Beat the Geeks
Encyclopedia
Beat the Geeks is an American comedy
game show
that aired on Comedy Central
from 2001 to 2002. The show was rerun
on The Comedy Network
in Canada
and rerun
s currently air on G4techTV Canada
and Prime in New Zealand.
On the show, contestants face off in trivia matches against "geek
s" who are well-versed in music
, movie
s, and television
, as well as a fourth guest geek with an alternate area of expertise which varies from episode to episode. The object is to outsmart the geek at their own subject; as a handicap, the geeks are given questions of considerably greater difficulty than the contestants. Beat the Geeks was taped at the Hollywood Center Studios
.
The format was changed for the second season, wherein the three contestants compete against each other and the Geeks to answer four pairs of questions, one from each category. The first question of each pair is a toss-up for the contestants, and is worth 10 points. The one who answers it then faces the relevant Geek to answer a followup question which they must ring in to answer. During this face-off, if the contestant rings in and gets the question wrong or the Geek rings in and gets it right, the contestant loses 5 points. However, if the contestant gets the question right or the Geek gets it wrong, the contestant wins another 10 points. In almost all episodes Blaine waited until the first follow-up question to explain this, using the line "here's how the follow-up works: if you beat the geek you get 10 points, if he beats you, he knocks you back five."
In both seasons, the player with the fewest points after the round is eliminated. In the event of a tie, a tiebreaker
question is used.
. If the contestants begin the round tied, they are asked a toss-up question to determine who plays first. Otherwise, the player with the most points starts. Once a Geek has lost his medal to a contestant, he cannot be challenged again until the final round.
As Blaine Capatch would say:
If the Geek gives a wrong answer, the contestant wins the challenge, scores points, and gets to wear the Geek's medal for the rest of the game. If the contestant misses a question, the challenge ends and the opponent may score 10 points by giving the correct answer. If all four questions are answered correctly, a Geek-off is played to decide the challenge. The player has 15 seconds to name as many items that fit a certain category as they can think of; the Geek must then do the same in a much harder category. If the Geek cannot come up with more answers, the contestant wins the challenge (ties are broken in the contestant's favor).
Resident Geeks' medals are worth 20 points each, while the Guest Geek's medal awards 30.
Resident and Guest Geek medals award 20 and 40 points, respectively.
After these challenges are over, the Geek-qualizer is played to decide a winner. A list of titles is read to the contestant, who must decide whether each is related to movies, music, or TV. The list continues until the contestant gives an incorrect answer, fails to give an answer within two seconds, or exhausts the list. Then, if they have tied or exceeded their opponent's score, their opponent plays their own Geek-qualizer round with the same rules. The player with the most points after the Geek-qualizer advances to the final round. If there is a tie, a numerical tiebreaker question is asked; the winner is the player who comes closer to the correct answer without going over.
Correct answers are worth 10 points each, with a maximum of 15 items in Season 1 and 16 in Season 2.
Comedy
Comedy , as a popular meaning, is any humorous discourse or work generally intended to amuse by creating laughter, especially in television, film, and stand-up comedy. This must be carefully distinguished from its academic definition, namely the comic theatre, whose Western origins are found in...
game show
Game show
A game show is a type of radio or television program in which members of the public, television personalities or celebrities, sometimes as part of a team, play a game which involves answering questions or solving puzzles usually for money and/or prizes...
that aired on Comedy Central
Comedy Central
Comedy Central is an American cable television and satellite television channel that carries comedy programming, both original and syndicated....
from 2001 to 2002. The show was rerun
Rerun
A rerun or repeat is a re-airing of an episode of a radio or television broadcast. The invention of the rerun is generally credited to Desi Arnaz. There are two types of reruns—those that occur during a hiatus, and those that occur when a program is syndicated. Reruns can also be, as the...
on The Comedy Network
The Comedy Network
The Comedy Network a Canadian English language Category A specialty channel owned by Bell Media specializing in comedy programming.The channel operates two time shifted feeds, East and West ....
in Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
and rerun
Rerun
A rerun or repeat is a re-airing of an episode of a radio or television broadcast. The invention of the rerun is generally credited to Desi Arnaz. There are two types of reruns—those that occur during a hiatus, and those that occur when a program is syndicated. Reruns can also be, as the...
s currently air on G4techTV Canada
G4techTV Canada
G4 Canada is a Canadian English language Category A specialty channel owned by Rogers Media. The name is licensed from NBCUniversal, who formerly owned a stake in the channel...
and Prime in New Zealand.
On the show, contestants face off in trivia matches against "geek
Geek
The word geek is a slang term, with different meanings ranging from "a computer expert or enthusiast" to "a carnival performer who performs sensationally morbid or disgusting acts", with a general pejorative meaning of "a peculiar or otherwise dislikable person, esp[ecially] one who is perceived to...
s" who are well-versed in music
Music
Music is an art form whose medium is sound and silence. Its common elements are pitch , rhythm , dynamics, and the sonic qualities of timbre and texture...
, movie
Film
A film, also called a movie or motion picture, is a series of still or moving images. It is produced by recording photographic images with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects...
s, and television
Television
Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
, as well as a fourth guest geek with an alternate area of expertise which varies from episode to episode. The object is to outsmart the geek at their own subject; as a handicap, the geeks are given questions of considerably greater difficulty than the contestants. Beat the Geeks was taped at the Hollywood Center Studios
Hollywood Center Studios
Hollywood Center Studios is a company based in Los Angeles, California that provides stage facilities to television and movie production companies. Its sound stages, located at 1040 N. Las Palmas Avenue in Hollywood, California, are steeped in Hollywood history...
.
