Tuesday, November 8, 2011 Game Recap & Discussion [SPOILERS]

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goforthetie
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Re: Tuesday, November 8, 2011 Game Recap & Discussion (SPOILERS)

Post by goforthetie »

dhkendall wrote:
opusthepenguin wrote:
StevenH wrote:The Somalia/Mali clue brought back a memory of a FJ from one of Terry Linwood's game.
It put me in mind of the FJ clue last year: "In only 2 cases can you add 2 letters to one country & get another country: Austria/Australia & this pair." They wanted Niger/Nigeria and later had to acknowledge they'd forgotten all about Mali/Malawi. I wondered if "What is Malawi" would have been accepted for this clue. The clue was "You can find 'Mali' spelled out in the name of this other African country."
I'm guessing no, as the other clues had the letters in the TOM clues (the word in quotes in each clue) in consecutive order, and "Mali" is not in consecutive order in "Malawi".
The answer is yes. Check the note on FJ: http://www.j-archive.com/showgame.php?game_id=3527
(Austria is not in consecutive order in Australia, BTW.)

That category could have been in a teen week J! round. And the third instance of a clue referencing MALI in an another country name within a couple years is just plain silly.
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Re: Tuesday, November 8, 2011 Game Recap & Discussion (SPOILERS)

Post by earendel »

Those were probably the most difficult boards I've seen during this ToC. Absolutely no idea on the TV shows by episode - I don't watch any of the shows they named and even if I did, I probably wouldn't have known the episode names. FJ! was a total blank for me also.
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Re: Tuesday, November 8, 2011 Game Recap & Discussion (SPOILERS)

Post by opusthepenguin »

dhkendall wrote:
seaborgium wrote:I was with Jerome in the audience. When the FJ category was revealed, he decided we should play the precall game, and told me to go first. I named the only 18th century author I could at the moment, which was Swift.
One more than I could come up with. :(
Yeah, that can be a tough category. I remember talking with a fellow English Major at UCI about our likes and dislikes. He said his favorite was the 18th century, but went on to talk about Dickens and such. So I asked if he had really meant 18th century or the 1800s. He realized his mistake and agreed that he had meant to say 19th century. Then he paused, thought, and said, "Who even wrote during the 18th century?"

Even for specialists, there's a bit of a gap between Milton and Wordsworth where it seems like not a lot happened.
dhkendall wrote:
jeff6286 wrote:I'm wondering if the spy novel category was inspired by a Saturday Night Live sketch from this past December, featuring Robert DeNiro as a suspense author promoting his newest book, and features the titles of many of his other novels. Here is the transcript: http://snltranscripts.jt.org/10/10habacus.phtml

Titles named in the sketch include The "Abacus Conundrum", "The Harlequin Protocol", "The Ichabod Formula", "The Pinochet Sudoku", "The Nostradamus Mechanism", "The Godiva Gyroscope", "The Pokemon Directive", "The Vespucci Containment", "The Grimmelman Mosaic", "The Marmaduke Betrayal", "The Picasso Imbroglio", "The Brenda Effect", "The Fuddruckers Ultimatum", AND "Mac for Dummies".

I think "The Marmaduke Betrayal" is my favorite.
Is it just me, or do these all sound like Big Bang Theory episode names?
It was just you, but not anymore. Thanks! :)
dhkendall wrote:
opusthepenguin wrote:
StevenH wrote:The Somalia/Mali clue brought back a memory of a FJ from one of Terry Linwood's game.
It put me in mind of the FJ clue last year: "In only 2 cases can you add 2 letters to one country & get another country: Austria/Australia & this pair." They wanted Niger/Nigeria and later had to acknowledge they'd forgotten all about Mali/Malawi. I wondered if "What is Malawi" would have been accepted for this clue. The clue was "You can find 'Mali' spelled out in the name of this other African country."
I'm guessing no, as the other clues had the letters in the TOM clues (the word in quotes in each clue) in consecutive order, and "Mali" is not in consecutive order in "Malawi".
I was going to nitpick that the letters are in consecutive order. They're just not uninterrupted. But I see that my traitorous dictionary disagrees with me, insisting that "consecutive" entails not only sequence, but an unbroken sequence. I have a hazy recollection that there have been rulings to allow broken sequences such as the Mali in Malawi, but I don't recall the details or if they would apply here. You're probably right, especially since, as you point out, "Mali" was in quotes. I certainly wouldn't fault the judges for ruling against "Malawi".
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Re: Tuesday, November 8, 2011 Game Recap & Discussion (SPOILERS)

