Merv Griffin’s Crosswords
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Merv Griffin’s Crosswords (commonly shortened to Crosswords) is a game show that lasted for one season from September 10, 2007 to May 16, 2008.
Why It Sucks
- Ty Treadway is very wooden at hosting.
- Its “Spoiler” mechanic ensured that a contestant could win even if they barely did anything else throughout the game.
- It was very low-budget, and for a show without returning champions, the payouts were quite low; the bonus round prize was a trip and just $100 per word. Later episodes bumped the payout to $2,000, and then $5,000 (with an Xbox 360 package on some episodes).
- Very little variety or iteration.
- No house-minimum winnings, resulting in at least one contestant "winning" with a negative score and losing the Bonus Round, only taking home a Croton watch with the show's logo on it, usually awarded to losing contestants.
- Many, many episodes aired out of order, which meant the show kept jumping through different formats. For reference, the first episode aired was the 27th taped, and it's unknown exactly what episode was the last one taped.
- Merv Griffin died just over a month before its premiere, having only been on the set for the pilot and first two tapings, so it’s ultimately unknown whether the final product was meant to be like this at all.
- The show never tried celebrity specials, holiday-themed episodes, or tournaments, and did almost nothing for the Sweeps periods.
Redeeming Qualities
- Catchy theme song, being a reworking of the 1980s Wheel of Fortune car cue “Buzzword”.
- The show probably would have been good had Griffin lived long enough to polish the format.
- The crossword clues themselves were well-written.
- It had a strong play-along factor.
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