Ca$h Cab

There is one thing that separates Cash Cab from the countless other game shows a person could watch. There is one singular difference that makes this show, about one man asking a group of contestants general-knowledge trivia questions, better than most others, and that is the premise.

The host drives around in an ordinary-looking cab in New York. The passengers that he picks up become the contestants. They answer general-knowledge questions all the way to their destination. If they miss three questions, though, they're kicked out and win nothing.

Nobody has prior knowledge that they are going to be on the show. Nobody has time to study or prepare for this. You may have one person, or a group, and this depends entirely on what they, as a person, know as part of their every-day knowledge. You can get a group of people who get three strikes right away, or you could get an individual who wins some obscene amount of money and then doubles it on the video-bonus question. Or you could get any mixture of the two. You never know, they never know, and that what makes this show great.

The show is not without it's faults. The host can be annoying at times, trying to be funny. And the melodrama is entirely over-blown. You have to wait an obscene amount of time before he confirms the question. After a while, it really begins to weigh the show down.

Still, Cash Cab is very much like a box of chocolates. You can get a bright bulb as much as you get a complete dud. But, no matter what, that's still good chocolate... I mean viewing.

In terms of straight quiz shows, Cash Cab may be the best ever. Unsuspecting New York City taxi riders find themselves contestants on a game show within their own cab, asked questions until they reach their destination. If they get three wrong before they get there they have to exit the taxi. Your taxi driver/host Ben Bailey is the key to the show, with helpful real-life background as both a limo driver and comic. He obviously has fun playing the game with the riders and enjoys their company in an honest and un-condescending way. He's also a very sharp guy with a quick wit. The game is a lot of fun, the questions are really pretty hard after the first $50 category, fortunately the folks they get in the cab are usually pretty smart. Enjoy!

If you're tired of all those game shows where contestants need to hold their breath, eat disgusting food or walk on a tight-rope suspended across two skyscrapers - look no further. This game show is incredibly entertaining for a premise that doesn't leave the taxi cab. Almost all contestants put a positive, amusing and all around good-natured spin onto things. The host himself is very funny and even if someone gets a question wrong or loses completely, it doesn't feel like a real loss. The trivia is actually really interesting, and you'll often find yourself saying to the screen, "it's _____!" Maybe it's just me. Oh well. Consider it evident on how much this show pumps you up.

In short, this game show is the first in a long time that's brought a genuine smile to my face. If you're flipping through channels and come across this, it's worth a try.

Okay, it's official...Ben Bailey has the best job in the world.

What other job could you possibly have where people break out into smiles and raucous, joyous laughter the moment they recognize you? Stand-up comedian? True, that IS the other job...and did I happen to mention that happens to be Ben's "day job", too?

This outgoing every-guy with the classic "Noo-YAWKUH'S" face and a way with snappy patter that would make Bob Eubanks green with envy is the host of what has to be TV's first 'mobile game show'. CASH CAB awards its lucky fares with all the money they can make during their trips, by answering Trivial Pursuit-style questions for different amounts of money, with those amounts growing in size as the difficulty of the questions increases. If the passengers make it successfully to their destination, it culminates in the chance to double their total winnings by answering a "Video Bonus" Question. It's a one-chance-only query with an accompanying visual clue that has to be answered correctly, or the players lose everything and leave with only a free cab ride.

Unlike a lot of fluffy game shows (save a few like JEOPARDY), CASH CAB is one of the few where you can actually learn something from the questions, plus you get what is at times a visually-stunning travelogue of New York. I have actually started making a list of several of the destinations people go to on the show!

The best thing about it, though, is Ben. Without having him as host, it probably wouldn't be the same...or as engaging as it is. Yes, like a lot of hosts, he does have some snappy comebacks and quick quips, and mugs shamelessly for the various cameras in and outside of his rig. But he does all of this while concentrating on driving, rattling off questions for the contestants and managing to be funny all at the same time. Let's see anyone else pull off that kind of 'multi-tasking.'

And though I'm sure quite a bit of selective editing goes on putting the shows together, by no means is this an easy contest. Because CAB'S big twist is "three strikes and you're out!" If the players get three questions wrong before the end of their trip, as Ben explains from the very beginning, he has to pull over and eject them from the ride at that point, no second chances or do-overs. And I've seen just as many people wind up walking (or hailing another cab) as I've seen win.

The point is that the show is everything you want from a great game show...it's informative, entertaining and addictive. And amazingly, rather on the most logical channel where you'd expect to find it, GSN (Game Show Network), it comes to us courtesy of The Discovery Channel.

As long as they can convince Ben to stay on for new episodes, I'm a fan, and my DVR will always be set for a season pass.

When described as a "game show taking place in a NYC cab", it doesn't sound all that interesting...maybe downright weak. However, this show manages to take a completely mundane act -- getting a cab ride -- and turn it into a really fun, exciting, and sometimes extremely funny show! The first four "general knowledge questions" of each cab ride are worth only $25 each, which is paltry by today's game show standards. But that's part of what makes it so charming; the answers are actually facts that common people often actually know! (Thus, the low-scale payout of only $25.) Everyone enjoys being right, and they get more and more pumped as the ride goes toward their destination. Questions eventually go up in value and in difficulty. And then there's the ever-popular "Red Light Challenge," which I won't spoil by describing. The only thing to watch out for is the "three strikes and you're out!" rule, and it is completely enforced! Thankfully, contestants have one mobile shout-out (cell phone provided) and one street shout-out (ask a stranger right out of your cab window!). Both are fun, and often helpful. Anyway, my 12-year-old LOVES this show, and part of it is because she can answer some questions herself, much like the first few questions of the "Millionaire" game show. The questions are reasonable (and even educational) and the reaction of the cab riders is almost always amusing -- wouldn't YOU be incredulous to find yourself on a game show just because you hailed a cab? Add to that the fact that Ben Bailey's facial expressions are often hilarious. All in all, it has become our family's absolute favorite show. As Ben would say, "So whaddaya say? You in?"