business venture. However, in October 2013, this requirement was repealed by the network, retroactively, due to pressure from panel member Mark Cuban. Cuban felt the requirement would lower the quality of the entrepreneurs, as savvy investors would be wary of trading away a portion of their company just for appearing on the show. A number of potential entrepreneurs had declined to participate in the show for this reason. COVID-19 precautions During the 12th season, the show was moved to Las Vegas, Nevada. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the 12th season was produced in a quarantine bubble (which applied to the production staff but not the sharks or entrepreneurs themselves), the set was partially rearranged so the sharks' chairs were at least six feet away from each other, and the sharks would not come up to the entrepreneurs to shake their hands when a deal was made (a wave or "long-distance fist bump" was used instead). In future seasons, the handshakes returned but the chairs have remained separated. Spin-offs and specials In 2015, ABC launched a companion series, Beyond the Tank, which shows the current state of companies that appeared on Shark Tank, including both those that made a deal and those that were rejected by investors. Two seasons of Beyond the Tank have aired so far, one in 2015 and one in 2016. A prime time special titled Shark Tank: Greatest of All Time premiered on February 26, 2020. Reception Critical reception During its first season, Shark Tank saw a mostly positive reception. Josh Wolk of Entertainment Weekly wrote, "The moneymen ask informed questions and make shrewd decisions, a welcome relief from Donald Trump's capricious calls on Burnett's Celebrity Apprentice". Heather Havrilesky from Salon said that "ABC's Shark Tank is easily the best new reality TV show to air this summer." Tom Shales of The Washington Post wrote, "It sounds gimmicky and visually tedious, with most of the so-called action taking place in a conference room. It's all those things, but the moments of misery make it memorable." Shales noted that the series was premiering during an economic recession, and that many of the aspiring entrepreneurs had poured significant amounts of money into their businesses; he praised "how deftly the show personalizes the desperation and pain experienced by victims of a broken down economy." And David Hinckley of the New York Daily News said, "Once you get past its somewhat