Celebrity Name Game

The fastest game show on TV, "Celebrity Name Game" pits two teams of two players against each other in trying (mostly) to name celebrities from clues given, mostly verbal. Along the way, they are assisted by two celebrities and by the host, Craig Ferguson, himself.

The pace is so lively, they manage to squeeze four rounds into a half hour. In round one, teams get $100 for each correct answer. The stakes double in round two. In round three, Craig supplies the clues while the teams compete simultaneously. The team that wins moves on to round four where they can win $20,000 if they guess all ten names (and other things) correctly.

The contestants are obviously chosen for their enthusiasm and aptitude. The celebrities are usually good players themselves. And Craig is his wacky self, though somewhat constrained by the structure of the show.

Where I live, they play two episodes back to back every weekday evening before primetime, where there is little competition.

I would have given this a higher rating if it wasn't for all the noise. The show keeps close track of time through out the show. And there's 4 minutes and 15 seconds of game play during the show. Plus and un-timed (about two minutes) section toward the end that can go very fast as well if the teams scored well in the first two rounds. So you have maybe 6 to seven minutes of game play out of 30 minutes. Thank God they were smart enough to get Craig Ferguson to fill in the rest of the time on the show. Not only does he have to draw as much as he can out of the contestants. Some of the celebrities need some help being entertaining. Craig really makes the show. I record it so i get by some of yelling, clapping, and other loud noise. Craig is an amazingly talented ad-libber; and I look forward to his part of the show every time. It's well worth watching. Especially if you don't mind clapping and wooohoooing.

Australian show only.............. Great show, great concept, fun for the whole family, but with Grant DENYER as host, it's brilliant! The show was made for his talents. Well done Grant DENYER and also the fantastic nightly parade of celebrities who get exposure and join in on the laughs. Two thumbs up to you all.

I would have definitely given this a higher score because I think the game itself is fun. It's a combination of other games and the variety makes it fun. The downfall is the nauseating behaviors from both players and host. It seems that the players have been coached into behaving an an overly exaggerated manner to where nobody seems completely authentic. If I want to watch staged acting I can watch reality TV shows but with game shows, cooking competition shows, fashion competition shows, Etc, it's nice to see some real behavior. Trouble is, it can be so difficult to find on American TV when the focus is more on those things that equate to money - thus, you get a massive amount of programs that aren't worth watching.

Let me say up front: I don't care for game shows. They're just not my thing. But a game show hosted by Craig Ferguson? Now that had promise! His love of rule-bending (or breaking), and the easygoing sense of fun he brings to everything he does -- not to mention the fact he's just hilarious -- had me more than ready to give this show a try.

Craig has said in interviews that it was the flexibility of this show's format and the room for improv that drew him in, and that shows. He's clearly having a great time chatting with guests, and enjoying the general silliness of the game itself. For the round where he gives the clues (rather than a contestant or celebrity doing it), he seems to take special pleasure in toying with the format and going for the unexpected as much as possible. (Example: when the round was "upper lipholstery," - all names of people with mustaches - he started every "clue" by giving a thorough critique on the quality of the mustache, and only THEN actually hinted at the identity of the person!) With only a few episodes broadcast so far, odds are good this show is still finding its feet. Already, though, it's tremendous fun. And with Craig Ferguson as host, I fully expect it to get more gloriously chaotic and un-game-show-like as it goes along. Here's hoping! In the meantime: already quite awesome, and I will certainly continue to watch.

Edit: I've watched quite a few episodes now. The show's main weakness probably is simply the repetition, especially as two episodes are played back to back in my area. One gets pretty tired of hearing those same rules yet again. The general silliness and air of improv, though, are still great.