Divided (American game show)

Divided is an American television game show broadcast by Game Show Network (GSN) based on the British series of the same name. Each episode consists of four contestants playing as one team who must agree on answers to questions they are given. The longer it takes the team to come to an agreement, the less money the team earns for each question. The series, hosted by Mike Richards, premiered January 19, 2017, with some critics believing that the show's name and timing were appropriate given the tumultuous preceding presidential election and its premiere date coming the day before the inauguration.

Divided
GenreGame Show
Created byAurélien Lipiansky & Clément Gayet / Brainbox-Talpa
Presented byMike Richards
Country of originUnited States
Original languageEnglish
No. of seasons2
No. of episodes105
Production
Executive producers
Running time20−22 minutes
Production companiesTalpa Media USA, Inc.
Release
Original networkGame Show Network
Original releaseJanuary 19, 2017 (2017-01-19) –
May 8, 2018 (2018-05-08)
External links
Website

Gameplay

Each episode consists of three rounds. A team of four contestants starts the game; one player is eliminated after two rounds of play. For each question, the team has 60 seconds to unanimously agree on an answer, the available money decreases the longer it takes.[1] Each contestant must enter the same response on their respective panel and then everyone must simultaneously lock in an answer and stop the clock. If the team answers the question correctly, they bank whatever money is left on the clock, if they are wrong, or if time runs out, their bank is reduced by half.[2]

The first round consists of three questions. Each question has one correct answer, and the opening value is $5,000. After the first question has been played, the team is afforded two "takeovers" to use in the rest of the game. To use a takeover, one contestant presses a smaller red button (yellow in season one) in front of them, their answer is then considered to be the team's answer.

In the second round, there are again three questions. Each question starts with a value of $10,000 and has two correct answers, the team must select both correct answers in order to get credit. After the second round, the contestants secretly vote on which of them will be eliminated from further play. In order to eliminate a contestant, the other three must agree unanimously. If there is no unanimous agreement, then the contestants are given a 15-second grace period (10 seconds in season one) before their bank begins to drain. Once there is a unanimous agreement, the chosen contestant is eliminated from the show with no winnings.[1]

On rare occasions in which the team has earned no money by the elimination vote, the same 15-second grace period applies for three members of the team to agree on who to eliminate. However since there is no money to lose thereafter, if the team cannot agree on who to eliminate after 15 seconds, the studio audience votes to eliminate one of the team members instead.[3]

The third round consists of two questions. In season 1, the first required the team to rank three answers in a stated order and started with a value of $15,000. The second had an opening value of $25,000 and 1, 2, or all 3 of the answers could have been correct; the contestants had select all correct answers, and only the correct answers in order to get credit.[2] Starting in season 2, the $15,000 question has two or all three answers being correct, and the team must select all of the correct answers, and only the correct answers, the $25,000 question requires the team to rank the three answers in the correct order.

Final Round

The money is divided into three unequal shares.[1] The "A" share is 60% of the team's bank, the "B" share is 30%, and the "C" share is 10%. The team has 100 seconds (1:40) to agree on who should receive which share. Once the clock starts, the money begins to drain away. Each contestant must claim a different share, and the team must lock it in to stop the clock and claim the remaining money. If after 50 seconds, no agreement is made, the clock stops briefly, and each contestant, in turn, is given 10 seconds to explain which share they feel they deserve and why. Once each player has pleaded their case, the clock restarts and the money continues to drain. If no agreement is reached, all three contestants leave the show with no money.[1] If all questions are answered correctly, the top prize is worth up to $51,000 (60% of the maximum total bank of $85,000).[4]

Production

A sneak preview of the series aired on November 26, 2016.[5] Mike Richards, executive producer of The Price Is Right and Let's Make a Deal[6] and former host of GSN's The Pyramid,[7] was chosen to host the show,[1][8] and the series officially premiered January 19, 2017, an hour before the season four premiere of GSN's Idiotest.[1] When asked about choosing the premiere date for the show, GSN’s Executive Vice President of Programming, Amy Introcaso-Davis, said "Divided is informed by the fractured social landscape, which in turn, reflects the political divide in this country....launching Divided so close to the inauguration, much like a question in the show, was hotly debated! Ultimately we agreed it was a good time to show that although people have many disagreements, it is to everyone’s benefit to unite."[9] On March 14, 2017, GSN renewed Divided for a second season,[10] with a two-episode premiere on August 15, 2017.[11] On March 30, 2017, a special edition of the show aired with three contestants instead of the usual four, resembling the format on the original British series. During this episode, no mid-game elimination was held.[12] Instead, another question like the $15,000 question was added.

