The Weakest Link (2020) - General Discussion

[The Crazed Spruce]

Goodbye!

*ahem*

I mean, Hello!

[Kromm]

Game show are a natural I guess during COVID.  There's zero reason this can't be done all by screen.

[Maverick]

 It looks like it's going to be the standard setup, just with the podiums pushed farther apart.   That's all they've done with Jeopardy and Wheel of Fortune. 

[Robert Lynch]

Jane Lynch looks great for her age.

[ams1001]

Jane Lynch got on my nerves on Glee but I love her as a game show host! Hollywood Game Night is one of my faves, so I'm looking forward to this.

[Taeolas]

CTV aired the first ep tonight, and I enjoyed it. Jane's got a good degree of snarkiness, but she could be a bit faster, but her timing is pretty good overall. 

As for the contestants, I can't remember if this was a problem on the old show (I'm sure it was) but they need to pass more aggressively instead of trying to fish for an answer on the tip of their tongue. Especially when at the bottom of the chain. 

But all in all, I'll keep watching. 🙂

[GreekGeek]

I lost interest when the evening version with Anne Robinson was cancelled and was replaced by the daytime version with George Gray. Too many of the contestants did silly middle-school stuff with the men voting off the women and the women the men, regardless of who played best. 

The best of the original shows was the one with the Star Trek cast. They were all smart and voted off whoever did the poorest in the round. Nobody voted to boot a good player that they didn't want to go head to head with at the end. Unlike a different group who booted George Wendt when he hadn't given a single incorrect answer. 

I happened to catch an episode in England, and Anne Robinson said things to the contestants that would be considered off limits here--commenting on overweight contestants' size, for example.

I'll give the reboot a try as long as it doesn't air against Jeopardy!

[dvr devotee]

Am I confusing shows, or did the old version have the contestants falling through the floor when they were dismissed? Though I realize they can't reuse that since that's used in Ellen's Game of Games now. 

[ams1001]

7 minutes ago, dvr devotee said:

Am I confusing shows, or did the old version have the contestants falling through the floor when they were dismissed? Though I realize they can't reuse that since that's used in Ellen's Game of Games now. 

I just googled this because I didn't remember that, and came up with a show called Russian Roulette (which I never heard of) on the Game Show Network around the same time that did have contestants dropping through a trap-door.

(Warning, video was kinda loud.)

 

[opus]

42 minutes ago, ams1001 said:

I just googled this because I didn't remember that, and came up with a show called Russian Roulette (which I never heard of) on the Game Show Network around the same time that did have contestants dropping through a trap-door.

(Warning, video was kinda loud.)

 

There was also a game show briefly on NBC, called Who’s Still Standing, hosted by Ben Bailey (the Cash Cab guy), that also used the trap door concept.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Who's_Still_Standing%3F

[ams1001]

7 minutes ago, opus said:

There was also a game show briefly on NBC, called Who’s Still Standing, hosted by Ben Bailey (the Cash Cab guy), that also used the trap door concept.

Never heard of that one, either...

[gsnrocks92]

This was ok but there’s not really any reason to watch this over old episodes on YouTube. The gameplay is fine and Jane is a great host but the production and editing were all over the place. Also doing the discussion before revealing who voted for who seemed awkward but that’s just compared to the original. And if you don’t know the answer, just pass instead of stalling for 10 seconds when you are on the clock, there were some people tonight who did not get this. Of course compared to a certain person on the show airing after this they seemed intelligent.

[Snow Apple]

Lots of cringey moments tonight. And I agree they take too long to pass.

Of the two finalists, I'm glad Angel won. The other guy turned me off with his smart aleck remarks when a contestant walk off after getting voted off. And then being a sore loser by making fun of Angel speaking Klingon.

Edited September 30, 2020 by Snow Apple

[GreekGeek]

9 hours ago, dvr devotee said:

Am I confusing shows, or did the old version have the contestants falling through the floor when they were dismissed? Though I realize they can't reuse that since that's used in Ellen's Game of Games now. 

