Child Genius - General Discussion

[BradandJanet]

Ryan is really disrespectful to his mother. Granted, she comes across as awful, but Ryan is rude and dismissive. I wonder how much of this is real. 

 

If this show is being staged for parent drama, it's too bad. I'd be interested in just watching the competition. If the producers need more, then perhaps they could just show how the families incorporate a genius child into the mix. The Tiger Mom stuff is too much. Even Ryan's dad doesn't seem on board with this.

[Katara]

It seems they are all handed material to study for the weekly tests. If that is the case, there isn't much genius involved, just a healthy dose of good memory.

 

Am I the only one irritated at the Indian boy (can't remember his name now) who kept on saying he did "good"? For such a smart child, he has issues distinguishing between an adverb and an adjective. As a non-native speaker, it is driving me crazy.

[Maharincess]

Stella MD, don't feel bad, I yelled "YESSSSS" when Tanishq beat her.

Poor Ryan. If his mom is this bad with a camera on her, imagine the berating that kid must go through at home.

What the hell was with his mother telling him to walk in front so he didn't look so small compared to his brother? Now the kid gets berated for being short?

I love how he calls his mom on her bullshit, "you've never said that before...stop pinching me".

Love that kid!

[Gianthambeast]

LOL.  Ryan's mother played the standard Tiger Mom card: compare your kid to ANOTHER super-Asian kid and make them feel inferior!  I think Ryan has to be mouthy--he's too smart not to know that his parents are full of bullshit.  He has to push back or get crushed into Stepford-like submission.  Those comments his parents keep making are totally inane.  It's like they're on auto-pilot, sticking to their internal script of "always say the child isn't good enough," regardless of the actual situation.  They ought to work on honing their own intellectual abilities instead of trying to live through their kid.

Edited January 28, 2015 by Gianthambeast

[Lamb18]

Regarding "Tiger Mom", I wonder if it's in her culture that you don't praise your children to other people.  I feel like she's being asked "So how do you think Ryan did?" and she responds by saying how he could have done something better because saying "I'm really proud of him!" would be considered boasting which is culturally unacceptable.  I'm also sensing that Ryan has a short attention span. 

[BradandJanet]

Regarding "Tiger Mom", I wonder if it's in her culture that you don't praise your children to other people.  I feel like she's being asked "So how do you think Ryan did?" and she responds by saying how he could have done something better because saying "I'm really proud of him!" would be considered boasting which is culturally unacceptable.  I'm also sensing that Ryan has a short attention span.

This is possible. Usually, though, the response is short--Oh, no. He needs to study harder. Ryan's mom just keeps going on and on. Sometimes she stops and looks at Dad to see if she's doing ok with her "message," and Dad just tepidly agrees or more likely rolls his eyes.

For all Mom's harping on Ryan's need to study, he did go on the Scout trip. I'm sure the trip was good for him.

[Dirtybubble]

Ok a couple of things bugged me a bit about the parents this week:

 

1st:  what was going on with Katie's mom?  Did she looked stoned or maybe.......constipated to anyone?  IDK she always had a bizarre look on her face.

 

2nd:  what was the point of that walking on a dirt trail with Benyamin and his dad all about?  How did that help with Zoology?  And I was getting a weird vibe from his mom as well.  The going on and on and on about her husband being a super macho, macho man....IDK something just didn't sit well with me where she was concerned. 

 

Was anyone else's spidey senses tingling with these two?

[BradandJanet]

I went to school in a university town many, many years ago, and there were some extremely bright kids, much like the kids on this show. Most went on to become lawyers, doctors, scientists, and professors. I remember only one absolute "genius" though. He lived on another plane of existence and was way too bright for even a quality public school but too socially immature for full-time college. That was a problem at the time, there was no place he fit in, but he found his success later in computers.

 

The children on this show are impressive in areas of intelligence that involve memory, but I wish we could see them do some creative abstract problem solving. The show can't go beyond clear right and wrong answers though. 

 

[Arkay]

I'm enjoying this show much more than I had expected. I just love Graham and Binyamin because they don't brag, they aren't into the drama, and they appear sincerely happy when others do well. They also commiserate when the others have a poor round. Furthermore, their parents seem to truly love and appreciate their sons for who they are and not just as show ponies.

