Jeopardy! Season 38 (2021-2022)

[Bastet]

Holy cow; lots of TS this game (15, as noted)!  The most there have been in quite a while.  But the only one that surprised me was no one knowing Chevy = GM.  How times have changed.

I missed the first three clues revealed (the bottom three Monopoly clues), so my game was not off to a good start.  I went on to join the contestants in being stumped by 1862, rad, and Balaam, and missed one more in burros.

It turned out to be one of those weird games where I did better in DJ; I only ran political nicknames and 20th century, but only missed two each in Did I Miss Anything? and historical figures, and one each in the others (the Lucerne and Feynman TS stumped me, too).

I instantly knew FJ had to be "the Hannibal Lecter guy", but it took me some time to remember Harris's name.  I doubt I'd have done so under game conditions.

[bankerchick]

I know it's just light banter to help the contestants relax and Mayim was just kidding, but I would hate for the host to tell me they liked someone else's personal story more than mine.  Especially if it was a lame story about a cat.  I had just said to myself that was one of the worst stories I had ever heard.

[HyeChaps]

It's Squaresville, you young whippersnappers!

[Gravity Check]

I have family about 30 miles from Santa Claus, Indiana, and no one mentioned its most famous son, Jay Cutler. Who is very much LESS popular than the Claus Family. It always freaks me out to hear family say things like, "We're playing Santa Claus in football next Friday."

As for the Indiana city, I got stuck on Mishawaka. Sigh.

[possibilities]

I like cats, so I was fine with the cat story. But I agree it was wrong of Mayim to make that comment.

[JudyObscure]

8 hours ago, bankerchick said:

I would hate for the host to tell me they liked someone else's personal story more than mine.  Especially if it was a lame story about a cat

My son hates that part of the show so much he usually leaves the room.  Between our second hand embarrassment and the fear we have that someone will flub his story and be thinking about it for the rest of the game, I hate it too.  The host needs to be very careful about what he/she says at that time, even a, "Best story ever!" could blow their concentration.

[shapeshifter]

50 minutes ago, JudyObscure said:

The host needs to be very careful about what he/she says at that time, even a, "Best story ever!" could blow their concentration.

Jonathan laughed at Mayim’s remark about liking the cat story better than his story. I think his experience as a stage actor has honed his ability to respond quickly and positively to any gaffes by another person on stage. This probably also helps him maintain his cool in general “on stage” like when he blew the DD; he didn’t go into a spiral of self-defeating self doubt like many other Jeopardy contestants have.

Edited October 20, 2021 by shapeshifter

[Clanstarling]

On 10/18/2021 at 7:13 PM, zoey1996 said:

FJ was an instaget for me, thanks to all the colonial and American Revolutionary War history here. Also DD is a Purdue grad, West Lafayette, IN.

The mister is a Purdue grad and never came up with West Lafayette. I thought of every Indiana place we've been on trips to visit the family, and got to West Lafayette and went "AHA!" I was very proud that I got it and the mister did not.

11 hours ago, secnarf said:

For FJ, the line "...with some fava beans and a nice chianti" immediately popped into my head, so that piece was easy. Problem was, they wanted the author, and I could have sat here until next year and not come up with his name.

I'm actually surprised I got Harris' name, when I often can't get names of authors I've read more recently. I read his books prior to the movie.

The boards have been fairly decent to me this week, and I would have run the Fictional African if I could have gotten Wakanda out of my mouth - which was upsetting because of all the clues, it was the one I "really" knew.

[Good Queen Jane]

I guess they would not have accepted "The guy who wrote The Silence of the Lambs, which isn't the book referenced but the first book about Hannibal Lechter whose title I don't remember" for FJ.

[ams1001]

2 minutes ago, Good Queen Jane said:

I guess they would not have accepted "The guy who wrote The Silence of the Lambs, which isn't the book referenced but the first book about Hannibal Lechter whose title I don't remember" for FJ.

lol...not sure you'd have had time to write it out...

(The first book is Red Dragon, ftr.)

[saber5055]

I thank Mads Mikkelsen and the extremely hot Hugh Dancy for leading me to read all the Harris books, making FJ a snap for me.

[proserpina65]

17 hours ago, Gimmick Genius said:

Richard Feynman! One of Amy Farrah Fowler's rivals for Sheldon Cooper's affections.

I know almost nothing about Feynman that I didn't learn from Big Bang.  Needless to say, I did not get that answer.

I got FJ last night but it took me a moment.  My initial answer was "I have no damned idea" but then something about the early 80s made me think of Hannibal Lector and answer "Thomas Harris" in time to have written it down.

