"Duel" (2007)TV series 2007-????

I find "Deal or No Deal" so annoying anymore, that if I watch it occasionally, it is mostly without sound. As it continues on-air, the pure "lottery" aspect becomes even more difficult to ignore, the silliness of most of the contestants (and their family/friends on-stage) borders upon (or reaches!) the unbearable. And the stupid decisions made resulting in a contestant rejecting 6 figures and then leaving with $1,000 or less is also frustrating to watch.

As far as this show, "Duel," is concerned, my feelings about it are pretty much opposite. The questions are a mixture of pure trivia and those requiring higher intelligence - so a contestant will be tested, whether his/her I.Q. is, say, 105 or 50-60%+ higher into the genius range. There is strategy in risking the original stake the two contestants in each match have at its beginning, and reward available for speed, strategy and (potentially) for risk.

Tom Shales skewered this show and the host in his review, while comparing it with "Deal...," which he praised by comparison. I couldn't disagree more.

In addition to enjoying the format (and the mostly reasonably-restrained, likable contestants) - I'm a huge fan of Mike Greenberg, the co-host of the "Mike and Mike" show on ESPN with Mike Golic, and the other work he has done on that network. He's intelligent, engaging and personable - and while Shales apparently felt his approach as "MC" here to be off-putting (my word), I found it refreshing when compared with most game show or reality hosts.

It's not perfect, but I'd rate it 10* in view of what else is out there in this genre.