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Deal or No Deal Review Pt. 2

Monday, December 19, 2005

I don't think I have seen a show in at least 10 years that has drawn a national reaction of "TAKE THE MONEY YOU MORON" more in my life than Deal or No Deal. This tremendous show, hosted by Howie Mandel, finally debuted tonight at 8PM ET on NBC (it'll be on every day this week at that time for those who care). Might I say that all of our whoring has paid off? I have to credit the show's success partly to an absolutely terrific first contestant. Karen Van and the "Minivans" were one of the best opening teams I have seen in a long long time. You cheered for her, you called her and her family morons, you praised them, you did everything. I was nearly jumping up out of my seat shouting "DEAL" near the end of the show at the television. If a TV show can make you get out of your seat and scream, that's the kind of show you want to be watching.

All my fears about Howie have been totally taken away. He and Jimmy Carr have really shocked me: they know when to be a comic and when to be a host. Howie seemed a bit scripted, but it was the first show. They are airing these shows in order, so it is the first. He will get better as time goes on. As I saw tonight, he doesn't need to get THAT much better. Howie Mandel really lays the drama on as we get to offers of more than $100,000, putting such a dramatic pause between the words "Deal" and "No Deal" that you're trembling as you're sitting on the sofa or chair or cardboard box (depending on your living situation) as you view.

The atmosphere for the show is great. When I heard about "a big red button to signify Deal", that had me really nervous. How big of a button were they talking about? Probably the size of an Aquafina bottle cap. It stays out of the way, so that's nice. As with every other set in game shows right now, it has color changing effects. However, the entire set doesn't change *gasp*. Only the pillars and under the stairs do, which is really nice. It's a set that doesn't need to change because it's attractive enough. The telephone is a really nice touch also. It would be nice to hear The Banker outloud, but the phone aspect is very foreboding. How much do you want to bet that if Deal or No Deal is a hit, NBC markets "The Official Phone of The Banker"? Also, as I've stated before, the show has the best money chain I've seen of any version of Deal or No Deal. Unless you're the most unlucky person on earth, you're going to be playing for $100,000 at least, which is still a giant sum of money. The only thing I wish they would have done is include the Dutch theme, but who cares.

This is just quite simply the best game of total dumb luck invented. Not only does it measure what's left on the board, but it really tests your patience, timing, and emotions. The Banker feeds on all of these like a leech sucking the blood out of his victims. They stretched a show that could easily last 10 minutes on any other show into an hour-long show without becoming extremely boring or dull. Not many shows can pull that off. If you aren't watching this, what the hell is your problem? Deal or No Deal airs tomorrow through Friday at 8PM ET. Watch it; you won't regret it.

posted by Alex Davis * Permalink

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