16 hours ago, Katy M said:

I got the missed clues of Baalam, rad, GM, formaldehyde, and Richard I.

I got GM, 1862, South Pole (I was yelling "It's bloody Scott of the An-tarc-tic" at the tv but no one heard me) and Richard I, although I answered "Richard the Lionheart".  Still correct, though.

16 hours ago, SHD said:

So, still constant runaway games, but uneventful ones with no daring DD betting, no exciting super high scores, lots of wrong guesses and several TS clues. Boring.

I actually have found Jonathan's games more interesting precisely because it's usually well into DJ before they become a runaway so there's still some mystery about who might win.  I dislike games where it's a foregone conclusion by the first commercial break.

16 hours ago, SHD said:

I also feel like Matt faced and beat a handful of worthy opponents who would have dominated over any contestant we’ve seen since he left.

Obviously not true since the champ is the one who beat Matt, and I think he'd have struggled with a few of last week's challengers as well.  I will say that yesterday's game was not very good, though.

 

Edited October 20, 2021 by proserpina65

[proserpina65]

13 hours ago, bankerchick said:

Especially if it was a lame story about a cat.

Hey now, the cat story was cute!

[Katy M]

48 minutes ago, proserpina65 said:

I got GM, 1862, South Pole

I said 1863 and North Pole.  So annoying to be so close and wrong on two back to back clues.

[Bastet]

1 hour ago, proserpina65 said:

Hey now, the cat story was cute!

I'm often off making a drink during the interview segment, but I heard last night's, and I smiled when Mayim said she'd like the cat and Olivia replied "Yeah, I feel like you two would get along."  I was rooting for her after that little cat person to cat person exchange.

[SHD]

1 hour ago, proserpina65 said:

Obviously not true since the champ is the one who beat Matt, and I think he'd have struggled with a few of last week's challengers as well.  I will say that yesterday's game was not very good, though.

 

It is part of the game, but I feel like Matt's loss was at least partially due to the luck of who got DDs (which also definitely factored into Matt's wins, as well). I was just stating that on pure knowledge and correct answers given, some of Matt's opponents were way above the average player (which is what we've seen most of since Matt left). Just my opinion, of course.

[proserpina65]

8 minutes ago, SHD said:

but I feel like Matt's loss was at least partially due to the luck of who got DDs

I don't think the quality of players was necessarily better during Matt's run.  It's kind of hard to get answers wrong when you almost never get to answer because someone else was faster on the buzzer.  As you say, just our opinions, but I don't think Matt was necessarily better with the answers than some of last week's contestants.  And Adam from Monday didn't get a single answer wrong, Jonathan was just faster on the buzzer.

But last night's game was a mess, that's for sure.

[Clanstarling]

2 hours ago, Katy M said:

I said 1863 and North Pole.  So annoying to be so close and wrong on two back to back clues.

You and me both.

[Bastet]

It's interesting to see Jonathan rack up wins with conservative wagering - as used to be common, and then James came along and succeeded with his explosive strategy, Emma deliberately employed the same to have a chance at taking him out and succeeded, and then Matt forced himself into this strategy that wasn't natural to him (unlike professional gambler James) but worked.

For people far more interested in the numbers than I am, Jonathan's streak slots interestingly into this ongoing case study. 

[saber5055]

2 hours ago, SHD said:

I was just stating that on pure knowledge and correct answers given, some of Matt's opponents were way above the average player (which is what we've seen most of since Matt left). Just my opinion, of course.

And mine. Plus none of Matt's games ended with 15 TSs so there's that. I'm thinking most of the players Matt sent home would be the new champion now.

[Browncoat]

Catching up with last night's game -- I did not get FJ.  Even if I had come up with the character, I'm not certain I could have come up with the author.  Oh well.

I did get the TS of South Pole, 1862, GM, flashpoint, and formaldehyde.  I unfortunately said "Dullsville" instead of "Squaresville".  

Mayim's comment on the cat story is exactly like something Alex would have said.  He frequently was snarky about people's stories, even to the point of openly favoring one over the other.  Not to mention blatantly favoring one contestant over the others.  Doesn't make it right, but it's also nothing new to Jeopardy.

[Bastet]

7 minutes ago, Browncoat said:

Mayim's comment on the cat story is exactly like something Alex would have said.  He frequently was snarky about people's stories, even to the point of openly favoring one over the other.  Not to mention blatantly favoring one contestant over the others.  Doesn't make it right, but it's also nothing new to Jeopardy.

