The show is almost unwatchable. The categories each are a bad play on Snoop's name and this show is clearly all about him. Every question is about celebrity. I've seen Snoop on shows and he can be entertaining. Here he is not. The contestants have to be among the dumbest people on earth. It's usually some airhead woman who completely fulfills that role, bouncing up and down and falling into all the stereotypes and some "macho" man trying to keep up with Snoop. It's definitely not worth the time.
7 Reviews
TJW = WTF?? A CBS Classic is Revived But Changes Nearly Everything (And Not In A Good Way)
oldschoolgameshowguy27 October 2017
"From Hollywood
it's the game where knowledge is king and Lady Luck is queen..."
Sadly, the "knowledge" is largely gone from TBS's revival of "The Joker's Wild", a classic CBS game show that rewarded actual book knowledge with cash and prizes of up to $25,000. Entertainer Snoop Dogg brought back a new version of this Jack Barry vehicle in October of 2017 on TBS and for those who remember and loved the original, this one is a huge disappointment. The beautiful, sparkling new set alone is not enough to save this bomb.
There's so many things about the new version of the show that I disliked upon viewing the premiere. The audience. The questions. The changed flow of play. And most certainly the host. Snoop's persona – at least on the show – is that of a drug-friendly casino operator party guy with a streetwise sense of humor. That, of course, is nothing like Jack Barry or, really, any other quiz show emcee of any of the classics.
Snoop is supposed to be the main draw for the show - but with the original, it wasn't about the host. It was about the game, at least for the viewers. Jack Barry was an affable host, like many emcees of the day, but he wasn't playing a version of himself, and a seedy one at that. He was actually trying to clean up his image, having been implicated in The Quiz Show Scandals of the 1950's. He needed to be squeaky clean. Luckily, it worked.
A good game show host - to me - knows how to set up tension and the big moments. Snoop isn't up to that the way, say, Steve Harvey is on "Family Feud". If you're watching a game, as a viewer, you don't want to be going, "What just happened?"
Snoop has famously said "The Joker's Wild" was one of his favorite shows growing up, and that he used to watch it with his grandmother. I don't think Snoop would have done so well as a contestant on the CBS original.
The new version of the game is not a general knowledge quiz – at least, as you'd see on "Jeopardy!" with Alex Trebek. On the new version of "Joker" questions are more about streetwise subjects or comedic themes. The category names are too silly to recount here, but I was reminded of the equally frivolous names chosen for categories on the 2000 "Pyramid" revival with Donny Osmond (which I was glad to see bite the dust). Sometimes it's possible to be too cutesy.
Even the lousy 1990 version with Pat Finn, there were quiz questions about real topics – given as definitions, where the player had to define the person, place or thing Finn read off his cards. The message Snoop's "Joker" sends is that there's zero value in knowing school subjects or facts. This show is suitable for a "post-fact" era.
New "Joker" isn't even the same game structurally. Designed to fit within a single-half hour, with no carry-over champions (even the current incarnation of "Family Feud" with Steve Harvey lets families stay five days to win a new SUV), this version of "Joker" is a contest to see who can amass the most money during game play, not whether they can reach a particular amount. That dramatically changes the game. There are fewer moments for natural tension. A wrong answer to a question can't be picked up by an opponent for credit, as in the original version. There is no "final spin" rule if a player reaches the winning amount before players have had an equal number of spins. And a three-Joker spin is lame, as it only counts for $500 towards a daily total. There is no Joker's Jackpot and no five-win big car payoff.
Speaking of the audience (and the players), I didn't see anyone present over the age of 30. The original "Joker" wasn't so narrow in its appeal, and that might have been part of the reason it was a classic – you could see students, parents, professionals, artists, young adults, older adults, everyone. It seems that Snoop's version of the show basically says, "If you ain't a club kid, or you don't dig me, you're too old."
"The Joker's Wild" was never intended to be a comedy game show. There have been other game shows that were expressly designed as humor vehicles - "Make Me Laugh", "The Hollywood Squares", "The Gong Show", "Match Game", "Every Second Counts", "Can You Top This?" - but taking a venerated quiz and turning it into a comedy vehicle isn't a good idea.
I partly blame "new generation" producers – folks whose interest is in leaving their own mark on a classic genre rather than respecting what made the genre work – it's all about them. I have seen revivals come and go in recent years, but they usually never stay. They all have to be edgy. They all have to be "explicit". They all have to be bawdy.