Post by seaborgium »

goforthetie wrote:
dhkendall wrote:
opusthepenguin wrote:It put me in mind of the FJ clue last year: "In only 2 cases can you add 2 letters to one country & get another country: Austria/Australia & this pair." They wanted Niger/Nigeria and later had to acknowledge they'd forgotten all about Mali/Malawi. I wondered if "What is Malawi" would have been accepted for this clue. The clue was "You can find 'Mali' spelled out in the name of this other African country."
I'm guessing no, as the other clues had the letters in the TOM clues (the word in quotes in each clue) in consecutive order, and "Mali" is not in consecutive order in "Malawi".
The answer is yes. Check the note on FJ: http://www.j-archive.com/showgame.php?game_id=3527
(Austria is not in consecutive order in Australia, BTW.)
The question was about a clue in last night's show, not about Jonathan Corbblah's FJ.
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Re: Tuesday, November 8, 2011 Game Recap & Discussion (SPOILERS)

Post by opusthepenguin »

goforthetie wrote:
dhkendall wrote:
opusthepenguin wrote:It put me in mind of the FJ clue last year: "In only 2 cases can you add 2 letters to one country & get another country: Austria/Australia & this pair." They wanted Niger/Nigeria and later had to acknowledge they'd forgotten all about Mali/Malawi. I wondered if "What is Malawi" would have been accepted for this clue. The clue was "You can find 'Mali' spelled out in the name of this other African country."
I'm guessing no, as the other clues had the letters in the TOM clues (the word in quotes in each clue) in consecutive order, and "Mali" is not in consecutive order in "Malawi".
The answer is yes. Check the note on FJ: http://www.j-archive.com/showgame.php?game_id=3527
(Austria is not in consecutive order in Australia, BTW.)
That's the example I was thinking of. I think it's relevant, but not quite dispositive, in part for the reason you point out. They give an example that clearly shows they will allow letters to be inserted in the middle. That fits with the clue, which speaks of adding two letters, with no further restriction. The letters don't even have to be consecutive, though in both the correct responses, they are. But if the hypothetical country of Ochadi existed, I think they would have had to accept Chad/Ochadi as fulfilling their conditions as well. The rules arguably are different when the specific letters to be included are enclosed in quotation marks.
goforthetie wrote:That category could have been in a teen week J! round. And the third instance of a clue referencing MALI in an another country name within a couple years is just plain silly.
When you say "third instance," are you including the Austria/Australia;Niger/Nigeria;Mali/Malawi FJ? Or am I missing an example? I know about the FJ in this game because StevenH reminded me. But I'm not seeing another instance where they (potentially) played on the fact that MALI is contained in another country's name.
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Re: Tuesday, November 8, 2011 Game Recap & Discussion (SPOILERS)

Post by Vanya »

Another incredibly stupid category in a recent game was "Lesser known Greeks," with all the responses ending in "-ies."
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Re: Tuesday, November 8, 2011 Game Recap & Discussion (SPOILERS)

Post by opusthepenguin »

Vanya wrote:Another incredibly stupid category in a recent game was "Lesser known Greeks," with all the responses ending in "-ies."
I thought that was kind of fun, but it should have been pre-explained. Tossing it at the players without letting them know that these weren't real people was unfair.
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Re: Tuesday, November 8, 2011 Game Recap & Discussion (SPOILERS)

