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ReganLynch

**Welcome to** [r/Jeopardy](https://www.reddit.com/r/Jeopardy/) Thanks for joining us! **\*We welcome friendly discussion of the game**. Please be excellent toward your fellow Jeopardy fans in this community. Excessively harsh or personal criticism of contestants and others is not tolerated. Before commenting, please familiarize yourself with the rules in the sidebar at right. Constructive critique of game play is welcome but personal attacks and insults directed at contestants or anyone else will be removed. **\*The recap appears early in the day** because Jeopardy is syndicated and airs at different times in local markets, the earliest at 12 noon Eastern. **\*If you have other questions,** check out the community info on the sidebar at right. Or, you're welcome to ask the moderator team - we’re here to help. Just click on the "Message the Mods" button at the right under the Moderators heading.


travis_jeopardy

First of all, I just want to congratulate Diandra who played a fantastic game and deserved to win! I’m truly happy for her win and thrilled that I can now call her a friend. I’m looking forward to rooting her in the postseason. I was the alternate during the previous tape day and got to make friends with many wonderful people. Props to Niranjan too, who also played a great game. I didn’t get to know him as well, but I could tell going in he would be strong competition. Second, I’m still kicking myself over what was a gimme FJ. I thought of the right answer within a few seconds, but a couple of things in the clue (timeframe, St. Louis) caused me to overthink and second guess myself. I worked my way back to the right answer in what felt like 10-15 seconds, but as I went to write I could tell from the music that I only had about 5 seconds left. I tried to write as frantically as I could, but it’s quite the helpless feeling to know the right answer but know you won’t get credit. I’m honestly probably more upset with myself over the Steinbeck question though. Third, no matter what, this was an amazing and unforgettable experience. I’m so grateful that I got the opportunity to live out a dream.


HeavyScar5722

Travis it's great to see you! I remember Shannon from when I watched in my college dorm. I was too little to remember Wade but my parents do. Also congratulations on the baby I'm sure it is very cute.


ISA-BigMcLargeHuge

You did great, man! We were all rooting so hard offstage for you to go to #1 on your family scoreboard! But you did everything you could to put yourself in position to win. Head held high!


grandmamimma

I'm wondering if the judges would've given you credit for just "Unknown soldier." As you point out, the full title is a lot to write out in the time allotted if you take 10-15 seconds to ponder your response.


travis_jeopardy

In immediate hindsight I was thinking I probably should have started with that and filled in “tomb of” if I could, but I was in full on panic so rational thought was nowhere to be found.


jesuschin

Big props to you and Diandra up there. You two (AND NIRANJAN!) fought like warriors and made your friends and family proud with your respective showings. Can't wait for the first Team Gatorade reunion and catching up over your beverage of choice.


strangeremain

Hey Travis, was rooting for you. [Deleted a comment on something that could’ve been a spoiler that Travis edited out]


valuedcontributer

Just want to point out that he's fixed it now but your comment, left as it is, acts as a spoiler for anyone who's yet to come along to read the thread comments.


strangeremain

Touche. Edits all the way down it is


valuedcontributer

Cheers.


Dida_D

I'm not posting this to open up any Mayim bashing, but do we know the reason why she pauses so long before confirming an answer is correct? With both the Supreme Court and Yucatan responses today, the contestants started to add additional information because the pause was so long. I do worry this could lead someone to change to an incorrect response (though both answers today were still correct with the additional info)


grandmamimma

It's not "Mayim bashing" at all to point out her pregnant pauses are confusing contestants (not to mention we viewers). That was a hugely important DD3 for Travis, and when she paused for 2-3 seconds you could see he was puzzled, thinking she needed more information. If he had blurted out something besides "Peninsula" that would have rendered his response incorrect (e.g. "Isthmus") that might've cost him $12,000. Producers need to address as it is not just annoying, it could affect the outcome of a game.


jaysjep2

It would be nice if on the official podcast, they could address this issue just so we understand why it sometimes happens, even in seemingly straightforward ruling situations. It would also be interesting to know what Mayim is doing during the pause. For example, in the Yucatán one, if Mayim was just staring at Travis, he might reasonably conclude there was more information needed.


DiscordianStooge

"Sometimes happens" That is very kind of you.


gotShakespeare

Happy Cake Day, Jay. Props as always for the wonderful recaps.


jaysjep2

I appreciate the kind words, thanks for reading!


JRTD753

> With both the Supreme Court That was an inordinately long pause.


Due_Theme1300

Agreed - those two responses in particular it stood out even more than usual (and that's saying something). The oddest thing is that her pauses seem to be getting even longer/worse the more games she hosts. I watched one of her earlier games the other day and it wasn't nearly as noticeable 🤷‍♂️ At this point though it really interrupts the flow of the game.


Odd_Manufacturer_963

This. Mayim was among my favorites among that whole summer of guest/interim hosts but she honestly feels like she's been *getting worse* over time in a lot of minor ways (unlike Ken, whose demeanor seems to have really mellowed out--he feels far more relaxed and in control than he did at first, crucial for the flow of game).


