) I guess the next on will be Poland then...
Post by RegisFan on Aug 12, 2010 0:06:56 GMT -5
Hello, everyone!
I've just returned from a great trip to New York City. I was at the first taping of season 9 of the US version of "Who Wants to Be a Millionaire," and I'm glad to be able to provide you all with this exclusive set report.
I'd like to start out with a warning. The taping I saw was, in fact, a test run-through for the new format. I'm almost positive it will never air on television. The "contestants" at my taping were former contestants on the syndicated series, John Castellano and Stephanie Millien, and some of the questions were lifted from last season. Also, several aspects of the taping were in flux as the show progressed. Nothing is final yet. Official taping for season 9 doesn't begin until next week or the week after. Anything could change between now and the September 13 premiere date.
Also, I'd like to ask you all to keep an open mind until you see the finished product on television.
This is the biggest format change of any version of "Millionaire" in the world. I suppose I'll start with the basics:
-There is no Hot Seat.
-There is no clock.
-There are 14 questions.
-There is no Matthew Strachan score (or, if Mr. Strachan did compose the music I heard in the studio, it was nothing like any music on any previous version of "Millionaire")
The game is played in two parts. The first part consists of the first ten questions. The first ten questions are randomly assigned one of the dollar amounts from the first part of the money tree (see that preview video to check out the first part of the tree). Then, the deck of categories is shuffled. Basically, for the first ten questions, the contestant has no idea what amount of money he wins when he answers a question correctly. It could be $100, or it could be $15,000. The first question could be the hardest question in the stack, or it could be the easiest. There's just no way of knowing, because it's all randomized. This is set up to build tension and elicit a reaction from the audience. Also, it is designed to make the first part of the game less sluggish.
Whenever a contestant gets a question right, the question's corresponding dollar amount goes into his bank. If a contestant walks away, he gets HALF of the money currently in his bank. If a contestant answers a question incorrectly, he loses the game. However, all contestants leave with $1,000 as a consolation prize.
There are three lifelines. Ask the Audience remains in the game, but all the other lifelines from previous incarnations (as well as the Celebrity Question gimmick) have been dropped. Instead, the contestant gets two "Jump the Question" lifelines, which allows him to bypass a question that he does not know the answer to. Keep in mind, though, that if you jump over a question, the cash from that question doesn't go into your bank.
After the first ten questions, the contestant enters what Meredith called "Classic Millionaire," in which the game is played just like it was in the old days. The last four questions are valued at $100,000, $250,000, $500,000, and $1,000,000. If you get an answer wrong, you leave with $25,000, which is guaranteed prize money once a contestant reaches "Classic Millionaire." I'm not sure how walking away works at this point in the game, but I think you walk away with the money you've banked when you're playing "Classic Millionaire." Also, Meredith said that you can use "Jump the Question" in "Classic Millionaire," but she didn't explain how exactly that works.
Now, that's a lot to swallow for any fan. It was also a lot to swallow for everyone in the studio with me. Was it exciting to see how much money the contestant earned for each correct answer? Yes. Did I find myself yearning for the contestant to get to "Classic Millionaire"? Yes, I did.
The music score that I heard in my taping was abysmal. I didn't hear the classic theme once. Nor did I hear the classic question music, or even the classic "light's down" cue. Nor did I hear any other variation of the classic score, including the 2008 US score, the Australian "Hot Seat" score, or the UK "rave" score. This was all new music, and it didn't sound like Matthew Strachan composed it. It wasn't dramatic at all. In fact, it was strangely upbeat. Think US "Deal or No Deal" music, just without the catchy theme song to back it up. Even the "lights down" cue wasn't accompanied by anything dramatic sounding. I can see the excitement in the new rules, but if the music I heard in the studio is the final music for this show (and I'm not guaranteeing you that's the case, it could have been placeholder music, and I pray it was), then a lot of people, including casual viewers, will be disappointed.
I didn't hear the new theme song, but when Meredith walked out, all I heard was upbeat music, and I got the feeling this music was the new theme.
