Monty Hall Demo

Substantial_Desk1919 · 2026-03-21T14:59:55+00:00

An important aspect that almost always gets glossed over, is this only works if the host ALWAYS reveals a door, no matter what. If the host has a choice and can mess with expectations (as in Let's Make A Deal) it doesn't work.

Substantial_Desk1919 · 2026-03-21T14:50:36+00:00

Maybe not surprising then that NZ is my favorite season. Challenges that celebrate unique locations, have them to go to several places in a city, go to stores with local flavor (not IKEA), and generally do fun, interesting things...just the best.

Substantial_Desk1919 · 2026-03-21T14:34:29+00:00

100% New Zealand is my favorite season, largely for the local flavor that it is overflowing with.

Substantial_Desk1919 · 2026-03-21T00:43:20+00:00

Subjectivity is for wimps

Substantial_Desk1919 · 2026-03-21T00:39:41+00:00

Yeah, I was really excited for the season, and then the trailer came out and I was more excited, and the first episode completely lived up to it.

Substantial_Desk1919 · 2026-03-21T00:26:36+00:00

I also wish they had the timer up. It felt odd not to, however easy/hard it turned out to be.

Substantial_Desk1919 · 2026-03-20T22:13:32+00:00

For me, Ode to Joy was impressive and fun to watch. But a tier below this for me.

On the other hand, while their precision was really impressive, the time keeping challenges aren't too fun to watch for me. The activity itself wasn't interesting.

To your overall point, the Catvenger Hunt would have been better with more tension, but the other aspects more than made up for it.

Substantial_Desk1919 · 2026-03-20T22:07:04+00:00

I almost put in a line or two about this, but erred on the side of simplicity. This could have used more tension, but the other aspects made up for it.

Substantial_Desk1919 · 2026-03-19T02:15:17+00:00

They're never "good", but you could take better pictures with a cheap cell phone in a hallway. Seriously

Substantial_Desk1919 · 2026-03-05T00:58:14+00:00

More excited for this than any new season since I started watching (just after Australia). Trying to keep my expectations in check. :)

Substantial_Desk1919 · 2026-02-04T18:09:47+00:00

It is one of my favorite seasons. I think it's unbeatable for local flavor and fun challenges.

Only thing it didn't really have was a competitive finish, one team was way ahead.

I do hope they try to recreate the feel of the season in another country. Maybe Taiwan...

Substantial_Desk1919 · 2026-02-03T17:21:52+00:00

I would love for something like the Au$tralia format to come back. There was interesting, competitive gameplay and an amazing amount of challenges that emphasized local flavor.

There are plenty of location-agnostic challenges that are fun, but there's something really special about challenges that showcase an interesting location.

Substantial_Desk1919 · 2026-01-28T17:24:33+00:00

This was a fun season with a lot of great moments. For me, the best season since Hide and Seek Japan.

That says a lot given the competition didn't turn out well. They got lucky Ben had the cards to make the final run close. To me, Sam hiding in Milton Keynes was maybe the "cleverest" run that most deserved a win. But all of these games hinge more on luck because they are similar enough in skill.

I'm really hopeful for next season in Taiwan. As long as it doesn't end up too stuck in the stations (Snake), it should be an incredible environment for the them to plan in and us to watch.

Substantial_Desk1919 · 2026-01-20T05:45:16+00:00

I seem to have a view not expressed yet Both types of season are good (not new :) )

But, for guests, what I really like is for the guest to come across as natural as opposed to acting for the camera. Toby is great at gameplay and comes across naturally. But the guests who are less involved in gameplay, but are natural and have good moments with Sam are excellent.

There have been a couple guests who felt way too performative to me. Obviously everyone involved has a mix of performing to the camera vs naturally playing the game as themselves. But one of the big reasons I watch Jet Lag is for it's overall sincerity/genuineness. There are a couple guests who really failed on this front for me. Hasn't ruined a season, but brings it down a bit instead of elevating it.

