'Deal or no deal?'

MARIA D' ALESSANDRO STAFF WRlTER MAD724@CABRINI.EDU

"Deal or no deal?" The question rings in my ears every other night. Howie Mandel's new gll!lle show has me pathetically addicted. If I remember what day it is, then I remember if "DONO" is on or not. However, for anyone who has seen this show, it is obvious that there is really no game involved at all. Are we that desperate for another show to make it to the Game Show Network?

There is no "game" in the show I watch religiously. There are 26 silver briefcases, held by 26 gorgeous girls, which each hold a monetary amount, ranging from one cent to $1 million. Sounds good to me, but then you realize that there is no system, no way of picking the "lucky" case. Recently, some of the contestants bring their statistician friends on the show to aid them in selecting the right case at the right time. How doesthat work?

Maybe the banker upstairs on the set of the show has something to do with the numbers. The silhouetted man, looming above the contestants, offers them inflated amounts of money as the show goes on, based on the contestants' ability to eliminate the low amounts of money.