last season... it was a 39. Wink wink. So that leaves us with...

15 XX 83
92 16 04
58 17 76

Chico: A little easier.
Gordon: What sort of car is it?
Chico: Now let me tell you what you're playing for... a 2012 Chevrolet Sonic. Middle number: 6. A nice car.
Gordon: It is. 17
Chico: 17.. THE FRONT!
Gordon: yay
Chico: Simple. THAT knocks out two more numbers besides the 17.
Gordon: Now if you're a loyal member of The Price is right, there should be something sticking out at you immediately. That would be El Cheapo, which is 04. SO we'll go with that one first.
Chico: You'll go with that.
Gordon: I will
Chico: In this case, you'd GET IT. WIN! The only game where SOMETHING was won was Punch-a-Bunch, and that's only because the player bailed with $2500. And $2500 is a good amount to walk with in Punch-a-Bunch. So a 0-5-1 show really shouldn't have happened.
Gordon: It should never have gone 0-5-1. Maybe 4-2 or 5-1
Chico: Right. What else shouldn't have happened? A show that's equal parts Deal or No Deal and 20Q UNLESS you're going to put the game first. That's basically "You Deserve It" in a nutshell: Deal or No Deal meets 20Q for a friend. It's a show whose heart is in the right place, but who's head is in a wrong place. A VERY VERY WRONG PLACE. Gordon, break it down one time.
Gordon: Here's how the game works; There's a question board with 9 clues, Each clue has a money amount behind it that's deducted from the prize of the puzzle. The objective is to solve the puzzle by using as little clues as possible, which in turn will cost you as little money as possible. However a wrong answer means you win nothing from the board.
Chico: But if you answer a question correctly, you keep that money. No matter what.
Gordon: Right. There are 5 puzzles played. 10,000, 25,000, 50,000, 100,000 and 250,000. Whatever the player earns goes to the person who deserves it at the end of the show.
Chico: Should be noted that the pay-for-play clues are randomized. Think the Millionaire money tree post 2010.
Gordon: and the clues assigned via Deal or No Deal. So there is some good to this: The good: the heart is in the right place.
Chico: And you know something? The game as it is isn't TERRIBLE.
Gordon: It's not terrible, and the pacing isn't awful
Chico: See this cash? You're playing for it, but if you want clues, you're paying for it. It's one of those things that makes sense fundamentally.
Gordon: And as much as Chico hates to admit this, his favorite Bachelor Host, Chris Harrison, is quite serviceable here.
Chico: Read my mind. =p I was just about to say: he does the job. He's equal parts host and cheerleader. And he knows how to move it along.
Gordon: I do like the fact that you don't blow all your money at the end, and the giving back the money reveal, though schmaltzy, does work.
Chico: So there's that. But it's not all sweetness and sunshine.
Gordon: The problem here with the bad, is that if we're complimenting the format as 'It doesn't suck', it means there's not too much to like here, either.
Chico: It doesn't really add anything to the party. Sure it brings two better games together, but it's just "Deal or No Deal" meets "20Q".
Gordon: You deserve a gas mask as to not breathe in the xerox fumes
Chico: And it seems like it could stand to be a bit quicker.
Gordon: True. Especially in the last puzzle process.
Chico: But then, you'd have the extended packages at the start of the game, and I don't mean to sound cold, but doesn't it seem to you that the emotion of the packages at the open seem forced?
Gordon: Welcome to prime time TV
Chico: Indeed.

	PUMPED Speed - 10p ET Thursdays
	GORDON	CHICO	AVERAGE-O-MATIC
	C	C	C

Chico: So the game itself is fine, but the execution? Not so much.
Gordon: So we praise it because it doesn't suck, but that's not good enough to get a good grade. C.
Chico: And unfortunately for this show, it lives and dies on execution. So "You Deserve It" deserves... a C. It's not good. It's not bad. It just is what it is. And I should explain that we don't give out As or Fs easy. I mean, a show has to be something special to get an A... just like a show has to be a steaming ball of crap to get an F.
Gordon: And this is neither. It's in game show limbo.
Chico: Right. And Survivor's in clip show limbo, so I watched...