They never did this; contestants simply walked off as they did last night, often with a voiceover about how unhappy they were and how someone else should have been eliminated before therm. The show (and host) could be brutal, but never that brutal.

[Taeolas]

Even Doctor Who's Weakest Link, only disintegrated them, not dropped them in a trap door

[vibeology]

The format is fine but if that is going to be the quality of contestants and gameplay, I will struggle to keep watching. I want to see people build an actual chain at some point not fuck up where polar bears live.

[853fisher]

I really wanted to love that.  I liked it and will watch again but it wasn't all the way there.

It was an interesting twist to increase the maximum prize each round.  I've seen several versions of this show and that's new to me, other than the 2X or 3X that was common in the final round.  The contestants were just doing so badly that this didn't have the impact it should've.  "The top prize in this round is $500,000" should've been a WOW moment, and instead I just rolled my eyes because they weren't getting anywhere near there.  Did they get more than halfway into a chain even three times?  Maybe I'm exaggerating, but I don't think so.

The set looked nice, although I wasn't sure about the tunnel-to-nowhere they left through or what the button to press to bank added.  Jane was perfectly able, and I liked that she warmed up in the end, although most of her repartee was not all that witty.  Many of Anne Robinson's lines were clearly scripted, but I thought they were also often very clever.  I agree with those who have said that some of the things she said in the UK around 2010 wouldn't fly in the US around 2020, but I wanted more from Jane.

I'm not entirely convinced that the contestants themselves were the problem.  The last three or four standing were definitely no slouches, but they didn't get far up those later chains either.  I thought Jane might've been taking a bit long to read wordy questions, actually.  I don't know.  Roll on next week, I guess!

[iMonrey]

Quote

The format is fine but if that is going to be the quality of contestants and gameplay, I will struggle to keep watching. I want to see people build an actual chain at some point not fuck up where polar bears live.

I had the same issue. I realize it's probably hard to find eight really talented trivia experts every week but this felt like they just pulled eight randos off the streets, or straight out of Reality Show Casting so they would have a "diverse" group. Game shows today seem to have this problem across the board. They are more interested in using people they think are interesting and would make "good TV' than people who actually are good at playing the game. And that's ruining the games.

I do think Jane Lynch is a good replacement for Anne Robinson though. I'm sure I'll keep watching but it's never going to live up to the original Brit version. 

And I still miss The Chase. 

[saber5055]

I thought players got too much time to stall around. Either answer or get buzzed. I was irked that the player who answered (correctly) before Jane was done reading the question got docked as incorrect. Maybe the show has only so many questions and has to fill the time with views of players "thinking" and Jane reading slowly. So answering too quickly threw the schedule off.

I also didn't know what a player hitting "bank" meant. I barely remember the original show. But players on this remake will have a difficult time winning much money if the play continues to go soooooo slooooooowly.

Still, not a bad way to spend an hour.

[Kromm]

22 hours ago, dvr devotee said:

Am I confusing shows, or did the old version have the contestants falling through the floor when they were dismissed? 

WTH? 

No. Definitely not. 

2 hours ago, iMonrey said:

felt like they just pulled eight randos off the streets

Yeah, they ALL kind of felt like The Weakest Link. Even Angel and Tiffany, the two smartest ones. 

[Snow Apple]

I like Jane but I think she needs to read the questions faster. It's a difficult skill because it's so easy to stumble when speaking fast and clear at the same time. Alex Trebek and Brooke Burns have a good rhythm at "beat the clock" trivia shows. Jane would be better at game shows where there's no time limit but hopefully she'll get better with practice.

[lynxfx]

1 hour ago, saber5055 said:

I was irked that the player who answered (correctly) before Jane was done reading the question got docked as incorrect.

