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Techtite's TV Reviews! |
"Cancelled long before it could get the viewers it deserved, this is another admirable show concept that didn't last long enough to overcome it's very preventable shortcomings." ---from the review
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Opportunity Knocks
Imagine a game show that went door to door and turned your front door step into one big block party. Not only does the concept sound very "outdoorsy" and cool; every prize you win is already there, so they wheel your new prizes right into your house, immediately! As for the price of tickets; there aren't any! They came right to your house. The idea sounds like ABC looked at the success of Extreme Makeover: Home Edition and made it into a game show. That's exactly what Opportunity Knocks is, and aside from some disappointing early ratings numbers; there's little not to like here. Well, okay; that was enough for ABC to not like the series (it was cancelled by the time you read this), though, still... Step one for this show: they choose a family of contestants. Reps from the show go to their home in advance, digging up G-rated trivia, so the questions can be all about the family. What does mom and dad have under their bed? What does your sister always have for breakfast? Look at your dad's toy car collection and see if you can pick his favorite. The questions get tougher and tougher until the end, when the family decides if they want to double their money, or gamble it, all-or-nothing, for a grand prize of $250,000. The good news: prizes are all things that the family wanted. After all; how much fun is it to play a game show on your front lawn for prizes you don't want? If dad is offered a new car, it's his favorite car. Mom plays for a trip to Hawaii. The son gets the chance at a new HDTV. The daughter gets the chance to see Miley Cyrus in person. The catch; for these dream prizes, the family member must get all four of their questions right, or halfway through they can spend a huge chunk of the current prize money to buy the prize anyway. So far the game show sounds like fun, right? Well, it is...though it was cancelled. As I often ask on this site's most popular monthly column: What Went Wrong? That's debatable, though there's one thing this game show lacked that popular game shows have: home viewers can't play along. We're not talking about free prizes as much as playing the game itself. You know how in Jeopardy you can try and answer the question yourself...? On Wheel of Fortune you can try and solve the word puzzle before the contestants do. In The Price is Right, you can guess the prices. Even in Deal or No Deal, you can choose a case and see what was in that case by the end of the show. Every successful game show can be "played" by the viewer. Which brings us to Opportunity Knocks. While making the questions very family-friendly was an intriguing idea, it eliminates the best aspect of a good game show; audience participation. If a son is going to be asked to choose dad's favorite car from his hot wheels collection, at least show ten cars to the audience, so they can play along and see if they can choose the car too. There's no way the audience can play along with "name your sister's favorite breakfast treat." Bummer. Then there's the way "family trivia" means alerting the family of the game show's arrival. The whole family was alerted to the show before hand, as the show came to the house and looked in every cupboard and under every bed for the trivia questions. This is the sort of show that would've been even better "live," with the local news telling you Opportunity Knocks is in town, with each family that applied for the show having no idea which house they'd drive up to. Sure the show would have to be pre-recorded just in cast some teenager accidentally dropped a swear word or two, though still: it would add an element to the show that would be so much cooler! True, with no way to snoop in the house beforehand, game show questions would not be about the family. Then again; that would mean the trivia asked would be questions that anyone could answer...like, the home audience. I'm not saying this was a bad show. I actually feel pretty bad this was cancelled. The chosen families are all fun to watch. As for the family trivia; it had its moments. In the first episode a daughter's trio of friends is brought up on stage. After the obligatory giggles and screams about being on TV, they are told the trivia question: her big brother has a crush on one of her friends. Can she choose the right one for an added $5 grand in the prize money? It was an effective moment, especially when the boy bravely strolls up and gives his secret crush a single rose. This is the sort of moment which made someone think that "secret family trivia" might be a cool idea. Yet in the end, the best game shows are easily played at home by the viewers. That's what makes Wheel of Fortune so popular. Yet Opportunity Knocks was still a great show, and was my choice for this season's best new show you're not watching...though now that it's been cancelled, the opinion is moot. Yes, there were some bumps in the carpet here, though if those kinks were straightened out, think of how cool this game show concept was! The bad news: it was up against such network heavyweights as The Biggest Loser, House, and NCIS. Yes, this means ABC's scheduling department is crazy, though I'm hoping ABC decides to show the unaired episodes during the holidays, when everything is mostly reruns and this show can get some viewers...and if possible, perhaps even a second chance? I'd say it deserves it.
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