Thursday, October 12, 2017 Game Recap and Discussion [SPOILERS]

[OldSchoolChamp]

In addition to the stellar performance by Scarlett, can I just say that that was the most exciting, competitive slugfest of a Jeopardy! match I’ve ever watched? Two great players with broad knowledge bases, slugging it out on the buzzer, seesawing the lead. A Jeopardy! classic.

I’m surprised, though, that amid all the richly deserved praise for Scarlett’s game, no one has mentioned Austin’s reckless overwager in FJ:

• Austin: 16600
  Scarlett: 21200
  Sean: 2800

Austin is not crushed, so he has no need to improve his score in order to win—just hold on tight and hope for a miss by the leader. Since he’s above 3/4 of her score, classic wagering theory holds he should bet at least 4601 to cover her. One thing he definitely must not do is fall below her swing-and-a-miss residue of 9199. If FJ had turned out to be a triple stumper, his whale bet of 16550 would have needlessly cost him the game and his winning streak.

None of which is to steal any glory from Scarlett. Girl, you totally rocked from start to finish. Looking forward to watching you for a good, long run.

[RobW]

Congrats Sims. That high five at the end is great.

Austin looked *so* happy for her too! (It might've been partly "finally, it's over (for now)", but I think a lot of it was genuine happiness for Scarlett. Part of the reason I like Austin.

Agreed. Austin’s appearance on Fallon last night included his emphatic statement that “Oh, I didn’t lose - Scarlett beat me! ” I’ll admit that Austin’s antics might’ve been annoying at times, but overall I loved seeing him on the show, and I’ll probably root for him in the ToC. (and at risk of jinxing her, wouldn't it be fun to see an Austin-Scarlett rematch?)

In addition to the stellar performance by Scarlett, can I just say that that was the most exciting, competitive slugfest of a Jeopardy! match I’ve ever watched? Two great players with broad knowledge bases, slugging it out on the buzzer, seesawing the lead. A Jeopardy! classic.

“buzzer slugfest” was exactly the phrase that came to my mind as I watched the last few questions get played. It really doesn’t get any better than that.

[Wheatley]

OK. I went with contraindication instead of contraindicated. I could see the judges ruling against me because they were looking for an adjective not a noun, and that, for me, is what's wrong with this game. I do not like clues that are pinned with "this 12 letter 6 syllable whatever word". There's gotta be a better way

How exactly was it phrased? They gave Austin credit for "snipe" despite clearly wanting past tense because his answer fulfilled the requirement of being in "dispensible." Your answer was still 6 syllables so you should get credit

[Elijah Baley]

The story behind this Final is even weirder than the clue lets on.

Pretty ironic if the Feds thought Capra was making Communist propaganda, given that Capra was staunch anti-Communist...

I'm actually surprised that Capra was so anti-Communist, and not surprised that the FBI would have questioned the politics of his movies. So many of them are pretty specifically set against the excesses of capitalism and money being the root of all evil, etc. If anything, I would have guessed that he was sympathetic to anarchy - You Can't Take It With You seems like a tribute to harmonic chaos (to the extent such a thing isn't an oxymoron).

[The Talking Mime]

A bit late to the party, but way to go Scarlett! Congrats on the successful debut and I hope this is the start of a streak of your own.

And of course, congrats to Austin on a great run himself. Can't wait to see how he does in next month's tournament.

[Vintsanity]

I'm going to take the field over Austin in TOC.

Not a particular tough call IMO. I'm still not sold on Austin's actual game play, just his ability to bet big and beat up on lesser opponents. Just look what happened today when he went up against someone who really came to play. The best thing Austin did to help his TOC chances was eliminate my presumptive favorite, Tim Kutz, without having to face him.

[Elijah Baley]

I'm going to take the field over Austin in TOC.

Not a particular tough call IMO. I'm still not sold on Austin's actual game play, just his ability to bet big and beat up on lesser opponents. Just look what happened today when he went up against someone who really came to play. The best thing Austin did to help his TOC chances was eliminate my presumptive favorite, Tim Kutz, without having to face him.

