The Chase - General Discussion

[Skyfall]

Release the beast!

[Guest]

A place to discuss particular episodes (that do not have specific episode threads), arcs and moments from the show's run. Please remember this isn't a complete catch-all topic -- check out the forum for character topics and other places for show-related talk.

[jhlipton]

It's baaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaack.

Very tight game -- $145,000 at stake and a very close game.

[Skyfall]

Would you rather be by yourself or apart of a team? If by yourself if you don't know you can quickly pass, if with a team someone else may know a different set of facts but you waste time if no one knows the answer.

[LoneHaranguer]

I think a team is best, but it's critical that the players come to some agreement about how to work together. In the last new episode, the duo was very lopsided and seemed to fall into having the lesser player only answering if the smarter one didn't right away. It worked well, but they were held back by how slowly Brooke was reading some long-winded questions. The Beast can usually tell where a question is going and will interrupt with an answer; most contestants aren't that good or are too polite. The show needs to modernize and put the questions on a screen; having them just be read out is frustrating for a viewer.

[needschocolate]

I think you have a better chance to answer faster if you are by yourself, because politeness hinders you, but if you have the other two people with you, you get to start two steps ahead.  It is kind of a wash.

 

I think this would be different if the three people knew each other well beforehand (co-workers, friends, family) - then they would probably be more like to jump in and answer or pass, instead of waiting until someone else has a chance to say something. 

 

Thought it was interesting last week when no one made it to the final round - I always hoped for that to happen, just to see what they do for the last 20 minutes of the show.

[Madding crowd]

I love this show but think they need to restructure it so more people can win something. Maybe they win something in the first round and can double it bin the chase . Basically the final round requires answering more right questions then the beast, which almost never happens. The show Deal or no Deal ended because almost no one won the million dollars and people got sick of rooting for contestants that always failed. It would also be cool to actually challenge the beast, like making him answer more questions in both rounds.

[needschocolate]

I agree that it would be more fun if there was more of a chance the contestants could win, and that I will get bored with the show sooner rather than later - or at least I will stop watching the final Chase. 

 

In the most recent episode, all three made it to the final Chase (2 of the three went for the lowest offer) and they only got 13 answers in the final Chase (technically they got 10 correct, as they started with three).  They wasted so much time.  The group was made up of 2 people who followed the illogic of "if you don't know the answer, just stand there for a while, staring blankly" and one guy whose motto was "if no one is answering then babble anything that comes to your mind, even though you are pretty sure it was wrong." I don't think they ever passed.  Brooke and the Beast tried to make it sound like that might be enough, but anyone who has watched the show knows that the magic number is closer to 20, so I only watched the final chase to see if the Beast could beat them in less than a minute. 

 

My suggestion is that the contestants each have a "pass" button (in addition to the button they press to answer).  If they don't know it, they hit their pass button and once all the pass buttons are hit, they move on to the next question.  I think contestants are often afraid to pass, thinking that one of their teammates may know the answer, a pass button would solve that.  Or, at least they should let the contestants discuss the question before they answer - then they could tell each other hat they don't know it and one of them could answer with "pass."

[iMonrey]

There are pros and cons to having multiple players in the final chase, the biggest pro being able to start three steps ahead. But yeah, the biggest con is that someone can be too trigger happy and buzz in with a wrong answer before someone else gets the chance to answer correctly. 

 

I don't think the game needs re-structuring, though - I think it needs smarter contestants. Well, maybe not "smarter," but people who are better at trivia games. I hate it when they get people on here who have no business being on this show! How did they even get past the audition?? This last one drove me crazy. The guy from Yale ( ? Harvard?) only got two questions right in the cash builder then took the lower offer of $2000!!! At one point they kept saying "it's more important to get to the final chase than earn money," but - is it? Isn't this why you're on the show? Maybe if you're just in it for the fun of it, but 52K split three ways is not life-changing money. I was so disappointed in these people.

 

It seems like in the first season they had at least one contestant every episode who was really good at trivia, but these past two seasons they seem to be having a hard time getting people on the show who are good enough to really have a chance at winning. It's like just going outside and pulling random people off the street to play Jeopardy. You can't do that. You need to qualify to get on a show like this.

[Snow Apple]

Seems like they saved all the good players for the most recent episode and even then, one guy answered most of the questions in the final round. Never saw the beast played so poorly as this game but I'm glad the contestants won. That happens so rarely.

 

I always feel bad for all the players' work and then they walk away with nothing most of the time. I agree the format needs to change. Maybe oh, I don't know, offer them money to walk away or risk it all in the final round. Something like that.

