Daytime Game Shows, Ranked By Dad

February 24, 2017

Daytime television consists of news, infomercials, bad soap operas, and game shows. Naturally, of those, game shows are usually the cheapest to produce, and the most entertaining to watch. But of the game shows currently churning out episodes day in and day out, which ones are your dad’s favorite?

Well, here’s the official Dad Guide to daytime game shows, from their least favorite to the one they love most.

Let’s Make a Deal

Did you know that CBS brought back the show Let’s Make a Deal? And that it’s hosted by Wayne Brady? And that he’s been hosting it since 2009? Neither did your dad.

Hollywood Game Night

A relative newcomer to the daytime game show field, Jane Lynch parlayed her popularity from Glee into an easy and fun paycheck, and good for her. The show pretty much takes two contestants and two celebrities* and pairs them off to compete in a series of games for points. Your dad probably would like it if he took the time to watch it, but he hasn’t, so that’s why it’s low on the list here.

*level of celebrity may vary

Celebrity Name Game

This is one of the lower ranked shows for dads for the same reason as Hollywood Game Night, but it gets moved up a bit because it has Craig Ferguson as the host, and dads love Craig Ferguson. The show pits two contestants, usually close friends or relatives, against each other, paring them off with a celebrity* to basically play Taboo against each other for prizes.

It’s a very dad-friendly show, but it doesn’t quite have the cachet of the following game shows.

*level of celebrity may vary

Jeopardy!

Shockingly coming in at only number five, we have Jeopardy! You might be wondering why it’s so low on the list, since it literally seems to be a game specifically for dads. It’s even hosted by Alex Trebek, the most dad game show host out there.

But if there’s one thing dads hate, it’s when you mess with the thermostat. But if there are two things dads hate, it’s the first thing, and not knowing the answer to something. Jeopardy!’s biggest knock, unfortunately, is that the questions might just be too difficult for dads to truly enjoy.

Who Wants to be a Millionaire

Where Jeopardy! stumbles, Who Wants to be a Millionaire thrives. The questions are multiple choice, suspense is built into the game, and dads know the answer to just about every question up to the $50,000 one. Plus, dads love yelling at the TV to tell someone they’re being stupid, and they have plenty of opportunity to do just that as each contestant hems and haws when the answer is “so obvious, it’s C, you dummy!”

Wheel of Fortune

Wheel of Fortune hits that perfect sweet spot as far as dad-friendly game shows go. It’s easy, he’ll probably know the answer before the contestants do, and all dads have a weird obsession with Vanna White and her impossibly big head.

Family Feud

Family Feud has always been a show that seems to be made by dads, for dads. After all, what’s more dad-friendly than watching other families argue with each other for half an hour? But when Steve Harvey came on as the host, the show launched into the stratosphere of dad-approved daytime television viewing. If your dad could watch Family Feud while on a riding lawn mower, he would probably find his own personal heaven.

But, as much as this is a show that’s primed for dads, there’s one show that is the gold standard.

The Price is Right

Was there every any doubt? All of these game shows are enjoyable and dad-friendly, but The Price is Right is the OG. It’s the ultimate game show, and nothing can convince your dad otherwise. Nor can you convince him to stop rambling on about how “Drew Carey is alright, but he’s no Bob Barker, now Bob Barker he was one helluva host.”

Dad, we know, you’ve already told us, we want to see if this woman’s going to win a brand new car! God!