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| TV Preview | |
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| TV Preview | |
big on a winning streak The new ABC reality series will run for six nights Dec 17, 2007
This is one in a series of Media Life previews of those programs. Name of show “Duel” Timeslot ABC, Monday-Friday, Sunday 8 p.m. Plot synopsis In the same way the network launched the original run of “Who Wants to be a Millionaire” and NBC launched “Deal or No Deal,” ABC is launching its latest game show “Duel” as a week-long event, with episodes airing at 8 p.m. each night Monday through Friday, with the finals at 8 p.m. on Sunday. The contest, an adaptation of a French game show, is hosted by ESPN personality Mike Greenberg, and it’s sexed up by two “chip girls,” models Jennifer Aguero and Olivia Fox, reminiscent of “Deal’s” bevy of models. Twenty-four players will take part in the game’s initial run, with one winner crowned on Sunday’s finale. Here’s how it works: Players start each duel with 10 chips worth $5,000 apiece. Greenberg asks a multiple choice question, and the players use their chips to bet on one or more of the choices, depending on how confident they are in the answer. Chips wagered on wrong answers are taken away and added to an escalating jackpot, and whenever a player doesn’t select the correct answer or loses all their chips, the duel is over, with the winner selecting another opponent. The top four players from the week return Sunday for the winner-takes-all finals. Outlook Since it airs all week, “Duel” will face different time slot competition each night, making its performance a bit unpredictable. But to its advantage is the fact that it won’t face many scripted shows, with the exception of CBS’s “NCIS” on Tuesday, because most scripted shows are now in reruns for the holidays or because of the writers’ strike. “Duel” will be challenged by airing head-to-head against NBC’s one-off series “Clash of the Choirs” Monday through Thursday, but there’s certainly room in the time period for both to succeed, especially on Monday and Wednesday, where there’s no one dominant show on any network at 8 p.m. Sunday looks a little tougher for the game’s finals. In the 8 p.m. timeslot “Duel” will face an original episode of CBS’s “The Amazing Race,” which has a very loyal audience, and the first part of NBC’s “Sunday Night Football” game between the Washington Redskins and Minnesota Vikings. The buzz Media people are generally high on the potential of “Duel” for a few reasons, the first and most obvious being the writers’ strike. It has already forced most networks into reruns, leaving viewers hungry for something original. “In this environment, anything that’s fresh and challenging, people will flock to,” says Karen McCallum, media director at Esparza Advertising in Albuquerque, N.M. Another reason the media community is high on the game is its format. Like “Millionaire,” it depends heavily on trivia, but it gains an extra edge because of its poker-like format. “It’s trivia, but there’s also an element of poker, which has done well on cable,” McCallum points out. Finally, the show is produced by BermanBraun, the company run by former Fox head Gail Berman and former ABC head Lloyd Braun, both of whom have had success with reality in the past. “American Idol” launched on Berman’s watch at Fox. “Berman just has a great sense of what will attract American viewers,” says McCallum.
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