Family Feud-My Guilty TV Pleasure
We’ve asked 100 people the same question: Why Am I watching this?
Family Feud, the modern version hosted by Steve Harvey, is somehow one of the most addicting shows on television. I want to be very clear from start; this is not a good show. It is, in fact, a train wreck of a show, and yet I gravitate towards this every evening when I can’t find anything else on. Am I getting dumber? Am I depressed? What is going on? Bear with me as I attempt to analyze the elements of this show to discover why I (and maybe you) can’t help but watch.
The Host
Steve Harvey. He is rarely funny, but he is likable, and he does a good job of looking shocked when a contestant says a naughty answer. His go to move is that whenever a contestant says an answer that is “naughty”, like boobs, etc., he simply slowly repeats their answer back in a slow, kind of scuzzy way. It seems to work for him.
The Families
There is no rhyme or reason as to what a family is. Sometimes they are all woman. Sometimes they are all coworkers. Sometimes they are actual families. Doesn’t matter, since they still somehow come from the same strange area of the country (I still have no idea where) that doesn’t seem to ever give good or even logical answers. Below is a great example of a very typical question and answer from one of these genius families.
Question: Name a place where you are likely to read your newspaper. Answer: On the Terrace.
Really? How many people out of a 100 even have a terrace?
The Point System
We will be right back; it is still anyone’s game! Well of course it is. Every round the points keep being doubled, tripled, etc., so that the only round that actually matters is the last round. It is the most ridiculous scoring system ever. I have seen a family win the first three contests only to lose the last one and then not get to go to the bonus round. Completely unfair, and yet no one seems to complain.
100 People Surveyed
Who are these people? Why am I so interested in finding out what the majority of these people think? It is a mystery.
The Final Round
This is by far the most exciting part of the show; will they get the 200 points necessary to win the $20,000 or the new car? I am still waiting to see if anyone can get 200 points all by themselves. The most I have ever seen in the first round is 185 points; he got every single number one answer!
Okay, this hasn’t really helped me at all. I still have no idea why I watch this show. Maybe I will ask one hundred people, and find out what they think.