Reception

Nellie Andreeva of Deadline Hollywood argued that the series was appropriate for its time, noting how the series premiere "arrive[d] as the nation ha[d] been left deeply divided by a bruising Presidential campaign and election. That was not lost on GSN executives as they worked on the series."[9] The New York Times's Neil Genzlinger agreed, contending, "It’s tempting to see the show, which seems to bring out the obstinance and belligerence of its contestants, as being born of the fractious period the United States has just been through....it certainly fits perfectly in the current landscape."[13]

The November preview episode received 275,000 viewers and a 0.07 18–49 rating.[14] The actual series premiere saw a sizeable rise in the ratings, with the 9:00 p.m. and 9:30 p.m. EST episodes performing relatively well by GSN's standards, earning 421,000 and 451,000 viewers respectively.[15] On February 23, 2017, the show hit a series high with 500,000 viewers and a 0.13 18–49 rating.[16]

References
  1. "GSN Debuts New Original Game Show Series Divided with Season 4 Premiere of Idiotest on Thursday, January 19, 2017" (Press release). GSN Corporate. December 12, 2016. Retrieved January 19, 2017.
  2. Divided. Season 1. Episode 1. January 19, 2017. Game Show Network.
  3. Divided. Season 2. Episode 50. April 14, 2018. Game Show Network.
  4. "Oceanside Resident Battles for Cash on Divided Airing Tonight on GSN". OsideNews.com. February 15, 2017. Retrieved March 11, 2017.
  5. "TV Listings: Divided". TV by the Numbers. Screener. Retrieved March 10, 2017.
  6. Kinon, Cristina (August 4, 2009). "Inner Tube: Wayne Brady will host new version of Let's Make a Deal on CBS this fall". New York Daily News. Retrieved March 11, 2017.
  7. "GSN Announces Premiere of The Pyramid on Monday, September 3". July 12, 2012. Archived from the original on October 14, 2013.
  8. Tomashoff, Craig (February 21, 2017). "The Secret(s) to Being a Successful Game Show Host". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved March 11, 2017.
  9. Andreeva, Nellie (December 12, 2016). "Show For Our Time? GSN To Launch New Series Divided Hours Before Inauguration". Deadline Hollywood. PMC. Retrieved March 11, 2017.
  10. Petski, Denise (March 14, 2017). "GSN Renews Winsanity & Divided; Greenlights New Emoji Game Show – Upfronts". Deadline Hollywood. PMC. Retrieved March 16, 2017.
  11. "Divided Returns for a Second Season, Beginning Tuesday, August 15 at 10PM" (Press release). GSN Corporate. July 6, 2017. Retrieved October 19, 2017.
  12. Divided. Season 1. Episode 33. March 30, 2017. Game Show Network.
  13. Genzlinger, Neil (March 11, 2017). "New Game Shows for a Fractious Age". The New York Times. Retrieved March 11, 2017.
  14. Metcalf, Mitch (November 29, 2016). "Updated: ShowBuzzDaily's Top 150 Friday Cable Originals & Network Finals: 11.25.2016". ShowBuzzDaily. Retrieved March 11, 2017.
  15. Metcalf, Mitch (January 23, 2017). "Updated: ShowBuzzDaily's Top 150 Friday Cable Originals & Network Finals: 1.19.2017". ShowBuzzDaily. Retrieved March 11, 2017.
  16. Metcalf, Mitch (February 27, 2017). "Updated: ShowBuzzDaily's Top 150 Friday Cable Originals & Network Finals: 2.23.2017". ShowBuzzDaily. Retrieved March 11, 2017.
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