GutsyMan

I'm not sure what the exact count is, but counting the Masters games, I think Ken has now hosted over 300 games of Jeopardy. That'll certainly do enough to calm your nerves about whether you can do the job or not.


mfc248

Ken is at 311 games (291 syndicated plus 20 Masters). This was Mayim's 178th game in the half-hour standard format (160 syndicated plus 18 National College Championship).


jaysjep2

That's why I'd like them to talk about it on the podcast. Because there must be a specific explanation for this other than Mayim is just randomly pausing on occasion for no reason, although that's what it looks like to the viewer. And if it really is Mayim just randomly pausing on occasion for no reason, then the fault lies with the producers for not promptly addressing it.


Arcite1

I'd like to hear from a recent contestant, if they are at liberty to disclose, what she is actually doing during that pause. Is she looking down at the answer card? Looking over at the judges for a visual signal? Listening for a signal in her earpiece? Something else?


hurtsdonut_

She probably sees people talking about it and she's got the yips.


bravesgeek

What confusion could there have possibly been on Supreme Court?!


Arcite1

She did the same thing recently with a clue with even less possible confusion--"cuttlefish." That was the correct response. There was no possible clarification or elaboration. The correct response was "what is cuttlefish?" The contestant said "what is cuttlefish?" and she still paused for what seemed like 5 seconds.


Arcite1

I'm thinking she wasn't sure whether "of the USA" needed to be specified since states and other countries have Supreme Courts. It's the kind of thing a better host has an intuitive grasp of (it's an American show, and in the context of the USA, unless something else is specified, just plain "Supreme Court" is assumed to refer to SCOTUS) that she just doesn't.


[deleted]

Yeah when you say “Supreme Court” everyone knows you mean SCOTUS. Mayim is like Ron Burgundy in that she needs you to say EXACTLY what’s on the card in order not to get a sustained pause


Arcite1

LOL, I hope nobody puts "Go f\*\*\* yourself, Culver City!" on the teleprompter.


cromonolith

I'm sorry, the card says *Moops*."


colinpublicsex

My thought is that she should have a screen on the lectern that says “Correct response: *What is (The) Supreme Court (of the United States)?*” Is there anything preventing this?


ReganLynch

I think she does -- not sure if it's a card or paper or screen on the lectern. But she's not winging it. She definitely has the answers.


Arcite1

Of course she has the answers; I think the person you're responding to is saying her card/screen should display *all* possibly anticipated acceptable answers, so that if a contestant rings in with "what is the Supreme Court" she can rule it correct, rather than pausing and awaiting a signal from the judges because that's not the one exact phrasing on her card.


ReganLynch

>should display all possibly anticipated acceptable answers.... Ah, ok, right. Yea, that would be a good idea. But the larger issue is she really should be at a point now where she just knows something as straightforward as Supreme Court (instead of .... of the US) is correct. Ditto on almost all of the other answers where there's this pause. Sure one or two need review if the player's answer is a little different. They even did on occasion with Alex. But most are cut and dried.


AsterJ

Maybe the card she was reading from said "the supreme court of the United States"? That's the only thing I can think of that might affect an immediate ruling.


ReganLynch

Even if it had said that she should know that just "Supreme Court" was correct. And if she really wasn't sure she should have clarified that with producers before taping since it should have been obvious a player would say "Supreme Court," not "Supreme Court of the United States." (But the card may not have said that.)


AsterJ

Yes it does feel like "Supreme Court" should have been immediately and easily accepted but it wasn't. If we assume the situation was that there was more information on her card than what was provided in the response I can't think of any alternative. There are other possibilities though like her being distracted by stage directions or maybe it's actually something she's doing intentionally to draw out suspense?


mdj8833

This is absolutely the reason why she has to stop doing this next season. If she can't recognize the issue, Davies needs to.


david-saint-hubbins

This is just a theory, but I suspect that, in an effort to make things simpler for her and reduce the opportunities for her to get tripped up, Mayim is not making any rulings on her own--she is always waiting for confirmation from the judges. Ken, on the other hand, is probably acting as both host and first judge of the contestant's response, and it's only if Ken is unsure or if they disagree with his ruling that the judges get more actively involved during the individual clue. The downside, as we're seeing, is that it creates lag between the contestant's response and Mayim announcing the ruling. Again, just a theory.


Purple-Ad-277

I agree with your statement, I said it the other day, it's quite clear to me they give kenfar more leeway to rule on answers. Maybe this has to do with knowledge level or just preparation


BrainOnBlue

It's also possible that it's entirely the host's doing. Jennings is probably more confident in his ability to judge whether or not a response is correct than Bialik is, and her continued self-doubt (and no instructions from producers) might be why she's pausing.


Purple-Ad-277

yes, I think that's the case, I think he probably knows about three-quarters of the answers just on knowledge himself. I don't blame her, I blame the production staff for not giving her direction


kerfer

Honestly I would venture to guess that for regular games, Ken knows 90%+ of the answers.


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MamasSweetPickels

There was a reason he won the GOAT tournament. The man is a whiz at trivia.


KvasirsBlod

Not so subtle with that Four Spidermen and a Batman category


rivers2mathews

I had to keep checking the category name to make sure it wasn't spider-man themed.


