All Episodes Discussion: The Daily Double

[proserpina65]

When I was on the show I came in third so I was standing next to him at the end. Since my little story at the interview portion was about going back to school later in life he just was asking me where I went to school and some follow up questions about that. He didn't talk to the other two people.

After my game, Alex talked about the Bodyworks exhibit he'd recently seen.  The one with dead bodies minus their skin.  I'm sure it's quite interesting scientifically, but all I could think was "UGH!".

[6 MeowMeowBeenz]

Possibilities, I remember my German teacher in HS pointing out that the English title of "All Quiet at the Western Front" was superior and way more poetic than the German title--"in westen nichts neues". Literally "nothing new in the west". 

 

Team Julia although I am scared of Ben's Buzzer Badassery 

[Tigershark]

I am rooting for Ben.  I don't have anything against Julia or Arthur personally, but I don't like the fact that almost all of the attention is on them.  I was planning on rooting for whoever won last night to win the whole tournament.  Unless it was Sandie.  This Giants fan has not forgiven her for thinking that Willie Mays played for the Yankees.

 

After one of my games, Alex talked about he thought the TS FJ was super easy, and couldn't believe none of us got it.  That wasn't very nice of him. 

Edited November 20, 2014 by Tigershark

[Jesse]

I was on Jeopardy a million years ago, and don't remember that chatting-at-the-end time at all, but do remember Alex as being not very nice all the way around!

[dcalley]

I don't know if tv stations will cover it, but the president is speaking at 8:00 ET, so it could mess with Jeopardy for some.

ETA: Never mind. I'm seeing that the 4 networks won't show the president.

Edited November 20, 2014 by dcalley

[alias1]

I am rooting for Ben.  I don't have anything against Julia or Arthur personally, but I don't like the fact that almost all of the attention is on them.  I was planning on rooting for whoever won last night to win the whole tournament.  Unless it was Sandie.  This Giants fan has not forgiven her for thinking that Willie Mays played for the Yankees.

 

After one of my games, Alex talked about he thought the TS FJ was super easy, and couldn't believe none of us got it.  That wasn't very nice of him. 

Tigershark, I agree about all the attention being paid to Arthur and Julia.  While I might have been for Arthur originally (and I think he has gotten a bad rap) at this point I'm for Ben, too.

 

Alex can be such a dickhead about wrong answers or a TS, especially when  he has the correct response right in front of him.

[CarpeDiem54]

I don't know if tv stations will cover it, but the president is speaking at 8:00 ET, so it could mess with Jeopardy for some.

ETA: Never mind. I'm seeing that the 4 networks won't show the president.

They are showing the President's speech here. I can't find what time Jeopardy! will be shown. Probably at 1:00am.

[Bastet]

I missed last night's show, so I just read through the clues on the archive.

 

I'm a little surprised none of them knew Martin Scorsese for the Boardwalk Empire clue.  I don't watch the show and don't pay much attention to entertainment news anymore, but that had somehow made its way into my brain.  For that to happen, I figure it's common knowledge to most people, but I guess not.

 

Fixtures and impartiality as TS were a bit more surprising, but the one that really stood out to me was Pandemonium.  Other than that, what stumped them pretty much stumped me as well.  I did know Jacob's Ladder, but am not surprised none of them did.

 

I had no idea on FJ.  For some reason, the Horton stories were not among the Dr. Seuss books I read as a child, so I didn't get the elephant reference.  If I had, I might have thrown out Water for Elephants as a wild-ass guess, being the only thing I could think of with "elephant" in the title, and been stunned when I was right, but who knows?

[Cletus Among Us]

I don't know why it took me so long to find this forum! It might have something to do with my being remarkably not Jeopardy! material. Anyway, I'm also Team-Just-Want-a-Great-Game. I'm even more excited about this competition than I've been about any of the recent Jennings/Rutter matchups. Give the vets a rest, you know? For now, my heart says Team Julia, but Ben and Arthur have handily proven their champion statuses. 

 

Re: The Water for Elephants FJ. I got stuck on the Horton reference, too, but then I also confused the Lorax story with Horton. And I read Water for Elephants, too. I'm kicking myself for not getting that one since one of the (limited) best parts of that book was its passionate, informed stance on the greatness of elephants. Oh well, not Jeopardy! material. Did it appear to anyone else as if Ben mouthed the words "Oh shit!" when his answer turned out to be correct? 