Tanishq bugs me....or rather I should say he irritates me because of what his parents have instilled in him. I don't want to blame him, since he is just a child. However, I cannot listen one more time to him or his parents mention that he is in college. I did also flinch when he said he was doing "good."

[walnutqueen]

Lordy, lordy, did anyone else think Graham's Mom was sure to take his win as proof that "God wants him to win"?   ;-)

[Katara]

Stella MD, don't feel bad, I yelled "YESSSSS" when Tanishq beat her.

 

 

 Why? Looks like on the next episode Tanishq's parents go to the jury and try to make them change their mind about an answer they marked as wrong.

 

I'm enjoying this show much more than I had expected. I just love Graham and Binyamin because they don't brag, they aren't into the drama, and they appear sincerely happy when others do well.

 

 I just hate Graham and his smug Christianity.

Edited January 29, 2015 by Katara

[lilacgirl]

What I found crazy was the couple talking about Ryan's mom making him drink water (and the pounding on the table. This could have been from Ryan though.) and up to this point no one else is asked about Vanya and her Dad's obsession with water, on camera. ?

I would be shocked if Ryan didn't have an ulcer already.

Ok a couple of things bugged me a bit about the parents this week:

 

1st:  what was going on with Katie's mom?  Did she looked stoned or maybe.......constipated to anyone?  IDK she always had a bizarre look on her face.

 

2nd:  what was the point of that walking on a dirt trail with Benyamin and his dad all about?  How did that help with Zoology?  And I was getting a weird vibe from his mom as well.  The going on and on and on about her husband being a super macho, macho man....IDK something just didn't sit well with me where she was concerned. 

 

Was anyone else's spidey senses tingling with these two?

Katies mom looked stoned to me. Or she fell over her surfboard one too many times years ago. The woman gave off this strange "surfer dude" thing to me.

[Gianthambeast]

^Great post.

 

...and  when Graham loses it will only be because "God is testing his VERY special servant."  :/

[woodscommaelle]

Can Ryan's mom be voted out at the next tribal council? Or maybe not be given a rose at the next Rose Ceremony?

[walnutqueen]

Tanishq's mother just can't let it go.  First she argues that he was cheated out of a point for "Susan Day O'Connor", then she says his questions were harder than everyone else's.  Goodbye.  heh

[Kromm]

Don't care much for Ryan's parents and Benyamin's dad scares the hell out of me, I like almost all of the other parents.

I don't care what he does for a living.  What I see is that he's completely awesome with his kid.  Frankly all of these other parents could learn a lot from this guy.

Ryan is really disrespectful to his mother. Granted, she comes across as awful, but Ryan is rude and dismissive. I wonder how much of this is real. 

Except we have a chicken--egg scenario here.  Which came first?  The disrespect or the awful continuous harping from her, where he can literally outperform 99% of the people on the planet, and he doesn't get even a single good word from her.

 

Even parents need to maintain certain standards of treatment of their children to deserve respect.  They get the respect by default, but there comes a point where the disrespect is inevitable if they're shit parents--at least in the cases where they don't beat the shit out of the kids to make them fear them as well (at least there's no sign Tiger Mom does THAT).

I think he will be embarrased for giving a speech denying the Big Bang. Or at least insisting that creation actually happened the way it was stated in the bible.

Creationists aren't embarrassed by that stuff coming out of their mouths.  Even ones who are book smart can literally overlook logic, because being trained from birth to eject logic in certain cases has little to do with intellectual capacity.

[Kromm]

-I want to like Vanya's dad, and he's obviously pretty smart himself based on his off-the-cuff etymology lessons, but the water thing is starting to really creep me out. He's so demanding about it. She's clearly old enough to know when she's thirsty, and forcing someone to eat/drink when they don't want to crosses a line into weird abusiveness territory. Plus it's so random. WTF?

It's a common theory that water is fairly important to health, with at least a little to support it, but mostly those theories are about not being dehydrated--not about being super-hydrated. Very few of us drink enough water, apparently, but there does have to be a point of diminishing returns, and I think this guy goes way past it.

 

-Graham and his mom annoyed me considerably more on rewatch, as I didn't catch the first time that she flat-out encouraged him to give his stupid little speech to the judges for making him answer "controversial" questions. And his snotty eyerolls and dismissive labeling of anyone with a different belief system as "stupid" obviously comes from home as well. Guess you're worried those beliefs are pretty shaky if even having your kid in the same room with an opposite opinion causes you to panic, lady.

