TV: This King is Dead

Spike TV misses the point with King of Vegas

Josh Bell

At this point, you have to wonder if TV producers think that all they need to do is put "Vegas" in the title of their show in order to create a hit. Hot on the heels of CMT's creepily pathological Man vs. Vegas comes King of Vegas (Spike TV, Tuesdays, 10 p.m.), produced and co-hosted by local gambling guru and consummate self-promoter Wayne Allyn Root. King owes more to straightforward broadcasts of poker and blackjack tournaments than it does to Vegas-based reality shows, and it's structured more like a game show or a sportscast.


On a chrome-and-steel set that looks like something from Who Wants to be a Millionaire? or NBC's recent Deal or No Deal, 12 contestants face off in various table games (poker, blackjack, roulette, craps), with one eliminated at the end of each episode and the ultimate winner taking home a million dollars. Although they have to master the gamut of casino games, each contestant is generally a specialist in only one area.


The biggest problem with King is that it sells itself on its Vegas connection and then removes all traces of Vegas from the actual show. Aside from a couple of aerial shots of the Strip that could easily be stock footage, the show could have been shot on a soundstage anywhere in the world. Instead of playing on a casino floor, the contestants are isolated on the show's manufactured stage, losing all of the inherent Vegas excitement that has driven so many of the shows based in town.


The players are a mix of tournament pros and lesser-known figures, all of whom appear to have interesting stories to tell. But there are no segments that illuminate their pasts or daily lives, leaving only their in-game trash-talking to give you a sense of who they are. The diversity of games is important for the show not to become monotonous, but watching blackjack and baccarat experts flounder at poker is not exactly riveting television.


King of Vegas ultimately fails as a narrative and succeeds only slightly as a competition—and then only when it's mimicking other, more successful televised poker shows. Some of the games on the show are very hard to follow for people not familiar with gambling, but when it comes down to the tried and true Texas Hold 'em, a little excitement can't help but creep in. Of course, you could get that excitement nonstop by watching World Poker Tour on the Travel Channel.


January ends up three-for-three on terrible new sitcom debuts with Jenna Elfman's Courting Alex (CBS, Mondays, 9:30 p.m.), which, unlike the recent Four Kings and Crumbs, at times approaches mediocrity. Elfman (Dharma & Greg) plays a workaholic lawyer who doesn't have time for love, but ends up meeting the man of her dreams in a laid-back bartender played by Josh Russell. Essentially, it's Dharma & Greg all over again, with Elfman in the Greg role, and the relationship moving at a slower pace.


Elfman is relatively likable as Alex, and the supporting cast, including Dabney Coleman, fulfills its function. Though not nearly as bad as Four Kings or Crumbs, the show is still filled with clichés and unoriginal writing. In that way, it'll probably fit in perfectly with CBS' lineup of stereotypical but sometimes watchable sitcoms, including King of Queens and Two and a Half Men. It's not the kind of thing you'd ever want to watch on purpose, but if you're too lethargic to change the channel, and are a particularly undemanding viewer, you'll probably be able to tolerate it.

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