[mojoween]

I want to stick the buzzer up Arthur's nose. (Yes, I am a child)

I adore Julia so very much and want to be her friend and find out who does her hair and what shampoo she uses, but I'm ok with Ben's FJ prowess. If it can't be Julia, Ben is an adequate victor.

I do find it amusing that when he does his interviews his South Carolina accent is out there and prominent, but during the game I don't hear it at all.

[Moose135]

I'm always surprised when viewers make character judgments about game show contestants.  We see them in a limited, artificial situation.  In a tough show like Jeopardy you have to concentrate if you want to compete.  I'm sure most of use would look less than friendly and humble in the same situation.

 

I get that - but reading some of the interviews Chu has given and checking out his blog don't give me a better opinion of him either.

[CarpeDiem54]

Dammit all! They joined the show in progress after the speech so I only got to see the last half dozen or so of the DJ clues and FJ.

Arthur seemed flustered (good) as he sure was flailing around with his buzzer. Go Ben! Come on, Julia!

[ByaNose]

Ahhhhh.....Julia, why did you eager so much? Hopefully, Alex is right about the 3rd place finisher winning in the end. We will see indeed. Ben is too goofy for me and Arthur was going crazy with the buzzer which he normally doesn't do. I think there has been so much written about Arthur & Juila that Ben will be the spoiler. Of course, he'll win it fair & square if he does.

[alias1]

Ahhhhh.....Julia, why did you eager so much? Hopefully, Alex is right about the 3rd place finisher winning in the end. We will see indeed. Ben is too goofy for me and Arthur was going crazy with the buzzer which he normally doesn't do. I think there has been so much written about Arthur & Juila that Ben will be the spoiler. Of course, he'll win it fair & square if he does.

I don't think I've ever seen that happen.  It seems to me that was just Alex showing his bias.

 

No matter who wins it will be fair and square. 

[opus]

So now I have to differentiate between Thickes?

[dcalley]

I get that - but reading some of the interviews Chu has given and checking out his blog don't give me a better opinion of him either.

I like that he's a vocal feminist.

 

So now I have to differentiate between Thickes?

I know, that seemed odd. Alan's not a singer (though he has written songs).

[Abstract]

Ugh, I botched FJ today. I was so certain that it was 1960, totally forgetting that Nixon was Eisenhower's VP.

My 9yo's jaw was dropping as Arthur knocked out those physics questions so quickly.

[wintergal]

When I was on the show a very long time ago, the FJ was about Canadian geography.  We all got it wrong.  Alex's post-show comment to us was "You Americans! You don't know ANYTHING about Canada!"   So yes, a scolding. 

[Bastet]

Nice game; this is a good final so far.

When I saw the Websites for Women category, I was prepared to be offended, but it wasn’t as bad as I feared.  When I saw the one about today's music, I was prepared to blow it, but I got two.

 

I loved – and ran - the category converting initials to Roman Numerals to numbers, and, like Julia, would have bet it all on the DD thanks to the extra time to reason it out.

 

I also enjoyed and excelled at the homophones category, and was surprised to see them all miss current currant.  And I kicked butt in the subatomic category, so that was fun, too.  Same with the countries by state category.

 

The Scarlet Letter clue was ridiculously over-valued in the ToC.

 

I had no idea on FJ, again.

 

I don’t like when contestants don’t clap after someone gets the DD.

Edited November 21, 2014 by Bastet

[WickedTuna]

I think it's really cool you guys were on the show. Does that make me a geek? I'm glad to know I wasn't wrong about about Trebek being a prick. I hope it didn't ruin the experience for you.

I'm not holding out much hope for Julia, which is disappointing in alot of ways. I hate the idea of one of the other two winning. I can't pinpoint a reason but Ben annoys the ever living hell out of me. Arthur I just flat out dislike. When he starts the board hopping I get animated and do strangling motions at the screen. Maybe I'm OCD but for me it just makes the whole game seem too erratic. It feels like I'm on a long bus ride on a bumpy road getting bounced around like a bingo ball.

[peeayebee]

That was a pretty enjoyable game. 

