Catch 21

Love the show and host however Mickey dresses cheaply for daytime she looks like a lady of the evening if you get my meaning. Not appropriate

I do like game shows to a certain extent when it involves trivia. Swearing a bunch in Jeopardy, guessing on Millionaire, but I don't like game shows that involve luck and risk. At that point it isn't about how smart you are anymore, but how much you're willing to gamble.

This show seemed entertaining at first, although after watching did seem pretty slow watching a chick flip cards and figuring out what 17+5 equals... This was a VERY original concept from word associations and hardcore trivia, but the idea dies out after a while.

Now for the reason most of us are here.......... I had just started to watch The Fresh Prince starting from ep 1 tonight, already on ep 8. It's good to see the little dark guy got some screen time in something I've watched after Prince. Funny and somewhat queer, Carlton grew on me. Didn't exactly bring all the humor over from the 90's but gave the show some time to last a week

You might think this is a simple show, since it is a variation on the game Blackjack, but it is more complex than that.

Three contestants face off, trying to get card hands that total as close to 21 as possible, without going over. But first they get a trivia question (multiple choice) to determine who gets control over the next card. Whoever has control can direct that card to his own hand or to a competitor's hand. The strategy is about maximizing your chances while trying to reduce your opponent's. And you can choose to freeze your hand, forcing your opponent(s) to score a better hand, or lose.

When only one contestant is left, he gets to play against the deck, trying to achieve a score of 21 in three separate hands. The top prize is $25,000, which is notable.

The level of the trivia questions is perfect: not too hard or too easy. The strategy in playing the cards is difficult enough that you will see mistakes in almost every episode.

Host Alfonso Ribeira and dealer Mikki Padilla have a positive vibe and vocally root for the contestants, making this a fun show that involves both knowledge and strategic choices.

GSN has provided us with many classic game shows, while occasionally have original game shows of their own. Some succeeded and are fondly remembered while others failed and are short-lived.

One of the most remembered GSN originals is Catch 21.

While the gameplay itself is pretty basic and nothing to write home about, it was executed pretty well.

The object of the game is to get 21 without going over by answering multiple choice questions and decide on taking the card or passing it to their opponents in order to bust them out and prevent them for winning the round.

Whoever wins the game gets a chance to win $25,000!

The host of that show was Alfonso Ribeiro, who most of you know for as Carlton Banks on The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air. IMO, Ribeiro was the perfect host for this show, with great energy and keeping the game moving when necessary.

Co-hosting alongside him is Mikki Padilla, who does genuinely care for the contestants while looking stunning at the same time!

It did get revived in 2019, with Ribeiro returning as host, but with Witney Carson as the new co-host/dealer, but it wasn't the same and it wasn't as good as the original.

Regardless of which era you liked the most, Catch 21 was one of the better GSN originals of that era.

There's nothing particularly bad about Alfonso, but he really doesn't impress me. His presence is so lacking that he just feels like he's there, but that's all. Nicky is just annoying. No it's, ands, or buts about it. She wasn't needed to make the show work, and she just irritates me. The format of the show is poor as well. It's not interesting. The questions are almost entirely pop culture hoopla and aren't really very interesting. But, by far, the most annoying factor in the show is the contestants. It's quite clear that the behind the scenes staff is telling them to ham it up. Often times, this leads the contestants to either be extremely annoying or extremely hateful and rude. Either way, it isn't likable. I never find myself wanting to root for any of these people. Quite frankly, I wouldn't be in the least bit surprised if the show is as rigged as others have claimed. It FEELS rigged. There is just this underlying feeling that they stack the deck in favor of the contestants they want to win, while making everything work against the contestants that they want to lose. That may not be the case, but that is the general feeling I get while watching it. Other people may love this show, but I find it detestable.