Upon watching this show for what I'm presuming the first time,my father observed that the show's payout seemed paltry compared to the amount of brain power invested into the front game and end game. But what my dad didn't care to notice was that this game--produced and ran exclusively through Game Show Network--was created and ran primarily as a variation on the popular but now not-seen NBC daytime game "Scrabble",that a cable produced show doesn't have the prize budget of a show that is run by,say Sony Pictures,and that the whole élan of this show was that the true star of this show(besides host Chuck Woolery or whichever hostess,which happened from about season two on)was the game,a word game that is born out of the same game principles as Bingo(Language or Letters + Bingo= Lingo),and that the ability to master this game is a skill in and to itself.In other words,the money is secondary to the ability to show off one's mastery of words. As such,it's a fine watch,nothing all-too spectacular. The time constraints and game clock seem to be run rather arbitrarily,vis-a-vis the game pacing and this show would simply NOT have any character without a genuinely affable persona like Woolery mastering the ceremonies. Even though I cannot consider myself a fan,I think it's a watchable enough show that I kinda hope its still going to be renewed(assuming that it hasn't been canceled)and that they continue to tweak the game formula,prizes and all. A kind of game show for the viewer who enjoys the game itself over the promised payout.

"Lingo" is another one of GSN's "originals!!!!!" It has longtime game show veteran Chuck Woolery hosting and a very beautiful co-hostess who not only runs the puzzles, but comes up with some very hilarious phrases to bring forth the puzzles (LOL)!!!!! Anyway, there are two teams of two regular people and they must solve a 5-letter puzzle in about five chances. Sometimes they can be really dumb and put in other words that they should know have the WRONG LETTERS IN!!!!! LOL AGAIN Once the puzzle is solved, one person must pull a number from a bowl but... there are stoppers that must be avoided!!!!! After 2 rounds, it's a chance to play for a big jackpot!!!!! It's like the regular rounds, except there's one team and more balls (but no stoppers!!!!!) - number balls, to be exact."Lingo" is the modern game show with that retro flair!!!!! Watch it; if you can't, upgrade your cable or dish!!!!!10 stars

Lingo used to be an okay game show. It's fun to play along with, the rules are quite simple and game play is pretty stable, and Chuck Woolery is a good host. Presentation was lacking, however; the set was okay, but the theme music was a piece of garbage. They improved the music for the third season, but they decided to ruin the show by adding a bimbo to be the co-host; a completely unnecessary move and a casting that I feel takes away from the show. I really don't see why they did this. The game can stand on its own two feet, the co-host does nothing but bring the show crashing to its knees with her inane comments and plastic smile. Leave it to GNS to ruin a good show.SEASONS 1 & 2: 6/10 SEASON 3: 3/10

Lingo is a pretty cool show. It's like that children's game, Mastermind, but instead of patterns of colors, you use five letter words. It's less of a trivia and more vocabulary. Lots of fun to watch and play at home! I would recommend it to anyone.