WHAMMY! SEASON 2 CHANGES

The second season of Whammy will debut on Monday, March 17th on Game Show Network. There were several changes made to the second season of episodes, mostly physical set changes and a few other minor ones as well. Some of these are new spaces added to the board. Coming from those that have actually seen tapings of the second season live, here are some of the things you can look forward to.

Special thanks to Jason Hernandez for providing me with the pictures and information on season two!

1- First off, cosmetically speaking, the board is more of a square shaped instead of the oval shape that was used on the first season. This would not only make space in the center bigger (thus making a larger view of the contestants as they spin), but it makes spaces like "move x spaces" easier to follow.

2- The screens that they are now using are slightly larger than before, thus making it easier to read the value of the spaces. Also, the lettering used is now more "compact", making them easier to read.

3- The monitors on the big board also are now using more traditional Press Your Luck style backgrounds. You'll see more of the darker colored backgrounds like deep blue and green, and less of the bright colored backings like orange and cyan, making the white value lettering more pleasant to the eye.

4- Also, in the tradition of the classic PYL series, all of the Whammy space backgrounds are now yellow. Only the Whammy spaces will be yellow. This will make it easier to see which spaces are Whammies when the boards in motion.


5- In the first round, a new space called "Advance 3 Spaces" has been included. In the second round, a space called "Advance 4 Spaces" has been implimented. It's obvious what these new spaces do. UPDATE: Later taped episodes only offer an "Advance 3 Spaces" in round two, omitting "Advance 4".


6- The "$1000 or Spin Again" space has been replaced with a lower "$555 or Spin Again" value. This will certainly have contestants more likely take another chance at the board.


7- In round two, there will be less "Double Whammy" spaces on the big board. (Many people said that the Double Whammy was overdone anyways). Previously, the board had 8 double whammy spaces, and 3 "normal" whammy spaces. The second season will have 6 double whammies, and 5 traditional ones. UPDATE: Later taped episodes offered 7 double whammies and 4 traditional whammies in round 2.


8- Two additional chances of obtaining an extra spin along with a cash value have been added in the second round. The values are "$500+1 Spin" as well as "$1000+1 Spin".


9- Curious on another stat? The first season offered 19 prizes. The new season will have only 18.

10- The "Gem" car has been replaced with an actual vehicle! (No more wondering what that golf-cart thingamajig was). However, the way to win the car is still the same. You must hit the first half of a "car key" in the first round, and the second half of the car key in the second round, in order to win the car.

11- The biggest change to the big board is the inclusion of a new space in both rounds, called the "Big Bank" space. This is also known as the "Whammy Jackpot" at times. The jackpot starts off at $3000. Every time a contestant hits a whammy (in either the first or second rounds), the money they lose goes into this jackpot. If a contestant hits that spot, they have the chance to get the money and prizes in the pot. But in order to do so, you must answer a non-multiple choice question. If a Big Bank jackpot is won, the total will reset at $3000 once again.

12- If you hit the car key in the first round and Whammy, the key goes into the "Big Bank", like any other prize. If a player hits both halves of the key and hits a Whammy, the car itself goes into the jackpot.

13- Another physical cosmetic change: The whammy logo on the front of the contestants podium has been replaced with a screen/sign that states the current amount in the Big Bank/"Whammy Jackpot". Pardon the dust in the picture. It was from after a taping and they obviously had some double whammies hit. :)

14- NEW: Expect a Tournament of Champions and a Tournament of Losers show with memorable players.

To see a side-by-side video screengrab comparison of the two seasons, click here.