The irony being none of the questions he was actually asked (that we heard at least) seemed to have anything to do with either creationism, or even the age of the universe. He was asked straighforward stuff about names, orbits, etc.

 

-I finally caught the intro to Binyamin's dad last night and now I'm as intrigued by his bleeped-out job as everyone else. CIA operative? Foreign assassin? Wannabe actor? Mall security cop with some really cool glamour shots? Ninja? The mind boggles.

Mossad?

Anyway, the important thing is that despite being picked on at school, the kid seems happy and very well treated by his Dad. Even the martial arts/centering stuff comes off less weird than it might have, because it actually seems like a good way to give his unexpectedly shrimpy kid (since the Dad is kinda huge) some physical confidence

[zxy556575]

How smart can these kids be if they're unable to add two scores to know who's in the top and bottom each week? The judges announce the totals each time.

 

Ryan wasn't having it when his big brother tried to put in his two cents worth of nagging and guilt-tripping. Well, Ryan doesn't have it from his parents, either.

 

I love Binyamin and his dad. They seem to have a very loving and close relationship and Alon cracks me up with his hippy-ish martial arts and yoga and visualization techniques or whatever it is he's doing. I also enjoy Vanya's dad pushing water like it's cocaine. He reminds me of the father in My Big Fat Greek Wedding who thought a squirt of Windex was the answer to all of life's ills.

Edited February 4, 2015 by lordonia

[Arkay]

I love Binyamin's dad! He has such a pure love for his son. Yes, Binyamin is small, but he does have genetic material to work with...between his dad's size and maybe some gym workouts, he might become a lot bigger and more muscular as he grows. Meanwhile, I like that Alon is in counter-terrorism, has a macho demeanor, but softens it with tenderness for his son.

[Arkay]

Katherine's parents issue with the judging was very different than what happened with Tanishq's mom. In Katherine's case, the judges really did not abide by their own rules for placement, and who knows if that will eventually matter? In Tanishq's case, he answered incorrectly and the mom wanted that set aside. I like the family, but this was just a "no." Okay, so Susan sounds like Sandra? They both begin with S.? He knew the answer but it was a slip of the tongue? As someone said above, that could be the case for any incorrect answer from any child. "I knew it was Galileo, but I slipped and said Copernicus! They were both astronomers, so you should count that as correct." and so on.

[Gianthambeast]

I love Binyamin and his dad. They seem to have a very loving and close relationship and Alon cracks me up with his hippy-ish martial arts and yoga and visualization techniques or whatever it is he's doing.

 

I think they are my favorites! It's nice to see that Mr. Professional Bad Ass has a very tender heart for his son.

[JoannKB]

Have they said how much time elapses between each round? For those who don't live in LA, are they really going home in between each round, like the interstitial videos make it seem? If so, who is bankrolling all of those airline flights back and forth? The network?

[mla40]

I wish they would have shown little bio's of all the kids.

As for what they have shown, all I can say is I agree with everything already said. As far as Benyamin's dad goes...I'm in the - that man is awesome - camp.

[Padma]

Thanks for the great posts about this show. Y'all have made me want to watch it (thanks?) but I can't find out what channel it's on (doesn't seem to show up in any primetime channels On Demand). Suggestions?

[Stella MD]

I too find Yeji adorable, and was so glad when her late introduction didn't automatically mean that she was destined to be this week's Red Shirt. I'm puzzled why they didn't introduce her before this week (and probably would have continued to ignore her if she hadn't forced an introduction by winning). Guess the book-loving introverts with seemingly normal parents don't make for "good tv" like the Tiger Moms, religious fanatics, stress balls who smile constantly and never blink, and kids so deluded with their own awesomeness that they seriously believe they'll be US president and a top doctor/medical researcher at the same time (why not throw in astronaut too, for good measure?).

 

Poor Ryan - I knew as soon as he scored 14/15 that he was going to be held accountable for that extra point. As much as his mom annoys me, though, I do have to wonder how many of these other parents would lose their shit if their kids stopped trying, or started giving them constant attitude. If Vanya, for example, refused to study and threw her unwanted water glass across the room, would her Dad really not start badgering her exactly like Ryan's mom? At this point, the only parents I could see responding supportively to a request/demand to stop studying (or even stop participating in the game) would be Graham's mother or Binyamin's father.