Now, for something that everyone hear can agree is a huge positive. The presentation is absolutely amazing. It blows every other version of the show out of the water. The set has been redesigned. There are now huge viewing screens straddled between the classic curvy wall protrusions. The main screen is situated between the wall protrusions that have no stairs alongside them- they are farther apart than the standard wall pieces seen in the classic backdrop. The two standard sized backdrops, with stairs, are now secondary backdrops used in camera pans. The wall screen on the left contains the logo, and the one on the right is Meredith's host screen. There are floor lights all around the circular center area, and they look great. Also, the wall protrusions now turn green when the contestant gets a question correct, and (I believe) red when he gets a question wrong. All of the lighting looks fantastic. Also, the graphics are incredible. They're silky smooth, and they look great. The question borders are in gold, and the inner portion is either really darkish blue or black, not the light blue from seasons 7 and 8. Although we weren't shown an intro sequence, I saw what looked like one playing on a monitor in the studio, and it looked utterly awesome. Also, there's a new logo. It's silver and blue, and it looks like the classic logo except that a modified version of the bluish circle from the seasons 7 and 8 intro remains in the center. It looks really good, trust me.
The only real flaw with the visual presentation is that there is no Hot Seat. Meredith and the contestant stand around a center podium. This shocked just about everyone at my test taping. To me, it looked silly. Meredith uses one of the big screens as her host screen, and uses silly-looking handheld cards for everything else. The graphics and the set look great, but I really think that dropping the Hot Seat is a bad move.
So, there you have it. This is a game changer, folks. "Millionaire" is unlike it's ever been before. What did I think overall? I see potential in the game, I really do. It's a fun format, but it's a major departure from the "Millionaire" we know and love. It definitely needs some tweaking, and I hope that these test tapings will help them to iron out the kinks. The audience I was with was fairly divided about the new format. Some people liked it, while others didn't like it. I'm going to remain open-minded about it and wait for the season premiere before I cast any judgment based on the early prototype show I saw. I will say this, though. I missed the clock. The clock kept people from rambling during the game, and it kept things moving at a nice pace.
I've always embraced the changes to "Millionaire" over the years, but these changes might not go over as smoothly as the introduction of the clock did a few years ago. I know that Michael Davies left the production, and I wonder what effect his absence had on the development of this format.
I'd also like to say right now that Meredith Vieira is one of the nicest, sweetest, most talented people I've ever met. Not only did I have the opportunity to talk to her, but she gave me her autograph, too. I caught her attention across the studio, and she came over to me just to talk. She's a real professional, and I encourage everyone to see a taping of "Millionaire" just to see her at work. I doubt you'll ever read this, Meredith, but, if you do, I can't thank you enough for making my taping so special!
I had a great time in New York, but I'm exhausted now. It really was a dream-come-true. Just being on the "Millionaire" set gave me chills. Also, I was lucky enough to see a taping of "Live! with Regis and Kelly." To answer the question that's on all of your minds, I did indeed meet Regis Philbin. Yes, he gave me his autograph, and yes I got to talk to him in person. What a thrill that was for ol' Regisfan. What a class act Reege is! I didn't get to talk to Kelly Ripa personally, but she was absolutely hilarious at my taping. Kelly is a ray of sunshine, and she's positively radiant in person. Furthermore, "Live!" was fantastic! Not only did we tape the live show, we also taped a Host Chat segment for a later date (when a prerecorded episode will be aired) and several promos for local channels. What a treat that was, and both the hosts really went out of their way to make the extended taping fun for the audience!
I might be editing my above post as I continue to think of things I left out. Be patient with me. Also, feel free to ask me questions. I'll answer them to the best of my ability. At this point, I'm still bewildered by everything that's happened over the past few days. If you've never been to New York, I can't encourage you enough to go.
Also, this set report is an exclusive to Millionaire Fans right now. I look forward to hearing about more set reports so that we can see what's evolving with the show. We're in for a wild few weeks ahead, Millionaire Fans!
