TVgasm Recaps

My new favorite obsession? Deal or No Deal. This game show requires absolutely no skill or talent, and yet, it's like the most exciting thing ever -- especially when Donald Trump stops by, which is exactly what happened last night. It's nice to have a game show sensation back on the air, and I'll be happy to ride this one out until massive over-exposure burns this bad boy into the ground. And considering that few networks like to grind things into the ground like NBC, chances are we'll all be done with this show in about five days. So why not enjoy it while we can -- before the annoying Deal or No Deal board games and pajamas and afternoon versions-hosted-by-Meredith-Vierra come out. God, Deal or No Deal pajamas? That's just creepy.

Great news for Family Feud fans. After years of two lackluster hosts (Louis Anderson and Richard Karn, blech), the Feud is finally getting the sort of man it deserves: John O'Hurley. I can't tell you how exciting this development is for me. Two of my favorite pop culture phenomena have united to hopefully create one blissful half-hour of survey-guessin' fun. As Family Feud heads into its thirtieth season, producers are planning to makeover the game show with a new look and a new set. That's all great, but if they don't bring back the original theme song, I'm gonna start a letter writing campaign. I've surveyed a hundred people, and guess what? THEY ALL LIKE THE FIDDLE!

For more information, check out the press release here. And a few sneak peeks at the new-look Feud after the jump.

The Match Game, 6/6/06, Game Show Network

I was going to do a recap of Celine Dion's magical guest appearance on Deal or No Deal, but then I realized that our old friend Michelle Collins had already fashioned together her own hilarious take on the show. Check out the photo recap at her blog, You Can't Make It Up.

Sad news in the world of game shows. After a meager fifty years on the air, Bob Barker has decided to retire at the ripe old age of 83. I don't know what this means for the future of The Price Is Right. Losing Rod Roddy was a tough blow, but Bob too? Say it ain't so. Hopefully CBS will pass the baton to someone equally kitschy like Wink Martindale or Bob Eubanks. If Billy Bush or Danny Bonnaduce are tapped to be his replacement, I think we'll have no other option than to declare a nation-wide boycott. Unfortunately, trying to predict the behavior of network execs is like trying to crack the code to Plinko: it just won't happen. Either way, I think it's fairly apparent that whoever lands the gig will be earning exactly one dollar more than the runner-up.

For more information, check out the AP article here.

By Jackie

My feelings on Deal or No Deal are the same feelings I have about looking at the infamous Britney Spear’s crotch shots that are all over the web right now: You feel sick inside from looking at something so awful, yet you keep on watching over and over because at the end of the day, it’s damn entertaining!

I tune in every week because I can’t help but CARE. I care about seeing what color the model’s dresses are gonna be, and whether or not that devil Howie Mandel is gonna match his under shirt to them. I care if someday a contestant is gonna do something really zany and pick the cases in complete numerical order. I also keep watching because I care if someday Howie will actually say something funny. For this reason, I have continued to watch all season so far. Any day now Howie, any day. I’m gonna keep watching until I see someone win a cent, a model falls down the stairs, or Howie gets punched in the face.

Last night, NBC premiered its new game show, Identity, where contestants attempt to determine the identities of twelve random people stuck up on a stage. The show isn't the most exciting thing we've ever seen, but it's enjoyable enough and certainly less frustrating than 1 vs. 100, or as I like to call it, "The game show with the easy questions and the idiot contestants." Anyway, it didn't seem like Identity would be too difficult; so I gave it a whirl. After the jump, check out my guesses for each of the "strangers."

This week on Gossip Girl, the crew returns to school, and even with minimal Blair-Chuck interaction, we have the best episode of the season thus far!

"You know, I'm getting really sick of how strict the dresscode is here, Dan."