[iMonrey]

J-Team for the win. I can't believe that guy got $60K in the cash builder round, gambles for a living, then didn't go for the bigger offer. He could so obviously have won the $120K. He didn't even need the other two players in the Final Chase, I think they answered 3-4 questions between them. It almost makes me suspicious how poorly The Beast did in the Final Chase. But good on him for coming down to the stage and congratulating him, I don't think he's ever done that before.

[jhlipton]

The Beast got flustered.  He'd asked if they could beat the previous record and they (meaning James) got 26.  I think that set him back a bit.

 

He knew he had to answer fast to even have a chance to catch them (meaning James), so he rushed the questions.  I didn't get the impression he did it on purpose -- he seemed quite frustrated.

 

I was a bit surprised that James took the $60,000.  But that's probably what makes him a good (as opposed to lucky) gambler -- knowing when to back down from a tempting but possibly losing situation.

[junemeatcleaver]

I actually thought the show did a better job this season casting people who played, or were interested in, trivia, a lot of them just didn't translate well on television.  Much better than last season when they seemed to cast people who had impressive educational and professional backgrounds.  I much rather watch bad and flustered players who actually like trivia versus a bunch of smart people who couldn't care less about having random knowledge about stuff.

 

They saved the best episode for the finale last season, too.  I have high hopes for the finale when (if?) the show comes back in November.

Edited September 11, 2014 by junemeatcleaver

[jhlipton]

Seamus Dever (Kevin on Castle) got 11 correct answers in the Cash Builder. 5 correct in the first chase, and he got about 75% of the answers in the Final Chase (Dean Cain got the other 25%).  He won $50,000 for a charity that stops testing on beagles, and helped Cain get $50,000 for the Gary Sinise Foundation.  That dude is wicked smart!

 

The questions weren't dumbed down as far as I could tell.  And they really rattled The Beast.

[iMonrey]

Oh, I thought the questions were dumbed down a bit for the celebrities. I knew almost every single answer in the final Chase, and that's rare for me. (Typically, I know about 35-40% or the questions on a given episode.) I also thought The Beast threw it in the final Chase, because it was for charity. Some of those questions he should have been able to answer in his sleep. He honestly didn't know Amy Carter? He honestly thought her name was Peaches? Really? Plus, what number did they hit, 17? 18? That's not an insurmountable lead where The Beast in concerned.

 

Overall it was pretty good, although I worry they're starting to get desperate. "Celebrity Editions" always mean desperation.

[VartanFan]

I thought some of the questions were a bit easier but Seamus Deaver got even the harder/more random ones right.  I sort of don't think the Beast threw it because I figured he'd give the money to charity anyways...but still want to WIN. 

[jhlipton]

There's no way The Beast would answer "Julia Roberts" for the Pretty Woman question unless he was seriously flustered, especially since he was so far behind at that point (although that was kind of awesome).  Maybe "Peaches" was his answer to "cantaloupe".    (It was fun watching Seamus and Dean have fun with that!)

[iMonrey]

I thought this latest new episode really showed how dumbed down the questions were for the "celebrity" edition. Now, this was a disappointing episode all around; only one contestant making it to the final chase, and then doing badly at it. (Please screen these contestants better, show!) But, those questions were hard. I didn't know very many of them either. Mind you, I'm not auditioning for The Chase, but I expect people who get onto this show to be smarter than me. It's not quite Jeopardy levels of smart, but it's definitely something you should only go on if you are super, super into trivia, and really good at it.

[slasherboy]

Thought it was interesting last week when no one made it to the final round - I always hoped for that to happen, just to see what they do for the last 20 minutes of the show.

 

So, what did they do for the last 20 minutes?

[needschocolate]

It has been a while since I saw the episode, but I think it went like this -

 

They brought all 3 back on stage and told them that they could chose one of them to do the final chase against the beast for a prize of $5,000 (total, I think, not $5k each)  I think they picked the one who had scored the highest in the first round.  She lost.  

[iMonrey]

Oh my, the Scandal actors sucked. They need to quit doing celebrity editions. Only 12 steps in the Final Chase? I think that's the lowest number I've ever seen. And it wasn't even that they were stupid - they were just too slow and took too long to think about every answer. Which showed how unprepared they were to play this game. (Although some of the answers they missed were real head slappers. "In God We Trust?" You missed that? Wow.)

[teebax]

I'm glad there's a thread for this show! My mom introduced it to me recently while visiting (she watches GSN all day), and I really like it.