Richard Kline's company tried to redo "Joker" in 1990 by changing nearly everything and it was a flop – only after several months in did they try to retool the game with classic "Joker" rules, but it was too late then. Replacing Snoop as host would be better, but it wouldn't save everything.
If you wanted to have a game show in a night club - and all that implies - you'd get Snoop's reboot of "The Joker's Wild". With the exception of the beautiful new set, there is little that a fan of the original CBS "Joker" will enjoy – unless you want a program based on jokes. "Jeopardy!" or quiz show fans can rightfully wince. And TBS will have to promote the daylights out of this show to make it a commercial success with its millennial target viewers.
I will stick to reruns of the classic CBS show on YouTube.
Sadly, the "knowledge" is largely gone from TBS's revival of "The Joker's Wild", a classic CBS game show that rewarded actual book knowledge with cash and prizes of up to $25,000. Entertainer Snoop Dogg brought back a new version of this Jack Barry vehicle in October of 2017 on TBS and for those who remember and loved the original, this one is a huge disappointment. The beautiful, sparkling new set alone is not enough to save this bomb.
There's so many things about the new version of the show that I disliked upon viewing the premiere. The audience. The questions. The changed flow of play. And most certainly the host. Snoop's persona – at least on the show – is that of a drug-friendly casino operator party guy with a streetwise sense of humor. That, of course, is nothing like Jack Barry or, really, any other quiz show emcee of any of the classics.
Snoop is supposed to be the main draw for the show - but with the original, it wasn't about the host. It was about the game, at least for the viewers. Jack Barry was an affable host, like many emcees of the day, but he wasn't playing a version of himself, and a seedy one at that. He was actually trying to clean up his image, having been implicated in The Quiz Show Scandals of the 1950's. He needed to be squeaky clean. Luckily, it worked.
A good game show host - to me - knows how to set up tension and the big moments. Snoop isn't up to that the way, say, Steve Harvey is on "Family Feud". If you're watching a game, as a viewer, you don't want to be going, "What just happened?"
Snoop has famously said "The Joker's Wild" was one of his favorite shows growing up, and that he used to watch it with his grandmother. I don't think Snoop would have done so well as a contestant on the CBS original.
The new version of the game is not a general knowledge quiz – at least, as you'd see on "Jeopardy!" with Alex Trebek. On the new version of "Joker" questions are more about streetwise subjects or comedic themes. The category names are too silly to recount here, but I was reminded of the equally frivolous names chosen for categories on the 2000 "Pyramid" revival with Donny Osmond (which I was glad to see bite the dust). Sometimes it's possible to be too cutesy.
Even the lousy 1990 version with Pat Finn, there were quiz questions about real topics – given as definitions, where the player had to define the person, place or thing Finn read off his cards. The message Snoop's "Joker" sends is that there's zero value in knowing school subjects or facts. This show is suitable for a "post-fact" era.
New "Joker" isn't even the same game structurally. Designed to fit within a single-half hour, with no carry-over champions (even the current incarnation of "Family Feud" with Steve Harvey lets families stay five days to win a new SUV), this version of "Joker" is a contest to see who can amass the most money during game play, not whether they can reach a particular amount. That dramatically changes the game. There are fewer moments for natural tension. A wrong answer to a question can't be picked up by an opponent for credit, as in the original version. There is no "final spin" rule if a player reaches the winning amount before players have had an equal number of spins. And a three-Joker spin is lame, as it only counts for $500 towards a daily total. There is no Joker's Jackpot and no five-win big car payoff.
Speaking of the audience (and the players), I didn't see anyone present over the age of 30. The original "Joker" wasn't so narrow in its appeal, and that might have been part of the reason it was a classic – you could see students, parents, professionals, artists, young adults, older adults, everyone. It seems that Snoop's version of the show basically says, "If you ain't a club kid, or you don't dig me, you're too old."
"The Joker's Wild" was never intended to be a comedy game show. There have been other game shows that were expressly designed as humor vehicles - "Make Me Laugh", "The Hollywood Squares", "The Gong Show", "Match Game", "Every Second Counts", "Can You Top This?" - but taking a venerated quiz and turning it into a comedy vehicle isn't a good idea.
I partly blame "new generation" producers – folks whose interest is in leaving their own mark on a classic genre rather than respecting what made the genre work – it's all about them. I have seen revivals come and go in recent years, but they usually never stay. They all have to be edgy. They all have to be "explicit". They all have to be bawdy.
Richard Kline's company tried to redo "Joker" in 1990 by changing nearly everything and it was a flop – only after several months in did they try to retool the game with classic "Joker" rules, but it was too late then. Replacing Snoop as host would be better, but it wouldn't save everything.