 

Last, I think Binyamin is truly my favorite. He's always so supportive of the other kids (he nearly tripped over himself to get over to Tanishq so that he could high-five him on the way out). And his penchant for terrible puns somehow makes him even more adorkable.

[Dirtybubble]

I think Binyamin is truly my favorite. He's always so supportive of the other kids (he nearly tripped over himself to get over to Tanishq so that he could high-five him on the way out). And his penchant for terrible puns somehow makes him even more adorkable.

Yeah Binyamin is my fav as well.  It's starting to bug me a bit, just a bit though, that every time we get some sort of segment on Binyamin and his studies the show has to recap that his dad is some sort of secret agent/bad ass.  While that is terrific I don't see why it has to be repeated every time.   I don't think any of the other parents get even a brief mention of what their occupation is much less have it repeated every time....

 

 

kids so deluded with their own awesomeness that they seriously believe they'll be US president and a top doctor/medical researcher at the same time (why not throw in astronaut too, for good measure?).

Tee hee hee!  This is why I won't really miss Tanishq.  He seems to be a good enough kid but if I had to hear that he was in college one more time....grrr. 

 

So tired of Graham. It's not his fault, I just hate the way they play up his 'devout christian' angle. They should say 'devout fundamentalist' or 'devout evangelical'. There are plenty of devout christians who don't fall into Graham's category of religious belief. It just irks me that they make him sound like he's the 'one' as opposed to the other kids.

Actually Graham himself I don't really have a problem with.  I like his humble attitude and he seems to be a sweet, fun kid.  The sleep over with his friends was cute.  My problem has always been with his mom.  Ugh, I find myself fast forwarding thru all her ITMs.

 

Have they said how much time elapses between each round? For those who don't live in LA, are they really going home in between each round, like the interstitial videos make it seem? If so, who is bankrolling all of those airline flights back and forth? The network?

They say it's a week between each round.  I can't imagine kids that live out of state flying back and forth for each round.  They would have to be on a plane every 2 or 3 days.  Not to mention the cost of that.  I don't know if Lifetime pays for that or not....

 

And yeah add me to the Yeji love train as well.  I wish we had gotten more on her bio though, that snipit seemed short compared to the other kids.  And that poor boy that was eliminated this week, nothing on him except he is Graham's friend and he didn't want to be filmed while talking to his mom (can't blame him for that).  Loved his yellow pants though =)

 

 

Edited February 5, 2015 by Dirtybubble

[Former Nun]

I just hate Graham and his smug Christianity.

 

Awww...give the kid a chance.  What else has he ever known?  He doesn't go to school.  His life is probably very insulated and happy.  He has been programmed to "know" that his family's life is the One True Way.  He seems like such a fun, grounded, humble, and smart kid.  I think if he gets a chance to see a world outside of his little home, he'll adjust.

 

I think Ryan deserves his own television show...without his brother or his parents.

Oh yeah, Tanishq's mother.  She berated another contestant and her parents because they contested a judge's misinterpretation of the rules.  The judges were wrong and corrected the error.  It was simply a matter of points.   THEN she complains because her son gave a wrong answer and the judges ruled it incorrect.  She wouldn't give up.  I hope she likes her portrayal on national television.

[Former Nun]

I wouldn't be surprised if the "reality" TV shows begin courting Alon, Binyamin's handsome and appealing father.  He has the looks and the story.

[Former Nun]

Ryan is really disrespectful to his mother. Granted, she comes across as awful, but Ryan is rude and dismissive. I wonder how much of this is real.

 

 

I don't condone disrespect by children OR parents.  Ryan's mother has gone too far--she is completely disrespectful, and this is the only way he can cope.  Apparently when he began getting mouthy with her she didn't stop it.  She's more worried about his getting 100% on every quiz and she puts up a false front for the cameras (everyone).    She'll never back off and the only time he'll have any peace is if/when he can move away from home.  I love that kid!

[Dirtybubble]

Tanishq deserved to go home just for the stunt his mother tried to pull.  Lets hope Katherine is next.

