History Series / MasterMinds

* GameShowWinningsCap: Unlike most GSN series, which are one-and-done, this show allows you to return for up to three games - provided you win the BonusRound each time, which means potentially $30,000 - and that's without the salary you'd presumably receive for playing as an expert/Master Mind as a result of that.

* NintendoHard: The questions are not that easy in the first place, and they get harder as you go deeper into the game. Also, the experts/Master Minds are '''smart.''' Usually you'll need most of the questions right in the Bonus Round, if not a perfect score, just to get to the [[SuddenDeath Ultimate Trivia Question]]. Beating them once is hard enough, let alone three times. And God help you if you drew Ken Jennings as your opponent in the final round... [[spoiler:During his entire tenure on ''Master Minds'', Jennings was never beaten outright by a contestant; the only wins against him came via tiebreaker. He was beaten thrice on the original ''Best Ever'' incarnation, though.]]

* NintendoHard: The questions are not that easy in the first place, and they get harder as you go deeper into the game. Also, the experts/Master Minds are '''smart.''' Usually you'll need most of the questions right in the Bonus Round, if not a perfect score, just to get to the [[SuddenDeath Ultimate Trivia Question]]. Beating them once is hard enough, let alone three times. And God help you if you drew Ken Jennings as your opponent in the final round... [[spoiler:During his entire tenure on the show, Jennings was never beaten outright by a contestant; the only wins against him came via tiebreaker.]]

** In the second season of ''Minds'', the contestant and Master Mind simultaneously wrote their answers to five open-ended questions; the answers were revealed as they went along.
** The third season of ''Minds'' was played the same as the second, except now they only played four questions.

** In ''Master Minds, 100 points per question in round 1, 200 in round 2, with 400 going on the last question of round 2. There were a few added caveats in the latter case: first off, the questions were open-ended from that point on, not multiple-choice. Secondly, the contestants and Master Minds had to buzz in for the right to answer and write their answers - only the first person on each side got to answer. Thirdly, wrong answers in this round carried a point deduction. The third round offered 500 for the first question, with the value going up 100 on each new question.

* NintendoHard: The questions are not that easy in the first place, and they get harder as you go deeper into the game. Also, the experts/Master Minds are '''smart.''' Usually you'll need most of the questions right in the Bonus Round, if not a perfect score, just to get to the [[SuddenDeath Ultimate Trivia Question]]. Beating them once is hard enough, let alone three times. And God help you if you drew Ken Jennings as your opponent in the final round...

* WinsByDoingAbsolutelyNothing: Since answering a tiebreaker question incorrectly is an automatic loss, it's generally good strategy (if you don't know the answer) to simply do nothing and let your opponent defeat themselves.

The series was renewed under the title ''Master Minds'' and debuted under this new title, with a new format, on April 6, 2020, with Brooke Burns replacing Sherri Shepherd as host. Jennings, Maracco, Corbblah, Chaffee, and Haut all returned as experts (now called [[TitleDrop "Master Minds"]]), along with newcomer [=LaKedra=] Pam. The third season under the ''Master Minds'' title replaced Ken Jennings, who was now too busy with ''Series/{{Jeopardy}}'', with ''Series/TheChase'' favorite Mark "The Beast" Labbett.

The series was renewed under the title ''Master Minds'' and debuted under this new title, with a new format, on April 6, 2020, with Brooke Burns replacing Sherri Shepherd as host. Jennings, Maracco, Corbblah, Chaffee, and Haut all returned as experts (now called [[TitleDrop "Master Minds"]]), along with newcomer Lakedra Pam. The most common lineup includes Jennings, Maracco, and Corbblah.

* BonusRound: The Ultimate Trivia Challenge. The format varied, but in all cases, both the contestant and expert/Master Mind faced five questions. If the contestant outscored the expert/Master Mind, ''or'' tied and correctly answered an extra question correctly (the so-called [[SuddenDeath Ultimate Trivia Question]]), the $1,000 they won in the main game was upgraded to $10,000 and they got to play again, up to three times.
** In ''Best Ever'', the contestant and expert both answered multiple-choice questions simultaneously.
** In the first season of ''Minds'', the contestant and Master Mind answered the same open-ended questions separately (the Master Mind was in a SoundProofBooth for the contestant's turn); the answers were checked at the end of the round.
** In the second season of ''Minds'', the contestant and Master Mind simultaneously wrote their answers to open-ended questions; the answers were revealed as they went along.