I watched the original but only casually. I don't remember if the rules were the same. The rules of this are kinda confusing or just straight up not fair. So in order to get money you have to bank it. Anything still on the ladder doesn't count at the end. Now they say you can't answer until the question has been read either? So with those two items, basically the last 10 or so seconds don't matter. You have to wait through the question, get in your answer and then wait for Jane to call on the next contestant and only then could they bank the winnings from the previous answer. Or can you also bank after answering? I don't believe so.

Anyway this first group sucked and banked too early every time. The mustache guy was doing well during the rounds but almost always banked losing them out on a lot of money. $25k on one round. I suck at Jeopardy but this show I knew a lot of the answers. I went 9 for 10 in the final head to head.

Some of the wrong answers were kinda funny. I'm sure some were just high pressure causing brain farts but a few were out there guesses. Country with 900m registered votes, USA. Brain fart. African American that is head of Hayden Planetarium, Einstein. Clueless guess. 

I do like Jane though. Anne Robinson is what turned me off the original. Her "goodbye" which did earn plenty of parodying in the oughts just irked me. I know that is the spirit of the show but I just find Jane easier to believe is in on the joke.

[Skyfall]

31 minutes ago, lynxfx said:

I watched the original but only casually. I don't remember if the rules were the same. The rules of this are kinda confusing or just straight up not fair. So in order to get money you have to bank it. Anything still on the ladder doesn't count at the end. Now they say you can't answer until the question has been read either? So with those two items, basically the last 10 or so seconds don't matter. You have to wait through the question, get in your answer and then wait for Jane to call on the next contestant and only then could they bank the winnings from the previous answer. Or can you also bank after answering? I don't believe so.

Anyway this first group sucked and banked too early every time. The mustache guy was doing well during the rounds but almost always banked losing them out on a lot of money. $25k on one round. I suck at Jeopardy but this show I knew a lot of the answers. I went 9 for 10 in the final head to head.

Some of the wrong answers were kinda funny. I'm sure some were just high pressure causing brain farts but a few were out there guesses. Country with 900m registered votes, USA. Brain fart. African American that is head of Hayden Planetarium, Einstein. Clueless guess. 

I do like Jane though. Anne Robinson is what turned me off the original. Her "goodbye" which did earn plenty of parodying in the oughts just irked me. I know that is the spirit of the show but I just find Jane easier to believe is in on the joke.

To be fair they had to bank early cause they were never going on a decent chain. It was either bank or risk not adding any money. Also in the original the best strategy was to always get 3 correct and then bank.

[Snow Apple]

17 minutes ago, Skyfall said:

To be fair they had to bank early cause they were never going on a decent chain. It was either bank or risk not adding any money. Also in the original the best strategy was to always get 3 correct and then bank.

Yeah, when they got zero dollars in the second round and witnessed certain players bumbling, they knew the score. They had to bank early because they knew the next player might bring the value down again.

[AuntieDiane6]

Quote

I like Jane but I think she needs to read the questions faster. It's a difficult skill because it's so easy to stumble when speaking fast and clear at the same time. 

The questions themselves seemed very wordy.  The editor in me could have shortened them by several words. 

[Taeolas]

I wonder, do the contestants have a timer they can see to know how much time is left? Can they hear the music speeding up? That would change my tactics a little. As noted, if you're in the last 10 seconds, you need to bank every time since there might not be time to build up even an extra chain link. 

[Diana Berry]

I don’t think it was fair at the end for the contestant to change his answer.  He clearly said Joaquin then she let him go ahead and change.  If he had ended up winning the big bank , I’m sure the loser would have hired an atty.  I bet legal was not happy.

[853fisher]

The rule against interrupting the host was definitely new.  I recall a few occasions where a contestant got the answer halfway through, shouted it out, and the next one screamed BANK in quite the photo finish.  Of course, calmer minds might consider banking before their question with less than :10 or so seconds left.  I didn't notice, but others in the thread saw an in-studio clock on this set.

