All this is so because the most important element of the show is the game-not the prizes with endless plugs, not the soap-operatics of the various contestants, but the game! This extends even to the endgame in the Crystal Dome. If he or she loses, it's 'never mind', and 'what do you want to play and who do you want to play it?'. There are no whiny postmortems If a contestant wins a challenge, it's cheers all around. There is none of the endless analysis found in some of today's game shows. None are 'gimmes', and some of them prove to be so difficult that nobody ever got them. Others are inspired by tropes found in movies and television. Some are based on classic puzzles that have teased brains for generations. The various games that the contestants have to play are usually clever, well-thought out challenges. I have not known such an enthusiasm since around 2000, when I discovered the 'Harry Potter' books.

And I have come to the conclusion that this is one of the world's great game shows. I only recently discovered surfing the Web, and even more recently discovered 'The Crystal Maze'.

The crystal maze tv show