 

IIRC, during Arthur's first appearance on the show, he pushed his buzzer frantically, but earlier in this ToC, he didn't. Now he's back to frantic buzzing. I believe he had said in an interview that that is a deliberate technique he uses.

 

I don't like it when one contestant has a cheering section, but the other two don't.

 

I really screwed up FJ. For some stupid reason, I was thinking of the 1800's. 

[Tigershark]

 

When I was on the show a very long time ago, the FJ was about Canadian geography.  We all got it wrong.  Alex's post-show comment to us was "You Americans! You don't know ANYTHING about Canada!"   So yes, a scolding.

 

I can totally see him doing that.  However, Americans don't know anything about their own country's Geography, let alone another country's.  Alex really didn't like me for some reason.  I noticed that he tends to not like lawyers, so maybe that had something to do with it.  He looked completely stunned when my FJ wager was revealed.  I'm not sure if was surprised that 1. I made a really ballsy FJ wager, which I was forced to do considering I had a $400 lead over 2nd place or 2. I could add five digit numbers. 

 

I had FJ narrowed down to 1920 and 1952.  After that,it was flip a coin.  I went with 1952.

[ottoDbusdriver]

I can't believe that Instagram was the answer to a $1000 clue in the Jeopardy round.

 

Julia bet way too much, it's going to be hard for her to recover unless she nails most or all of the DDs (like she did in the DJ round today).

 

I guessed 1960 for the FJ as well -- d'oh !!

[Pallida]

I found a lot of the clues to be "easy" for a ToC final. We have a joke in my household about the regularity of The Scarlet Letter on Jeopardy. I was surprised it was in tonight's episode, especially in such an obvious format.

I'm fascinated by Ben's awkwardness so I'm rooting for him, but I think any of the three deserve to win and it's nice having a good competition.

[GreekGeek]

I don't think I've ever seen that happen.  It seems to me that was just Alex showing his bias.

 

 

I didn't think it was bias; he always says it at the end of the first day. Though you're right that I can't recall the last time it happened. Does anyone who is a bigger geek about these things than me have any information?

[YoureSoUrban]

Team Ben here. The guy is whip smart and seems comfortable in his awkwardness, which I kind of admire.

 

 

Plus there are 7 0r 8 volumes after "Swann's Way" whch is the title where this quote came from.  That should have been accepted also.

I'm glad someone mentioned this because my guess was Swann's Way. I was just happy I remembered some Proust.

 

On Twitter, Jeopardy has been promoting a site where you can hear all of Alex's post-show conversations with the TOC competitors. I watched a couple and it was actually kind of eerie just hearing them talk, without the theme music.

[junemeatcleaver]

I don't think I could single out Arthur for Daily Double hunting and board jumping these past two weeks, contestants have done it during the entire Tournament.

 

Julia's and Arthur's were silly imo.  Julia's I can understand, she's trailing by quite a bit, but Arthur was in good position.  Oh well.  Arthur still in it, and Julia better hope the other guys crash and burn but I doubt that will happen.

[Prevailing Wind]

I finally realized why I hate board-jumping so much.  I can't remember which category the clue's in.

 

I like Julia and won't be disappointed if she wins, but I'm rooting for Ben. As long as it's not Arthur.  Of COURSE being frantic is a ploy.  Sure, Arthur.  You've got it ALL planned out, don't you, son?  As they say in the South, "Bless his heart."

[proserpina65]

Alex really didn't like me for some reason.  I noticed that he tends to not like lawyers, so maybe that had something to do with it.

 

That's interesting.  I didn't find him unpleasant during my taping, but then I only played the one game.  And we all got a rather difficult FJ wrong, but he didn't say much about that.  Maybe it's something he wouldn't have known without the card in front of him.  He did seem to like both the returning champion for the first two games I watched being taped and the returning champion for my game, so that might've made a difference too.  Maybe if I'd been around longer, I'd have noticed more, but I was concentrating on not bursting into tears about losing, so I was probably pretty oblivious.  (Yeah, I'm one of those people who cry easily for the stupidest of reasons.)

 

Other than wanting to jam Arthur's signalling button somewhere the sun doesn't shine, I enjoyed that game.  (Yes, I was childishly happy when he got the FJ wrong.)  I surprised myself by getting two of the Roman numeral answers right, but the physics category was a total wash for me and I had no clue on the FJ; then again, politics is probably the worst possible category for me.