I too was surprised that "Joaquin...River Phoenix" was allowed or whatever that answer was.  It would not have been on the old version.  As long as their rules furnished beforehand are clear on this, I don't think there would be any trouble.

A game show blogger I follow doesn't enjoy the format because he finds it all too negative.  He remarked, "now if they would only drop contestants through the floor, it might be a lot more fun. Can't we get anybody to reboot 'Russian Roulette'?"  I guess he's been exchanging notes with some of you here. 😉

Edited October 1, 2020 by 853fisher
Two beforehands

[Rickster]

15 hours ago, Snow Apple said:

Yeah, when they got zero dollars in the second round and witnessed certain players bumbling, they knew the score. They had to bank early because they knew the next player might bring the value down again.

Yes, it was ironic that the strongest players banked, when if I understand how banking works, the weakest players should have banked before trying to answer the questions. But I guess they couldn't be sure the weaker ones would know how too.

I didn't mind the dumb players, but I did think the pace of play was too slow.

[Lovecat]

On 9/29/2020 at 8:20 PM, dvr devotee said:

Am I confusing shows, or did the old version have the contestants falling through the floor when they were dismissed? Though I realize they can't reuse that since that's used in Ellen's Game of Games now. 

I always thought the show would be more fun if they did 😉  Still do; I yelled “AAAAAAaaaaaaahhhhh!!!!!!” each time someone was eliminated, to simulate a trap door exit.  Sometimes I make my own fun.

On 9/30/2020 at 9:03 AM, Taeolas said:

Even Doctor Who's Weakest Link, only disintegrated them, not dropped them in a trap door

Now *that* would be cool!

[iMonrey]

Quote

I thought players got too much time to stall around. Either answer or get buzzed. 

The original shows (both British and American) didn't have this problem, at least not to this extent. If a contestant didn't know the answer they immediately passed so as not to eat up time on the clock. This further supports my belief these people were not well chosen and were not familiarized enough with the game. They were looking for "personalities" or something and didn't spend enough time practicing with them. 

Quote

I watched the original but only casually. I don't remember if the rules were the same. The rules of this are kinda confusing or just straight up not fair. So in order to get money you have to bank it. Anything still on the ladder doesn't count at the end. Now they say you can't answer until the question has been read either?

That wasn't a rule in the original version(s). I distinctly remember contestants answering the question before Anne had finished reading it, because when they got it wrong Anne took delight in mocking them for jumping the gun.

I also don't see the point of having to press a button to bank. They used to simply say "bank" and that was sufficient.

Quote

I don’t think it was fair at the end for the contestant to change his answer.  He clearly said Joaquin then she let him go ahead and change.

That was bullshit too.

I'm hoping we're just seeing some glitches that were ironed out after the pilot (assuming this was the pilot - fingers crossed).

[Swenson]

I think it was Remote Control.....when a contestant was eliminated they would disappear behind the wall..... either to be eaten by something....or maybe Colin might sing to you.    Somebody should reboot that.

[Racj82]

On 9/29/2020 at 10:09 PM, Snow Apple said:

Lots of cringey moments tonight. And I agree they take too long to pass.

Of the two finalists, I'm glad Angel won. The other guy turned me off with his smart aleck remarks when a contestant walk off after getting voted off. And then being a sore loser by making fun of Angel speaking Klingon.

Aww. I actually knew Jay before this. Meaning I knew of him. He does work for collider and Schmoes Know on youtube which are two big companies in entertainment news and discussion. He also works as a manager for professional wrestlers. He's a really cool guy. His jokes were just that. Jokes. He's involved in a movie trivia league and he will play things up a bit for entertainment but everyone will tell you how nice of guy he is. Glad to see him go far.

The show was fun. Don't really have any complaints other than I wish to see some longer chains going.

The WWE episode of weakest link will always be my favorite. A lot of people like to judge pro wrestlers and think they are just meathead mouth breathers when that's not the case at all. Kane, is 7 feet tall and wrestled in a mask at the time killed the game. He's now a mayor.

