Shaquille O’Neal and Gina Rodriguez host (and are both executive producers of) Lucky 13, a game show where a contestant on the “hot spot” is asked 13 true or false questions, but is not supposed to know all the answers. Seems strange, right? Read on to find out more.
LUCKY 13: STREAM IT OR SKIP IT?
Opening Shot: Scenes from Las Vegas, where the show Lucky 13 is shot.
The Gist: O’Neal and Rodriguez call one of 13 contestants sitting in a circle on stage to the “hot spot”. There, Shaq asks the 13 true-false questions, and the contestant is given the chance to reason out their answer before giving it. Then they’re given the chance to “refresh” (the term is used because it’s sponsored by Pepsi) one of their answers, or just leave them as is.
Then they need to guess how many of those questions they got right: 1-3, 4-6, 7-9, 10-12, or all 13. The money they are due to win if the number of answers they got right fall within that “Lucky range” increase exponentially, from $5,000 to $1 million. The contestant is to pinpoint a number within that range. If they get that number right, they get an extra $25,000.
Then Rodriguez starts to reveal which questions the contestant got right and which they got wrong, with Shaq standing with them to cheer them on. They questions are resorted and presented in an order that can create the most drama. At some point, Shaq can push a big red button and give the contestant an offer of guaranteed money — generally, half the money the range they picked is going for — to walk away. And there’s another twist: If the number of questions the contestant got right is higher than the range they guessed, they walk away with nothing.
What Shows Will It Remind You Of? The game play of Lucky 13 is not anything we’ve seen before, but the set and music remind us of Who Wants To Be A Millionaire (sigh).
Our Take: The game play of Lucky 13 is pretty simple, so in order to play two games in a 42-minute runtime (without commercials), the producers have to pad things a bit. Of course, padding leads to a slow pace that can drive a viewer crazy if they’re paying attention to the show, but might not bother a viewer watching this while folding laundry or scrolling their phones.
Seriously, though, the part where Shaq and his monotone ask the contestant the true-false questions feels like it goes on for ages. Both Shaq and Rodriguez try to fill in with funny lines or asking contestants questions about their thought processes, but it still feels endless. Then, as Rodriguez reveals which ones the contestant got right and which they got wrong, there’s some tension that builds as we get closer to the chosen range, but the segment still feels too long.
Here again, the hosts fill in with funny lines. In fact, Rodriguez has some funny off-the-cuff remarks in reaction to what the contestants say that tells us that in a better format, she could be a good host. Shaq is Shaq; he’s charming despite never really speaking in anything but his signature monotone. But that monotone can be a killer for an entire hour where he’s not bouncing off Charles Barkley and Kenny Smith.
It’s a format that has some intrigue, especially with the idea that if you lowball your range and have too many right answers, you lose. But the pacing is so slow that whatever tension those moments is minor at best.
Sex and Skin: None.
Parting Shot: The second contestant’s game ends and Shaq and Rodriguez say good night.
Sleeper Star: The two contestants that play in the first episode are both fun to watch, even if the commentary they give before they give their answers is a little annoying.
Most Pilot-y Line: We’re not sure why there are 13 contestants sitting in a circle around the hosts. It’s not like they do a “fastest finger”-style quiz to get into the “hot spot,” like in the original Millionaire. A person is called to be the next contestant, and that’s it. Do the 13 in the circle change from episode to episode? It’s a headscratcher.
Our Call: SKIP IT. While O’Neal and Rodriguez are fine hosts, and the game play has a small amount of intrigue and tension, there’s so much filler in Lucky 13 you’ll get really bored before that tension kicks in.
Joel Keller (@joelkeller) writes about food, entertainment, parenting and tech, but he doesn’t kid himself: he’s a TV junkie. His writing has appeared in the New York Times, Slate, Salon, RollingStone.com, VanityFair.com, Fast Company and elsewhere.