I've just returned from a great trip to New York City. I was at the first taping of season 9 of the US version of "Who Wants to Be a Millionaire," and I'm glad to be able to provide you all with this exclusive set report.
I'd like to start out with a warning. The taping I saw was, in fact, a test run-through for the new format. I'm almost positive it will never air on television. The "contestants" at my taping were former contestants on the syndicated series, John Castellano and Stephanie Millien, and some of the questions were lifted from last season. Also, several aspects of the taping were in flux as the show progressed. Nothing is final yet. Official taping for season 9 doesn't begin until next week or the week after. Anything could change between now and the September 13 premiere date.
Also, I'd like to ask you all to keep an open mind until you see the finished product on television.
This is the biggest format change of any version of "Millionaire" in the world. I suppose I'll start with the basics:
-There is no Hot Seat.
-There is no clock.
-There are 14 questions.
-There is no Matthew Strachan score (or, if Mr. Strachan did compose the music I heard in the studio, it was nothing like any music on any previous version of "Millionaire")
The game is played in two parts. The first part consists of the first ten questions. The first ten questions are randomly assigned one of the dollar amounts from the first part of the money tree (see that preview video to check out the first part of the tree). Then, the deck of categories is shuffled. Basically, for the first ten questions, the contestant has no idea what amount of money he wins when he answers a question correctly. It could be $100, or it could be $15,000. The first question could be the hardest question in the stack, or it could be the easiest. There's just no way of knowing, because it's all randomized. This is set up to build tension and elicit a reaction from the audience. Also, it is designed to make the first part of the game less sluggish.
Whenever a contestant gets a question right, the question's corresponding dollar amount goes into his bank. If a contestant walks away, he gets HALF of the money currently in his bank. If a contestant answers a question incorrectly, he loses the game. However, all contestants leave with $1,000 as a consolation prize.
There are three lifelines. Ask the Audience remains in the game, but all the other lifelines from previous incarnations (as well as the Celebrity Question gimmick) have been dropped. Instead, the contestant gets two "Jump the Question" lifelines, which allows him to bypass a question that he does not know the answer to. Keep in mind, though, that if you jump over a question, the cash from that question doesn't go into your bank.
After the first ten questions, the contestant enters what Meredith called "Classic Millionaire," in which the game is played just like it was in the old days. The last four questions are valued at $100,000, $250,000, $500,000, and $1,000,000. If you get an answer wrong, you leave with $25,000, which is guaranteed prize money once a contestant reaches "Classic Millionaire." I'm not sure how walking away works at this point in the game, but I think you walk away with the money you've banked when you're playing "Classic Millionaire." Also, Meredith said that you can use "Jump the Question" in "Classic Millionaire," but she didn't explain how exactly that works.
Now, that's a lot to swallow for any fan. It was also a lot to swallow for everyone in the studio with me. Was it exciting to see how much money the contestant earned for each correct answer? Yes. Did I find myself yearning for the contestant to get to "Classic Millionaire"? Yes, I did.
The music score that I heard in my taping was abysmal. I didn't hear the classic theme once. Nor did I hear the classic question music, or even the classic "light's down" cue. Nor did I hear any other variation of the classic score, including the 2008 US score, the Australian "Hot Seat" score, or the UK "rave" score. This was all new music, and it didn't sound like Matthew Strachan composed it. It wasn't dramatic at all. In fact, it was strangely upbeat. Think US "Deal or No Deal" music, just without the catchy theme song to back it up. Even the "lights down" cue wasn't accompanied by anything dramatic sounding. I can see the excitement in the new rules, but if the music I heard in the studio is the final music for this show (and I'm not guaranteeing you that's the case, it could have been placeholder music, and I pray it was), then a lot of people, including casual viewers, will be disappointed.
I didn't hear the new theme song, but when Meredith walked out, all I heard was upbeat music, and I got the feeling this music was the new theme.