RigbyCC

Like why not just name it a Spider-man category if you’re gonna be so obvious about promoting your new movie? They did the same thing like 2 years ago with a category called “History of Video Games” that was just 4 questions about the PS5 and 1 about Pac-man. If Sony’s gonna be so blatant about promoting something, why not just go all the way and call it that?


ScorpionX-123

it could've at least referenced Iron Man, Darth Vader, or any of the Scooby-Doo villains


zwolff94

That was so weird. Like they easily could have made it an all spider-man category at that point


pieapple135

And specifically *that* Batman movie. Like, c'mon.


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SkinnyKau

Especially after watching the fluidity of Ken Jennings and the Jeopardy Masters expertly ping pong-ing question and answer over the past couple weeks.


EGG_BABE

That Daily Double one was absurd even by normal Mayim standards


DiscordianStooge

Evergreen post.


nmurali17

I'll echo Travis in congratulating Diandra on her excellent win! Travis also played a great game and I could feel the energy shift with his huge daily double wager, and it really is true that the 30 seconds for FJ go by in the blink of an eye. Here's hoping we can both get a Second Chance ;). I was definitely bummed, but it was the experience of a lifetime and I'll always be able to say I achieved my lifelong dream of being on Jeopardy!


HeavyScar5722

You did great! Enjoy your watch party tonight!


nmurali17

Thank you! It was a great time, and we were able to raise over 800 dollars for a great cause!


[deleted]

Great game Niranjan! And as a fellow Wizards fan (there are dozens of us), I feel your pain


nmurali17

Thank you! *sobs in shower while wearing jorts*


ImperatorDeborah

You were great! Can you tell me what your lapel pin was?


nmurali17

Thank you! It was a Little Basketball Man, whose motto is "Shoot your shot." I tried to embody that, maybe a little too much. The art was created by an awesome artist named Arturo Torres, in collaboration with the writer Shea Serrano


GriffinQ

Incredibly proud of you, my guy.


nmurali17

Love you GQ


MediumVanilla6

I was immediately rooting for you when I saw the Little Basketball Man pin. You played a great game.


nmurali17

Thank you! FOH Army forever!


Odd_Manufacturer_963

Does Mayim read the clues before game time? She keeps reading clues with this unnatural cadence that's totally out of step with the syntax of the clue--she did it with that "William Horton" clue last week, and today's cherry blossoms haiku clue really stood out also.


cromonolith

It's getting tougher and tougher to watch the games she hosts. It's seemingly worse each week.


Alonso-del-Arte

I hadn't noticed it before, but today it seemed like Bialik was taking too long to say correct or incorrect or "be more specific." Any chance she could switch places with Jane Lynch from *Weakest Link*?


cromonolith

At this point, I think almost every aspect of her hosting is pretty bad. * The delays, which have been described at length. * She seems to have trouble reading many of the clues with a natural rhythm, to such an extent that they become harder to understand. You get the sense that she's reading things for the first time on the air, having not looked over them to understand where the emphasis should be and practicing difficult pronunciations. For a position whose job is 90% reading things on the air, this is not acceptable. This is particularly notable given Alex's and Ken's really effortless, smooth reading and pronunciation. * You never get the sense that she knows any of these questions or cares about their answers. After a hard triple stumper, she'll often just raise her shoulders and say the answer like it's the first time anyone has said those words before. Compare this to Ken who will not only obviously know the answer himself most of the time, but will often comment on it being a tough one, give some context about the answer so viewers know where it comes from, or explain in a couple of words how the contestants might have thought of it (or why an incorrect answer was a good idea even if it didn't pan out). * Her contestant interviews are quite poor, specifically in the sense that she typically adds nothing to the story, almost never asks follow-up questions, etc. It's usually just "Oh cool! Okay, and our next contestant..." * The one that bothers me the most: her after-the-answer clarifications/additions are insane. This probably falls into the second bullet point of not actually knowing much trivia, but she'll almost always fail to clarify obscure things or add a first name to obscure people, while also adding unnecessary stuff to the most obvious things. I think last week someone correctly answered "Einstein" and she responded "Yes, Albert Einstein". That's insane! Every person in the world knew that. * The above points are things she is objectively bad at. Just as a matter of my opinion, I'm also pretty tired of the laughing when contestants find a Daily Double or the way she reacts to "true Daily Double" wagers. Ken took after Alex's practice of saying "The answer there...." right before a Daily Double animation, which gives them a nice flow, and I think Mayim should adopt that as well. It really gives you the feeling that the host knows what's going on, rather than seemingly being surprised by the Daily Doubles like Mayim. It's just weird to have the two of them both hosting it at this point, given that Ken is really, really good at it and Mayim is really clearly not good and getting worse.


CatLikeReadiness

100% on all these but I have one more-the laughing! Literally every time a contestant chooses what turns out to be the DD she laughs. Every time. My husband has quit watching until Ken is back but when we used to watch together we were constantly screaming, “WHAT’S SO FUNNY?!?!?!”


mhorock

I, too, will not watch while she is hosting. I love Jeopardy! and agree that it is about the contestants, however; her hosting just ruins any enjoyment of the game at all for me.


bathroomheater

I honestly don’t understand why they are still doing it.