I agree; Alex dying doesn't mean I've forgotten the things about him that bugged me.  Sometimes his snark was funny, sometimes it was unearned - and of course where that line was drawn for me was in part subjective (based on my own sense of humor and/or personal bias for or against a contestant).

"I like [another contestant's] story better" is exactly the kind of thing that would come out of Alex's mouth, and some might find his droll delivery made it better and some might find it made it worse.

[saber5055]

39 minutes ago, Browncoat said:

Mayim's comment on the cat story is exactly like something Alex would have said.

We do tend to forget how snarky and sometimes downright rude Alex was, and how he liked to turn interview stories to a story about himself and what he's done. "Not that there's anything wrong with that!"

[853fisher]

My brain skipped from "self evident" straight to "life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness," so I briefly tried to think of a case about the death penalty that might have addressed the "first...truth."  I couldn't, and that subject seemed incongruous with the 19th century.  I did end up on Scott, but more because I thought his case matched the rest of the clue than because I had verified my guess with that specific tidbit.  I was more confident when I thought that the same 20 or so Supreme Court cases seem to come up in most trivia contests, to the exclusion of any others.

I was rooting for Anjolie after her pretty gutsy DD wager.  Jonathan's FJ bet would have given him exactly $100 more than her assuming they'd both gotten it right and she wagered everything.  If he were incorrect but she got it, she would have been the day's winner.  But unfortunately for her, it was not to be.

I had the right answer for dengue fever because of this NewsHour piece from the other week about an innovative way to mange mosquitos in Florida, and one of the interviewee's descriptions of its effects.  Some interesting ideas here.

Edited October 20, 2021 by 853fisher

[ams1001]

67% / 67% / 67%

Didn't run anything again tonight but at least my rounds were even...only missed one each in State of the TV Show, Terms of Endearment, Brides, I Want to Suck Your Blood, and Movies. Missed three in 2 Consonants then a Vowel and two each in the rest.

FJ was a near-instaget (after reciting the beginning of the Declaration) with a slight question mark at the end.

My TSes were George Eastman, Lord of the Flies, Montserrat, and Clipper (missed DD).

 

[Katy M]

FJ was an instaget.

I got the missed clues of Lord of the Flies, Eastman, Caine (loved that book), and Superior.

Missed a couple of clues really stupidly.  For instance, I said Erroll Fynn instead of Wyatt Earp.  

 

[Prevailing Wind]

58 minutes ago, 853fisher said:

My brain skipped from "self evident" straight to "life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness," so I briefly tried to think of a case about the death penalty that might have addressed the "first...truth."  I couldn't, and that subject seemed incongruous with the 19th century. 

My mind went the same directions, but stopped at Mary Surratt, the boarding house lady.  https://www.history.com/topics/american-civil-war/mary-surratt

[853fisher]

7 minutes ago, Prevailing Wind said:

My mind went the same directions, but stopped at Mary Surratt, the boarding house lady.  https://www.history.com/topics/american-civil-war/mary-surratt

Birds of a feather!  She and the others linked to Lincoln's assassination crossed my mind too.  I ruled them out because I went through a period of fascination with presidential assassinations and didn't recall anything like a Supreme Court case before she and several others went to the gallows, although I remembered her execution in particular was somewhat controversial.

Edited October 21, 2021 by 853fisher

[secnarf]

I was really surprised Lord of the Flies was a TS. I know everything is EIYKI, but it's Lord of the Flies!

I loved Anjolie with that big DD bet (although I felt the clue was a bit easy for a DD, especially in DJ), and was really hoping she would be able to scrape out a win.

 

[Browncoat]

I got FJ, but mostly because I couldn't think of any other 19th Century Supreme Court cases, and Jeopardy loves Dred Scott.  In other words, it was a complete guess, but it was a good one!

TS I got were Eastman, match made in Heaven, Dengue fever, and Montserrat.  I've never read "Lord of the Flies".

[Mindthinkr]

I just had a bad night and I’ll leave it at that. 

[zoey1996]

39 minutes ago, Katy M said:

FJ was an instaget.

Missed a couple of clues really stupidly.  For instance, I said Erroll Fynn instead of Wyatt Earp.  

 

FJ was an instaget for me also.

Earp should have been a bms. Wyatt, Virgil, and Morgan were also at the OK Corral, among other activities.

[saber5055]

43 minutes ago, zoey1996 said:

Earp should have been a bms. Wyatt, Virgil, and Morgan were also at the OK Corral, among other activities.

LOL. 19 out of 20 people don't know Wyatt had any brothers much less what their names were, unless they watched Tombstone.