Now, for something that everyone hear can agree is a huge positive. The presentation is absolutely amazing. It blows every other version of the show out of the water. The set has been redesigned. There are now huge viewing screens straddled between the classic curvy wall protrusions. The main screen is situated between the wall protrusions that have no stairs alongside them- they are farther apart than the standard wall pieces seen in the classic backdrop. The two standard sized backdrops, with stairs, are now secondary backdrops used in camera pans. The wall screen on the left contains the logo, and the one on the right is Meredith's host screen. There are floor lights all around the circular center area, and they look great. Also, the wall protrusions now turn green when the contestant gets a question correct, and (I believe) red when he gets a question wrong. All of the lighting looks fantastic. Also, the graphics are incredible. They're silky smooth, and they look great. The question borders are in gold, and the inner portion is either really darkish blue or black, not the light blue from seasons 7 and 8. Although we weren't shown an intro sequence, I saw what looked like one playing on a monitor in the studio, and it looked utterly awesome. Also, there's a new logo. It's silver and blue, and it looks like the classic logo except that a modified version of the bluish circle from the seasons 7 and 8 intro remains in the center. It looks really good, trust me.
The only real flaw with the visual presentation is that there is no Hot Seat. Meredith and the contestant stand around a center podium. This shocked just about everyone at my test taping. To me, it looked silly. Meredith uses one of the big screens as her host screen, and uses silly-looking handheld cards for everything else. The graphics and the set look great, but I really think that dropping the Hot Seat is a bad move.
So, there you have it. This is a game changer, folks. "Millionaire" is unlike it's ever been before. What did I think overall? I see potential in the game, I really do. It's a fun format, but it's a major departure from the "Millionaire" we know and love. It definitely needs some tweaking, and I hope that these test tapings will help them to iron out the kinks. The audience I was with was fairly divided about the new format. Some people liked it, while others didn't like it. I'm going to remain open-minded about it and wait for the season premiere before I cast any judgment based on the early prototype show I saw. I will say this, though. I missed the clock. The clock kept people from rambling during the game, and it kept things moving at a nice pace.
I've always embraced the changes to "Millionaire" over the years, but these changes might not go over as smoothly as the introduction of the clock did a few years ago. I know that Michael Davies left the production, and I wonder what effect his absence had on the development of this format.
I'd also like to say right now that Meredith Vieira is one of the nicest, sweetest, most talented people I've ever met. Not only did I have the opportunity to talk to her, but she gave me her autograph, too. I caught her attention across the studio, and she came over to me just to talk. She's a real professional, and I encourage everyone to see a taping of "Millionaire" just to see her at work. I doubt you'll ever read this, Meredith, but, if you do, I can't thank you enough for making my taping so special!
I had a great time in New York, but I'm exhausted now. It really was a dream-come-true. Just being on the "Millionaire" set gave me chills. Also, I was lucky enough to see a taping of "Live! with Regis and Kelly." To answer the question that's on all of your minds, I did indeed meet Regis Philbin. Yes, he gave me his autograph, and yes I got to talk to him in person. What a thrill that was for ol' Regisfan. What a class act Reege is! I didn't get to talk to Kelly Ripa personally, but she was absolutely hilarious at my taping. Kelly is a ray of sunshine, and she's positively radiant in person. Furthermore, "Live!" was fantastic! Not only did we tape the live show, we also taped a Host Chat segment for a later date (when a prerecorded episode will be aired) and several promos for local channels. What a treat that was, and both the hosts really went out of their way to make the extended taping fun for the audience!
I might be editing my above post as I continue to think of things I left out. Be patient with me. Also, feel free to ask me questions. I'll answer them to the best of my ability. At this point, I'm still bewildered by everything that's happened over the past few days. If you've never been to New York, I can't encourage you enough to go.
Also, this set report is an exclusive to Millionaire Fans right now. I look forward to hearing about more set reports so that we can see what's evolving with the show. We're in for a wild few weeks ahead, Millionaire Fans!