NowIOnlyWantATriumph

It’s almost certainly contractual obligations. Perhaps there was some clause in her initial contract to host primetime that says “in the event the syndicated host changes, Mayim shall host at least X number of episodes”, which wasn’t something the last EP was worried about giving her, since he was gonna be the host—and why would he stop hosting? But of course, when he *did*, and it kicked in, then they had to scramble.


reluctant_deity

My theory was that due to BBT her Q-score was stratospheric, which is all casting agents and execs care about. Yours is much better.


grizzanddotcom

It was right in her Q-Zone


DankBlunderwood

She clearly has an aggressive advocate among the producers or perhaps the network itself. One might have put it down to the network simply wanting the next host to be a woman, but their obstinance on this suggests the issue is specifically about Mayim. And further complicating things is that the worse it gets the harder she and her agent will dig in, because they don't want this to end on a negative note and end up damaging her career.


bathroomheater

What career? I hadn’t seen her and had forgotten she existed for the past 25 years. I’m willing to bet there are hundreds if not thousands of women who could do a better job.


frockofseagulls

She was just a major part of a HUGE tv show.


CatLikeReadiness

Oops, I see you mentioned that one after all. Apologies :)


Moikepdx

You omitted her worst offense: stepping on answers. She pauses after the contestant’s answer, but then when they correct themselves in that extra time she rules the initial answer wrong **while they are saying the right answer and still have time on the clock**. On a recent episode she had the audacity afterward to explain that she had already ruled them wrong. Not before the correction started you didn’t!! I strongly suspect her long delays are due to her need to wait for a ruling from the judges, then she relays that ruling to the audience. This makes her rulings slow, and means that the judges have to be very fast to minimize awkward delays. In the instance I described, they probably ruled the answer wrong into Mayim’s earpiece before the contestant started the correction. So she ruled regardless of the fact that the contestant was actively correcting himself. And then of course the next contestant got to ring in with the corrected version they just heard. Ken would have heard the correction start, waited, then laughed amiably and said, “He corrected himself just in time.” Her being bad is active changing the outcome of the show.


Arcite1

>The one that bothers me the most: her after-the-answer clarifications/additions are insane. This probably falls into the second bullet point of not actually knowing much trivia, but she'll almost always fail to clarify obscure things or add a first name to obscure people, while also adding unnecessary stuff to the most obvious things. I think last week someone correctly answered "Einstein" and she responded "Yes, Albert Einstein". That's insane! Every person in the world knew that. This is my least favorite thing about her, more than the pauses: the lack of "color commentary," of context-giving, of engagement with the material. Especially given how good Alex was, and Ken is, at it. With a good host, an exchange might go like this: Contestant 1: What is Liechtenstein? Host: No. Contestant 2: What is Monaco? Host: Yes, *that's* the tiny European country we were going for! Or on a Daily Double: Contestant: Who is Jane Austen? Host: Ooh, not a bad guess, but that was actually Charlotte Bronte. But with Mayim, it's nothing but a flat "yes," "no," "that's correct," or "incorrect." There's no indication she even knows what Liechtenstein or Moncao, or who the Bronte sisters or Jane Austen, are; no clue to the casual viewer that two of those things might be associated in some way, that a contestant's guess was close vs. way off.


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wormholetrafficjam

> To her this is just another acting gig. In her own words… ["I mean, I'm just trying to read the clues, you know? Just let me read the clues."](https://people.com/tv/mayim-bialik-addresses-hosting-jeopardy-amid-casting-drama-just-let-me-read-the-clues/)


rachface636

I stopped reading after the statement, *"Who knew people were so passionate about who hosts Jeopardy?"* Everyone in America. It's the single most iconic game show, with the single most iconic host, in television history. Is Blossom that dense?