Except that Austin had to get those DDs correct to capitalize on those big bets. And, while FJs have been ridiculously easy of late, Austin got several DD that I thought were impressive. He has a pretty wide knowledge base - whether it's from his personal knowledge and experience outside Jeopardy and/or his stated knowledge from watching certain patterns develop in the show - so he could a force in the tournament.

[joepozz]

Congratulations to Scarlett, and thank you for restoring some modicum of sanity to the proceedings.

As a long-time fan of classic country music, I was happy to see you run the Dolly Parton category, and obviously have such a good time doing it.

As for the Final Jeopardy clue, all I can say is "The more things change, the more they stay the same."

[Woof]

First of all, hearty congratulations to both Austin and of course Scarlett. What a game and what a win! As OSC says (and he knows wherefrom he speaks) it was a game for the ages. I'll disagree with the doubters about Austin: he showed his mettle today when, faced with a tough opponent and some costly early misses, he came back in DJ, found, bet big and got both DDs and generally came roaring back to take the lead away from Scarlett. That showed both poise and ability. When I saw the FJ clue, I predicted that both Austin and Scarlett would get it and I wasn't disappointed. Her wager cemented my confidence in her. Retro good luck going forward, Scarlett!

[davey]

The story behind this Final is even weirder than the clue lets on.

Pretty ironic if the Feds thought Capra was making Communist propaganda, given that Capra was staunch anti-Communist...

I'm actually surprised that Capra was so anti-Communist, and not surprised that the FBI would have questioned the politics of his movies. So many of them are pretty specifically set against the excesses of capitalism and money being the root of all evil, etc. If anything, I would have guessed that he was sympathetic to anarchy - You Can't Take It With You seems like a tribute to harmonic chaos (to the extent such a thing isn't an oxymoron).

Capra wasn't just anti-Communist (as many liberals were). He was anti-Roosevelt.
http://www.nytimes.com/1992/05/03/books ... wanted=all

[CailinGaoilge]

Congratulations to Constance, and thank you for restoring some modicum of sanity to the proceedings.

As a long-time fan of classic country music, I was happy to see you run the Dolly Parton category, and obviously have such a good time doing it.

As for the Final Jeopardy clue, all I can say is "The more things change, the more they stay the same."

Who's Constance?

[joepozz]

Congratulations to Constance, and thank you for restoring some modicum of sanity to the proceedings.

As a long-time fan of classic country music, I was happy to see you run the Dolly Parton category, and obviously have such a good time doing it.

As for the Final Jeopardy clue, all I can say is "The more things change, the more they stay the same."

Who's Constance?

My apologies. I corrected the name. Not sure where that came from. Thanks for catching it.

[Elijah Baley]

The story behind this Final is even weirder than the clue lets on.

Pretty ironic if the Feds thought Capra was making Communist propaganda, given that Capra was staunch anti-Communist...

I'm actually surprised that Capra was so anti-Communist, and not surprised that the FBI would have questioned the politics of his movies. So many of them are pretty specifically set against the excesses of capitalism and money being the root of all evil, etc. If anything, I would have guessed that he was sympathetic to anarchy - You Can't Take It With You seems like a tribute to harmonic chaos (to the extent such a thing isn't an oxymoron).

Capra wasn't just anti-Communist (as many liberals were). He was anti-Roosevelt.
http://www.nytimes.com/1992/05/03/books ... wanted=all

Right. So he was openly disdainful of "fat cats" because they saw it within their rights to (almost literally) crush the little guy and yet he obviously hated the idea of government stepping in to protect said little guy. Which leaves what, exactly? I guess some fictional place - like Bedford Fals - where people just spontaneously would come together to help out when necessary. Which - I guess is why he worked in fiction!

[badgerfellow]

Because of this movie, I now always give bread, salt, and wine as housewarming gifts. The new homeowners are always confused by it, though. Kind of sad they don't know the reference.

[AndyTheQuizzer]

In addition to the stellar performance by Scarlett, can I just say that that was the most exciting, competitive slugfest of a Jeopardy! match I’ve ever watched? Two great players with broad knowledge bases, slugging it out on the buzzer, seesawing the lead. A Jeopardy! classic.

