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Best TV Show of the Week
Minute to Win It on NBC
By Ally Matteodo
NBC's Minute to Win It offered family-friendly entertainment earning it
the title of Best TV Show of the Week. Airing on Friday, January
28th, at 8:00 p.m. ET, this program is a great viewing choice for those
interested in a clean, fun show. Hosted by Guy Fieri, a notable All-American
chef and television personality who appears frequently on the Food Network, this
game show picks contestants who compete in a series of 60-second tasks in an
attempt to win a $1 million prize. Each contestant faces 10 challenges that
increase in difficulty, and failure to complete the task results in a loss of a
"life." Each contestant receives three "lives," but once all "lives" are gone
the game is over. At different junctures the contestants are able to leave the
competition with the money won up to that point, but the crowd usually
encourages them to keep going, and the prospect of winning a million dollars is
often too great an opportunity for the contestants to pass up. The games are
simple and can be played by anyone at home with standard household items. For
example, in one called “Bottoms Up,” the contestant must knock six cans off of
counters with a yo-yo tied around their waist. In another, called “Mega
Bubble,” the contestant must blow a soap bubble, and then use the power in their
lungs to blow this bubble through a hoop.
During this
episode, entitled “Second Chances,” hair dresser Mark Staniec of San Luis Obispo
competes for the second time. Mark participated in a previous episode, but
walked away with no cash prize—and this do-over scenario provides him with the
opportunity to redeem himself. Mark starts out strong, mastering the challenge
“Hanky Panky,” where he successfully removes all of the tissues from a Kleenex
box in under sixty seconds. He moves through the challenges, losing a life on
“Johnny Applestack,” where he must stack five apples on top of each other.
However, Mark perseveres, and makes it to the eighth level, where he loses his
third and final life on “Mag-Nutstacker” (The contestant must use a chopstick to
pick up a nut, place it on a magnet without dropping the nut, and repeat this
six times until the six-nut-and-magnet stack is placed on a stand near the table
with the nuts and magnets). Ultimately, Mark walks away with $125,000, a much
better outcome than his prior attempt. Not only can the whole family enjoy
watching these games, they can also play them at home with minimal materials,
fostering the friendly spirit of competition and rivalry. Who knows? From these
family-bonding moments, one could become so skilled at the tasks that they could
become a contestant on the show, and eventually earn some money to help make
their own dreams come true.
Parents Television Council,
www.parentstv.org, PTC,
Clean Up TV Now, Because our children are watching, The
nation's most influential advocacy organization, Protecting
children against sex, violence and profanity in
entertainment, Parents Television Council Seal of Approval,
and Family Guide to Prime Time Television
are trademarks of the Parents Television Council.
