Welcome to my weekly editorial, where I give my thoughts on things that have happened in the world of Jeopardy! in the past week.
I’m Glad Jay Is Excited, But…
Overnight, Reddit’s resident show recapper u/jaysjep2 posted his own “note to the producers” editorial, saying that “regular people rising to the challenge and entertaining us by going on open-ended winning streaks…really creates a buzz for the show”.
Over the past few months, he has made his preferences clear: this is the sort of Jeopardy! he most enjoys. I am happy for him that he is getting the sort of show that he enjoys watching at the moment.
However, by any quantifiable measurements—including the amount of comments the Reddit discussion threads are getting, and website visits here at The Jeopardy! Fan—the amount of “buzz” that Adriana’s run is getting is currently no higher than the late stages of a tournament. (And, I would certainly like to point out that saying that a playoff system that amounts to “win and advance” being classified as “an overly-complicated playoff system” is certainly a choice, especially considering that the previous tournament system routinely led to significant viewer confusion when it came to Final Jeopardy wagering strategy.)
So, in conclusion, while Jay is certainly entitled to his opinion, I believe that his editorial is simply based on vibes as opposed to quantifiable data, and I still think that the producers are taking the show in the correct direction here—especially as the data still seems to be on the producers’s side.
My friends over at Geeks Who Drink have introduced a daily trivia game—Thrice! Existing to make daily clever trivia content accessible to a wide audience, it's a daily challenge that tries to get you to the answer via three separate clues. It has a shareable score functionality to challenge your friends and new questions every day will give you a new daily social ritual. You can find it at thricegame.com.
Are you going on the show and looking for information about how to bet in Final Jeopardy? Check out my Betting Strategy 101 page. If you want to learn how to bet in two-day finals, check out Betting Strategy 102. In case the show uses a tournament with wild cards in the future, there is also a strategy page for betting in tournament quarterfinals.
Are you looking for information on how to stream Jeopardy! in 2024? Find out information here on how to stream from most places in North America!
Do you appreciate the work I do here on The Jeopardy! Fan? Would you like to make a one-time contribution to the site? You may do so here!
You can find game-by-game stats here at The Jeopardy! Fan of all 17 players, now including Adriana Harmeyer, that have won 10 or more games on Jeopardy!
You can now listen to Alex Trebek-hosted Jeopardy! episodes from TuneIn Radio without leaving The Jeopardy! Fan — listen now!
Something I Was Glad To See This Week—And Thumbs Down To The Fandom & The Tabloids For Their Reaction
As someone who has many friends that have various gastrointestinal issues, I was very happy to see Hakme Lee’s contestant interview—chiefly the fact that she was so open about having issues with irritable bowel syndrome (IBS).
What I was not happy to see was the reaction of many in the fandom, amplified by the tabloid media. We as a society should be normalizing discussing health issues, including gastrointestinal health issues, and not mocking those who elect to bring that if. If you were someone who thought it necessary to mock Hakme this week, you should feel ashamed.
Who are the three players walking onto the set at the opening of Jeopardy! in 2024?
From nearest the camera to furthest away: Henry Baer, Julia Markham Cameron, and Gary Hollis. Those were the three players on the December 12, 2023 episode, the episode that the show chose to get extra behind-the-scenes footage of for its opening.
Now, why, you ask, am I choosing to include this in an editorial? While this information was discussed at the time that the new opening was unveiled, it’s also quite possible that some fans didn’t think about this until a few months afterwards. Certainly, I didn’t really realize that people might still be wondering about this until my mother texted me with this exact question last night! So, thanks Mom for asking—and prompting me to put this out into the world, just in case others were still wondering!
We have many new offerings at The Jeopardy! Fan Online Store! Here are our current featured items, including our new Masters Season 3 Player List T-shirt:
A Casting Call
Complete The List is returning to production this summer, with a new format—don’t worry, contestants will still be completing lists of at least 12 items, though!
If you’re interested in taking part, though, there is a casting form to fill out!
In Closing…
How far will Adriana go?
Become a Supporter now! Make a monthly contribution to the site on Patreon!
Contestant photo credit: jeopardy.com
When commenting, please note that all comments on The Jeopardy! Fan must be in compliance with the Site Comment Policy.
If you are going to quote any information from this page or this website, attribution is required.
Have you had a chance to listen to our podcast game show, Complete The List, yet? Check it out! It's also available on Apple Podcasts.
As for how far will Adriana go…..I hope that she runs another week and we’re talking about an 18 game winning streak next week. 🙂
I would like to see her (at the very least) make it into the top 10 in both number of regular season games won and total money won in regular season play. The second might be tough.
I totally agree with Andy about the Hakme Lee situation. [MY not mentioning IBS itself in that statement may seem like I am one who avoids such subjects, but anyone who actually knows me knows that is not the case. I just wanted to make it clear that I was referring to the social media stuff, not the actual health stuff.]
Andy;
Doing a quick and brief search I couldn’t find it, but I thought you reported that daily-syndicated Jeopardy will be using a system somewhat similar to the Celebrity Jeopardy format to qualify players for the next T of C.
Is my admittedly sometimes hazy memory right, or, is it playing tricks on me (again)?
With all due respect, Bill—what you’re referring to was my yearly article published on April 1.
Andy;
How can telling me where to find what I asked about be disrespectful by any definition?
Now I just have to go back to the 4/1/24 article,and,see how correct, or, bad my memory is on this.
Thanks.
Bill: Please don’t worry. It was my way of telling you that what you remember reading was my April Fools article for 2024.
Andy;
From your 4/1/24 “the Best of Best Worlds,” I see my thought about the 2024=25 season being played out in a format similar to that of Celebrity Jeoapardy is wrong. The only place the format for 3024-25 are similar, is that periodic breaks are taken to produce semi finalists in Celebrity Jeopardy, and, T of C qualifiers in daily, syndicated Jeopardy.
It appears that this new format will eliminate “super champions” like Adrianna now, Ken, Buzzy, etc. in the past. If that is correct, viewers won’t be as involved in some players successes, as they are now.
Any other thoughts, projections, will have to wait for the new season.
Bill:
That story was an April Fool’s Joke.
It is not real.
NOW I know. Trouble is when you read something in “print” it’s not obvious when the writer is being facetious.
Guess this ranks with the Davies and team announcement from last year about Ken, and, Mayim co-hosting the daily show. That had everyone gooing until the end.