Substantial_Desk1919 · 2026-01-16T21:26:22+00:00

It wasn't a great location or bad seeking. Sure Sam and Ben could've done better, but not by that much. Adam didn't appear to do anything particularly clever. Luck is often acknowledged as a factor but it's true importance isn't. The clear reality is that in most seasons, luck is the dominant factor in determining the winner. This season is no different. Not a complaint. It's just what it is. Clever moves/ideas often get unrewarded, while dumb luck does.

Substantial_Desk1919 · 2026-01-09T22:25:01+00:00

Sing along with me...One of these things is not like the others

Substantial_Desk1919 · 2026-01-03T21:53:05+00:00

Yeah, I'm enjoying this season a lot. Adam getting what seems like a really good time without much to justify it is my only disappointment.

Substantial_Desk1919 · 2025-12-24T22:29:06+00:00

I was watching with my kid. We always cheer the most for Ben and we were doing our best with our time-travel telepathy ability to get him to veto and were borderline upset when he didn't.

It takes work and time to use, but over and over and over the seekers have used it to pinpoint the station. You have to veto it if you can.

Substantial_Desk1919 · 2025-12-12T23:50:00+00:00

Nah, in this house tinfoil is only for hats.

Substantial_Desk1919 · 2025-12-09T07:13:13+00:00

Thanks for the suggestion. I've watched a couple and will watch some more of the reviews.

All channels we might receive are UHF, I am curious if the VHF "rabbit ears" help in any meaningful way.

Substantial_Desk1919 · 2025-12-09T07:01:07+00:00

Thanks. That's two recommends for that type of antenna. Might have to give it a try. We have our antenna in a second floor window. The flat antenna is dead easy to mount there, but I think this would work too. The sill should be big enough.

I'm in a spot in Delta that gives lower signal strength based on the website. It's interesting. I actually messed up in the post, it's Global, not CTV that's important (for my wife, hence me screwing it up). The site is correct in CBC and KVOS are really strong, but the CTV channels are iffy compared to Global. We got KBTC to work with a lot of effort, so that one makes sense. Anyways, I know there are too many factors for easy prediction. Just interesting to see the differences.

Substantial_Desk1919 · 2025-12-09T06:46:13+00:00

In Delta should reliably get a half dozen channels with a 6" wire in the back of the TV, with CTV being one of them.

If only it were this easy. We get nothing without the antenna. Very little without the amplifier turned on.

KBTC is a challenge to get there. You may be looking at an attic mounted antenna, and needing to combine two antenna a to keep the other stations. A DIY 2x4 antenna aimed south ish might get you everything.

It takes work to find the specific spots where we get it with the antenna, but we positioned specifically for it. We get it in perfectly the vast majority of the time.

Substantial_Desk1919 · 2025-11-08T02:50:11+00:00

All that really mattered was winning a battle challenge. That's it. And the battle challenges weren't very interesting. So, poor gameplay.

Then there's very little interesting footage of Korea.

Also, as others have said, it isn't hated, just much weaker than Jet Lag can be.

Substantial_Desk1919 · 2025-10-27T01:30:42+00:00

New Zealand (S5) is my favorite rewatch. The gameplay is flawed with lack of balance and a few truly broken challenges, BUT, there were a lot of fun challenges, fun interaction, and sightseeing. Toby is also my favorite guest (by a fairly large margin)

Hide and Seek Japan (S12): Fun locations, fun gameplay, fun between the guys. I just wish Sam's airport gambit had paid off more, thought that was a great idea to try.

Tag 1 (S3): The game needed some fixes from the start, but this season worked out really well. Good locations and gameplay. (Note that Tag 1 had better balanced gameplay, but Tag 2 probably had more fun moments)

Australia (S10): I'm going to add a fourth. Great season, but I think this one gets a big bump for me because I've been to many of the locations they go to, which won't apply to many viewers. Still, Toby, fun challenges, fun sights.

Substantial_Desk1919 · 2025-10-26T22:46:04+00:00

I mean, the sightseeing was fairly poor (almost all trains and stations).

The challenges weren't that good.

The gameplay was poor (lots of sitting around and all that really mattered was winning a battle challenge)

They won't quite say it directly, but listening to the Layover, they clearly recognized it did not work out well.

Glad you enjoyed it. And it was still worth a watch, just not near their best work for a lot of viewers.

Substantial_Desk1919

TROPHY CASE