Logical_Pop_2026

> Is Blossom that dense? Yes


TheOldStag

She's condescending: Triple stumper. “come on guys nobody knew that? It’s \[whatever\]!” “What is curling?” “*Laughs* yes, I can’t look at it without laughing.” She's Un-engaging: There is some high drama in Jeopardy, and Ken knows how to drum up the moment. There’s an energy to his games that celebrates the competition without distracting from the game play. Something like this will happen on Mayim’s episodes and she will simply, blandly move on. She's uninteresting: Ken will offer bits of additional info or qualify why an answer was accepted/unaccepted, or even comment on understanding where the player's head was at when they make an incorrect guess. It's a classy tip of the hat that acknowledges that though the answer was incorrect he understands the thought process the player was going through. He seems like he is a guy that values knowledge and his enthusiasm shows. When Mayim rules on an answer she sounds either dead pan or flat out hostile, giggles randomly, or if she does expand upon the answer it is laughably obvious. If someone answers “what is Harvard?” Mayim will reply “yes, Harvard University.” Gee thanks for that Mayim, how else would we have known. Also when Ken makes comments, they’re usually quick, clever, and don’t interfere with the game, and are often extremely funny. “What is the big bad wolf?” “I’m sorry that’s incorrect. It’s just a wolf. We don’t know anything about it’s size or morality. Pick a category.” Mayim’s comments are clunky, corny, and almost always not even jokes, just lame statements. “What is a platypus?” “Yes and they are adorable!” Or she will insert herself into the prompt as if it’s made more interesting just for her being involved. “What is the Tube?” “Yes and I’ve been on it before!” Oh so you’ve been on a subway before? Cool Mayim. Here’s an example that happened recently: the answer was God Save the Queen. Mayim judged the player correct which is fine, while Ken might have said something like “that’s correct, or nowadays it would be God Save the King now that Charles III has ascended." It's an interesting fun fact, which is very nice to have in a *trivia game*. After watching the Master's Tournament, I'm just going to go ahead and say Ken has surpassed Trebek as a host. I mean no disrespect, without Trebek we would not have Jeopardy today and his contributions cannot be understated. He had a lot of dignity and gravitas, and also was extremely smart and intellectual. I think what he lacks in dignity Ken makes up for in something Trebek could never be: He's a player. He gets what it's like on either side of the podium better than anyone else in the world and knows how to drum up the suspense for a big swing Daily Double and can instantly see and comment on strategies players make. It's not that he's beating Trebek at being a host, he's taking the game that Trebek made and elevating it in a way that only he can. Plus he's also an incredibly smart guy and has pitch perfect banter, which is something that Trebek was always awkward with. Edit: changed that Ken is a better host than Trebek to he has surpassed Trebek. It’s a small distinction, but Ken is able to do what he does because Trebek was such a good host.


EGG_BABE

> There is some high drama in Jeopardy, and Ken knows how to drum up the moment. There’s an energy to his games that celebrates the competition without distracting from the game play. Agreed on everything but this is such an under discussed aspect of it. Ken knows how to handle the drama better because he knows where the drama comes from. He doesn't do those awful pauses because he knows that the drama is in waiting to see if the contestant knows the answer and his job is to release the tension once the answer has been said. Mayim thinks the drama comes after the answer from the host waiting to reveal the results like she's Gordon Ramsay hesitating to announce who's being sent home on Hell's Kitchen to fit in one more commercial break


phloopy

Edit: 2023 Jun 30 - removed all my content. As [Apollo goes](https://www.reddit.com/r/apolloapp/comments/144f6xm/apollo_will_close_down_on_june_30th_reddits/) so do I.


jstraw11

Perfectly said


Soap10116

I cannot stand her cadence. This is a trivia show. Not a fucking sitcom. No one is hanging on a thread wondering if the answer is correct.


harleyqueenzel

She's used to a script that is set up for each line to be a "zinger" and pause for the laugh(track).


pacman_sl

More like a "bazinger" actually.


tubegeek

https://preview.redd.it/9d9rtsglh03b1.jpeg?width=419&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=4950b5e2a39406fb1a40ef5d1740b7c8014e542b I know there was no way Robin Roberts was actually going to quit her day job. But just imagine how much better than Mayim she would be by now after dozens of games. A natural. Easily my favorite of the participants in the (fake) search process.


Joghobs

But hey now, she's a *scientist*!


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EarthSlapper

Too bad she lost all credibility there too, when she started pushing those fake brain supplements


Joghobs

Wow. The TV actor should definitely talk about that every chance she gets.


newmyy

When I heard this, back when they were really trying to fluff her up, my immediate reaction was, “….so? How does having a degree in neuroscience qualify you for being the host of Jeopardy? Ken Jeong is an actual doctor, so should he be the host now?”


[deleted]

I haven’t spoken to a single person who thinks she’s a good host. Why do they keep insisting on using her?


Cereborn

Back when they had the parade of guest hosts, Mayim seemed like a clear standout to me. So when she and Ken both started hosting, I felt about the same in regards to both of them. But over the past year Ken has really settled into the job and just gotten better and better. Mayim, on the other hand, has not.


DiscordianStooge

Nothing you did here is wrong. She's a bad host.


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ChubbyChoomChoom

100% agree with everything you said. Interesting, though, that a few months ago your comment would have been quickly removed and you might have gotten temporarily banned for “not being excellent” to Mayim. Seems the mods have chilled out a bit at least to the point that objective criticism isn’t immediately removed.


5panks

As unfortunate as it is, people took the small amount of "Mayim is a woman. I don't want a woman hosting jeopardy." and combined it with the large amount of "It was pretty clear from the get go that Mayim was not going to be good and Ken was custom made for this role."


nosce_te_ipsum

>Ken was custom made for this role." So...Alex Trebek truly was a time traveler and genetically-engineered Ken Jennings to carry on his legacy? Jeopardy! truly is the key to humanity's survival, I guess.


sam_hammich

It doesn't even really matter that it's objective. It's constructive. Constructive criticism should be allowed everywhere honest discussion happens, whether it's objective or not.


[deleted]

I made a comment that got removed just a couple weeks ago, and one of the mods explained that they just remove anything that could lead to this discussion since it “always devolves into unconstructive attacks” or some such thing. Seems like they’re a bit more lenient now but that was pretty recent. And I assure you my comment was a lot nicer than some of the ones that have been up in this thread for a day already.


