The Newlywed Game and Catch-21 All-Star Episodes: Review

Reviews for both shows which aired last night:

The Newlywed Game was hilarious. I enjoyed seeing all the couples, and it really touched my heart to see George Takei and Brad Altman. And aside from the fact that this was the first show to ever feature a gay couple, nothing else at all was different or made special. The questions were the same as they would be on any show as they should have been. George hit Brad with an answer card just like any other contestant on this show would. There were laughs garnered from that couple that could have come from any other one. This is all I wanted to see and all I would have expected to see when hearing that the first ever gay couple would be featured.

I still have my issues with this show, this was a pretty enjoyable episode. And speaking of issues, I don’t know if this just has to do with the fact that it’s an all celebrity show, but the Goldywed end game was obviously nowhere to be found. In any case, I’m glad. This was one of the weakest elements of this version, and it really made it more serious than it should be. If that’s a permanent fixture, then great.

Catch 21 was fun also. I have always enjoyed seeing Melody Thomas-Scott on game shows, especially Pyramid. And she was just as fun here. Brandon Barash and Jackie Zeman weren’t bad to watch either. Too bad luck was not on her side with the cards. I noticed that Alfonso was a bit more reserved than on previous episodes, and I was glad to see that.

One issue I have… during Catch 21 a promo aired which says that the all-star episodes continue all-season long. Last night was fun but I really don’t like the idea of this. It seems as though GSN has not taken a page from Whew!, Monty Hall’s Beat the Clock, Bullseye, or Hot Potato. I have no problem at all with an episode or two, or even a whole week of all-star shows, but an entire season? Moves like this have been proven to not work out too many times.