The Final Straw (TV series)

In each round, teams are presented with a tall stack of objects following a general theme, such as "1950s diner" or "kid's room." Flat circular platforms are sandwiched between adjacent layers, and the diameter of the stack remains constant along its entire height. A random draw determines which team has initial control.

In each of the first two rounds, two new teams alternate removing one object at a time. Only one teammate can play per turn, and once an object has been touched, the team must remove it on that turn. They may rotate or slide the object as desired and take as much time to remove it as they wish. A movable stepladder is provided so that teams can reach the upper layers of the stack. Some objects are rigged to make them more difficult to remove ("stack traps"), such as a laundry basket with a hidden rope of socks threaded through a hole in the platform on which it sits. If any part of the stack collapses, the last team to have touched it is eliminated, regardless of the time elapsed between touching/removal of the last object and the collapse.

The winning teams in the first two rounds receive $5,000 apiece and face each other in the third round, in which one object is secretly designated as a sabotage. If a team successfully removes it, the opponents must comply with a restriction on their next turn that can take one of two forms. In some episodes, they must take an object from a specific layer, determined by a random draw. In others, they are given a hindrance such as having their vision obscured by goggles or a long wig.

The winners of the third round receive a further $10,000 and advance to the Mega Stack.

The stack is built from cylindrical capsules stood on end, with those in one layer taller than all others, and the diameter varies from one layer to the next. The object of this round is to remove as many of the short "cash" capsules as possible within a time limit. The clock is initially set at two minutes, but each tall "time" capsule removed will extend it by that same amount. In order for a capsule to count, it must be dropped into a vault at the edge of the stage after being removed.

The team's winnings increase as shown below.

Once the team reaches each winnings threshold, the clock stops briefly and they must decide whether to end the round and keep their money, or continue playing and attempt to win more. If the team either collapses the stack or runs out of time, the round ends and their winnings are reduced by one level. If they choose to end the round, they are given a chance to play on unofficially and see if they would have been able to increase their winnings.

If the round ends with the stack still upright, the host and the team deliberately knock it over.

A team can win up to $265,000 in a single episode, by winning both their preliminary round and Round 3 and then removing 15 cash capsules from the Mega Stack before time runs out.