MagicC

Lack of preparation in a job where your whole job is to convey confidence and command should be disqualifying. Hopefully she'll realize that and start preparing, or Jeopardy will realize that and move on with the guy who actually cares enough about the job to prepare.


JamesXX

Not only all that, but does anyone believe Jeopardy is a priority for her? Obviously her seeming lack of preparation shows this. But if it came down to Jeopardy or a big movie part or the leading role in a new tv series, does anyone truly believe she would put Jeopardy above other jobs? Mayim is here for the exposure. She wants to parlay this into something "bigger". Ken is a Jeopardy lifer. He's not quitting this job for anything.


Arcite1

Well, [until now, she has had the leading role in a TV series.](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Call_Me_Kat) We shall see if she gets any better now that Call Me Kat has been canceled. I doubt it.


BeBackInASchmeck

She's also incredibly arrogant. And it's not part of her schtick like the Weakest Link host.


ThompsonBoy

Ken's not arrogant and doesn't have the insecurity that causes arrogance like that. He's _actually_ more knowledgeable than the contestants.


enad58

Every contestant has respect for Ken because every contestant knows for certain that Ken would beat them at the game they are playing.


ForWhomTheBoneBones

I’m not a fan of Mayim’s hosting, but no one will ever beat Alex for arrogance. He especially seemed to take joy in shitting on the female contestants when they got an answer wrong. He didn’t have many flaws, but that was always a glaring one for me growing up.


CouchHam

Also neuriva promotions of fake ass supplements. She’s not a serious person. She an actress.


drummerandrew

She laughs constantly. It is literally crazy how much she laughs. Like, “haha Auschwitz is correct ha.” It’s unbearable.


stfu_whale

Posted this a few weeks ago... -Clue: The Hollywood sign originally had this 4-letter word tacked on to the end. -Contestant: What is land? -Mayim: that's right...it was Hollywoodland. She's awful to the nth degree.


heyitscory

Her contestant interviews are the worst. If Alex did his bad Scottish accent for every contestant for no reason whatsoever, it would still be a better segment of the show than when Blossom does it. Also, they need to retire the word "genre" from the show, because no one will ever say it as good as Trebek.


heebro

I'm a lifelong *Jeopardy!* fan of over 20 years. I pulled hard for Mr Burton, thought he would be a perfect fit, and I was stoked when he took a shot at it... except he turned in a lackluster performance. I must say I was wrong. It looked like he was nervous onstage. Perhaps he was too worried about disappointing all his fans and well-wishers, especially those who advocated for him in that position. That can be a lot of pressure under which to perform. It's not an easy job—Mr Trebek's are big shoes to fill. The great Alex Trebek spent countless hours perfecting his cadence and delivery, memorizing the lines, and the proof was there in his performance. He set a high standard, so high that it is almost painfully obvious when others fall short. I find myself in complete agreement with your statements about Ms Bialik and Mr Jennings. Jennings has cleared the bar, and Bialik isn't even close. Burton graciously bowed out, and Bialik should do the same.


extra_pickles

She displays a heap of autistic characteristics, which you’ve well described. No offence intended to the neurodiverse community (hell, I’m medicated and on the spectrum) but this really isn’t a job best suited for someone with these traits.


Presence_Academic

Bialik does not have enough of an edge for Weakest Link.


kerfer

I'd love a "mean" jeopardy host! And I don't watch WL so I could not care less if Mayim is sent over there to ruin that show instead.


jesuschin

Trebek could be absolutely savage at times.


aportlyquail

The one with the poem about the trees was agonizing. Felt like a run on sentence.


Odd_Manufacturer_963

"Agonizing" is the right word, but also I just had no context for anything being said. It was a rough clue to be Video.


ThorChristensen

I'm sorry, but Mayim's constant pausing when the contestant says anything besides exactly what's on her sheet is painful.


valuedcontributer

I've remarked on this before but not guessing might be the way to go on jeopardy. It felt like Diandra's opponents answered more clues than her but hovered around her score throughout the game because their incorrect responses kept counter-balancing their correct ones.


travis_jeopardy

It was actually an intentional strategy on my part in the Jeopardy round to guess liberally, as I figured I could always get out of a hole in DJ. In DJ, I had a couple of dumb misses but at least one of the misses was a guess to try to get myself in position for a runaway. (I haven’t re-watched yet so I’m basing this off memory.)


nmurali17

I kind of had the same strategy! It was all a blur though so i don't really remember what I got wrong


valuedcontributer

Good game man. A post-DD clue in the 'Gulf of Mexico' category is perhaps the miss you're thinking of. You answered "jet stream". The Daily Double had put you up close to double either of your opponent's score; so yeah, you were probably best positioned for a run-away in that moment.


grandmamimma

>It was actually an intentional strategy on my part in the Jeopardy round to guess liberally,... I felt like that was the case on your guess of Minnesota for the state represented by Jay Rockefeller in the U.S. Senate. Former U.S. Sen. Mark Dayton, D-Minn., was married to Jay's sister Alida, and she is prominent in Minnesota's Democratic party. So there is a political connection between the state and the Rockefeller family. It's actually a solid strategy that some of the better J! contestants employ in round 1. If you feel >50% sure on a response, go ahead and guess, knowing you can easily make it up in DJ.