[teebax]

I finally realized why I hate board-jumping so much.  I can't remember which category the clue's in.

I think that's why the strategy is so effective (although I also hate it as a viewer). It keeps your opponents off-balance.

 

I thought I cared who won, but once the game began I realized I was just enjoying it for the sheer competitiveness of it. There were a couple of TS's that surprised me, but for the most part it was exciting to watch. Julia betting big on the two DD's she found and getting them right was cool to me because it made the overall scores closer. And for as much as I despised Arthur during his initial run, whatever he was doing that bothered me, he has either stopped doing it or it's stopped bothering me.

 

I got FJ only because presidential trivia is smack dab in my wheelhouse. I arrogantly assumed none of them would get it right, so color me impressed with Ben's answer. I also loved, loved, loved the Roman numerals category.

 

When we go back to regular games it's going to be a letdown for me. I hate when all three contestants just stare at the board, mouths agape, while having no clue what the correct responses are. And we've had a few of those games already this season.

[Totale]

I enjoyed the game.  Playing at home I got Malcolm X, but wondered if 550 would have been accepted, since he was born Malcolm Little and I don't think the change to X was done legally (I believe he did legally change to el-Shabazz or whatever it was later on).

 

EDIT: duh, 1050

Edited November 21, 2014 by Totale

[PaulaO]

Team Ben for me.  I really like Julia, but I like Ben a skoosh better because he seems so sweet and he loves his girlfriend. Not that Julia isn't sweet, but Ben has an old-fashioned Southern charm.  Arthur is better behaved this time around (not giving the stink eye when someone rings in before him), but I still don't want him to win.   But I won't take it personally if he does!  I knew FJ had to be in the early 20th century and got as far back as 1932 when time was up.

[HalcyonDays]

Team Julia for sure, but Ben is a close second. Even Arthur doesn't bother me this time around. The board jumping though - god I hate it. Because I can't keep track of what category it is, hence it being a good strategy.

 

I thought everyone bet a bit too much for final Jeopardy wagers. I mean, Arthur has 25K, Julia 18K and Ben 12K. Ben ends up with 25K, the others half their totals. It's only day one - don't bet so big! You want to be able to add that money on to day 2!

 

I actually thought Julia would struggle a bit, because Arthur and Ben board jump so much and she doesn't, but it wasn't an issue at all - until Final. Looking forward to today's conclusion!

[CarpeDiem54]

Today I was told to not come into work since they're slow. Normally, I'd be in a funk since that's a lost day's pay. Then I realized that meant I'd be able to watch all of Jeopardy! without having to risk life and limb racing through rush hour traffic. Yipee!

[Roaster]

Arthur missing the McLuhan quote?  Surprising.

 

An excellent Tournament of Champions.  All three in the final (heck, all 15 in the tournament) were worthy contestants.

 

(I didn't get FJ either.  That's one of those Shakespeare plays that is never produced.)

[Trey]

 

(I didn't get FJ either.  That's one of those Shakespeare plays that is never produced.)

 

I knew it started with T but that was as close as I got.

 

Congrats to Ben for the win.  I missed last night's game so I'm glad I got to see this one.

[MortysCleaningLady]

Thrilled!  While I had no clue about FJ and was kind of horrified by the Channing Tatum category, I'm thrilled that our winner was the least controversial option!!

[alias1]

Congrats to Ben!  (I do love that Arthur beat Julia, though.)  I think Arthur can be pretty happy with his $100,000.

 

They are all really smart, though, and any one of them could have won.  It all came down to the wagering.

Edited November 22, 2014 by SierraMist

[Bastet]

Enjoyable game, but some of the clues seemed too simple for a ToC – many of the sayings, all of the add-a-letter clues, the Noah clue, and the Plymouth clue.

 

I’m surprised Terry McMillan, including a picture, was a TS, and pretty well blown away that embolism went unanswered.

 

Media consolidation was rather surprising as a TS, and I was a bit surprised Cherry Bomb eluded them in the song category.  (I also knew The Look of Love, but that one didn’t surprise me as a TS.)  I also thought someone would know that cats have staff.

