Let's "Duel!"

This week marks the premiere and week-long event for ABC's new game show Duel. The show, with host Mike Greenberg at the helm, kicked things off Monday night in a 90-minute episode that featured three duels and three "champions."

The game itself has been hyped as a cross between Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? and the World Series of Poker. I definitely saw elements of Millionaire, from the pool of contestants to the answer boards. The poker part is lacking a little bit so far, however. Even though they play with poker chips (distributed by gown-clad "chip girls"), there hasn't been much bluffing or the mental elements of play that are seen in poker games. However, the show is so much fun that we can overlook this - for now.

Here's my quick pros and cons list after watching the premiere:

Pros:

• Mike Greenberg is professional, well-spoken, and seems to be warming up to his new role.
• The game is easy to follow and play along with at home.
• The questions range from pretty simple to ridiculously difficult.
• There is a huge variety of contestants in the contestant pool.
• The tie-breaker round is fast and exciting.

Cons:

• Three duels could easily have been played within an hour-long show. Too many commercials and too many dramatic pauses dragged things out a bit.
• The winner of the tie-breaker round doesn't win any money, despite having chips left and winning a highly stressful duel.
• Mike Greenberg seemed to play favorites with the contestants, not warming up at all to a very nervous Sue, but hugging the overly excitable Denise.

With these points in mind, I'm really looking forward to the rest of the week, and to the finale on Sunday night when the winner will be crowned. Ratings-wise, the show held its own against new reality competition Clash of the Choirs on NBC, and reruns on FOX and CBS. If this continues throughout the week, we may just see more Duel in the new year.