Quick clip

 

[ams1001]

On 10/4/2020 at 2:39 PM, Swenson said:

I think it was Remote Control.....when a contestant was eliminated they would disappear behind the wall..... either to be eaten by something....or maybe Colin might sing to you.    Somebody should reboot that.

That would be cool. My high school English teacher's son was on Remote control. We watched his episode in class. 🙂 (Apparently he never actually got his prizes.)

Just finished round one in tonight's show...it's not going well so far.

Jesus, how many times did Anoelle ask Jane to repeat the question? I'd have voted her off just for that.

[saber5055]

This show is difficult to watch when there is an obnoxious contestant who makes it to the last round. She might think she's "hot stuff," but honey, you be a dumbass. She ruined this episode for me.

[Snow Apple]

1 minute ago, saber5055 said:

This show is difficult to watch when there is an obnoxious contestant who makes it to the last round. She might think she's "hot stuff," but honey, you be a dumbass. She ruined this episode for me.

I hated her too and was glad she lost. But she still ruined it by smugly saying how her charms can only get her so far. Honey, you are NOT charming.

[Stats Queen]

On 9/29/2020 at 8:20 PM, dvr devotee said:

Am I confusing shows, or did the old version have the contestants falling through the floor when they were dismissed? Though I realize they can't reuse that since that's used in Ellen's Game of Games now. 

I don’t know that show. but there was an episode of Doctor Who where they in an alternate world where live was lived by game and reality shows. The weakest Link and Big Brother were two of them, it was brilliant.

[Snow Apple]

Ever since the original version, I think the strongest player of the round should get immunity. I remember I hated when it gets to the final three, the strongest overall player usually gets voted off because the other two didn't want to face them head to head. 

[Katy M]

Am I misremembering, or on the original didn't the last two players play another round just to bank?  That gives a little bit of incentive not to vote off the strongest link.

That Arielle definitely wasn't the sharpest tool in the shed.  I'm not pretending I knew all the answers, but come on, she doesn't know that two nickels equals 10 cents and can't correctly count to 4 in Mississippi?  I do agree with her reasoning, though, that if you don't know, just answer incorrectly quickly instead of eating up the clock.

[saber5055]

33 minutes ago, Snow Apple said:

Ever since the original version, I think the strongest player of the round should get immunity. I remember I hated when it gets to the final three, the strongest overall player usually gets voted off because the other two didn't want to face them head to head. 

Agree to the bolded above. I had the feeling tonight that this is going to turn into Survivor. I want the smartest person to win, not the meanest.

I still don't know how they are suppose to bank $500,000. Jane makes fun of them missing out on the money but I don't know how they are suppose to get more.

[Snow Apple]

26 minutes ago, saber5055 said:

I still don't know how they are suppose to bank $500,000. Jane makes fun of them missing out on the money but I don't know how they are suppose to get more.

I think I remember in the original, they banked a lot of money and they even completed entire strings sometimes.

I can't see it happening in the new version if they keep choosing contestants like the ones they've shown so far.

Edited October 7, 2020 by Snow Apple

[Maverick]

They make more by completing longer chains of answers.  If they earn the max amount offered in every round it would add up to 500k. 

[Rickster]

Another site I read linked to a geeky review of the show that said with the level of prize money in the last couple of rounds and how rapidly it escalates, the contestants should never bank early in those rounds.

Last night's episode was one of those annoying ones that I hated from the first version of the show.

[Pepper the Cat]

Anoelle didn’t vote Carlos off because he was the weakest. She voted him off because he was smarter and would have win.

 

[saber5055]

6 hours ago, Rickster said:

Another site I read linked to a geeky review of the show that said with the level of prize money in the last couple of rounds and how rapidly it escalates, the contestants should never bank early in those rounds.