[shapeshifter]

1 hour ago, Mindthinkr said:

I just had a bad night and I’ll leave it at that. 

Same here.
But I appreciated that Jonathan was clapping just as enthusiastically for Anjolie as I was when she got her high-wagered DD correct.
I have mixed feelings about Jonathan
--which is kind of a good thing, because I'm not so stressed on his behalf as I was for Matt Amodio.

[ABay]

I said Dred Scot as soon as I saw the FJ category.

[Bastet]

Tonight's game had half the TS as last night, so that's good.  Eastman surprised me a little, but that was it.

Speaking of TS, I correctly guessed Lake Superior, but had no idea that many rivers fed into it.  I wonder if that's a tidbit which will stick in my mind (most of the time when I learn something via J!, I've forgotten it by the time it pops up again).

I had a terrible first round, only running E.  I missed the entire drafts category, and one each in the rest.

I did about the same in DJ (although that's not terrible for me in DJ); I only ran the blood sucking category, missed all but one in mythology (shocking, I know), and missed one each in the rest.

But FJ was an instaget, so that cheered me up.

[kathyk2]

2 hours ago, secnarf said:

I was really surprised Lord of the Flies was a TS. I know everything is EIYKI, but it's Lord of the Flies!

I loved Anjolie with that big DD bet (although I felt the clue was a bit easy for a DD, especially in DJ), and was really hoping she would be able to scrape out a win.

 

There are other books with characters Simon in them. Piggy would have been obvious. I think Mayim has no filter which is different from being rude. Pat Sajack is often rude to contestants on Wheel of Fortune.

[zoey1996]

3 hours ago, secnarf said:

 

I was really surprised Lord of the Flies was a TS. I know everything is EIYKI, but it's Lord of the Flies!

 

I’ve never read Lord of the Flies, nor have I seen either of the movies. Nothing I’ve heard or read has persuaded me that I should. So I don’t know anything about it or the author. 

[30 Helens]

6 hours ago, secnarf said:

I loved Anjolie with that big DD bet (although I felt the clue was a bit easy for a DD, especially in DJ), and was really hoping she would be able to scrape out a win.

I missed the interview portion of this episode… Did Mayim happen to ask her if she brings home the bacon? And fries it up in a pan? And never, ever lets you forget you’re a man? (Cause she’s a wooooman.) Honestly, every time Mayim said her name my brain flashed on that stupid jingle and I ended up missing a bunch of clues, too.

As for that previous, seemingly controversial interview segment: I’m really surprised it caused so much offense. I didn’t even see it as snark, just a lighthearted bit of banter meant to amuse the contestants and put them at ease. It was the kind of teasing comment a friend might say. And while I know she’s not their friend, I appreciate the effort to be that level of approachable. I could definitely hear Alex saying something like that, also without malice or snark.

[GreekGeek]

Now that was the kind of game I like! It seemed like another runaway game for Jonathan until Anjolie made that huge bet and got it right. Too bad she finished third.

I knew Lord of the Flies, the missed Clipper DD, Eastman, Caine, and match made in heaven. I thought LotF was one of those "everyone reads it in school" books, but I guess not anymore.

I called FJ as soon as the category was revealed.

[bad things are bad]

On 10/19/2021 at 3:00 PM, Prevailing Wind said:

I live in Decatur, GA. There's one in Alabama, too.

 

One in Michigan too, not far from Dowagiac.  As in Jennifer the wine lady last season from Dowagiac 

[MrAtoz]

9 hours ago, saber5055 said:

LOL. 19 out of 20 people don't know Wyatt had any brothers much less what their names were, unless they watched Tombstone.

Or unless they watched the "Spectre of the Gun" episode of Star Trek. 😀

[ams1001]

3 hours ago, GreekGeek said:

I knew Lord of the Flies, the missed Clipper DD, Eastman, Caine, and match made in heaven. I thought LotF was one of those "everyone reads it in school" books, but I guess not anymore.

I've read it but it wasn't in school. I read it sometime after college (which I graduated in 1997). When I used to work in a bookstore and we put out the summer reading tables (we got lists from local schools so we could order in what the kids would be looking for) every year I would go around and count how many of them I'd read, and how many were actually read in school. I was a little surprised at the numbers, sometimes.

[SoMuchTV]

I must have dreamed about Jeopardy! last night, because I woke up thinking about the brilliant (?) idea that they should start putting the first round DD in a fixed place - say the top left clue.  That way players would have to strategize about not picking it too early (with too little to wager), not letting their opponents get to it..  Hmm.  Interesting to think about but  I don't think I'll be submitting that one to the Suggestions! department.