Now see I think that's a little unfair.  Kids, IMO, get a free pass when it comes to this.  If Tanishq was an adult I would be seriously irritated with his behavior to say nothing of his mother but because he's a kid, genius but still a kid, I can forgive his constant rambling about being in college and how everything is easy for him.  His mom yeah a nasty move with that stupid Susan/Sandra Day O'Conner b/s but their gone now.  As for Katherine...again I see nothing wrong with her behavior.  Yeah she's dedicated and extremely focused on her goal but IDK isn't that a good thing?  As for her parents, I'm not really seeing a problem with them.  There are previews for Tuesday that may change my mind but for now, I just don't get the Katherine hate.

 

I think Ryan deserves his own television show...without his brother or his parents.

Love me some Ryan too but half the charm of him is watching him play off his brother and parents.  I would watch an hour of them on Lifetime OR and hour of Binyamin and his dad!  =D

Edited February 9, 2015 by Dirtybubble

[Dirtybubble]

According to the write up only one child will go home tonight. That's good but there are no more "red shirts" no more unknown kids so anyone that leaves from here on out will be tough. If there is one thing I hate its seeing a child upset because he/she felt they failed :(

Edited February 11, 2015 by Dirtybubble

[Gianthambeast]

^You're nice Dirty Bubble. :)  I'm mean--I would kinda like to see Graham or Katharine go. 

[Stella MD]

NOOOOOOOOO!!

Binyamin crying just broke my heart. Poor kid.

[Gianthambeast]

Aw man.  :( Now I'm sad.

[Katara]

NOOOOOOOOO!!

Binyamin crying just broke my heart. Poor kid.

 

 If Katherine cried, she would just be a "sore loser".

[walnutqueen]

Binyamin's dad is so sweet and affectionate with him; such a delight coming from such a tough guy.  I think I may have a bit of a crush on him ... or maybe he just looks like my bio-daddy and I'm rewriting my childhood.  ;-)

[Stella MD]

If Katherine cried, she would just be a "sore loser".

Binyamin expressed a spontaneous and very human emotion in response to his poor performance. He wasn't trying to influence the outcome by doing so. If Katherine did the same thing, with the same motivation, then of course no one would fault her.

I *am* grateful that she didn't resort to waterworks while her family was wasting the judges time trying to make 'Nelson Mandura' happen.

At this point, I blame the judges as much as the parents/kids for these stupid attempts at reversing the scores. Why even open that door by inviting them back in the room? Just announce the decision at the start of the next round. And make it clear that the judges' decision is final.

[Dirtybubble]

Well it's official, I hate Ryan's mom now.  That comment about Chinese girls....grrr!  Now I really hope Vanya wins.  What a stupid, stereotypical thing to say.

[Dirtybubble]

NOOOOOOOOO!!

Binyamin crying just broke my heart. Poor kid.

Awww sweet kid =(  Man that was upsetting but my gut was telling me it would be him next.  He was the only one who hadn't been in the top 3 yet.  What a sweetie pie he is.

Binyamin's dad is so sweet and affectionate with him; such a delight coming from such a tough guy.  I think I may have a bit of a crush on him ... or maybe he just looks like my bio-daddy and I'm rewriting my childhood.  ;-)

Can we start a petition to Lifetime to get these two their own show?  I would be so down with that!!  That bound he built with his dad, that's whats gonna be remembered not some scholarship. 

 

I *am* grateful that she didn't resort to waterworks while her family was wasting the judges time trying to make 'Nelson Mandura' happen.

At this point, I blame the judges as much as the parents/kids for these stupid attempts at reversing the scores. Why even open that door by inviting them back in the room? Just announce the decision at the start of the next round. And make it clear that the judges' decision is final.

 

Man the kids had tough with pronunciations this week.  I guess the judges want to be 100% sure on giving points *shrug* or maybe they were building up drama who knows.  I gotta say Yeji and her parents handled the situation much better than Katherine's parents.  A simple ok and out the door you go is all that's needed, that reviewing the footage was dumb.  Enh, I still like Katherine but her parents are starting to bug a bit.

