That's the Question
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That's the Question was a GSN game show hosted by Bob Goen. It is based on a show of the same name originating in the Netherlands. The show has recently been moved from it's 6:00 PM time slot on GSN replacing Hollywood Squares. As of December, 2006 the network has not released whether or not the show has been cancelled.
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[edit] Format
Two players compete against each other in this word game that is similar to both Wheel of Fortune and Scrabble, with elements also found on Jeopardy! (namely the identifying of questions with the answer provided).
[edit] Round One
To start the round, a toss-up question is asked. The question consists of a puzzle with blanks (the question) and an answer. Letters in the question are revealed one at a time and the first contestant to buzz in with the right question earns control of the first round.
Another main question puzzle appears, again with the answer given. Each player takes turns answering mini-questions. The answers to these mini-questions are found in anagrams containing all of the letters to the answer, along with an extra letter. Whether answered correctly or not, that extra letter is placed into its location in the main question. Contestants earn one point every time the extra letter appears in the main question (provided they answered the mini-question correctly). Guessing the main question with the answer provided earns a bonus five points, and three different puzzles are played in this round.
[edit] Round Two
This round is played the same as the first round, except that points are doubled and the answer is not provided to the main question. (The extra letters can also appear in the answer, but no points are given for letters placed there.) Additionally, contestants remain in control of the round until they give an incorrect answer or ran out of time. The contestant with the most points at the end of this around wins the game. If time runs out in the middle of filling in the letters, a speed-up takes place. Like before, letters in the question will be filled in one at a time, and the first contestant to buzz-in and fill in the right question and answer gets 10 points. If nobody fills in the question to the answer, Bob will know the question and the answer, and that will be the final question in the round.
[edit] Bonus Round
In the bonus round, the winning contestant is given one main question, and asked mini-questions as before -- but letters are not placed in the answer at all. Incorrect answers will not automatically place the letter in the puzzle; the contestant will keep receiving questions for that letter until he/she answers correctly. The round is timed, with the contestant's winning score in the main game turning into the alotted time. When time is up, the contestant has ten more seconds to answer the final main question. If successful, the contestant wins $5,000. Unsucessful contestants are given $500.
[edit] Trivia
- The first season is shot in The Netherlands, using English-speaking Americans and Canadians who reside there as contestants. This is similar to how GSN's first season of Lingo was produced.
- Bob Goen opens the show by saying: "I'm Bob Goen. Letters. Words. Answers. Do you have the nerve? Do you have the knowledge? Do you have what it takes? That's the Question."
- At the closing of each show, Bob says various ideas, for example: "Another $5,000 will be on the line. Will they do it? That's the Question."
- Game show fans have noticed several glaring problems with the episodes - specifically, grammatical errors ("Who's" instead of "Whose", for example), factual errors (a question stated that hydrogen was the most abundant element in the Earth's atmosphere, another question stated that Yahoo! is a web browser, instead of a search engine), and spelling errors (one question asked, "What is the main ingredient in tarter[sic] sauce?") in questions and answers. Some on these errors have cost contestants points. On one episode, a contestant was ruled incorrect for the quote from Passenger 57, "Always Bet On Black", which the contestant said. However, the show's answer was the less-PC "Always Bet On The Black".
- This show is Bob Goen's first job as a game show host in over a decade since Born Lucky in 1993.