Sorry to derail the current season discussion.  I wondered if I should put this in Small Talk but technically it is about Jeopardy!

[shapeshifter]

I read Lord of the Flies when I was a librarian in a college prep high school in the 90s, which makes me think these contestants were of an age where at least one should have been familiar with it -- and perhaps they were. Even rereading the clue now it jogs nothing in my memory to help me recall that this title is the correct response in the category of DRAFTS (although I am terrible with character names):

• Lost on an island before "Lost", Simon is a bit of a precog in this 1954 novel, foreseeing his own death in an early draft.

And now, looking at the Wikipedia article for Lord of the Flies under the section "Background," I see that there was a fascinating kerfuffle between Golding and the publishers before it was published -- which many middle school or high school readers would not have learned about (and which I certainly didn't know about), and which was necessary knowledge* to answer this clue. It more of an English major's question, IMO. And while it was a $1000 clue in the Jeopardy! Round, I'm thinking a $2000 clue in the Double Jeopardy! Round would have been more appropriate; perhaps the person putting in the first round didn't think beyond it being a "Lord of the Flies" clue; it's more esoteric than that, again, IMO.

But clearly others upthread knew it. So maybe the character name and date of publication was sufficient?
 

*ETA: Reading replies below, I now see that knowledge of the DRAFT is not necessary knowledge. 

Edited October 21, 2021 by shapeshifter

[MrAtoz]

I'm one of those who knew the Lord of the Flies answer, and I did read it in high school.  For me there were several hints within the clue:  It's about being stranded on an island, it's from 1954, and it has a character named Simon who dies.  That was enough to get me there.

[proserpina65]

18 hours ago, saber5055 said:

And mine. Plus none of Matt's games ended with 15 TSs so there's that. I'm thinking most of the players Matt sent home would be the new champion now.

And I don't.  One or two of them maybe, but most of the contestants on his shows weren't anything special.

I called last night's FJ as soon as I saw the category.  Mainly because I know only 3 Supreme Court decisions at all, only two which were in the 19th century, and the Dred Scott one was by far the most famous.  But honestly, it was just a guess in what is usually a dreadful (no pun intended) category for me.

15 hours ago, Katy M said:

I got the missed clues of Lord of the Flies, Eastman, Caine (loved that book), and Superior.

I couldn't come up with Superior but did get the rest, as well as Montserrat and clipper.

 

5 hours ago, GreekGeek said:

I thought LotF was one of those "everyone reads it in school" books, but I guess not anymore.

We didn't have to read it when I was in school many, many moons ago but when I worked at Borders it was on every school's reading list.  I know just enough about the book to be able to answer Jeopardy clues.

1 hour ago, shapeshifter said:

I see that there was a fascinating kerfuffle between Golding and the publishers before it was published -- which many middle school or high school readers would not have learned about (and which I certainly didn't know about), and which was necessary knowledge to answer this clue.

I knew nothing about a kerfluffle between Golding and his publishers.  But I do know that Lord of the Flies was a book from the fifties involving schoolboys stranded on a deserted island so referencing Lost and the year was enough for me to get it.

9 minutes ago, MrAtoz said:

It's about being stranded on an island, it's from 1954, and it has a character named Simon who dies.

Yep, that worked for me even though I haven't read the book.

[Katy M]

1 hour ago, SoMuchTV said:

I must have dreamed about Jeopardy! last night, because I woke up thinking about the brilliant (?) idea that they should start putting the first round DD in a fixed place - say the top left clue.  That way players would have to strategize about not picking it too early (with too little to wager), not letting their opponents get to it..  Hmm.  Interesting to think about but  I don't think I'll be submitting that one to the Suggestions! department.

Sorry to derail the current season discussion.  I wondered if I should put this in Small Talk but technically it is about Jeopardy!

That would also mean that the champion always has the opportunity to immediately take it out of play which I find unfair.

[ABay]

I probably wouldn't have got the Lord of the Flies clue anyway (never read it, never saw it, don't want to do either), but the reference to Lost threw me and I thought the answer was related to that. 

[30 Helens]

2 hours ago, shapeshifter said:

Lost on an island before "Lost", Simon is a bit of a precog in this 1954 novel, foreseeing his own death in an early draft.

I didn’t even see this clue (“…Enjoli!”) but I think the Lost reference might have thrown me, too. Plus, it’s been awhile. Now, toss in a bit about Piggy’s glasses and I’d have been right there.

As for Dred Scott, as soon I saw the bit about self-evident truths, my mind filled in “…that all men are created equal” and it was an instaget.

So, -1 / +1 for me. I break even!