WHEEL of Fortune fans have spotted a letter changing on the new puzzle board without being prompted by Vanna White.
Season 4O of the long-running game show introduced a brand new LCD screen puzzle board.
5
The new Wheel of Fortune board no longer requires the show’s hostess, Vanna, 65, to touch a blank letter space to activate it.
The updated puzzle board is now controlled remotely by producers inside a control room.
During last night’s Triple Toss Up segment, a fan noticed the board behaving differently than what viewers are accustomed to.
They tweeted, “I’ve never seen this before. Vanna always touches the final letter to begin the Toss-Up. This time a random letter lit up; must be the new laser-guided Vanna detector.”
This isn’t the first time viewers have been dissatisfied with the show’s new puzzle board.
Fans watched, what some have called a jarring new puzzle board, get taken for a spin during the September 12th premiere.
The show offered a glamorous cold open, showing both Vanna and show host, Pat Sajak, 74, against a black backdrop.
“Season 40 starts now,” a glistening Vanna stated before the pair headed toward the usual posts.
Most read in Entertainment
The game started as Pat proclaimed, “We have an XL wedge, double the chance for you to win a million dollars… let’s do our first toss-up!”
The first clue began to spell out “Forty seasons on television” without Vanna, wearing a gorgeous silver dress, touching the pieces.
One player, unfortunately, guessed “Funny seasons on television” but that isn’t what made fans furious.
It was because the puzzle board, which hasn’t been updated in nearly two decades, got a makeover – it now features the same technology that powers the Nasa Mars Rover.
Previously, Vanna manually turned the letter pieces of the board, and since 1997, has touched the edges of individual monitors.
Now, the 40-year-host only has to gesture toward the screen and the letters change from the control room.
During another clue, which was looking for “The Incredible Hulk,” Vanna touched an “H” with a finger and then pressed harder with her hand and it finally turned.
FAN REACTIONS
One YouTube user wrote under a clip of the episode: “I miss when Vanna would touch the letters on screens.”
Another fan roared: “It is even more ridiculous than before to have Vanna turn on the letters.
“She used to flip them, then press a button, now they most likely turn on the letter when they see her touching it.”
“It can be all done backstage. When the Disney characters were on, they didn’t even pretend to touch the board.”
“Wow,” a third person simply commented.
NO NEED TO WORRY
Ahead of the season premiere, the show tried to get ahead of this backlash after they debuted the bizarre new board.
Alongside Pat’s daughter, Maggie Sajak, 25, and announcer Jim Thorton, Pat, Vanna, and the gang pretended to be struggling on set having switched roles.
The clip was coyly captioned: “Places, everyone! Wait, something seems different…”
“I’m still your host,” Pat then assured at the end.
“I’m still at the puzzle board,” Vanna added in a beautiful floral number.
Announcer Jim Thorton then stated: “We’re all where we should be.”
5
5
5