Cologne (dpa) – At that time again, Jörg Dräger is fiddling with his magic jacket, which seems to have more banknotes in her pockets than at an ATM.

He looks at his candidate, a nice young man, deep in his eyes and makes him an offer: money. If he does not take Gate 3. In addition, he whispers: What a terrible person – Jörg Drager – if he would deceive such a beloved candidate. “Then I should be such an ass that I’m not!”

Well, you can cut it short: Jörg Draeger is clearly exactly that in his role on the show. His candidate remains brave, refuses any money, and finally opens Gate 3 in the television studio in Cologne-Ossendorf. The result: a fantastic trip to the Dominican Republic. Drager tried to steal it from him.

All this could have happened just as it did in 1996 – but in fact it’s November 2021. Game program “Go for the Whole!” , which has been on the daily TV special for about 25 years, is back. The first episodes that were recently taped on Friday (November 26, 8:15 p.m.) can be watched on Saturday 1 – now as a full primetime show. After “Wetten, dass..?” (ZDF) and “TV total” (ProSieben) is the revival of the third program in a short time.

The broadcaster, who allowed the series’ 76-year-old veteran Draeger to get new air time at the Broome Big Brother’s summer home, didn’t work on the concept at all. In essence, it’s still a matter of choosing from different gates, boxes, or envelopes. No sooner had the decision been made than Draeger gave her a sly smile and tried to shake her with the money. If you gamble away you’ll hear a long “Dooooooaaaaang” and don’t get the desired ride or smart bike – but Zonk. The first difference is noticeable here: Zonk can be played in the new version, whereas in the past it sometimes waited motionless like a bag of screws behind the gates.

Even then, it wasn’t entirely clear who was more prominent – the red-studded amulet or Drager. In any case, most important is Draeger, who turns actually simple games into a mini-drama through seduction and deception. A skill that is difficult to learn in Al-Mushrif school. “You can wake me up at night and I’ll be right back,” he says.

On the show, Drager wears a wide bow tie and handkerchief. He also inquires about his candidate’s relationship status more consistently (“Are you married or in an established relationship?”) than some dating agencies. Like it or not, it’s definitely retro. Moderator Daniel Bushman, born in 1980, is responsible for the new items. Once he looked at his grandmother’s legs, Maria with a wave, he says.

Boschmann’s task is, among other things, to engage in a verbal exchange of blows with Draeger and find suitable candidates from the audience. The reactionary wave is believed to have its causes. Lately, there has been a lot of conflict on television and a lot of bad news from all over the world around him. “Obviously a lot of people are longing for some escape from reality, to have a good time,” he says. “And that’s exactly what entertainment TV does: entertain. That doesn’t mean you ignore everything else.”

Drager himself says he no longer believes in the return of “Keep it up!” , which ran between 1992 and 1997 on Saturday 1 and from 1999 to 2003 on Capel Ainz. Then one day the call came. With his image as a mediocre man on the part of Zonk, he seems to have never objected.

“I have Zonk with me everywhere. When we lived in Tenerife, I never had a mosaic stone water lily in the pool—I had a huge Zonk,” Draeger says. It also hangs in every room with him. “I’ve found a place where I feel really good.” Now the gate was wide opened again.