[Gianthambeast]

I'll miss Binyamin and Alon.  They were both delightful.  Though it made me sad to see him cry, I know Binyamin will get great support from his Dad and that he has a brilliant future ahead of him.  I think Child Genius/Counter-terrorism expert Dad would be a great premise for a reality show-- producers, get cracking! :)

 

About the remaining contestants:

 

Vanya--  I think she will take the whole thing.  Love her naturalness and cheerfulness.  She seems to really be enjoying herself.  I also like that her dad is always super-polite and calm when dealing with her.  There was a cute moment between them when he said "please drink some water," and she totally cracked up!

 

Ryan's interaction with his brother was priceless! If Ryan wins his mom will probably  say: "But why didn't you come first in every round? You are not motivated.  You lack focus.  Study harder! Why aren't you already in college like Tanishq? Ask Tanishq how he studies! You should be at Harvard already!"   Ryan really needs that money to defray the cost of the therapy he's gonna need to get that nagging  Tiger-mom voice outta his head. 

 

Graham-- I think he's a really nice, sweet boy.  I just don't want him to win because his mom will attribute his victory to Christ.  With all the suffering in the world I don't think Christ's top priority is overseeing a kiddie trivia contest.   Run Graham!

 

Note the contrast between how Yeiji's parents reacted to the judge's ruling and the way Katharine's reacted.  There was no point in quibbling.  I think those attitudes filter down to the kids however subtly.  Katharine is brilliant and an adorable girl, but there's a bit of a robotic quality to her that bothers me.  Yeiji seems more down-to-earth.  She's great-- why haven't we seen more of her?

Edited February 11, 2015 by Gianthambeast

[Arkay]

What a sweetheart that Binyamin is, and I do wish he had won, but what he has is better than any contest prize. A father who supports and adores you is priceless; and unfortunately, too rare.

Now I am rooting for Graham. He is sweet, humble and unspoiled. Then Yeji...she is adorable and down-to-earth.

[Arkay]

Agree with everyone who has said this in the other threads....Alon & Binyamin should be offered a show on Lifetime. There is a storyline already with their bond although they appear so different from each other, and I'd love to see more of them.

[kitten59]

Binyamin and Yeji are adorable!! Ryan is my favorite, though- that kid cracks me up!! He is effortlessly funny, and I would watch that family (annoying mom and all) on their own show.

[gunderda]

I love Ryan so much! I would totally watch if he had his own show.  Unfortunately the best parts are when he's interacting with his mom so she'd have to be on it as well. Her happy/horrified faces would make a great GIF. 

 

But that kid cracks me up so much.  Good for him.  Although I see him growing up and not really caring about his 'genius' status and he'll likely start to resent his mom and shut himself up in his bedroom and smoke pot for days.

Something about Graham just seems off with me.... it's nice that he's not expecting much but it just seems like every week is a "gosh golly darn, I just don't know that much about this subject so I probably won't do well....... OH LOOK I GOT FIRST PLACE!!!!!!" 

 

I thought Katherine's parents were fairly normal at first..... but the farther she gets in the comp the more their tiger mom and dad qualities come out. 

And why is the debate team teaching Katherine and Yeji to talk so fast??? Slow it down girls!

[gunderda]

Well it's official, I hate Ryan's mom now.  That comment about Chinese girls....grrr!  Now I really hope Vanya wins.  What a stupid, stereotypical thing to say.

And I love that Ryan called out his mom on it.  I love that kid!

 

If you watch closely sometimes Ryan's dad will switch on who he sides with.  Usually he's with the mom but once in awhile he basically tells the mom to back off and sides with Ryan. Which to me is very interesting. 

[Dirtybubble]

Alon & Binyamin should be offered a show on Lifetime. There is a storyline already with their bond although they appear so different from each other, and I'd love to see more of them.

I actually sent an email to the MyLifetime website suggesting that these 2 get some sort of show or special or something and I got a response saying that they don't accept t.v. show suggestions from anyone who isn't affiliated with Lifetime so...go figure. 

 

If you watch closely sometimes Ryan's dad will switch on who he sides with.  Usually he's with the mom but once in awhile he basically tells the mom to back off and sides with Ryan. Which to me is very interesting.

Yeah I've noticed that as well.  It sometimes makes me think that Ryan's dad isn't quite as bad as his mother.  I think the kid is great but my gut is telling me he wont win the competition.  If I had to take a guess I would say it's going to be down to Katherine and Yeji in the F2--simply because of the way that the show keeps pushing their..."rival" if it's even that.  IDk, I like them both it's just Yeji seems a little more personable while Katherine is a bit icy I guess.  Both seem like well mannered children.