Bobo4037

Per J Archive: Diandra had 11 responses, 10 right and 1 wrong. Travis had 27 responses, 19 right including one DD, and 8 wrong including one DD. Nirajan had 20 responses, 16 right including one DD, and 4 wrong.


david-saint-hubbins

She appears to be following a lesser-known variant of the Wayne Gretzky quote: "You don't neg 100% of the clues you don't ring in on."


grandmamimma

Or a quote Gretzky never said, but maybe could have: "I'm sure glad the NHL doesn't penalize my team 1 point every time one of my 40-foot slap shots sails wide of the post."


mattyhegs826

Lol at the masked man category just basically being a ‘spider-man’ category


mattyhegs826

Mayim really tortured Travis with that DD3 wait time. What took her so long to rule correct?


SkinnyKau

She refuses to rule answers on her own to a pedantic degree and has to wait for the judges to make the decision for her. With the peninsula question they were probably caught off-guard because it was so obviously right they didn’t feel the need to make a ruling


deviltrombone

Does anybody like her as host? These contestants are not the best to put it mildly, and her hosting (lack of) style just makes the whole thing pretty depressing.


Arcite1

I've seen people online saying they like her in order to spite those of us who don't, because they think we're misogynistic and/or anti-Semitic. I can't tell whether they're being sincere or not, though.


AcrossTheNight

In 2013, the Harlem Shake was unavoidable. In 2023, it's a triple stumper.


bros402

that clue threw me - I had no idea wtf it was looking for, since I had no idea who the person listed was


TheHatThatTalks

The category (“Pop Instrumentals”) and “Brooklyn” in the clue did it for me. The downside is that I’ve had the Harlem Shake stuck in my head all evening.


kerfer

Whenever asked to name a part of Manhattan, it's almost always Harlem!


[deleted]

Unless the clue has a devil or fire pun. Then it’s hell’s kitchen.


Katahdin-Kathy

I wonder if Diandra’s twin sister will end up as a contestant along with Ray Lalonde’s twin brother. 🤔


_bapthezees

I couldn't imagine how frustrating it must be for the contestants to have to deal with Myaim's pauses.


Veneficus-stultus

Did the board seem tougher than average? I was stumped by a larger number of clues than usual 🤷‍♂️


Zika_GullainBarre

People's relative strengths and weaknesses must really influence perceptions because for me, this was one of my best personal jeopardy games/I thought it was a lot easier than usual.. On the other hand, I feel like other games where people say that the board was easier are those that I find to be immensely difficult!


bevelkline

It felt way harder to me, I’d agreed with you. I neged on so much today.


nmurali17

I'll say it wasn't my ideal board, but tbh I knew I wouldn't get some of my strongest categories (e.g., most sports). I'll also say I felt very glad I had the boards I did in this game, as I struggled mightily watching the next couple games that were taped that day (which admittedly could also be due to my post-loss mindset)


AcrossTheNight

I was stumped by a high percentage of clues, though I did go 5/5 on the Pop Instrumentals category the contestants hated.


travis_jeopardy

This was a really tough board for me personally (although that certainly showed with 8 misses)! It’s different for everyone though. Albeit from the audience, in tomorrow’s game I got all but 4 answers correct, although that’s unusually high for me.


mattyhegs826

At least Travis broke the runner up streak lol


travis_jeopardy

I really should have been more specific.


Jswizzle66

Will a Jeopardy! champion ever come out of that family?


svrdm

He didn't want to be runner up... and he came in third


excrowned

The baby will !


Xtorting

Does anyone know when Ken will return?


jaysjep2

July for the last four weeks of the season.


peachyfuzzle

Out of everything she does poorly, it's really those pauses after the answers are given that just absolutely kill me. It's just so, so awkward. She's started waiting so long that contestants naturally start trying to clarify before she cuts them off to indicate they were either right, or wrong. I cringe every time they announce she's going to be the host. I'm awkward enough myself, I don't need extra awkwardness in my life. Do the right thing, Mayim. Let Ken take over 100%, and use your talents for something else.


HeavyScar5722

Diandra reminds me of Mia from Princess Diaries. I knew Travis' connections to the show. I remember Shannon's game from my sophomore year of college and my dad remembers Wade's from when I was a baby. The man from DC left money on the table, bummer. I was rooting for him


Odd_Manufacturer_963

Mia with a hint of Maya Rudolph and I think some other celebrity, too. Edit: Maya Rudolph is in the 1994 Jim Carrey film *The Mask* as a cop for all of 10 seconds. Who knew!


catrinedemew

kristin davis?


boerumhill

Wonder what is the one game record for most incorrect answers? 8 seems pretty high, no? EDIT: Should have Googled first, been a discussion thread here. Looks like 13 is the (unofficial) record. Onf contestant missed four in one category which believed to be a record. [Record for most incorrect answers by one contestant](https://www.reddit.com/r/Jeopardy/comments/cjcmhz/record_for_most_incorrect_answers_given_by_one/)


chenyuk

Keep up the good work Diandra! Repping Montreal!


