Baggage is an American dating game show

Dating game show

Dating game shows are television game shows, some say reality game shows, that incorporate a dating system in the form of a game with clear rules. Human matchmaking is involved only in selecting the game's contestants - usually for amusement value as opposed to any concern for their happiness or...

, hosted by Jerry Springer

Jerry Springer

Gerald Norman "Jerry" Springer is a British-born American television presenter, best known as host of the tabloid talk show The Jerry Springer Show since its debut in 1991...

. It premiered on April 19, 2010 on GSN. A syndication test run was shown on a select group of Sinclair Broadcast Group

Sinclair Broadcast Group

The Sinclair Broadcast Group is an American telecommunications company that operates the largest number of local television stations in the United States. Headquartered in Hunt Valley, Maryland, it owns a total of 57 stations across the country in 35 primarily small and medium markets, many of...

's stations January 10, 2011 and premiered in Australia

Australia

Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...

 on April 11, 2011 on the subscription television channel LifeStyle You

Lifestyle you

LifeStyle You in Australia is a sister channel to The Lifestyle Channel and LifeStyle Food. LifeStyle You is home to personal makeovers, hilarious and honest reality, health, wellness, family and relationship programming.-Programming:*****...

.

Overview

Similar to The Dating Game

The Dating Game

The Dating Game is an ABC television show that first aired on December 20, 1965 and was the first of many shows created and packaged by Chuck Barris from the 1960s through the 1980s...

, Baggage gives three contestants the chance to win the eye of a prospective date. The contestants carry three suitcase

Suitcase

A suitcase is a general term for a distinguishable form of luggage. It is often a somewhat flat, rectangular-shaped bag with rounded/square corners, either metal, hard plastic or made of cloth, vinyl or leather that more or less keeps its shape. It has a carrying handle on one side and is used...

s onstage, a small, medium, and large one. Each suitcase contains an embarrassing, unique, or weird proposition the contestant may have; for example, bad habits (e.g. "I share a bed with my grandmother"), strange relationship preferences ("My partner must dress up as Santa Claus"), issues with one's past ("I'm an outlaw in Mexico"), and strange hobbies ("I play video games 30 hours a week"). These cases will represent the "baggage" to which they will confess and defend. The bigger the suitcase, the bigger the secret or "baggage" is. Once the three contestants are pared down to one, the potential dater must admit to a fault of his or her own.

High viewer ratings for the show resulted in GSN renewing it for Season 2 which began on August 16, 2010. Season 3 began on June 6, 2011.

Round 1

The game is played by first introducing the central character. Then, the three contestants all are introduced. With the contestants are three pieces of baggage: a small one, a medium one, and a large one, with each one containing a corresponding secret (i.e. a small secret in the small piece of baggage, a medium secret in the medium piece of baggage and a large secret in the large piece of baggage). The central character also has a piece of baggage of his or her own, which is only revealed at the end of the show. However, all during the show, three possible secrets are given about the central character's secret, only one of which is the actual secret in their baggage. After the contestants are introduced, they all open their small pieces of baggage, and are allowed to explain the secrets they contain, but no contestant is eliminated from the game yet.

Round 2: The Dealbreaker

Unlike the first round, Springer is the one who reveals the second level of each baggage. The three contestants are placed on the other side of the stage, along with the central character. Only the three contestants know which piece of baggage belongs to whom. The central character must now pick the one piece of baggage which is the "dealbreaker" (i.e. the one secret that he or she cannot accept). After stating this, the contestants then return to the other side of the stage and reveal which suitcase belongs to them. The person who claims the dealbreaker baggage is immediately eliminated who then closes their bag and usually says an offending comment to the central character before leaving. Then the central character and two remaining contestants sit down in the "hot seat" with Jerry to discuss the secrets in the medium pieces of baggage and plead their case as to why they should be the central character's choice. Next, the remaining two contestants stand on a red rug near the "Hot Seat" (called the "Hot Spot") one at a time, while they are each asked 5 questions about their personal lives. Immediately before the "Hot Spot", the first eliminated player opens their biggest bag off-stage for the home audience to see.

Round 3: Final Choice

The two remaining contestants now open their largest pieces of baggage and reveal the secrets they contain. Each contestant now has one final chance to state their case on why they should not be eliminated. The central character must now eliminate the contestant whom he or she feels has "too much baggage" (i.e. too many secrets the central character cannot accept).

Final Round: The Big Red Bag

The roles are now reversed and the central character must now open his or her piece of large red baggage and reveal their own secret. Just prior to the red bag's opening, the contestant is asked which of the possible secrets alluded to during the show would be their "dealbreaker". If the contestant can accept the secret belonging to the central character (by saying "I accept your baggage") the date is on and the show pays for all the expenses. However, if the contestant can not accept the secret (by saying "You have too much baggage") the date is off.