Post by goforthetie »

opusthepenguin wrote:
goforthetie wrote: The answer is yes. Check the note on FJ: http://www.j-archive.com/showgame.php?game_id=3527
(Austria is not in consecutive order in Australia, BTW.)
That's the example I was thinking of. I think it's relevant, but not quite dispositive, in part for the reason you point out. They give an example that clearly shows they will allow letters to be inserted in the middle. That fits with the clue, which speaks of adding two letters, with no further restriction. The letters don't even have to be consecutive, though in both the correct responses, they are. But if the hypothetical country of Ochadi existed, I think they would have had to accept Chad/Ochadi as fulfilling their conditions as well. The rules arguably are different when the specific letters to be included are enclosed in quotation marks.
As Stefan pointed out, I misunderstood the question - Malawi I think would not be allowed for yesterday's game, since MALI is not consecutive in it. I agree that Chad/Ochadi would have had to be accepted for that FJ.
goforthetie wrote:That category could have been in a teen week J! round. And the third instance of a clue referencing MALI in an another country name within a couple years is just plain silly.
When you say "third instance," are you including the Austria/Australia;Niger/Nigeria;Mali/Malawi FJ? Or am I missing an example? I know about the FJ in this game because StevenH reminded me. But I'm not seeing another instance where they (potentially) played on the fact that MALI is contained in another country's name.
Yup. Although to be fair to the writers, these things stick out to me a little more than most people since I contemplated having a TD question about countries in countries right before these examples came up on the show.
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Re: Tuesday, November 8, 2011 Game Recap & Discussion (SPOILERS)

Post by markrunsvold »

I expected much more evisceration of my FJ wager (what, can you all sense my lurking or something??), but I'll just go ahead and pre-empt it with a weak explanation. I knew my score going into Final was good enough to get me through in any other year. I knew that, yet I couldn't shake the feeling that this pool's strength was sorta unprecedented. I also felt the category pointed to only a small handful of possible (in the Jeopardy universe) correct responses. I don't actually know anything about 18th Century Authors, but I knew J! wouldn't expect me to. SO I wagered like a crazy person, aaand the clue didn't ring any sort of bell when I saw it. Swift was at or near the top of my list to begin with, so I just focused on trying to eliminate him. The fact that the clue was looking for an author who also wrote some poems helped me rule out Defoe (no doubt wrote some poems, but I've never heard of one), Milton (wrote some prose, but 90% poet) and all the pure poets. And the more I thought about the "dean" thing, the more I felt a vague recollection of Swift being the dean of something or other. I finally scribbled "Swift" as time ran out and waited in suspense for Alex to get to me. It could have been very bad.
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Re: Tuesday, November 8, 2011 Game Recap & Discussion (SPOILERS)

Post by alietr »

Well done, Mark. It must have been the providential assistance of RuPaul and Isaac Mizrahi that pulled you through ('cause Lord knows I sure wasn't shouting "Swift" at my TV).
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Re: Tuesday, November 8, 2011 Game Recap & Discussion (SPOILERS)

Post by seaborgium »

markrunsvold wrote:I expected much more evisceration of my FJ wager (what, can you all sense my lurking or something??), but I'll just go ahead and pre-empt it with a weak explanation. ...
Can't argue with results. I'll never fault someone for winning on an overwager.

P.S. Now that I've been in one, one of my favorite details in tournaments is the last automatic semifinalists' reaction when, listening to Alex, they realize their competitor(s) will move on as well. I love the way Vijay is seen looking and smiling at me and Jason when Alex says Dave Belote got a wild card at $4,999, and I loved your apparent relief when Alex said Justin had made it through.
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Re: Tuesday, November 8, 2011 Game Recap & Discussion (SPOILERS)

Post by ayeembored »

xxaaaxx wrote:
Suze wrote:I thought the spy novels category was pretty funny. It was just an exercise in quick thinking, two questions in one, cram it together. Doesn't hurt to have a bit of entertainment in the show, since the ToC will have people watching who aren't necessarily hardcore trivia fiends.
Would a non-'fiend' have gotten Rhineland? :shrug: To each hisher own, and I'll take the 5/5, but I won't shed any tears if we never see the Create-a-Ludlum-Novel category again.
I got it, but that's because one of the classes I'm taking this semester is International Relations, and we were talking about the lead up to WWII on Tuesday. One of those coincidences that help you!
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Re: Tuesday, November 8, 2011 Game Recap & Discussion (SPOILERS)

