The Weakest Link / YMMV

Bizarro Episode: The "Puppet Special" episode, where all the contestants were various puppets from childrens' TV (such as Zippy and George from Rainbow).
Cult Classic: Despite its short life in America, the initial run had a noticeable cult following, enough for NBC to revive it in 2020^note, when it premiered to strong ratings.
Memetic Mutation: "You are the weakest link. Goodbye!"
Older Than They Think: The idea of a cold, uncharismatic game show host who would often belittle poorly-performing contestants was previously used on the Game Show Network original Inquizition in 1998.
Replacement Scrappy: Syndicated version host George Gray, who had to follow Anne Robinson, whose previous game was the abysmal Extreme Gong, and whose only notable work since has been announcer on The Price Is Right. Then there are some who think the man's style appears to have helped him redeem himself. However, because it was a daytime syndicated version, the scope of the top prize was cut down to a tenth of what it used to be and the show was slashed in half to a 30-minute run where the rounds were even shorter, there was less suspense, and the prizes awarded were a lot less substantial, leading to a lot of lukewarm episodes (one of these episodes ultimately awarded only $1,250 total, which also saw two $0 rounds).
They Changed It, Now It Sucks!: The 2020 version. Oy.
- Though the aesthetics of the show makes it feel like a worthy successor to the original (Jane Lynch has proven herself to be a worthy successor to the likes of Anne and George, even if her insults may be less scathing, original series composer Paul Farrer's return breathes new life to the original soundtrack, and the new set screams Scenery Porn at times), the new rules have earned derision from many people:
  - Instead of the static money chain of the original that capped at $125,000, the revival employs a progressively increasing money chain, starting with a $25,000 cap and ending with a $500,000 cap. Though it sounds good on paper, the jumps on the chain get insanely jarring in execution, especially in the last few rounds (for example, the money chain of the last round goes as follows: $2,500, $5,000, $10,000, $25,000, $50,000, $100,000, $250,000, $500,000), not just leaving no reason, but at times leaving no choice but to bank after every correct answer or two.
  - The revival does away with the Double Round of the original, leaving no reason to keep the Strongest Link around before the final Showdown round, amplifying Tall Poppy Syndrome to the max.
- Add on an alleged attack on critics of the show from the producers a mere two weeks in, and it's easy to see why some think America shouldn't do The Weakest Link anymore.
The Woobie: It's not hard to feel bad for K9 in the Doctor Who special. He, like everyone else, answers his question correctly, and doesn't really do anything to warrant being voted out. However, come voting time, everyone votes him out. He even says his own name sadly when it gets to him. Anne even calls out the team for it! Unfortunately, the other actors were instructed to vote him out first to ensure that he was removed from the game before he broke down. This is because K9, no matter what prop iteration, seems to malfunction at the drop of a hat — this has been going on since the 70's. The prop operators and veteran actors knew from experience to make his appearance short but sweet.
Woolseyism: While each of the program's hosts around the world retain a general character base (being stoic, brutally honest and dry, yet hammy), a few other aspects of their personality tends to vary to fit within the country's humor. For example, Montserrat Ontiveros, the Latin American version's host, was slightly more emotive and polite (without breaking her dryness) and tended to end a round with a sarcastic joke before the voting, compared to Anne Robinson who addressed the contestants in a more intimidating way.

YMMV / The Weakest Link

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