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Post by millionairefan1 on Sept 14, 2015 21:57:48 GMT -5
I know this is just reiterating what has already been said, but I feel like starting a new thread to specifically talk about how we feel after actually SEEING the new season for ourselves.
As I reviewed to my friends via social media:
Just finished watching tonight's season 14 premiere of "Who Wants to be a Millionaire?" (Season 17, if you include the Regis Philbin years), and I got to say, it was pretty good. Chris Harrison (host of The Bachelorette) definitely brought intensity back to the show. Sorry, but it was hard to take Terry Crews (former-sports-star-turned-actor and Old Spice commercial guy) seriously.
Gameplay:
- Still 14 questions, but no more randomized money amounts or question difficulty. Never should have been in the first place, in my opinion!
- $1,000 consulation prize is gone. A contestant that loses in round one gets nothing, as it used to be.
- 50:50 is back, yay!
- There was less pop culture questions and more general knowledge questions, at least from what I've seen so far. Good.
- Safety level of $25,000 has been moved to $50,000. More risk vs. reward?
- There was hopes of a return of the original soundtrack, but they are still using the 2010 "shuffle/modern" soundtrack. I can live with that.
All in all, I enjoyed it. I look forward to the new season and new gameplay!
What did you all think?
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Post by du3lrab on Sept 14, 2015 22:04:30 GMT -5
The 50:50 stage lighting is still shared from the old "Jump the Question"? I can't tell if I hate it or like it, so I'm meh at it for now.
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Post by kplewisvox on Sept 14, 2015 22:10:44 GMT -5
The good:
- Chris Harrison is awfully good. He knows when to go for humor and when to go for tension. The fakeout we saw today was far more believable than Meredith's.
- The lighting is finally getting back to where it belongs. Darker across the board, and quite dark for the third tier. I hope it continues to get darker as we see question 12-14, approaching black.
- The new music spruce-ups are nice.
The bad:
- The pacing is still way too slow. Too much time is spent on the first five questions, which brings me to...
The ugly:
- The question difficulty is a bit haphazard. Two of the first five questions, which are supposed to be dog easy, or at least reasonable, were quite difficult, and the second tier actually seemed to mellow out a bit. There were a couple questions in the middle tier that could have been flip-flopped with first tier questions.
All in all, this is still the best Millionaire we've seen since Shuffle was introduced, and I will be a loyal viewer.
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Post by millionairefan1 on Sept 14, 2015 22:11:29 GMT -5
The 50:50 stage lighting is still shared from the old "Jump the Question"? I can't tell if I hate it or like it, so I'm meh at it for now. Yeah. I didn't think they would use something new for the 50:50, so I wasn't surprised when they used the "Jump" cues and lighting. |
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Post by millionairefan1 on Sept 14, 2015 22:13:31 GMT -5
The good: - Chris Harrison is awfully good. He knows when to go for humor and when to go for tension. The fakeout we saw today was far more believable than Meredith's. - The lighting is finally getting back to where it belongs. Darker across the board, and quite dark for the third tier. I hope it continues to get darker as we see question 12-14, approaching black. - The new music spruce-ups are nice. The bad: - The pacing is still way too slow. Too much time is spent on the first five questions, which brings me to... The ugly: - The question difficulty is a bit haphazard. Two of the first five questions, which are supposed to be dog easy, or at least reasonable, were quite difficult, and the second tier actually seemed to mellow out a bit. There were a couple questions in the middle tier that could have been flip-flopped with first tier questions. All in all, this is still the best Millionaire we've seen since Shuffle was introduced, and I will be a loyal viewer. I agree. The difficulty seemed a little off also, but as we always say, it's only easy if you know the answer... Or at least I suppose. Haha |
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Post by couponboy on Sept 14, 2015 22:25:48 GMT -5
I definitely like the new version. It really makes you earn the first $5,000, but it doesn't bobby trap you from there judging by Chris' question Stack. A good player can definitely still make it to tue upper tier, but if you're not great with general knlwledge it'll be a struggle just to get to $5,000. In fact, for a moment it looked like Gabby was going to bail out with $3,000, which would've made her only the 3rd person in the 16 years of Millionaire to bail-out before reaching the first milestone.