First round
In the first season, the three contestants compete against each other to answer eight questions, two from each category; the Geeks do not play in this round. The first four questions (one per category) are worth 5 points each, and the second four are worth 10 each.The format was changed for the second season, wherein the three contestants compete against each other and the Geeks to answer four pairs of questions, one from each category. The first question of each pair is a toss-up for the contestants, and is worth 10 points. The one who answers it then faces the relevant Geek to answer a followup question which they must ring in to answer. During this face-off, if the contestant rings in and gets the question wrong or the Geek rings in and gets it right, the contestant loses 5 points. However, if the contestant gets the question right or the Geek gets it wrong, the contestant wins another 10 points. In almost all episodes Blaine waited until the first follow-up question to explain this, using the line "here's how the follow-up works: if you beat the geek you get 10 points, if he beats you, he knocks you back five."
In both seasons, the player with the fewest points after the round is eliminated. In the event of a tie, a tiebreaker
Tiebreaker
In games and sports, a tiebreaker or tiebreak is used to determine a winner from among players or teams that are tied at the end of a contest, or a set of contests.-In matches:In some situations, the tiebreaker may consist of another round of play...
question is used.
Second round
The remaining two contestants each play a head-to-head challenge against the Geek of their choice in order to win the Geek's medalMedal
A medal, or medallion, is generally a circular object that has been sculpted, molded, cast, struck, stamped, or some way rendered with an insignia, portrait, or other artistic rendering. A medal may be awarded to a person or organization as a form of recognition for athletic, military, scientific,...
. If the contestants begin the round tied, they are asked a toss-up question to determine who plays first. Otherwise, the player with the most points starts. Once a Geek has lost his medal to a contestant, he cannot be challenged again until the final round.
Season 1
In the first season, four questions are asked, alternating between the contestant and the Geek, whose questions are much more difficult.As Blaine Capatch would say:
If the Geek gives a wrong answer, the contestant wins the challenge, scores points, and gets to wear the Geek's medal for the rest of the game. If the contestant misses a question, the challenge ends and the opponent may score 10 points by giving the correct answer. If all four questions are answered correctly, a Geek-off is played to decide the challenge. The player has 15 seconds to name as many items that fit a certain category as they can think of; the Geek must then do the same in a much harder category. If the Geek cannot come up with more answers, the contestant wins the challenge (ties are broken in the contestant's favor).
Resident Geeks' medals are worth 20 points each, while the Guest Geek's medal awards 30.
Season 2
A maximum of four questions are asked as in Season 1. Now, though, if the contestant misses a question, the Geek must answer it correctly to win the challenge, and vice versa. The opponent does not get a chance to score from a missed question. If both sides miss the same questions or if all four questions are asked, a Geek-off is played.Resident and Guest Geek medals award 20 and 40 points, respectively.
Third round
The third round starts with two more head-to-head challenges, and the trailing player starts. Gameplay is the same as in the second round, with all medals woth 20 more points (40/50 in Season 1, 40/60 in Season 2).After these challenges are over, the Geek-qualizer is played to decide a winner. A list of titles is read to the contestant, who must decide whether each is related to movies, music, or TV. The list continues until the contestant gives an incorrect answer, fails to give an answer within two seconds, or exhausts the list. Then, if they have tied or exceeded their opponent's score, their opponent plays their own Geek-qualizer round with the same rules. The player with the most points after the Geek-qualizer advances to the final round. If there is a tie, a numerical tiebreaker question is asked; the winner is the player who comes closer to the correct answer without going over.
Correct answers are worth 10 points each, with a maximum of 15 items in Season 1 and 16 in Season 2.
Final Round: Geek to Geek Showdown
In the final round, the contestant chooses one of the four Geeks to challenge. The contestant and Geek alternate questions, beginning with the contestant. Each turn, the player chooses whether to answer a 1 point (easiest), 2 point (harder), or 3 point (hardest) question; the Geek may not choose a point value lower than the contestant's previous question. If answered correctly, they earn the number of points chosen; otherwise there is no penalty. The first player to reach 7 points wins; if the contestant wins they are awarded $5,000 worth of prizes related to the category of Geek they challenged for the Final Round.Regular Geeks
The host would mention in most episodes in season 1 that if the Geek's expertise slipped, he would be replaced.- Marc Edward HeuckMarc Edward HeuckMarc Edward Heuck is an American writer who is best known as the Movie Geek on the Comedy Central game show Beat the Geeks.Heuck has provided audio commentary tracks and interview segments for the DVD releases of the 1995 slasher Night of the Dribbler, 1984 Savage Streets, 1978 Cheerleader's Wild...
- MovieFilmA film, also called a movie or motion picture, is a series of still or moving images. It is produced by recording photographic images with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects...
Geek - Paul GoebelPaul GoebelPaul Goebel is an American actor, comedian and television presenter.He attended the University of Arizona. He won the TV Land "Ultimate Fan Search". He is currently a contributor to television blog site TV Squad.-Beat the Geeks:...
- TVTelevisionTelevision is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
Geek - Andy ZaxAndy ZaxAndy Zax is a music historian and producer of CD boxed sets and reissues by Talking Heads, Rod Stewart, Echo & the Bunnymen, Television, Little Richard, Fats Domino, Judee Sill, John Cale, Nico, The Neon Philharmonic, Charles Wright & the Watts 103rd Street Rhythm Band, The Sisters of Mercy,...
- MusicMusicMusic is an art form whose medium is sound and silence. Its common elements are pitch , rhythm , dynamics, and the sonic qualities of timbre and texture...
Geek (Most of Seasons 1 and 2) - Michael Jolly - MusicMusicMusic is an art form whose medium is sound and silence. Its common elements are pitch , rhythm , dynamics, and the sonic qualities of timbre and texture...
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