Gordon: Did you regret that decision?
Chico: I could've easily popped in Skyward Sword for that hour.
Gordon: Or a 2 hour video of Princes Leia's intimacy with her Light Sabre
Chico: Giggity. So this week's episode, the top 9 were giving thanks. And Astro, given all that he was going through last week... well, he survived.
Gordon: They should be. Especially Astroboy...but now I'm wondering something
Chico: That has me worried. Gordon... WHAT WERE YOU WONDERING?
Gordon: Now Astroboy was saying that he was put in the bottom 2 for punishment and not because of the fan votes. This would, of course, be tampmering.
Chico: Right.
Gordon: And he has a point - he is far and away the #1 Twitter follower
Chico: Correct.
Gordon: So how is the #1 twitterer follower in the bottom 2?
Chico: Well, playing devil's advocate, there's more than one way to vote. Phone, SMS, twitter... and Website.
Gordon: Sure
Chico: So there's that.
Gordon: So after his outburst, you would expect that he would get less votes, right?
Chico: Well, let's think about it... you know how people who tend to get attention parlay that into votes, aka Sanjaya Syndrome?
Gordon: Yes, but some sort of attention is attention you do not want .
Chico: Right.
Gordon: I mean we'll see what happens, but with him not being in the bottom 2, it seems weird at best and manipulative at worst
Chico: I can tell you who WAS in the bottom THREE...
Chico: Marcus Canty, Lakoda Rayne, and LeRoy Bell.
Gordon: Bye bye Lakoda Rayne and LeRoy Bell
Chico: Correct. Lakoda Rayne was eliminated on viewer votes, while the other two had to sing for their life.
Chico: Now Simon said that Lakoda Rayne was just "too pretty for the competition"... I don't buy that.
Gordon: And if you think about it, we need to get rid of the person who ruins the lip syncing act
Chico: Yeah, though I thought he never got out of that rut he was in. You know how emotionless he was to start, and he never got out of that.
Chico: So he was never going to win with HIS attitude.
Gordon: Well, no, And Marcus wont win either
Chico: As for Lakoda Rayne... well, let's just say that there was a REASON they lost the FIRST time. They were never going to win either. They are not JLS. And if you follow The X Factor in the UK, you know who JLS is.
Gordon: Nope. And Paula is now out of teams to mentor. Aw.
Chico: Poor Paula.
Gordon: Aw.
Chico: Guess she'll have to take her aggressions out on the other three judge-coaches.
Gordon: Mayhbe NOW she can go on Dancing With the Stars
Chico: Maybe so. Time to crown a winner. We said that there was no plausible way that JR would lose this, and it's good to know that America didn't let us down, the judges didn't let us down, and JR didn't let HIMSELF down.
Gordon: They didn't. However, if you listened to me a few months ago, you'd know that this would be the result
Chico: No one was going to let am American hero lose.
Gordon: Nope. Especially an American hero turned Soap Star
Chico: Yeah, that just wasn't going to happen.
Gordon: Nope. Though it because interesting when Rob Kardashian took second
Chico: Well we all knew that was going to happen too. He led the scoring in the front end of the finale. And... well, people like a Kardashian. Seriously?
Gordon: Well at least they liked him more than Ricki Lake
Chico: True, but you gotta hand it to Ricki, she really worked at it.
Gordon: She did. She deserved a final 3 spot. But JR Martihnez deserves this:



Chico: No argument here. Now we're going to go back to your childhood, or if you're me, last Tuesday. Heh.



Gordon: Someone likes playing with Legos, eh?
Chico: I like Lego.
Gordon: I like Legos, too.
Chico: But not to leave you out, this episode also had people in bikinis posing like bodybuilders. Apparently so to Amani & Marcus Pollard, who win the leg in Belgium... BUT hey won't have time to enjoy the spoils of victory, because their next leg begins right at the Pit Stop.
Gordon: Looks like Sandy is going to come in last
Chico: Barring any unforeseen circumstances yes. BUT I'm thinking Non-Elimination Leg.
Chico: After all, why would CBS jerk around the viewer like that?
Gordon: You still have time for some wackiness in the race And when you have an excess of food - like turkey, you have to get rid of it.
Chico: Speaking of wackiness in the race, a good life lesson is once again learned the hard way, courtesy Ernie & Cindy.
Gordon: As in do whatever isn in your poiwer to win first?
Chico: More important than that. If you can't win first, DON'T COME IN LAST. This Race leg took us to Denmark, then Germany, then the poseoff in Belgium, where Ernie & Cindy lose their lead because they coudln't afford the 77 euro train ticket...OR DO THEY? Turns out that CBS WOULD jerk us around like that.
Gordon: Its not CBS, Its the ingenuity of the racers to sneak on and off.
Chico: But yes, eventually they do lose their lead to the Pollards, and he seems to enjoy posing a little bit too much.
Gordon: Now the racers have been getting their share of exercise. So have the Biggest Loser contestants.
Chico: One thing you can never have enough of is Thanksgiving. Unless you're on the Biggest Loser. Let's Spread the Love.



Chico: It's a Biggest Loser Thanksgiving, which means that no one is going to sleep in front of the TV afterwards, so we're going to get back up and get active.
Gordon: First of all, we have the weigh-in, as Ramon gets booted over Sunny. The big news though is that everyone is pissed at John for trying to eliminate her from the game.
Chico: Seems like that's always the fundamental flaw of the show. You can do your best, and still get voted out.
Gordon: From a strategy point of view, that's a mistake. Sunny has no chance of winning the game and you want to keep her in the final 3.
Chico: Explain how the final 3 determines the winner one more time.
Gordon: Whoever has the biggest weight loss % wins $250,000
Chico: And Sunny was never going to have that. She's doing really well for herself, but not nearly as well as the others.
Gordon: Currently in first: Ramon. And all John has done is made a bunch of enemies while keeping the biggest threat in the game. He better not fall below the yellow line.
Chico: One thing you don't want to do on any show is invite the ire of the crowd. And that's what John's done. Talk about painting yourself in a corner.
Gordon: Stay above the yellow line, John. And Roll that Beautiful Brain Footage

(Doug: Live, local, and latebreaking... From the four corners of the globe to your frontal lobe, this is WLTI Brainvision News, and now here's Gordon Pepper, Chico Alexander, and the award-winning Brainvision News Team)

Gordon: We'll start with this lovely datebook.

