Joey, Ross and Chandler playing Bamboozled
Bamboozled is a game show which Joey auditions to be the host of in "The One With The Baby Shower", the twentieth episode of Season 8. Joey doesn't understand the rules of the game, and so asks Chandler and Ross to help him by acting as the contestants. When Joey arrives at the audition, he is informed that, due to research determining that people didn't follow the game, it had been simplified to a simple question and answer format. Joey is initially unimpressed with the change, but the promise of girls in bikinis holding up the scores soon persuades him to continue with the audition. As no further mention of Bamboozled is made in future episodes, we can safely assume that Joey's audition was unsuccessful, or that the show was cancelled.
The Rules[]
The rules of Bamboozled are, in Joey's own words: "You spin the Wheel of Mayhem to go up the Ladder of Chance. You go past the Mud Hut, through the Rainbow Ring to get to the Golden Monkey, you yank his tail and boom - you're in Paradise Pond!" Each of these sections of the game are interspersed with questions of general knowledge for each player, and the choice of whether to pick Google or Wicked Wango cards, or pass play to the opposing contestant. Wicked Wango cards determine whether you go higher or lower (though higher or lower than what is never explained). There are also various other rules, including holding your breath while your question is being read, a Hopping Bonus (in which you must hop on one foot, changing legs between questions) and a Backwards Bonus, where the correct answer must be repeated backwards. The Hopping Bonus can only be used in the Super Speedy Speed Round, where the contestant must answer as many questions as possible within a time limit. There are also Audio Questions. It is implied that one of the rules is that contestants are not allowed to talk to each other. You can use an Angel Pass for a free turn; these can be attained when picking a Google card, and can only be used once. Another Google card is the Gimme card, which means you gain all of the opposing player's points. When climbing the Ladder of Chance, players may choose how many rungs they wish to climb, but must beware of the Hungry Monkey, which passes play back to the opposing player. The Time Turtle makes sure contestants don't take too long answering questions. When a player loses, then they have been Bamboozled!
Questions & Answers[]
The questions and answers in the script Joey was given to read through before his audition were:
- Q: What is the capital of Colombia? A: Bogota
- Q. What do you have a fear of if you suffer from Triskaidekaphobia? A. Fear of the number 13.
- Q. In which John Huston film would you hear this line: "Badges? We don't need no stinking badges!" A. Treasure of the Sierra Madre. (The authenticity of this being the actual correct answer is debated in the Trivia section of "The One With The Baby Shower").
- Q. Audio question: Name this television theme song ... (hums the tune). A. I Dream of Jeannie.
- Q. Who invented bifocals? A. Ben Franklin.
- Q. Which monarch has ruled Great Britain the longest? A. Queen Victoria. (This answer is incorrect as explained in the Trivia section of "The One With The Baby Shower".) Also see comment below.
And the question used in his audition:
- Q. In hockey, who is known as "The Great One"? A. Wayne Gretzky.
Trivia[]
- "Bamboozle" as a verb means "to deceive by underhanded methods, to dupe, to hoodwink", or "to confuse, frustrate, or throw off thoroughly or completely".
- The producer of Bamboozled is called Ray, and is played by Jonathan Nichols.
- The people helping out at Joey's audition are Duncan, the camera operator and Erin, played by Lisa Calderon, reading in as a contestant.
- On the Season 8 DVD Special Features, the viewer can play an interactive version of Bamboozled, which uses clips from the episode and questions about the Season. It is designed for two people, one playing as Chandler, the other as Ross.
- The game has been turned into an Interactive game by fans on the iOS App Store, called Bamboozled.
- Ross and Rachel play a version of Bamboozled but about babies and pregnancy and when Rachel loses, Ross tells her she is a terrible mother.