The Mystery Round is one of the gameplay elements on Wheel of Fortune.
History[]
"The Mystery Round: it's all or nothing! What's on the other side of the Mystery Wedge? It could be a Bankrupt or (insert prize and value)."
The Mystery Round debuted on September 2, 2002. It offers a chance at an extra prize in the main game: a pair of Mystery Wedges are placed on the Wheel in Round 2, both with a "face value" of $1,000 ($500 in Seasons 20-21). If a contestant lands on it and calls a correct letter, s/he may take the money for those letters or risk their current earnings (including any cardboard) for a chance at the prize: one wedge has the prize on the reverse, while the other has a Bankrupt. Flipping the wedge also forfeits whatever amount is earned by calling a correct letter on it. If either wedge is flipped over, the other is played at face value for the rest of the round. Since its debut, a tinkle effect and synthesized chord play if an "active" wedge is landed on; during Halloween weeks, a spooky effect such as a moan or howling wolf is added. On April 30, 2010, an organ riff of unknown origin sounded instead.
The prize was often in the $10,000 range when the round debuted. For the first season only, most weeks had one prize offered on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, and a different one on Tuesday and Thursday.
Frequently it would be a compact car such as a Chevrolet Aveo or $10,000 in credit to a merchant. On four occasions, it was a cruise. Starting in late Season 21, it began offering $10,000 cash with increasing frequency. The $10,000 Mystery Prize is treated like a Prize Wedge and cannot be spent on vowels. Since October 3, 2005, it has almost always been that (the last non-$10,000 prize being a Nissan Versa during the week of February 19, 2007). Also, from October 3, 2005 to Season 37, a graphic effect showed viewers what is on the reverse of a wedge if it is landed on and a correct letter is called. Beginning in Season 31, that graphic is only used if a contestant decides not to flip over the wedge, barring instances when the contestant solves immediately after declining.
The Mystery Wedges have had six designs, always including a question mark in a circle above the dollar amount, which is in the Clarendon Bold font. They were originally black with a blue circle, a color scheme which was reversed in Season 22. In Season 23, the circles were changed from black to red and the font was darkened. In Season 24, the font became slightly lighter and the digits got a sparkling outline. On November 3, 2008, the wedges' fronts and Bankrupt side became indigo and the outlines were removed; in Season 32, they became a blue-purple gradient.
The Bankrupt side has also changed over time: it was originally light yellow on black (per the obverse), but for Season 22 changed to dark blue on black. Seasons 23-31 had it as black-on-blue, which changed in Season 32 to a blue-purple gradient. The Bankrupt side lettering was originally in the font that is the same font as the other Bankrupt wedges, but when the wedge was redesigned in season 32, the Bankrupt font was made narrow.
The $10,000 side is lime green, and the font is Clarendon. From Seasons 22-31, it had a $10,000 bill on top and transparent bills all over itself. In Season 32, the $10,000 side had its top bill removed and the numbers moved upward.
The Mystery Wedges were originally located over the green $500 (between $300 and $800) and the orange-yellow (changed to blue in Season 24) $500 between $900 and $300. In Season 26, the latter was moved to the blue $300 (changed to $700 in Season 30) next to Lose A Turn and the green $500 became a second blue $500 (changed to $300 in Season 30, then $600 in Season 32).
The Mystery Round was in Round 3 until October 17, 2011, when it moved to Round 2. However, the weeks of October 24 and December 26, plus December 5-8 and January 9, had it in Round 3 due to being taped before the change.
Starting in Season 35, if the $10,000 is won, that amount is also awarded to a randomly-drawn Wheel Watchers Club member (except during the Secret Santa Sweepstakes).
Since 2021, episodes with Mystery Wedge wins cannot be included in Saturday reruns.
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