I’m surprised, though, that amid all the richly deserved praise for Scarlett’s game, no one has mentioned Austin’s reckless overwager in FJ:

• Austin: 16600
  Scarlett: 21200
  Sean: 2800

Austin is not crushed, so he has no need to improve his score in order to win—just hold on tight and hope for a miss by the leader. Since he’s above 3/4 of her score, classic wagering theory holds he should bet at least 4601 to cover her. One thing he definitely must not do is fall below her swing-and-a-miss residue of 9199. If FJ had turned out to be a triple stumper, his whale bet of 16550 would have unnecessarily cost him the game and his winning streak.

None of which is to steal any glory from Scarlett. Girl, you totally rocked from start to finish. Looking forward to watching you for a good, long run.

Regular strategy also assumes you're an average player in Final Jeopardy. When you've already demonstrated you're 11-for-12 on the final clue of the game, well, you're allowed to throw regular strategy out the window a bit and be more aggressive.

[Bamaman]

Congratulations to Scarlett!!! I had an inkling the lady from East Tennessee would go for the Dolly category. I lived in Knoxville for a few years and cruised the category as well. Just wish they had gotten Dolly to read the clues.

I bet I'm not the only one to laugh when Sean's hometown was announced.

An instaget FJ.

[cinemaniax7]

Actually, It's a Wonderful Life came out in 1946, so I suppose the writers thought that would put enough doubt in the players' minds to make it seem like a challenging clue. Whatever....

It's a Wonderful Life was released on a limited basis during Christmas week of 1946, presumably to qualify for that year's Oscars. The movie went into wide release a couple of weeks later in January, and the FBI memo in question was also issued in 1947. So I have no problem with the way the clue was worded.

Besides, the story line of 1947's Miracle on 34th Street has almost nothing to do with banking, whereas the plot of It's a Wonderful Life hinges on the rich banker Potter's attempts to quash the little guy's Bailey Building & Loan.

Congratulations, Scarlett, on a game well played!

And Merry Christmas, Bedford Falls!

[flemmingfan]

I want to add my congratulations to Ms. Scarlett. This game was a classic IMHO and you performed admirably and enthusiastically. You played the game as it should be played including the countenance before your answer was revealed in FJ. Hooray!

[opusthepenguin]

As for the Final Jeopardy clue, all I can say is "The more things change, the more they stay the same."

Or as the French would say, plus ça outchange, plus c'est la même chose.

[hbomb1947]

In addition to the stellar performance by Scarlett, can I just say that that was the most exciting, competitive slugfest of a Jeopardy! match I’ve ever watched? Two great players with broad knowledge bases, slugging it out on the buzzer, seesawing the lead. A Jeopardy! classic.

I’m surprised, though, that amid all the richly deserved praise for Scarlett’s game, no one has mentioned Austin’s reckless overwager in FJ:

• Austin: 16600
  Scarlett: 21200
  Sean: 2800

Austin is not crushed, so he has no need to improve his score in order to win—just hold on tight and hope for a miss by the leader. Since he’s above 3/4 of her score, classic wagering theory holds he should bet at least 4601 to cover her. One thing he definitely must not do is fall below her swing-and-a-miss residue of 9199. If FJ had turned out to be a triple stumper, his whale bet of 16550 would have unnecessarily cost him the game and his winning streak.

None of which is to steal any glory from Scarlett. Girl, you totally rocked from start to finish. Looking forward to watching you for a good, long run.

Regular strategy also assumes you're an average player in Final Jeopardy. When you've already demonstrated you're 11-for-12 on the final clue of the game, well, you're allowed to throw regular strategy out the window a bit and be more aggressive.

Austin's prowess on (what had been mostly easy) FJ's to that point doesn't change the fact that a double-stumper was a real possibility before the clue was revealed, and if he wanted to maximize his chances of winning the game, he should have wagered accordingly. He basically threw away any chance of winning in the event that he got FJ wrong (and he had already gotten 1 FJ wrong, and if his run continued he would have obviously missed some more. Even KJ had "only" a cumulative 68% FJ solving percentage during his regular-play run).

And I have a feeling that Austin would have made the same wager in that situation whether it was the 1st or 13th game of his run. That just seems to be how he rolls. I have no problem with aggressiveness when it serves a strategic purpose (like the famous TDD's of Roger Craig in his TOC finals, or Austin's large DD wagers), but here I think it was not the best play although obviously the double-get made it irrelevant in this case.