You may have noticed the appearance of a pair of dueling karaoke-cum-game shows on primetime television this week. NBC’s has “The Singing Bee,” hosted by ex-boy bander Joey Fatone (affectionately known at YuppiePunk World HQ as Joey Fat One), while FOX airs the Wayne Brady-hosted “Don’t Forget the Lyrics!“

Battle of the Hosts
Both hosts are incredibly white bread, despite one of them being a bona fide black dude. Joey Fatone just seems out of his element and at a constant loss for words. Also, he high-fives contestants when they get the lyrics to a song right. High-fives them like Borat, only not ironic. Though nearly as funny. Wayne Brady, however, is the far superior host. Spending several seasons on “Who’s Line Is It Anyway?,” plus a few more as the Emmy-winning host of his own daytime talk show, Brady is adept at interacting with contestants — and also quite charming. Advantage: “Lyrics.”

Battle of the Hosts’ Facial Hair
Both men have beards. But not the I’ve-let-myself-go beard that Rick Rubin rocks, which has never gone out of (or into) style, but the itty-bitty type of beard that takes a lot of manscaping to get just right. Slight advantage: “Lyrics”

Song Selection
Nearly identical. In fact the first episode of each show featured “Joy to the World” by Three Dog Night and The Bangles’ “Walk Like an Egyptian.” Advantage: None.

Primary Influence of the Show’s Look, Feel and Game Structure
“The Singing Bee” has a hyper-kinetic style that mashes-up karaoke, “Dance Fever” and “The Price Is Right.” It barrels out of the gate like a rodeo bull and never looks back, running through dozens of songs and several contestants as it whittles them down from the starting six to four, then two, then one. The show has several rounds, each with its own set of rules, but the unceasing energy of each is obnoxious and eventually takes its toll. “Don’t Forget The Lyrics!” takes its cue from shows that focus on contestant drama more than the game itself -– shows like “Deal or No Deal” and “Who Wants to Be A Millionaire,” the latter of which it borrows from liberally with it’s three lifelines and ascending money tree. “Lyrics” also looks a lot like “American Idol.” Advantage: “Lyrics.”

Top Prize
No comparison here, with “Lyrics’” million dollar prize besting “The Singing Bee’s” (paltry by primetime game show standards) $50k.

Bandleaders
Ray Chew leads the band on “The Singing Bee.” He’s a former pianist in the “Saturday Night Live” band, and current member of the band on “Showtime at the Apollo.” Also a member of the “Showtime at the Apollo” band is “Lyrics” bandleader Ricky Minor, who also did time on “American Idol,” “America’s Got Talent” and “Celebrity Duets.”

Viewers for the Premiere
Despite holding on to much of its lead-in audience, “Don’t Forget the Lyrics!” nabbed 8.6 million viewers, while “The Singing Bee” brought in nearly double that number for a total of 13.3 million viewers for it’s premiere.

Verdict
The key to enjoying these shows is the same as enjoying karaoke: Get as drunk as possible. The concept of both shows is fine, and both are over-the-top with their flashing lights, umpteen piece bands and megawatt productions. “Don’t Forget the Lyrics!” is the better of the two shows, but it too, like most modern primetime game shows, will quickly wear out viewers with its derivative concept and repetitive game play. We challenge either show to be half as entertaining as the no-budget reruns of “Match Game” (which air daily on GSN), which are so enjoyable (this is where the audience would chant, “How enjoyable are they!”), viewers get ______ed while they watch them.

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