Since the dawn of mankind, narratives have exercised significant effects on human life as a means of transferring experiences and relationships. However, not many studies about aspects of oral narratives can be traced, especially in the realm of cross - linguistics research. This paper, hence, aims to investigate evaluative strategies employed in some American and Vietnamese TV talk shows, which was represented by two research questions regarding the similarities and differences between the two sets of narrative evaluation. Fifteen personal narratives were extracted from five well - known TV talk shows in the U.S, and the other fifteen from five Vietnamese counterparts. These excerpts were transcribed and subsequently analysed, through descriptive and contrastive methods, to seek the answers to the research questions. The findings of the paper illustrate that American and Vietnamese narrators share preferences of using certain evaluative elements but utilize several lexical devices differently, which might generate from disparity in narrating style or cultural factors. It is hoped that the theoretical contributions and practical applications of the study would be of help in the light of both semi - institutional communication and pedagogical purpose.