Post by Volante »

ayeembored wrote:
xxaaaxx wrote:
Suze wrote:I thought the spy novels category was pretty funny. It was just an exercise in quick thinking, two questions in one, cram it together. Doesn't hurt to have a bit of entertainment in the show, since the ToC will have people watching who aren't necessarily hardcore trivia fiends.
Would a non-'fiend' have gotten Rhineland? :shrug: To each hisher own, and I'll take the 5/5, but I won't shed any tears if we never see the Create-a-Ludlum-Novel category again.
I got it, but that's because one of the classes I'm taking this semester is International Relations, and we were talking about the lead up to WWII on Tuesday. One of those coincidences that help you!
I saw 'land' and went with 'Sudetenland.' I *may* have gotten Rhineland, if I thought about it, but not a chance within the time allotment. On the whole, though, I liked the category. Not something I'd like to see regularly, but it's amusing...and it fits the show better than some of those other jokey categories. (Now...let's knock it up a notch! Etruscan Spy Novels!)

I had no clue on Swift. None whatsoever. I couldn't even give an answer cause (as pointed out before) who's an 18th century writer? Everyone I kept coming up with I could rule out by date...
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Re: Tuesday, November 8, 2011 Game Recap & Discussion (SPOILERS)

Post by slam »

seaborgium wrote:
KenJenningsFan74 wrote:This was quite a game. Under most circumstances Justin Sausville would have come away with the win, but Mark Runsvold's bold move in Final Jeopardy! was hard to overcome.
It's easy to overcome if you wager like there aren't wild cards available, which Justin was wisely unwilling to do. He unknowingly guaranteed himself a spot in the semifinals when he locked in his wager.

I was with Jerome in the audience. When the FJ category was revealed, he decided we should play the precall game, and told me to go first. I named the only 18th century author I could at the moment, which was Swift. I think that would have been Jerome's first choice, so he went for Voltaire. When the FJ music was playing, Jerome seemed pretty sure that I was right, so I didn't really get to ponder over it. But I'll count it as a get since a) as I said, Swift was the only writer who fit the time frame I could come up with, and b) the FJ's terse wording and mention of wordplay reminded me of Doug Hicton's semifinal FJ (http://www.j-archive.com/showgame.php?game_id=2171).
I also pre-called Swift and couldn't think of anybody else during the allotted time, so I wrote his name down. I was surprised, but not shocked, to be correct.
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Re: Tuesday, November 8, 2011 Game Recap & Discussion (SPOILERS)

Post by larkin1734 »

Am I the only one who thought of Swift, only to toss that response aside because it was used only four years ago in a TOC FJ?
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Re: Tuesday, November 8, 2011 Game Recap & Discussion (SPOILERS)

Post by periwinkle »

I got Rhineland with no problems, but I couldn't get FJ despite being an English major (long ago). "Dean" and "poet" had me stuck on John Donne, even though I knew that was the wrong century - couldn't get my brain to move to any 18th century poet deans. And I never knew Swift wrote poetry - we only read his essays.
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Re: Tuesday, November 8, 2011 Game Recap & Discussion (SPOILERS)

Post by Budphrey »

legendneverdies wrote:
StevenH wrote: The Somalia/Mali clue brought back a memory of a FJ from one of Terry Linwood's game.
One of the contestants who played that FJ! triple stumper, Abra Belke, will be on WWTBAM tomorrow.
Spoiler
And judging from the results of her Millionaire appearance, she benefited greatly from not having to beat Terry on the buzzer!
Poo-tee-weet? So it goes.
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Re: Tuesday, November 8, 2011 Game Recap & Discussion (SPOILERS)

Post by reddpen »

larkin1734 wrote:Am I the only one who thought of Swift, only to toss that response aside because it was used only four years ago in a TOC FJ?
Almost certainly.

Am I the only one who thought of Samuel Johnson, because, well... because he wrote in the 18th century? Dr. Johnson sounds more like an academic than Defoe, my precall. Had I gotten further back to Pope and Swift, I may have had a shot. Wish I'd recalled the riff on Swift's "A Modest Proposal" that I wrote for Bob Rozelle's English class back in 8th grade.

Anyone else get "Wasted"?

Btw, cute ass, lark. Yours?
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Re: Tuesday, November 8, 2011 Game Recap & Discussion (SPOILERS)

Post by larkin1734 »

reddpen wrote:
Btw, cute ass, lark. Yours?
It seemed appropriate.
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