 

I need to go look him up, because not only have I not seen any of the films from the clues, I realize I don’t think I even know who Channing Tatum is.

 

I joined them in being stumped on FJ, as I feared I would be upon seeing the category – I know this is blasphemy in some circles, but I am just not a big fan of Shakespeare.

 

On a random note, I loved Hubba Bubba gum.

 

I've enjoyed watching all three of them play, but Julia especially tickles me with how much fun she seems to be having, especially her delight when a guess turns out to be right or a big move pays off.

[mojoween]

I am way more sad that Julia came in third than I am happy that Arthur didn't win.

FJ may as well have been written in Greek for the chance I had at answering it. I just do not know Shakespeare other than the major titles.

[peeayebee]

I’m surprised Terry McMillan, including a picture, was a TS, and pretty well blown away that embolism went unanswered.

 

I was like, "Oh, it's Terry something who wrote 'How Stella Got Her Groove Back,'" but I couldn't come up with her last name. I was drawing a blank on a lot of clues.

 

Good game. Good tournament.

Edited November 22, 2014 by peeayebee

[CarpeDiem54]

Great game! Congrats to Ben!

I don't know who Channing Tatum is either. Every time I see that name all I can think of is Tatum O'Neill. Never heard of any of those movies.

I got The Look of Love and Cherry Bomb. I was totally clueless on FJ.

[ottoDbusdriver]

I wish one of the Channing Tatum movie roles they chose was his cameo in 'This is the End' -- as a character named Channing Tatum.  Now that would have been funny.

[YoureSoUrban]

Yay for Ben!  He played a great tournament. I suspected Arthur wouldn't win because of an inadvertent spoiler from his wife but wasn't sure it really was until it happened.

[HalcyonDays]

Dammit - Good bloody tournament. The final Jeopardy's were HARD. It is all strategy with betting, but the reality is that Ben ended Day 1 with a massive amount of cash. But I'm glad he won, actually. I liked him. Was rooting for Julia but whatever - they all ended up with a nice payday of cash. And all three of the contestants, I actually remembered from regular play and liked then all, so its all good!

[Tigershark]

OMG, a clue that I got right when I was on Jeopardy was a TS in the finals of the TOC!  That was really satisfying.  Thank you Channing Tatum!  (To be fair, it wasn't the exact same question.  I was given the name of a movie, and had to identify the leading actors.)

 

When I saw the FJ category, I felt confident, but I could not come up with the answer.  After I looked up the FJ clue on Jeopardy.com, I was looking at the website for the Old Globe Theatre, and the next show they are doing is Pericles, Prince of Tyre.

 

I'm glad Ben won, mainly because the other two got so much attention. 

[gwlisa]

Did it look like Julia was barefoot behind the podium?

Glad Ben won. Would've been happier with my girl Julia winning but this is good too. I wish Arthur would quit talking about people on the internet and supposed controversy. A ton of viewers have no idea what he's talking about and it makes him look ... I don't know the word. Not classy.

It reminds me of one of those Hills girls who was on Dancing with the Stars. In her first introduction package, she tells the interviewer her name and says "and I am not a bitch!" Most people I bet don't know what she was talking about and she looked self absorbed. Maybe that is the phrase I meant for Arthur.

[peeayebee]

Thanks for the info. What a wonderful interview. I can't get it to embed, so here's a link:

 

Interview with Ben.

Edited November 22, 2014 by peeayebee

[Prevailing Wind]

I was extremely tickled to see Jill Sobule as part of a clue.  She's one of my favorite singer/songwriters. 

 

I don't know Channing Tatum, either.  I'd have done much better with a Harrison Ford category.  ;-)

[DXD526]

Another member of the I-have-no-idea-who-Channing-Tatum-is club. Until last night, of course. I'd heard the name, but didn't even know if it was a man or woman. Now, thanks to Jeopardy!, I know it's a man! Armed with this valuable information, I can go forth and spread beauty and light...

 

Don't remember who the other artist was for "The Look of Love", but it threw me off; if it had been Sergio Mendes and ABC listed, I would have gotten it!

 

Great tournament. All three are great players, and though I was pulling for Julia, they were all deserving and I really couldn't be disappointed in any outcome. It will be weird to go back to just the pedestrian games again :)