The Great American Baking Show

I love The Great British Baking show and so I was shocked to discover (4 months after the air date!) that there was an America version with Prue and Paul! I only happen to discover American Baking Show accidentally when Googling this week about Netflix's new, 2023 episodes of the British series!

I'm delighted by the quality, story, cast, and especially love Elie Kemper. Her co-host is super cute but if I could make one change, it would be pair her with someone high-energy to bring out her comedy like Jonathan Van Ness. I've seen her do improv here in LA with other more edgy comics and she's insanely funny as a contrast to them. How next level would someone like JVN and Ellie be?

Re: Roku : I worry that if the show does not make it, it will be because of distribution/ platform problems as very few people have Roku devices or even know that Roku has picked up this series. I could not get my Roku app to get the show to play on any of my Apple devices (I guess because I don't own a Roku) so I watched it at my mom's friend's house (yeah you got to be a real, dedicated fan to put in that kind of effort). I work in digital marketing for one of the competing studios and can say for sure that this is bad news for the shows viewership numbers. If Roku wants real data on who is actually watching the show, they should make it easier for us all to watch it and do some heavier marketing to get the word out.

The show has everything you'd expect from bake off - Paul nit picking, Prue being generally delightful, comedic hosts and some baking as well. While Zach & Ellie aren't quite Noel Fielding &(insert one of his many co-hosts) they are both just as funny and lighten things up for the stressed out bakers. The bakes are slightly different from the UK version but still interesting and challenging. The bakers share a somewhat similar skill level to the UK but it seems like the UK might have a few more refined home bakers. The season seems shorter than I'm used to seeing for UK seasons but I have a hunch this was more or less a pilot season. I hope Roku(or any network really) keeps this series going.

I have literally been trying to watch the second episode of Season 3 for the past three months. Every single day, this show pops up as a suggestion on my ROKU. Every day, I fall for it. I can only get episode one, of Season 3, EVER.

I have probably tried to watch the next episode on Season3, 10 times. But it is always a trap. There IS NO EPISODE 2, OR 3, OR 4, right?? You are lying. Is this some kind of trap to capture the info from my account. I don't understand what is happening. This is very disappointing. I have watched the Baking Show for a decade, and now it is some kind of trick? Boooo. There is not even an option to subscribe to another station. Don't ever post on my ROKU again.

Love Paul and Pruth. Both were just themselves and shine as always. Never thought they could find someone worse than Matt, but he is a super funny and intelligent individual compared to Ellie and Zack.

The episodes, contestants, and recipes were pretty good and pretty typical of what I'd expect of Americans on a baking show. They are on par with how the various recipes and Showstoppers turn out on The Great British Baking Show. The contestants were a good mix of annoying and funny and good.

Nice not having to translate ingredients and recipes from British English to American.... cookies v biscuits. :)

Another great season of this series. I hate that there are fewer episodes than the flagship series, but I'll take whatever I can get. It's always good to see another great cast of normal people go up against each other (or better yet themselves). Each season brings new challenges and they most never repeat them from one so to the next creating great series's all around. The hosts are growing on me but still not as fun as the flagship title but that's a small detail for a show I just always enjoy binging.

The Technical Challenges are some of the best we've seen yet and this is truly one of the great highlights of the series.