I was a bit concerned before the season started that 80%+ of the contestants would win either $5,000 or $20,000, but after seeing the first two episodes that seems unlikely. I'm definitely looking forward to tomorrow's shows.
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millionaire1999
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Post by millionaire1999 on Sept 15, 2015 0:32:06 GMT -5
So I got around to watching it today. I would have to agree with everyone above. The question difficulty for the first five questions were a bit too much.
I really felt bad for Emily who wound up leaving with nothing, but for losing on the $5,000, the question before the first safe haven is sometimes the one where contestants wind up answering incorrectly in previous formats.
Initially, prior to the season premiering where speculation was happening; we all thought the $1,000 consolation prize was still offered if you answer the first five wrong. I kinda knew it wouldn't be the case, because of the first question being $500.
Overall, Chris Harrison is a more fitting host for the show. I liked Terry's eccentric hosting style, but for a show that's all about tension, it didn't fit in too well. Definitely will keep watching.
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RegisFan
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Post by RegisFan on Sept 15, 2015 0:40:46 GMT -5
Chris Harrison is a breath of fresh air. Finally, a host that understands what makes the format work!
I appreciated the callbacks to the original format in terms of the lighting and music cues. At long last, the lights are going down with every question after the first safe haven!
Boy, did I miss the cold opens!
As far as negatives go, the pacing with the first five questions is too slow. The recycled music and graphics were expected, but still disappointing. If this version had the original music cues, think how much more appealing it would be!
Overall, this is a tremendous step in the right direction. It's still not perfect (and it's a far cry from where we were at in 2009 with the clock format), but the show is already much better than it has been in years.
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Post by Gagamillionaire on Sept 15, 2015 2:17:09 GMT -5
Chris is obviously very good. His banter with the contestants is nice. Most new hosts get better as time goes by, so I'm looking forward to how his hosting style will evolve. With Terry, you thought, "Wow, he's energetic," after watching one show, and just feared about developing tinnitus after three.
The music doesn't fit the format at all. The "Lights Down" cue before every question after the fifth is a little strange, simply because that cue adds nothing to the feeling of the show. In the classic game, it upped the tension and sounded dramatic. But the Shuffle version of it just doesn't.
The new Q1-5 cue is great. I like how the "Heartbeat" can be heard all the way through, while the post-production part is only added during the questions.
The questions are noticeably different, too. As has already been said, they are more about trivia than popular culture. Also, the phrasing often addresses the contestant, like in the Australian version, which was previously uncommon. The US version made more use of passives to make the questions impersonal.
What irritated me the most was the audience. I'm not a fan of a crowd cheering about anything, but there was nothing. They seemed a little bored by it all.
I think the producers did the best they could using the means they had, and it works. I didn't hate the Shuffle Format, I'm happy if they want to go back to the roots. Should Millionaire survive beyond this season, and Chris is the best shot they could have to succeed, I'd like to see them phase out the elements that don't work anymore.
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FrankT
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Post by FrankT on Sept 15, 2015 4:11:16 GMT -5
I've seen the first episode; it was good! A breath of fresh air, after all that bingo and stuff!
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Kimarough
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Yup, still here!
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Post by Kimarough on Sept 15, 2015 5:52:33 GMT -5
As said before, the difficulty was a bit varied but the content of the questions and the way they were written was brilliant! These are questions that get people thinking, and actually have a chance of thinking their way through them.
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Post by FinalAnswer19 on Sept 15, 2015 14:45:14 GMT -5
None of the stations in my market are airing it this season. Does anybody have the first episode to upload to YouTube?
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Post by Gagamillionaire on Sept 15, 2015 14:46:28 GMT -5
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Post by TheRealLeafApollo on Sept 15, 2015 22:37:23 GMT -5
Chris has a great hosting style! If ever I get on the show I'd definitely be cool with him  |
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Post by kplewisvox on Sept 24, 2015 14:59:57 GMT -5
One curiosity from yesterday's episode. An edit of the Million Dollar Win cue was being used as a commercial bumper. The optimist in me wonders if they created a new MDW cue, since I was never particularly taken by the current one. Perhaps something a little more fanfare, sort of a hybrid between the current one and the classic one. Hey millionairefan1, want a project?  |
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) I guess the next on will be Poland then...
