Steve Harvey’s New Show ‘Funderdome’ Mean-Spirited And Cringeworthy?

What is the deal with Steve Harvey’s new show being aired on ABC, Funderdome? After the pilot aired on Sunday, what are people saying about it? Is it worth a watch?

According to Laughing Place, the only source on the internet to deliver a deep analysis on the show, it is not. In fact, the piece says Steve Harvey comes off as mean-spirited on Funderdome and that the show is more sad than entertaining in the end.

Obviously, there are also some positives to balance out the negatives, and they lead The Good Men Project to call Funderdome“a unique, clever idea for a new show.”

First, the premise of the show: inventors who have applied to be on the show are paired up and pitted head-to-head. They each have to defend their own invention in front of a live studio audience, who votes for one of the pairs after each makes a minute-long pitch. The winner gets funding for his or her invention. Critics note the premise is very similar to Shark Tank, a competitive inventors TV show on ABC that got very good ratings. They also point out it is very much like Toy Box, a more recent show of the same ilk that has been received much less favorably.

The Pros

Unfortunately, not much good has been said about Funderdome yet.

One thing most sources agree it does get right, though, are the inventors it chooses to be on the show. The products shown off are almost all pretty amazing, the reviews say, and as an audience member, it is difficult to pick one side to root for.

Another plus often mentioned is how energetic the inventors/presenters are. The nature of the show requires them to be as flashy as possible in the short amount of time they have to leave an impression, and it seems the casting department must have taken public speaking skills into account when reviewing applications.

Due to that fact, the show is certainly a crowd pleaser. Whatever reviewers may say about it, is is quite well-received by unofficial sources like social media.

“IMO, this show is super cool!” writes Facebook user Dinah Cofiell-Vill. “An upbeat positive game show… teaches that hard work can pay off and that dreams do come true… and FUN (Steve keeps his audience laughing, no-matter what show he’s hosting)!”

The Cons

The same energy that is sometimes praised as a good thing can also be cast as a downside. One minute is just not enough for most of these inventors to build a rapport with the audience and express their idea, some critics argue. That fact brings on a lot of forced liveliness, which Laughing Place describes as “cringe-tastic.”

Steve Harvey’s antics on the show do not help, either, as he fills time by “making fun” of the contestants’ inventions. The teases can be laughed off if the contestant wins, but they take on a darker, meaner shade if the invention being ridiculed ends up losing.

Most of all, the reviews claim that the show is really a glorified popularity contest. A charismatic inventor and a good rapport with Steve Harvey is more likely to net a victory than a genuinely good product.

Funderdome is still in its infancy and could improve. Because of an illegal leak from The Dark Overlord, the same hacker the Inquisitr reports recently leaked 10 unreleased episodes of Orange is the New Black, the first eight episodes of the new show’s first season are publicly available. That does not change the fact they were illegitimately distributed, though, so no official sources have reviewed all the episodes as of yet.

Check back soon at the Inquisitr for original reviews of Steve Harvey’s new show. Funderdome will air on ABC every Sunday at 9 p.m. EST.

[Featured Image by ABC-Disney]