Beat the Geeks

Infobox Television
show_name = Beat the Geeks


caption = "Beat the Geeks" Season 1 title card
show_name_2 =
genre = Game Show
creator = Mark Cronin
James Rowley
writer =
director = R. Brian DiPirro
creat_director =
developer =
presenter =
starring = "see below"
voices =
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theme_music_composer =
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composer = Jon Ernst
country = USA
language = English
num_seasons = 2
num_episodes = 130, 1 unaired during original broadcast
list_episodes =
executive_producer = Mark Cronin
co_exec = James Rowley
producer = Richard G. King
Beth Greenbaum
sup_producer =
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cons_producer =
co-producer =
editor =
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camera = Multi-camera
runtime = Approx. 22 mins.
channel = Comedy Central
picture_format = NTSC 480i
audio_format =
first_run =
first_aired = November 7, 2001
last_aired = October 7, 2002
preceded_by =
followed_by =
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website =
production_website =
imdb_id = 0299261
tv_com_id = 7847

Beat the Geeks was a comedy game show which aired on Comedy Central in the United States from 2001 to 2002. The show was rerun on The Comedy Network in Canada and reruns currently air on G4techTV Canada and Prime in New Zealand. On the show, contestants face off in trivia matches against "geeks" who are well-versed in music, movies, and television, as well as a fourth geek whose area of expertise varies from things such as Comic Books to Star Wars. The object is to outsmart the geek at their own subject, a task made much easier by the fact that the geeks are given questions of considerably greater difficulty.

Rules

First round

The rules of the first round are different in Season 1 and Season 2.

eason 1

The three contestants compete against each other to answer 8 questions, 2 from each category. The first four questions (one per category) are worth 5 points each, and the second four are worth 10 each. The player with the least amount of points at the end is eliminated. In the event of a tie, a tiebreaker question is used.

eason 2

The three contestants compete against each other and the Geeks to answer 4 questions, 1 from each category. Each correct answer is worth 10 points. If a contestant submits a correct answer, they go face-to-face with a Geek to answer another question. During this face-off, if the contestant gets the question wrong or the Geek gets it right, the contestant loses 5 points. However, if the contestant gets the question right or the Geek gets it wrong, they are awarded another 10 points. The player with the least amount of points at the end is eliminated. In the event of a tie, a tiebreaker question is used.

econd round

eason 1

The remaining two contestants choose which geek to challenge for their medal. If this round starts off as a tie, the host asked a question to two contestants to determine who goes first. Otherwise, the player with the most points goes first. The Geeks' Medals are worth 20 points, except for the Guest Geek, whose medal is worth 40 points. A total of two questions are asked; if a Geek answers wrong, the player is awarded the medal and 20 points, and if a contestant answers wrong, the other player may buzz in and "steal" the question for 10 points. If both questions are correctly answered, the Geek-off occurs. In the Geek-off, a question is first posed to the contestant, who attempts to answer it with as many valid responses as they can in 15 seconds. After this, a similar but harder question is posed to the Geek. If the Geek fails to surpass the contestant in the number of correct answers, the contestant wins the medal. Note that ties favor the contestant in the Geek-off.

eason 2

The remaining two contestants choose which geek to challenge for their medal. If this round starts off as a tie, the host asked a question to two contestants to determine who goes first. Otherwise, the player with the most points goes first. The Geeks' Medals are worth 20 points, except for the Guest Geek, whose medal is worth 40 points. In a challenge, A total of four questions are asked, alternating between the contestant and the Geek, whose questions are more difficult than the contestant's. If the contestant answers a question wrong, the Geek can answer it and end the challenge, otherwise they have a Geek-off. If the Geek answers a question wrong, then the contestant wins the challenge, gaining the Geek medal and the points. If the contestant and Geek answered all four questions correctly, then they have a Geek-off. In the Geek-off, a question is first posed to the contestant, who attempts to answer it with as many valid responses as they can in 15 seconds. After this, a similar but harder question is posed to the Geek. If the Geek fails to surpass the contestant in the number of correct answers, the contestant wins the medal. Ties favor the contestant in the Geek-off.

Third round

eason 1

The first part of the third round is identical to the second, except that the Geek medals are now worth 40 points, and the Guest Geek's medal is worth 60 points. At the end of the third round is the "Geek-qualizer". In the "Geek-qualizer", the player is given a name or title and the contestants decide whether it is related to Movies, Music, or TV. There are a total of 15 questions worth 10 points each, and control is switched over to one contestant only when the other gives an incorrect answer or does not answer in time. If there is a tie after the "Geek-qualizer", a tiebreaker question is asked and the contestant who gives the correct answer moves on to the final round. Otherwise, it is the player with the most points who makes it to the final round.

eason 2

The first part of the third round is identical to the second, except that the Geek medals are now worth 40 points, and the Guest Geek's medal is worth 60 points, and the contestant with the fewest points goes first. At the end of the third round is the "Geek-qualizer". In the "Geek-qualizer", the contestant with the lowest score is given a list of names or titles (with some related theme), and must decide if each one is related to Movies, Music or TV; there are 16 items, worth 10 points each, and the player's turn ends after making a mistake, taking too long to answer on a given item, or answers all 16. Afterwards, if the other contestant is no longer in the lead, they will get their turn at the "Geek-qualizer", with a different list of 16 names or titles. If there is a tie after the "Geek-qualizer", a tiebreaker question is asked and the contestant who gives the correct answer moves on to the final round. Otherwise, it is the player with the most points who makes it to the final round.