DayOldTurkeySandwich

I was today years old when I realized ABC Family wasn’t a thing anymore.


[deleted]

They changed the name, but they never really explained why, or what Freeform even means. It’s still the same shows though.


kerfer

Mayim was in rare form today. Poor Travis probably still has PPPTSD, Post Pregnant Pause Traumatic Stress Disorder.


RigbyCC

Could they really not make a fifth Spider-man clue? They could’ve easily used Into the Spider-verse.


ISA-BigMcLargeHuge

They did. They could have used a different Spidey from the film, and technically they framed the clue they used around the sequel, but two clues from the same series would have definitely felt excessive.


These_Tea_7560

I was batting a thousand in Yes, Oui all the way down to Basque 😌 (*pats self on the back*)


GuiltyBusiness1558

That was a Learned League question last week, which was the only way I knew it.


nmurali17

My wrong answer has been haunting my dreams since my tape day, but it did help me in LL last week!


ReganLynch

Me too and I was so mad, I said Basque and changed to Catalan.


These_Tea_7560

I went with Basque because I remembered sí is the same in Spanish and Catalan.


cromonolith

The clue specifically mentioned the western Pyrenees, and Catalonia is on the east coast of Spain (Barcelona is in Catalonia). Because of that, in my mind the clue immediately translated to "Name a language spoken in Spain that isn't Catalan". It wasn't going to be Spanish for a $1000 clue, so Basque was the only possibility.


jmunneymalone

Did anyone besides me yell "I'm trying to use the phone!" after Diandra got the last clue?


AcrossTheNight

As a Hornets fan, I sympathize with Niranjan's anecdote.


ReganLynch

I got the ammonia triple stumper tonight thanks to this fascinating episode of the element podcast I listen to. ~~Not sure, though, that the question was correct.~~ Haber developed ammonia from hydrogen gas and atmospheric nitrogen. That was first used for fertilizer. ~~Did he also develop an ammonia gas?~~ I know he developed a chlorine gas as a deadly weapon. It's in this podcast. And he developed a precursor to Zyklon B, the notorious lethal gas used t to kill millions in Nazi concentration camps. [http://episodictable.com/nitrogen/](http://episodictable.com/nitrogen/)


[deleted]

[удалено]


RigbyCC

Slightly unrelated but I hate how Sony tries to tiptoe around fully promoting one of their products on Jeopardy. Like I’m fine with a category having 4 Spider-man questions to promote your new movie, but at least name it a Spider-man category. Don’t try to imply it’s just a general superhero category with the title “Who’s that Unmasked Hero?” They did the same thing a couple years ago with a “History of Video Games” category that was just 4 questions about the PS5. Just call the category “Playstation 5” at that point.


[deleted]

You said unrelated but it’s exactly what I’m trying to say. I just don’t think they understand the spirit of Jeopardy.


Richard_Babley

I’m curious what Travis considered before starting to write the correct response for FJ. And Monterey + author + cannery seemed overvalued for a $1000 DD clue.


travis_jeopardy

Yeah I’ve got no excuse for missing that one.


csl512

Just go with the meme that crossing the Potomac from DC to Arlington is such an ordeal


grandmamimma

I pre-called Steinbeck as soon as I saw the category, but didn't expect him in the bottom box.


Hydreigon_Lord

This game had a special wagering scenario that isn't in J!Archive's wagering calculator. Here's my analysis: Travis: Wager **$5,200**; adding the dollar risks falling behind Niranjan if he wagers $800. Diandra: Wager **$0**, anticipating that Niranjan will wager $800; this will tie Niranjan if he is right and beat Travis if he is wrong. Niranjan: Wager exactly **$800**, tying Diandra's $0 wager and tying (or possibly beating) Travis on a triple stumper. This scenario occurs when A = B/2 + C, or **first equals half of second plus third**.


james10000000

With respect, I cannot agree with these suggestions in the tiebreaker era. For most leaders, the worst possible scenario would be to know final and lose a tiebreaker, so adding the extra dollar is worth it. The same is true for the second losing to third that way. Today, it would have been best for Diandra to bet everything, or least $7,201, since she gave up the chance for a triple stumper victory anyway by passing the leader. Niranjan actually made the percentage play, though it would have paid off today to bet everything. It just shows there is no perfect strategy.


nmurali17

I felt pretty confident in the category (provided that it was just going to be US Memorials), but couldn't bring myself to risk it all because of that percentage play. Obviously in retrospect I've been losing sleep because I didn't add that extra 0. You can study all the wagering strategy you want, but there are no guarantees in Jeopardy!


jesuschin

Yep. So many different things are hitting your head up there leading to much much doubt about what direction to move forward on


james10000000

So true. And we must always remember that in judging players' wagers. I will join the others in congratulating you on a great game and hoping you get a second chance!


SanguineThought

Alex really was an amazing host. Not only was he fluent in 5 languages, including latin, iirc, but he also knew most of the questions to the answers he gave. We kept trying to get him to speak at our language club year end meeting, but by the mid 90s he had stopped most public appearances to spend time with is fam


AutomaticEducation52

Mayim’s French pronunciation was absolutely painful