Al Roker was asked to host because regular host John O'Hurley was unavailable; he had already committed to hosting the ill-fated Secret Talents of the Stars (2008).
For these specials, the set received a makeover. The border around the board was made silver and the back color of the big board was blue throughout the main game and red for the Sudden Death round. The answer spots are light-blue and have blue circles with white numbers that load onto the board once the host says how many answers are on the board. This helps in editing just in case a question gets thrown out. The Face-Off podium is painted silver around the top, sides, and bottom. New Family podiums are used; they are blue and have black around the top, sides, and bottom. The regular family name displays were replaced with a slim, wide video screen with a blue background and yellow letters. The floor was extended by adding a white runway that changed colors when lighten up. The lower background on the sides of the board is changed to solid black with stars. For Fast Money, the answer spots and total section had a yellow boarder placed around it and featured a white flash of light to show an answer and how many people said it.
The answer reveal sound now features a swoosh sound when it is flipped in addition to the regular sound. The swoosh sound was added for the white flash of light that quickly flashes across the spot when it is flipped to reveal the answer and how many people said it.