 

For me, I'd do better if I could see all the questions on the screen. I'm really good at Jeopardy because I can read the question and pick out key words. This is not a game show I'd do well on because of the beginning and end rounds where you have to answer without seeing the question.

[jhlipton]

Oh my, the Scandal actors sucked. They need to quit doing celebrity editions. Only 12 steps in the Final Chase? I think that's the lowest number I've ever seen. And it wasn't even that they were stupid - they were just too slow and took too long to think about every answer.

That's what I was thinking too. I think they were so proud of themselves for answering "Shonda Rhimes" or "Scandal" instead of "Pass" (good thing they weren't penalized for a wrong answer!) to actually answer the questions.

Crappy in the Cash Builder (the best of them got 5 answers, I think, which is low to medium), fair to crappy in The Chase (some of the ones they missed were gimmes, and I thought the Beast let them have a few that he should have known. And the Final Chase -- yuck!

==================================

As to the format and/or problems, one other disadvantage is if the players get caught up and the wrong one answers.

==================================

I wonder if the 5 Second Rule is always in effect during The Chase and they only mention it if someone times out.

[iMonrey]

It's always in effect, but I've only seen it happen one other time. However, I've never seen the contestants get an extra step in the final chase if The Beast misses the first question, so that's something they pulled out of their asses because it was a celebrity edition and the had done so poorly. (And I have seen The Beast miss a first question so that's happened before.)

[jhlipton]

It's always in effect, but I've only seen it happen one other time. However, I've never seen the contestants get an extra step in the final chase if The Beast misses the first question, so that's something they pulled out of their asses because it was a celebrity edition and the had done so poorly. (And I have seen The Beast miss a first question so that's happened before.)

 

I've never seen the Beast miss the first question before.  What happened the other time he missed it?  Giving the contestants an extra step seems reasonable, since that's equivalent to pushing the Beast back.

[iMonrey]

Nothing happened. It was a really weird, isolated incident where he had trouble "getting on the board," as Brooke so gleefully put it. He spent the first 30 seconds or so continually pushed back to zero. The contestants ended up winning that game. But maybe since that time someone pointed out that since he couldn't go back one step to -1 maybe the contestants should get an extra step.

[mansonlamps]

I really enjoy this show.  Sorry to see no love for it on these boards!

[jhlipton]

The last episode was exciting. All 3 contestants battling for $180,000?  Awesome!

 

As the Beast said, the push-backs are crucial!

[iMonrey]

I was happy to see a new episode and this was a good one. All three contestants did well - I like it so much better when they get people who seem capable of playing. There have been too many contestants who were so bad at the cash-builder round I couldn't figure out how they even made it past the audition phase. But it annoyed me the one guy on the right seemed a little too trigger-happy and ended up buzzing in for almost every question.

 

That said, I have my suspicions that The Beast possibly threw this game because the producers wants a "win" episode, especially with such a high bank. I find it hard to believe Beasty didn't know the words that meant "sea-sick" or that he got that far behind in the Chase round with the third contestant who went for the higher offer.

 

{/tinfoil hat}

[mansonlamps]

Is it wrong that I find The Beast kind of hot? Because I do.

[jhlipton]

The latest episode is worth watching, just to see The Beast face-palm after a contestant missed three easy questions.  His reaction during the Fial Chase, when he realized how much time he had to answer how many questions was pretty good too.

[mansonlamps]

Wait, didn't he lose the last episode? Wasn't that the one with the guy who's sister was also on an episode and won?

[jhlipton]

Wait, didn't he lose the last episode? Wasn't that the one with the guy who's sister was also on an episode and won?

 

Yep -- he realized he had about 8 or 9 questions to go and 24 seconds. He kept answering but he was clearly deflated.  Worth seeing just because he rarely gets that far behind.

 

=========================================================

 

So this week they had a "Teen Special".  The Cash Builders were highly unspectacular -- $10,000, $15,000  and $25,000.  All three got through without too much worry.  They flubbed the Final Chase only getting 15.  The Beast commented that he would normally have no problem with that number but that he was off.

 

The teens got about 3 pushback chances and missed at least one before the Beast was at 14.  The question was "What band used a giant inflatable pig in their concerts?"  I've forgotten his answer, but the Beast was wrong.  Three seconds on the clock, one to catch.  If the teens got the pushback, they'd win.  Otherwise, it would come to the last question.  They answered "KISS".  Brooke: "That is wrong.  The c orrect answer is Pink Floyd."

 

Last question: "In what country is the ancient city of Petra located?"  Beast: "Jordan.  Gotcha!"

 

Very close game and if they had gotten one more pushback right, they probably would have won.