So that means the more correct answers in a row, the more money is in the bank, correct? But these people have been "banking" after just a couple answers, so then the money goes back to start, correct? And when someone is wrong, the money starts over again. Have I got it right?

I watched the original but never paid attention to banking or money available or won. Actually, I barely remember the show at all, just Ann's taglines. "GOOD BYE!"

[Taeolas]

Yeah, the longer a chain of answers goes, the more money you can get. But you only keep the money if you bank it, and a wrong answer will reset the chain. In the early rounds, when you have more people and more time and less dollar amounts, it's probably better to bank some small amounts, but letting it go isn't bad either. It's mainly a chance to get a feel of your competitors to know if someone is likely to get it right or wrong or to bank or not bank. 

In the later rounds, you use that knowledge to bank early because you figure the next person is likely to get it wrong and/or to not bank a higher amount. 

 

The 2 groups we've had so far haven't really strung together any potential chains; but you can be sure if someone banks early and the possible chain would have gone higher, Jane will let everyone know. "You banked at 5000, but if you hadn't you would have gotten 20,000" type comments. 

 

Last night was painful, for the final contestants. SOme of the questions legit stumped me, but a number of the easy questions that were missed were almost painful. 

 

That said, I DISAGREE that the strongest link should be immune, or any form of immunity should be added. It's part of the risk of the game; you want to build up the bank, but if you are too strong it's the target you paint on yourself. If I was a stronger player, I'd probably intentionally blow a question or two in the last rounds just to appear weaker. (But not if there was a strong chain going) 

[Rickster]

10 minutes ago, saber5055 said:

So that means the more correct answers in a row, the more money is in the bank, correct? But these people have been "banking" after just a couple answers, so then the money goes back to start, correct? And when someone is wrong, the money starts over again. Have I got it right?

I watched the original but never paid attention to banking or money available or won. Actually, I barely remember the show at all, just Ann's taglines. "GOOD BYE!"

You’re right about how the banking works. The point the review was making was that the reward in the high value rounds is so huge that players should not bank relatively small amounts, but try for a decent chain of right answers to get to the big money, even if the odds of getting there are small.

[gsnrocks92]

Really dislike the (likely producer encouraged) trash talking between the contestants. Seemed like they went for a lot of IMBD page types, hopefully if there is another season (which there probably will be, it’s rated well so far and is easy to produce as long as the pandemic is going) they fix the issues from this season that came from having to rush it on the air.

[Katy M]

1 hour ago, Taeolas said:

Yeah, the longer a chain of answers goes, the more money you can get. But you only keep the money if you bank it, and a wrong answer will reset the chain. In the early rounds, when you have more people and more time and less dollar amounts, it's probably better to bank some small amounts, but letting it go isn't bad either. It's mainly a chance to get a feel of your competitors to know if someone is likely to get it right or wrong or to bank or not bank. 

In the later rounds, you use that knowledge to bank early because you figure the next person is likely to get it wrong and/or to not bank a higher amount. 

Might make it more interesting to bank the other way, then.  Instead of banking before your question, you bank after.  Then, you have to decide if your teammate will be right or wrong instead of think you will be.

 

1 hour ago, Taeolas said:

hat said, I DISAGREE that the strongest link should be immune, or any form of immunity should be added. It's part of the risk of the game; you want to build up the bank, but if you are too strong it's the target you paint on yourself. If I was a stronger player, I'd probably intentionally blow a question or two in the last rounds just to appear weaker. (But not if there was a strong chain going) 

And that was also part of the appeal of havign that last round that they seem to be foregoing in this iteration.  There is no incentive for the last 3 to keep the strongest link because they are done earning money at that point.  

[lynxfx]

They asked to repeat the question 5 times during that ep. I have never seen that before. 4 of those times were done by the winner which makes even less sense. Surprised no other contestant pointed that out during the voting. No one has passed either in a quick fashion. They still just drag out the time and make a bad guess.