** In ''Master Minds, 100 points per question in round 1, 200 in round 2, with 400 going on the last question of round 2. There were a few added caveats in the latter case: first off, the questions were open-ended from that point on, not multiple-choice. Secondly, the contestants and Master Minds had to buzz in for the right to answer and write their answers - only the first person on each side got to answer. Thirdly, wrong answers in this round carried a point deduction. 500 for the first question in round 3, with the value going up 100 on each new question.

* IWantYouToMeetAnOldFriendOfMine: Maracco, Corbblah, and Haut were previously contestants on the Brooke Burns-hosted version of ''The Chase'' prior to being reunited with her on ''Master Minds''.
** It was also announced that Mark Labbett (as in, The Beast) would be joining the Master Minds in the upcoming third season.

* NintendoHard: The questions are not that easy in the first place, and they get harder as you go deeper into the game. Also, the experts/Master Minds are '''smart.''' Usually you'll need four out of five in the Bonus Round, and often enough all five, just to get to the [[SuddenDeath Ultimate Trivia Question]]. Beating them once is hard enough, let alone three times. And God help you if you draw Ken Jennings as your opponent in the final round...

* {{Retool}}: Oh yes. The title changed, the host changed, the format got re-worked, the set went from a rainbow motif to all blue...the only thing to carry over from ''Best Ever Trivia Show'' to ''Master Minds'' completely unscathed was the theme song.

** In the second season of ''Minds'', the contestant and Master Mind simultaneously wrote their answers to open-ended questions.

* AscendedExtra: This is the prize for pulling off three wins against the experts/Master Minds (that and $30,000 in total winnings). So far after three seasons,[[spoiler: nobody has won the full $30,000. Only three contestants have ever made it to a third day, and only ONE of those three made it to the bonus round.]]

!!GameShowTropes in use:

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!!This series provides examples of:
* AscendedExtra: This is the prize for pulling off three wins against the experts/Master Minds (that and $30,000 in total winnings). So far after three seasons,[[spoiler: nobody has won the full $30,000. Only three contestants have ever made it to a third day, and only ONE of those three made it to the bonus round.]]
* GameBreakingBug: [[AvertedTrope Averted]] by the [[SuddenDeath Ultimate Trivia Question]] in the BonusRound, because it gives the contestant a way to defend against a perfect run by the expert/Master Mind. That said, it's usually the most difficult question in the game.
* IWantYouToMeetAnOldFriendOfMine: Maracco, Corbblah, and Haut were previously contestants on the Brooke Burns-hosted version of ''The Chase'' prior to being reunited with her on ''Master Minds''.
* NintendoHard: The questions are not that easy in the first place, and they get harder as you go deeper into the game. Also, the experts/Master Minds are '''smart.''' Usually you'll need four out of five in the Bonus Round, and often enough all five, just to get to the [[SuddenDeath Ultimate Trivia Question]]. Beating them once is hard enough, let alone three times. And God help you if you draw Ken Jennings as your opponent in the final round...
* NonIndicativeName: For a show called ''Best Ever Trivia Show'', you’d expect there to be more trivia, but the way it was set up, the whole main game consisted of all of 10 questions (11 if SuddenDeath was needed), and on top of that, the contestants just stood there and locked in answers the whole show. ''Master Minds'' gets through 12 in the first two rounds alone (seven in round 1, five in round 2). One almost suspects that this is one of the reasons for the name change...
* {{Retool}}: Oh yes. The title changed, the host changed, the format got re-worked, the set went from a rainbow motif to all blue...the only thing to carry over from ''Best Ever Trivia Show'' to ''Master Minds'' completely unscathed was the theme song.
* WinsByDoingAbsolutelyNothing: Since answering a tiebreaker question incorrectly is an automatic loss, it's generally good strategy (if you don't know the answer) to simply do nothing and let your opponent defeat themselves.

[[quoteright:260:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/betsmmsmaller.png]]
[[caption-width-right:260:Original recipe on the top, retool on the bottom.]]

* {{Retool}}: Oh yes. The title changed, the host changed, the format got re-worked, the set went from a rainbow motif to all blue...the only thing to carry over from ''Best Ever Trivia Show'' to ''Master Minds'' completely unscathed was the theme song.

[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/masterminds_8.jpg]]

The series was renewed under the title ''Master Minds'' and debuted under this new title, with a new format, on April 6, 2020, with Brooke Burns replacing Sherri Shepherd as host. Jennings, Maracco, Corbblah, Chaffee, and Haut all returned as experts (now called [[TitleDrop "Master Minds"]]), along with newcomer LaKedra Pam. The most common lineup includes Jennings, Maracco, and Corbblah.

* AscendedExtra: This is the prize for pulling off three wins against the experts/Master Minds (that and $30,000 in total winnings).