If you wanted to have a game show in a night club - and all that implies - you'd get Snoop's reboot of "The Joker's Wild". With the exception of the beautiful new set, there is little that a fan of the original CBS "Joker" will enjoy – unless you want a program based on jokes. "Jeopardy!" or quiz show fans can rightfully wince. And TBS will have to promote the daylights out of this show to make it a commercial success with its millennial target viewers.
I will stick to reruns of the classic CBS show on YouTube.
Jack Barry and Bill Cullen Are Spinning in Their Graves
stevenpgordon5 April 2018
Who in the HELL stole the wonderfully clean and knowledge filled show and turned it into a self love fest for Snoop Dogg, a "rapper" who is known more for his love of weed than his rap? I have only seen snippets and promos for this "new" JW, but I absolutely refuse to subject myself to this drivel.
Poor Jack and Uncle Bill.......may they rest in peace.
Poor Jack and Uncle Bill.......may they rest in peace.
Haters are going to hate, but hate somewhere else!
pmelrose5244 June 2018
I love this reboot! If you don't, go watch the old one on Youtube! Snoop brings laughter and not just for the younger crowd! Gameshows do not have to be so serious all the time. Take time to embrace this updated show! The change IS for the better!
Its not the old show - and it doesn't have to be
cubefruger1 November 2017
I don't understand why every remake has to be exactly the same as the old thing... If you want the old thing, watch the old thing.
This show is hilarious. Snoop Dogg is so understated and goofy, and it clearly doesn't take itself seriously. The light-handedness and overall silly feeling works well to create a show that is just plain fun.
The audience may be limited to younger people as far as the humor goes, but I found the trivia to be accessible and fun to play along with. I may know next to nothing about Kanye West, but the trivia bits are always a hoot.
Its funny, enjoyable, and just the right amount of absurd. Definitely will keep watching.
This show is hilarious. Snoop Dogg is so understated and goofy, and it clearly doesn't take itself seriously. The light-handedness and overall silly feeling works well to create a show that is just plain fun.
The audience may be limited to younger people as far as the humor goes, but I found the trivia to be accessible and fun to play along with. I may know next to nothing about Kanye West, but the trivia bits are always a hoot.
Its funny, enjoyable, and just the right amount of absurd. Definitely will keep watching.
Yall Trippin...
fiftycentqueen20 August 2018
Hilarious and a good game show!
mwesolowski-580904 September 2018
I honestly don't get where all the hate for this show comes from. Something tells me it's coming from the kind of old farts who get uncomfortable when an interracial couple sits near them in a restaurant. Sure, the show's been updated, but since when does "reboot" mean "exact same cheesy, unoriginal thing to appease the old fogies"? The remake clearly has a lot of love and respect for the old show put into it. The reason Snoop became involved in the first place was because he adored the original show, and it clearly shows.
As a standalone game show, it's surprisingly good: the set is eye catching, the pacing is snappy, the questions are varied and often challenging, and the humor hits the mark far more than it misses. Sure, it's geared towards a younger crowd, but it even has my 64 year old father laughing at almost every crack. Snoop Dogg is also a fantastic host, taking all kinds of pot shots (har har) at himself and bringing that cool, half-baked vibe he always has while still being sharp. The stakes are also just right: the prize is a solid 50K, so it's not too little like some GSN shows, but not a "big money" snoozefest that spends more time gawking at a big prize pot than actually playing the game.
All in all, a perfectly serviceable, fun to watch game show that's sure please most anyone who is open to it's updated style. If you're willing to chill out and aren't the kind of person who gets uncomfortable at the mention of brown people and/or weed, you're in for a treat.
As a standalone game show, it's surprisingly good: the set is eye catching, the pacing is snappy, the questions are varied and often challenging, and the humor hits the mark far more than it misses. Sure, it's geared towards a younger crowd, but it even has my 64 year old father laughing at almost every crack. Snoop Dogg is also a fantastic host, taking all kinds of pot shots (har har) at himself and bringing that cool, half-baked vibe he always has while still being sharp. The stakes are also just right: the prize is a solid 50K, so it's not too little like some GSN shows, but not a "big money" snoozefest that spends more time gawking at a big prize pot than actually playing the game.
All in all, a perfectly serviceable, fun to watch game show that's sure please most anyone who is open to it's updated style. If you're willing to chill out and aren't the kind of person who gets uncomfortable at the mention of brown people and/or weed, you're in for a treat.
See also
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