History YMMV / Pyramid

* EarWorm: While the ''Donnymid'' theme might not be the greatest fit for a game show, it's still a [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nN_5TNXPYgg pretty catchy techno tune]].

* ItsTheSameNowItSucks: What a select few thought of ''The Pyramid'' after viewing GSN's special "sneak preview" episode (it was intended to be, after all, a direct homage to Dick Clark's version). There's even a fraction of the fanbase that thinks the reason for the show's short run was ''because'' it was almost exactly the same.

* SpecialEffectFailure: On at least five occasions, the slides fell out of the Winner's Circle trilons. You have to admire the contestant for not turning around after a large plastic sheet has just slammed into the floor right behind their back!

* AwesomeMusic: Both classic themes. [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kriS4N-zSTI Ken Aldin's "Tuning Up"]] was used from ''$10,000'' to ''$50,000''; [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K6ZB7CsSw6Q this]] replaced it and was used until ''New $100,000''. ''The Pyramid'' also utilized a nice-sounding "dance" remix of the 1982 theme.

* RetroactiveRecognition: Actor Barry Gordon, best known as [[WesternAnimation/TeenageMutantNinjaTurtles1987 Donatello]], [[SwatKats Razor/Jake Clawson]], and the [=NesQuik=] Bunny, appeared twice on the show. First on ''$20,000'' (promoted as being from ''Fish'', the short-lived spinoff of ''Series/BarneyMiller'' focusing on Abe Vigoda's character), then early on in ''New $25,000'' (presumably having been promoted as being from ''Series/ArchieBunkersPlace'' where he played Archie's Jewish accountant, Mel).

*** And much later, ''TheOnion'' [[http://www.theonion.com/graphic/rerun-of-25000-pyramid-adjusted-for-inflation-9681 made a similar joke]] about ''New $25,000'' reruns being adjusted for inflation- now it's ''The $53,715.89 Pyramid''. (And oddly, they used the "[[YouMakeMeSic Anthing With A Collar]]" blooper for the photo.)

* EarWorm: Let's face it- the ''Donnymid'' theme might suck for game shows, but it's still a [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nN_5TNXPYgg pretty catchy techno tune]].

* EarWorm: Let's face it- the ''Donnymid'' theme might suck for game shows, but it's still a [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nN_5TNXPYgg&start=00:00&end=01:30 pretty catchy techno tune]].

* RetroactiveRecognition: Actor Barry Gordon, best known as [[WesternAnimation/TeenageMutantNinjaTurtles1987 Donatello]], [[SwatKats Razor/Jake Clawson]], and the [=NesQuik=] Bunny, appeared twice on the show. First on ''$20,000'' (promoted as being from ''Fish'', the short-lived spinoff of ''Series/BarneyMiller'' focusing on Abe Vigoda's character), then early on in ''New $25,000'', presumably having been promoted as being from ''Series/ArchieBunkersPlace'', the short-lived spinoff of ''Series/AllInTheFamily'' (where he played Archie's Jewish accountant, Mel).

*** The Winner's Circle itself had some bad writing and plenty of {{Moon Logic Puzzle}}s. This wasn't helped by anal judging which required the category names to be said verbatim for credit to be given.
*** Because there were no returning champions in this version, in order to qualify for the tournament, a player had to conquer the Winner's Circle twice on the same day, which given the before mentioned problems was harder then before. The same thing was required to win the top prize in the tournament, meaning any tournament winner had to conquer the Winner's Circle four times in 2 days. On top of that, the top prize was still $100,000 dollars in an era where million dollar game shows were big.

### The Winner's Circle pyramid, the show's centerpiece (used in every version and pilot), was ousted for the first time in the franchise's history in favor of seven large monitors shaped like a horizontal pyramid. The center screen was used for both game boards, while the two surrounding it were used to display the words in the front game. The other four were just... there, and it didn't help that the Winner's "Circle" itself was actually pyramid-shaped.

-->'''John''': You need seven to tie and eight to win—(''buzzer'')

* BrokenBase: Fandom opinion is divided over whether the most recent version hosted by Mike Richards is worth watching. Some feel it's a breath of fresh air compared to ''Donnymid'', while others aren't comfortable with Richards hosting or the removal of the bonuses in the main game. More still aren't comfortable with [[WhatAnIdiot the less-than-stellar gameplay from celebrities and contestants.]], or the fact that the "dance" theme was substituted over the 1982 theme in post-production.

* AwesomeMusic: Both classic themes. [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kriS4N-zSTI Ken Aldin's "Tuning Up"]] was used from ''$10,000'' to ''$50,000''; [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K6ZB7CsSw6Q this]] replaced it and was used until ''New $100,000''.
* BrokenBase: Fandom opinion is divided over whether the most recent version hosted by Mike Richards is worth watching. Some feel it's a breath of fresh air compared to ''Donnymid'', while others aren't comfortable with Richards hosting or the removal of the bonuses in the main game. More still aren't comfortable with [[WhatAnIdiot the less-than-stellar gameplay from celebrities and contestants.]]

** Once after getting buzzed Vicki Lawrence in ''$100,000'' once [[CrowningMomentOfFunny called the judge an asshole]], earning a hug from Dick Clark.

* AwesomeMusic: [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K6ZB7CsSw6Q The classic theme, of course!]]
* BrokenBase: Fandom opinion is divided over whether the most recent version hosted by Mike Richards is worth watching. Some feel it's a breath of fresh air compared to ''Donnymid'', while others aren't comfortable with Richards hosting or the removal of the bonuses in the main game.

* TheProblemWithLicensedGames: ''The $1,000,000 Pyramid'' for the Nintendo {{Wii}}, easily one of the worst game show video games ever created. No Mii support (typical of Ludia's Wii games), the classic 1982-91 logo is a lie since the game otherwise copies pretty much everything from ''Donnymid'' (the version most fans hate viciously), zero computer AI (your opponents start off by scoring '''one point''' on just about every subject; they get smarter as you progress, but will never pose a challenge), laboriously slow gameplay, hideous camera angles (no shots of the Winner's Circle pyramid while you're playing it), and the $1,000,000 top prize is awarded '''every time''' you clear the Winner's Circle — thus you have no incentive to play it after clearing the game once... unless you ''really'' want to unlock the wardrobe items.

*** One involved a team who found the Mystery 7 last. They only needed four points to win, but by long-standing rules would play out the category to try for a trip to Aruba. John apparently didn't know this, because a stagehand flashed a cue card reading "but keep playing" and he had to ask what it meant. (To John's credit, the same thing happened later in the run and he handled it flawlessly.)

* TheyChangedItNowItSucks: The 1996-97 pilots altered the gameplay (and the set!) ''very'' drastically. Would you believe one celebrity for ''each category''?

* ItsHardSoItSucks: Detractors of the show feel the difficulty in the Winner's Circle isn't helped by the judging which became stricter with each series. Among the most vocal complaint is a smart contestant could wind up paying for a mistake made by the celebrity whenever an unhelpful or illegal clue leads to a loss. Others criticize the illegality of certain clues, such as synonyms even if the parts of speech don't agree and some that drift into MoonLogic territory (e.g. For "Things You Fry", a "French Potato" was buzzed because "there is no such thing as a french potato").
** Some clues could be buzzed haphazardly. On one episode, "Mulberries" was a legal clue for "Things on a Bush" and it led to a $25,000-win. "Elastic" was used as a clue for "Flexible Things" and this also resulted in a win. On different episodes, the same two clues were used on the same two categories and both somehow got buzzed.