"The Wall" is a game show where a married couple competes against The Wall for money. And The Wall is very impressive: 4 stories tall, a massive video display, complete with built-in cameras. The host, Chris Hardwick, says the show is designed to provide "good opportunities for good people". We might wonder how they defines "good people".
In the first four episodes, the contestants include s school teacher, two marines, a parole officer, a police officer and couple that gives free donuts to police and fire personnel. Obviously, giving service--especially in the government sector--is what makes one good. As far as I know, this is the first game show with a political/philosophical agenda.
The game-play involves dropping balls down the wall, like a giant pachinko machine, and seeing if they land in slots designated as large money amounts or smaller money amounts. You can count the number of slots and their values to determine the odds of getting big bucks or not. But some balls subtract money, making it even more a game of chance. Yes, there are (embarrassingly easy) multiple-choice trivia questions involved at some point, but they only serve to distract one from the randomness of the outcome.
The ideal contestant is someone who (besides working for the government) is not too smart, likes gambling (e.g. dice, the lottery, or slot machines), likes to be the center of attention, is overly dramatic, voices every thought, and is superstitious. Expect to see every game show cliché. Expect contestants to give inane reasons for choosing certain numbers. Expect them to talk to the balls, perhaps even kiss them. And you can definitely expect them to provide lengthy, sometimes irrelevant justifications for their trivia answers.
The first couple is from Akron. So is LeBron James, producer of the show. A coincidence? Or just a totally random outcome, like The Wall?
If you like games of skill, try "Jeopardy". If you like games of chance that last an hour, "The Wall" may be for you.
