/ Matthew Pitt / 16 February 2011 / Leave a Comment 
There is a well-known saying that goes along the lines of "if it is not broken, then do not fix it" and basically implies that is something is working well then there is no need to alter anything about it. Try telling that to the bosses at GSN, formerly known on-air as the Game Show Network, the producers of the ever-popular "High Stakes Poker."
For five seasons viewers were delighted with the show as it allowed them to watch some of the biggest names in poker fight it out in a series of high stakes cash games, where most poker shown on television was in a tournament format. Another reason the show was such a success was the chemistry between the host, Gabe Kaplan and his co-host, AJ Benza. Although their humour was sometimes cringe-worthy, they were a great double act that certainly added something to the show.
Notice how I wrote that in the past tense, that is because before the start of the sixth season the bosses at GSN announced that AJ Benza had been axed and a new female co-host was being sought after. That particular female co-host turned out to be Kara Scott and although pleasing on the eye and someone who certainly knows their way around in poker environment, the chemistry previously seen between Kaplan and Benza simply was not there. Many fans openly critisised the decision to replace Benza with Scott but despite this the viewing figures soared by almost 27% for the shows target demographic of adult males ages between 18-49.
Having such high ratings is worth a lot of money to the show as they could essentially charge what they liked for sponsorship, something that until recently they had refrained from having. In December of 2010, just as filming for the seventh season began, it was announced that PokerStars would be the shows primary sponsor going forward and it has had a serious knock-on effect for the line-up of pros who will be taking part in the show. There are going to be some noticeable absentees when the first episode airs on Saturday 26 February.
As Full Tilt Poker are in direct competition with PokerStars, being the two largest, American facing sites, they have refused to allow their stable of pros from taking part so viewers are going to be deprived of the talents of Mike Matusow, Eli Elezra, Tom "durrrr" Dwan and Phil Ivey, all of whom brought something to the show. There will still be some familiar faces such as Daniel Negreanu, Barry Greenstein and Antonio Esfandiari but I cannot help but wonder how much of an impact losing the Full Tilt players will have, especially as some of them brought some serious action to the table.
Another change, possibly forced and out of GSN's control, was Kaplan's departure from the show. No official statement from the producers or from Kaplan himself has been put into the public domain so one could only speculate on his reasons for parting company after six seasons. Kaplan's replacement is Canadian actor and stand-up comedian, Norm Macdonald who admitted in an interview with Poker News Daily that although he loves the show, he has virtually no live announcing experience! Probably not the best replacement in the world but he deserves a chance to prove the poker community wrong.
The final change brought into play for the upcoming season is that it will be broadcast in 3D for the first time ever. Those who have the necessary viewing equipment will be able to watch people playing cards in 3D. Why you would even consider it is the real question.
Can High Stakes Poker survive after all of these changes? Will losing the Full Tilt pros and Kabe Kaplan be too much for the viewers to take? Will you still be tuning in? I will be watching, in standard 2D of course, just to see how the show plays out. I am all for change but only if it adds to the experience of whatever is being altered, I just cannot see how the plethora of alterations to one of my favourite shows are going to be positive.
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