 

 

 

[Dirtybubble]

Vanya--  I think she will take the whole thing.  Love her naturalness and cheerfulness.  She seems to really be enjoying herself.  I also like that her dad is always super-polite and calm when dealing with her.  There was a cute moment between them when he said "please drink some water," and she totally cracked up!

I really like Vanya as well; she seems the most mature and just such a sweet little lady.  I do hope she wins but my gut is telling me she won't.  She is a spelling whiz but I've noticed she hasn't placed in the top since the spelling category and she seems to struggle a bit with other subjects.  Don't get me wrong she does fine with science and such but she isn't really doing superb like I think you might need to to win this competition.  Still she's a doll and pretty too--she is going to be a knock out when she's a teenager =)

 

I think the finale 2 will be Yeji and Katherine. 

 

Something about Graham just seems off with me.... it's nice that he's not expecting much but it just seems like every week is a "gosh golly darn, I just don't know that much about this subject so I probably won't do well....... OH LOOK I GOT FIRST PLACE!!!!!!"

This has always made me scratch my head a bit.  This "aw shucks" attitude is nice and a little humility goes far but IDK, it just seems like it's another opportunity for his mom to rub it in everyone's face that see God does want him to win kinda thing.  And I feel bad for saying that because I'm a lover of the Lord myself but something just bugs me about people who seem to use their Christianity as....I don't know how to put it.....just makes them seem better than everyone else.  Any success they have it's because we're good little Christians and we deserve it and if something bad happens to you well are you right with Jesus is the first question that's normally asked in my experience.  IDK, just rantin' I guess....

 

Oh and it looks like there will be a second season of Child Genius.  The mylifetime website is taking applications and stuff for children with high I.Q.s.  I'm happy with that--I'd love to see another season.  With so much stupidity on t.v. (dance moms!!!) It's nice to see some intelligence--even if it is wrapped up in tiger moms.

[gunderda]

I really like Vanya as well; she seems the most mature and just such a sweet little lady.  I do hope she wins but my gut is telling me she won't.  She is a spelling whiz but I've noticed she hasn't placed in the top since the spelling category and she seems to struggle a bit with other subjects.  Don't get me wrong she does fine with science and such but she isn't really doing superb like I think you might need to to win this competition.  Still she's a doll and pretty too--she is going to be a knock out when she's a teenager =)

 

I think the finale 2 will be Yeji and Katherine. 

 

This has always made me scratch my head a bit.  This "aw shucks" attitude is nice and a little humility goes far but IDK, it just seems like it's another opportunity for his mom to rub it in everyone's face that see God does want him to win kinda thing.  And I feel bad for saying that because I'm a lover of the Lord myself but something just bugs me about people who seem to use their Christianity as....I don't know how to put it.....just makes them seem better than everyone else.  Any success they have it's because we're good little Christians and we deserve it and if something bad happens to you well are you right with Jesus is the first question that's normally asked in my experience.  IDK, just rantin' I guess....

 

Oh and it looks like there will be a second season of Child Genius.  The mylifetime website is taking applications and stuff for children with high I.Q.s.  I'm happy with that--I'd love to see another season.  With so much stupidity on t.v. (dance moms!!!) It's nice to see some intelligence--even if it is wrapped up in tiger moms.

I'm a Christian also but when she said "I think God wants Graham to win" I was like "uhhhhhhh WHAT?!?!"  I seriously can not believe she said that. 

[Dirtybubble]

I'm a Christian also but when she said "I think God wants Graham to win" I was like "uhhhhhhh WHAT?!?!"  I seriously can not believe she said that.

IKR?!  I'm tellin ya it's people like her that give Christians a bad name.  It's a shame because I like Graham, he seems like a sweet kid and I like watching him pal around with the other kids.  I don't think he'll win though; in fact if I had to guess I would say it's either him or Ryan leaving next. 

 

Good gravy I hate to see the episode when Ryan gets eliminated--his mom's head is gonna explode!  LoL--on second thought maybe I would like to see that.  =D

[Stella MD]

Whenever Graham's mom starts yapping about God wanting Graham to win, I always think of that erstwhile TWoP expression: "God is in the tub."