Would You Rather...be out partying on a Saturday night, or be watching Graham Elwood on Would You Rather this Saturday?

Chico: NORTON!
Gordon: We will see if the audience agrees with you this weekend.
Chico: Well, the British crank out panel shows like the Duggars crank out children, so this'll be an interesting watch. "Oh Chico! That's so..." true.
Gordon: Well the only good thing is that unlike the U.S.A, Saturdays is a big TV night in the UK.
Chico: Yep. Which means it's a big TV night for BBC America for some reason.



Chico: Can't imagine why.
Gordon: Me neither. Got a Bat?
Chico: I got a bat. And it's one that has to do with a big story from this week.

On the heels of Dancing's finale, GSN has picked up seasons 4 through 13 of the series with an option for season 14.

Chico: Now, Dancing with the Stars is one of the most popular games on TV right now (and yes, say what you will, but at the end of the day, it is a game show)... BUT...I've seen this done before somewhere else that leads me to believe that this will not work.
Gordon: Any idea on how much they are spending?
Chico: No idea. At the same time, GSN seems to want to target that female demo that watches this sort of thing, so we'll see what happens.
Gordon: Well, the female demo will watch this - but - unless this was really cheap, don't you think the better play would be to create your own show?
Chico: Yeah, but since Lingo, they haven't had any luck in that department. And the jury's still out on this version of Lingo. SO since BAGGAGE, they haven't had any luck in that department.
Gordon: Yes, but if the idea is to take GSN off the small tiers and into big ones, you need to generate a buzz for a show. Repeats of Dancing With the Stars is not that buzz.
Chico: No.
Gordon: I don't understand the business model here.
Chico: Amy Introcaso-Davis knows something we don't... or she could just be dumb. (wheels in smartboard)
Gordon: I've got dumb

Are YOU Smarter Than...Astro. Sure, the outburst may have given him more timne on the show, but he won't win. And a subvote to the producers of the show if any of this is accurate.

Chico: Agreed on all counts. And you want to talk about Haterade? He's drunk off of it.
Gordon: Yes, but I've got something better.
Chico: Really...

You were waiting for the other shoe to drop after you heard about the Humphries / Kardashian Divorce, and here it is. Kris is, allegedly, a belittling, abusive husband, according to the Kardashian camp, while the Humphries camp has threatened to sue of his footage in the upcoming season puts him in a negative light.

Gordon: This is not going to end well
Chico: No
Gordon: They all need to get fully loaded.
Chico: A little holiday cheer for you.

This week, Haley Reinhart and Casey Abrams release their version of "Baby It's Cold Outside" (among my personal top 10 Christmas songs) on HaleyReinhart.com

Gordon: I love the song when it was perfirmed by Buster Poindexter and Suzy Tyrell
Chico: Leon Redbone and Zooey Deschanel here. :-) Sister Quisla likes Chris Colfer & Darren Criss. =p. I like... Ludacris. (plays "Pimpin")

In this week's Hodometer, Ethan Zohn and Jenna Morasca are planning a wedding, Scotty McCreery goes gold, Anne Robinson finishes her run on The Weakest link with hot hunks...Curtis Stone welcomes a new baby, Adam Lambert announces his new singles and Ricki Lake will be coming to your TV set in a new show in 2012. Who says that finishing 3rd in DWTS doesn't have it's privileges? But none of them are your HO of the week.

Chico: How can you possibly beat Ricki Lake? =p
Gordon: What about someone who makes $50,000 a month...by tweeting?
Chico: Sounds like I'm in the wrong profession.
Gordon: That person is Terrell Owens, He makes anywhere from $2,600 to $20,000 per tweet endorsing objects. Too bad he owes $120,000+ a month in cost of living and child supprt, and not having a job right now doesn't help.
Chico: Yeah, he's about $70,000 short.
Gordon: Something like that. He better be tweeting a good lawyer service. And those...are your hoes.
Chico: Finally, let's go global...

Holly Willoughby and Reggie Yates are tapped to host the UK version of "The Voice". Still has just the one judge, Jessie J.

Gordon: Should be fun to see that. Now BBC America, would it hurt you to put THESE shows on your network?
Chico: They did back when Garth Ancier was in charge. And that's Brainvision. Brobot?
Gordon: Shut it down (Brobot Bounces to the Choppler and kicks it)
Chico: Good Brobot.
Gordon: When we come back, we do some singing, but what's first?
Chico: First up, greeting cards. It's that time of the year, after all...This is We Love to Interrupt. You give us 22 minutes, we'll give you what you deserve.
Gordon: Which in this case, is a fun break

(BrainVision has been brought to you by Turkey Factor, Imagine an island of Killer Turkeys and you're on the menu. Can you escape before you're stuffed? Joe Gibblets host.)

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