Edited September 5, 2015 by jhlipton

[junemeatcleaver]

 

Very close game and if they had gotten one more pushback right, they probably would have won.

 

The girl was correct on the one pushback, but the boys overruled her and went with their incorrect answer. 

[Katmai]

New episodes start back on Friday, November 6 @ 8/7C.

[illini1959]

I love this show but think they need to restructure it so more people can win something.

 

 

 

I know that's an old comment I quoted, but I feel this way, too. There's a lot of work for little or no payoff and that's sad to me.

 

I'm getting a little tired of "the chase is ON!!!!!" but I know that's their "thing" so I have to live with it :)

[junemeatcleaver]

Wow, the Harvard episode was weird.  You're telling me the producers couldn't find more than one Harvard student who had a mind for trivia and was television ready? 

[mansonlamps]

Hard to believe they actually won that one. Or rather the one player won it.

[iMonrey]

So far the new episodes have been a total bust. Hard to believe the three fire fighters have been the best team so far and even they didn't win. I think they must have a hard time scrounging up contestants who can actually play this game. You wouldn't think they would but either they purposely pick people who aren't very good at it, or they have to go with whoever applies. 

 

I'm also seeing a trend here with contestants going with the lower offer or what they earned in the cash builder round even if it's a pathetic 10 or 15K because they're more focused on getting to the final chase than taking home any significant amount of money. So maybe a lot of people who go on this show don't care about money or necessarily need a lot of money, they're more into getting a chance to beat The Beast. 

[jhlipton]

I'm also seeing a trend here with contestants going with the lower offer or what they earned in the cash builder round even if it's a pathetic 10 or 15K because they're more focused on getting to the final chase than taking home any significant amount of money. 

 

I'd rather take home some money than none, and you have to Beat the Beast to get it.  At home (where it's significantly easier), i don't always beat him -- imagine how tough it is under studio pressure!  I would never risk the high offer.

[mansonlamps]

There were three very decent contestants in the last episode and they still couldn't beat the beast? And I thought his question set in the final round was significantly harder, only because I knew almost all the answers in the contestants' round which rarely happens on this show for me. I did pat myself on the back for knowing what HDL stood for when not one of them including the beast got it, which seems weird since it's pretty topical these days.

[junemeatcleaver]

GSN has been airing reruns of this on the weekends.  I know they cancelled it because the audience was ancient, but I don't know why they couldn't reduce the budget and aired it on the weekends.

[NotChristine]

It's coming back, this time on ABC

[Swenson]

On 11/2/2020 at 6:10 PM, NotChristine said:

It's coming back, this time on ABC

Yeah fine.....but I'm not attracted to bringing back Ken, James, and Brad of Jeopardy fame just to get viewers. And there's no guarantee they'll be any good at it.  All one needs to remember is that Ken didn't do so well on 500 Questions despite the assumption that if you master Jeopardy.... there's no tougher challenge for them.  All you need to win on jeopardy is to bone up on Shakespeare which to me is useless knowledge.  

Edited November 6, 2020 by Swenson

[ketchuplover]

They promote The Beast and then don't use him. :(

[SoMuchTV]

I wasn't familiar with the earlier version(s) of this show so the ABC version is new to me.  I have had mixed feelings.  I like the trivia aspect, but I'm a little turned off by the fake "trash talking" by the experts, and the loser-take-nothing aspect.  They can do everything 99% correctly but in the end that gets them nothing. (What happens when the Chaser wins?  Nothing?  No money for themselves, their charities...?) I'm guessing this is based on a British game show, maybe?  I might be spoiled by the US shows I'm used to where celebrities are playing for a charity, or else they're really invested in helping the civilians win (Millionaire, Pyramid, Match Game, lots of others).  Maybe I just don't "get" the intention.

ETA. I only just realized there’s a separate thread for the US version of the show. I’ll have to catch up there. 

Edited June 13, 2021 by SoMuchTV

[Ailianna]

22 hours ago, ketchuplover said:

They promote The Beast and then don't use him. :(

No idea who he was other than a Brit, so while I thought they might use him first, its no biggie. They rotate chasers. More interesting to me is the question of whether he was brought on to allow Ken to host Jeopardy! full time once the new season starts.

He was ok, I thought. I like the banter between Ken, Brad, and James as much as the trivia (which is generally not much like J!), and he was ok at that. I loved James reacting to Ken's opening nudge after the contestants all said they were most worried about James.

[ketchuplover]

congrats to the 660K winners .... that being said I think the clock should NOT run while the question is being read