Final Round: Geek to Geek Showdown

In the final round, the contestant chooses one of the four Geeks to challenge. Once they are face-to-face, the contestant goes first and chooses whether he wants a 1 point (easiest), 2 point (harder), or 3 point (hardest) question. After the contestant gives his answer, the Geek chooses which kind of question they want, but cannot choose a point value lower than what the contestant just chose. The first person to reach 7 points wins, and if the contestant wins they are awarded $5,000 worth of prizes in whatever category they chose for the Final Round.

Cast

Hosts

*J. Keith van Straaten- Host (Season 1)
*Blaine Capatch - Host (Season 2)
*Tiffany Bolton - Co-host

J. Keith van Straaten was replaced by Blaine Capatch by the producers for the second season because he was deemed "not geeky enough." It was felt that van Straaten didn't interact well with the geeks, and that he came off as superior to the geeks. Capatch portrayed the host as much geekier, as the producers wantedFact|date=February 2007.

The Regular Geeks

The host would mention in every episode that if the Geek's expertise slipped, he would be replaced.
*Marc Edward Heuck - Movie Geek
*Paul Goebel - TV Geek
*Andy Zax - Music Geek (Most of Seasons 1 and 2)
*Michael Jolly - Music Geek (Part of Season 1)
*Michael Farmer - Music Geek (Part of Season 2)

Music Geek Controversy

The show began with Michael Jolly as the Music Geek but lasted only a short while. Producers felt his on-screen presence wasn't very commanding, and Andy Zax replaced him for the remainder of the first season. Andy Zax was an instant fan favorite and proved much more camera friendly, as well as possessing a much deeper knowledge of music pop culture. In season two, Andy Zax was brought back as the Music Geek. This time, though, the producers wanted to split the time between him and Michael Farmer, a Music Geek who was geekier and also created his own music. However, it was evident early on that Michael Farmer didn't have much of an on-screen presence, so Andy Zax appeared in 55 of the 65 second season episodes.

The Guest Geeks (alphabetical)

easons 1 & 2

*Mike Bracken - Horror Geek (10 episodes)
*Holly Chandler - South Park Geek (10 episodes)
*Ken Crosby - James Bond Geek (10 episodes)
*Gabriel Köerner - Star Trek Geek (15 episodes)
*Alan Korsunsky - Comic Book Geek (10 episodes)
*Antonio Lopez - Simpsons Geek (10 episodes)
*John Steverding - Playboy Geek (10 episodes)

eason 1

*Karen Brown - Michael Jackson Geek (5 episodes)
*Ivy Shantelle Hover - Sopranos Geek (5 episodes)
*Kathy Pillsbury - Star Wars Geek (5 episodes)
*Melanie Prudhomme - Friends Geek (5 episodes)
*Paul Schmeltzer - Hip Hop Geek (5 episodes)

eason 2

*Dan Blau - Beatles Geek (5 episodes)
*Krisztian Boldis - Star Wars Geek (5 episodes)
*Karla De Trinidad - Friends Geek (5 episodes)
*Dana Gould - Planet of the Apes Geek (1 episode)
*Rudy Higa - Wrestling Geek (1 episode)
*Tim Lakin - Toy Geek (5 episodes)
*Christian Malmin - KISS Geek (1 episode)
*Mr. Skin - Nudity in Movies Geek (2 episodes)
*Ggreg Snyder - Saturday Morning Geek (5 episodes)

Guest Geek Trivia

* Gabriel Köerner, the Star Trek Geek, was given an extra five episodes in the first season as producers could not secure a suitable 13th geek for the final day of shooting.
* The final day of shooting for the second season was to feature five different guest geeks spread over five episodes: a Wrestling Geek, a KISS Geek, a Harry Potter Geek, a Nudity in Movies Geek, and a Planet of the Apes Geek. The producers were able to find a Harry Potter Geek, but because he was only 13, laws would not allow him to appear on the show. As a result, the producers gave the Nudity in Movies Geek an extra episode to fill the void.

Guest stars

*Kelli Maroney (Season 1)
*Alex Albrecht (Season 1)
*Neferteri Shepherd (Season 1)
*Jerry Springer (Season 1)
*Jane Wiedlin (Season 1)
*Wil Wheaton (Season 1)
*Coolio (Season 2)
*Susan Olsen (Season 2)
*Jimmie Walker (Season 2)
*Devin Devasquez (Season 2)
*Hugh Hefner (Season 2)
*Lloyd Kaufman (Season 2)
*Peter Noone (Season 2)

External links

*
* [http://www.g4techtv.ca/tv/beatthegeeks/ G4techTV.ca - Beat The Geeks]