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Wait 'til You Have Kids





PREMISE

Three male/female couples (most of the time parents, but occasionally grandparents or couples without children) matched their own parenting styles with those of a professional Parenting Counselor by answering questions dealing with a scenario involving a family's child or children in some way.


MAIN GAME

Three rounds were played. In each round, two scenario questions were asked to the three couples, with three possible responses by the parents given, labeled A, B, and C. One couple at a time, the parents selected the response they would most likely use in that situation by placing a block labeled "A", "B" or "C" on the top of the score table in front of them, and explain their rationale for choosing that response.

An example question and possible responses might follow along these lines:

Scenario: Your 17-year-old daughter gets grounded for her grades three days before prom. Do you:
:A - not let her go - no means no, she must stay home because she's grounded;
:B - make an exception for prom because it's a once-in-a-lifetime event, but make it clear she's still grounded beyond that;
:C - unground her altogether.

After all couples had explained their choices, the counselor revealed the answer she thought best matched the situation. Any couple whose answers matched the counselor's received one point.

For the final question of the third round, the couples did not collaborate on an answer, but instead all players chose an answer on their own; as a result, two points were possible per couple for this question.

At the end of the three rounds, the couple with the most points won the game and proceeded to a bonus round. If there was a tie, a toss-up question like the ones used in the bonus round itself (see below) was asked, with the winner advancing.


BONUS ROUND

The couple was shown a graphic of a large WaveRunner and towards the very end of the run a Geo Metro .


NOTES

  • During the first season of the show, the set was a cartoon representation of a living room, made to look like it had been drawn by children. Most of the sound effects were cartoonish as well, and the theme song had a childlike undertone to it. For the second season, the show was given a complete overhaul. The set was turned into a realistic living room setting, the sound effects were eliminated, and the theme song was changed completely to something with a more "upscale" feel to it.


  • The "counselor" for the first season was Ellen Winters. It was reported that she was not an actual parental counselor; in fact, a notable number of her answers were called into question by viewers and professionals. The second counselor was Marilyn Kagan, who held actual credentials.