----

The series was renewed under the title ''Master Minds'' and debuted under this new title, with a new format, on April 6, 2020, with Brooke Burns replacing Sherri Shepherd as host. Jennings, Maracco, Corbblah, Chaffee, and Haut all returned as experts (now called [[TitleDrop "Master Minds"]]), along with newcomer Lakedra Pam, who won her way on with three victories. The most common lineup includes Jennings, Maracco, and Corbblah.

* AscendedExtra: This is the prize for pulling off three wins against the experts/Master Minds (that and $30,000 in total winnings). So far, Lakedra Pam is the only one to pull this off.

The series was renewed under the title ''Master Minds'' and debuted under this new title, with a new format, on April 6, 2020, with Brooke Burns replacing Sherri Shepherd as host. Jennings, Maracco, Corbblah, Chaffee, and Haut all returned as experts (now called [[TitleDrop "Master Minds"]], along with newcomer Lakedra Pam, who won her way on with three victories.

* NintendoHard: The questions are not that easy in the first place, and they get harder as you go deeper into the game. Also, the experts/Master Minds are '''smart.''' Usually you'll need four out of five in the Bonus Round, and often enough all five, just to get to the [[SuddenDeath Ultimate Trivia Question]]. Beating them once is hard enough, let alone three times.

'''''Master Minds''''' is a GameShow on GSN in which three contestants face off against a set of three resident trivia experts for a chance at $10,000 and, eventually, a spot on the show as a Master Mind themselves.

* SpeedRound: In ''Minds,'' the third round consists of 60 seconds of questions on the buzzers for the contestants to get a winner between them, followed by 60 seconds of questions for the Master Minds to get the winning contestant someone to challenge. There is the requirement that the players involved wait for the question to be completed before they can buzz in. Also, these questions are quite a bit longer than on ''Series/TheChase'' (which Brooke had previously hosted), and there is a need to announce the value of each question, since the value goes up as the round goes on (500 on the first question, going up 100 with each subsequent question). Net result: you're lucky if you hear nine questions during the minute, and more often, it'll only be seven or eight.

NeedsWikiMagicLove

* NonIndicativeName: For a show called ''Best Ever Trivia Show'', you’d expect there to be more trivia, but the way it was set up, the whole main game consisted of all of 10 questions (11 if SuddenDeath was needed), and on top of that, the contestants just stood there and locked in answers the whole show. ''Master Minds'' gets through 12 in the first two rounds alone (seven in round 1, five in round 2).

** In the first season of ''Minds'', the contestant and Master Mind answered open-ended questions separately (the Master Mind was in a SoundProofBooth for the contestant's turn); the answers were checked at the end of the round.
** In the second season of ''Minds'', the contestant and Master Mind wrote their answers to open-ended questions.

* SuddenDeath: The main example here would be the Ultimate Trivia Question if the BonusRound ends in a tie. The question is directed to the contestant only, and if they get it right, they win.

* SuddenDeath: The Ultimate Trivia Question if the BonusRound ends in a tie. The question is directed to the contestant only, and if they get it right, they win.

* SpeedRound: In ''Minds,'' the third round consists of 60 seconds of questions on the buzzers for the contestants to get a winner between them, followed by 60 seconds of questions for the Master Minds to get the winning contestant someone to challenge. There is the requirement that the players involved wait for the question to be completed before they can buzz in. Also, these questions are quite a bit longer than on [[Series/TheChase]] (which Brooke had previously hosted), and there is a need to announce the value of each question, since the value goes up as the round goes on (500 on the first question, going up 100 with each subsequent question). Net result: you're lucky if you hear nine questions during the minute, and more often, it'll only be seven or eight.

* NintendoHard: The questions are not that easy in the first place, and they get harder as you go deeper into the game. Also, the experts/Master Minds are '''smart.''' Usually you'll need four out of five in the Bonus Round, and often enough all five, just to get to the [[SuddenDeath Ultimate Trivia Question]]. Beating them once is hard enough, let alone three times.

* BonusRound: The Ultimate Trivia Challenge. The format varied, but in all cases, both the contestant and expert/Master Mind faced five questions. If the contestant outscored the expert/Master Mind, the $1,000 they won in the main game was upgraded to $10,000 and they got to play again, up to three times.

** In the first season of ''Minds'', the contestant and Master Mind answered the open-ended questions separately; the answers were checked at the end of the round.
** In the second season of ''Minds'',
* BonusSpace: In ''Best Ever Trivia Show'' only, if the expert assigned to play either of the first two rounds got the question wrong, it doubled the value of that question.

* GameShowWinningsCap: Unlike most GSN series, which are one-and-done, this show allows you to return for up to three games - provided you win the BonusRound each time.