Friday, November 14, 2014 Game Recap & Discussion [SPOILERS]

[Archivists]

Game Recap for Show #6940, 2014-11-14

2014 Tournament of Champions quarterfinal game 5.

CONTESTANTS
Mark Japinga, a graduate student in public affairs from Madison, Wisconsin
Sandie Baker, a data and translation coordinator from East Point, Michigan
Jared Hall, a consultant from Washington, D.C.

OPENING REMARKS
Alex: Thank you, Johnny. Hello, everyone. Today's match is second in importance only to next Friday's final because today's game will determine the remaining semifinalists who get to come back to play next week for $250,000. The winner today in this one involving Jared, sandie, and mark, automatically returns. So, good luck. Here we go. The Jeopardy! Round. And these categories, starting off with...

JEOPARDY! ROUND CATEGORIES
COLLEGE KNOWLEDGE (5/5)
FUNNY PEOPLE (4/5)
CITY OF BIRTH (4/5, including 1 correct Daily Double)
LETTER PERFECT (3/5)
AUTHORS (3/5)
NOT A POP GROUP, YET A POP GROUP (5/5)

THE RIGHTS & THE WRONGS
Mark: 12 R, 1 W
Jared: 6 R (including 1 rebound and 1 DD), 0 W
Sandie: 6 R, 2 W

Clues revealed: 30
Triple Stumpers: 6
Jeopardy! Round Potential Lach Trash: $4,400



JEOPARDY! ROUND DAILY DOUBLE
Jared found the Daily Double on the 15th clue. Jared had $2,200, Sandie had $800, and Mark was at $3,600. Jared made it a True Daily Double, wagering $2,200.

CITY OF BIRTH $1000: Arianna Huffington

SCORES AT THE FIRST BREAK
Jared: $4,400
Mark: $3,600
Sandie: $800

CONTESTANT INTERVIEWS



Alex: Mark Japinga is part of the digital world. His friends, in honor of his wins on Jeopardy!, created a blog all about you, right?

Mark: Yes. They called it "I Heart Japinga", um, and it consists solely of people on Twitter commenting on how attractive I look on television.

[Laughter]

Alex: I will say no more.

[Laughs]




Alex: Sandie Baker won $140,000. And at the viewing party of your first win, your brother-in-law said something rather important.

Sandie: Yes, he looked my husband, Dan, right in the eye and said, "You know, Dan, you're never gonna win another argument ever because you could be right and it wouldn't matter. All she could do--all she has to do is look you in the eye and say, 'Yes, but I'm the Jeopardy! champ.'"

Alex: Way to go. Does it still work?

Sandie: [Makes a so-so hand gesture] Eh... [Chuckles]

Alex: Oh. Yeah, guys are reluctant to give it up.




Alex: Okay, Jared Hall is a consultant from Washington, D.C. Now, we have a few Jeopardy! champions in our audience today, but he gets to play bar trivia games with some other Jeopardy! champions. How many are you in that area, the Washington, D.C., area?

Jared: Uh, well, this was originally, um, in Austin, Texas--

Alex: Ah, okay.

Jared: --where I hooked up with these former Jeopardy! champions who were living there. We were six to a team...

Alex: Whoa.

Jared: --um, for this--for a number of pub quizzes we went to. And our name, we were looking for something that sort of connoted gravitas and power. And so, um, given what we shared in common, we named ourselves "Alex Trebek's Mustache", which I notice today is no longer present.

Alex: [Takes his fingers away from his upper lip] As I have said on a number of occasions, I'm talented. I can grow it back--[snaps fingers]--like that.

TRIPLE STUMPERS IN THE JEOPARDY! ROUND
AUTHORS $600: Fittingly, this last name of "Girl With A Pearl Earring" historical novelist Tracy means "Knight"

FUNNY PEOPLE $600: Though she came around, Barbara Walters said she initially hated this funny lady's "Baba Wawa" impression
(Sandie: Who... uh... oh, I just--)

AUTHORS $1000: In 1960 she delivered a campus lecture titled "Faith And Force: The Destroyers Of The Modern World"

LETTER PERFECT $800: Proverbial sign that oysters are safe to eat
(Alex: Months with an R.)

LETTER PERFECT $1000: In physics, the most common symbol for momentum

CITY OF BIRTH $400: Robert Lewis Stevenson
(Mark: What is London?)

SCORES AT THE END OF THE JEOPARDY! ROUND
Mark: $5,400
Jared: $5,000
Sandie: $3,000

[Archivists]

DOUBLE JEOPARDY! ROUND CATEGORIES
SHAKESPEARE'S FOOLS (3/5, including 1 missed Daily Double)
FURNITURE (5/5)
LATIN AMERICAN HISTORY (2/5)
KILLER TV (4/5) (Alex: We want you to name the show that featured each killer on...)
READING THE METER (3/5)
FROM THE... (5/5, including 1 correct Daily Double) (Alex: ...And we'll tell you where it's from.)

THE RIGHTS & THE WRONGS
Mark: 9 R (including 1 DD), 2 W
Jared: 7 R, 1 W (including 1 DD)
Sandie: 6 R, 2 W

Clues revealed: 30
Triple Stumpers: 7
Double Jeopardy! Round Potential Lach Trash: $7,600



FIRST DOUBLE JEOPARDY! ROUND DAILY DOUBLE
Mark snagged the next Daily Double on the 18th clue. Jared had $6,600, Sandie had $5,800, and Mark was at $9,000. Mark wagered $2,500.

FROM THE... $2000: German for "form" or "shape," it's used to mean the overall mood or quality of something

SECOND DOUBLE JEOPARDY! ROUND DAILY DOUBLE
It was Jared who snatched up the last Daily Double of the game on the 24th clue. Jared had $9,800, Sandie had $7,000, and Mark was at $12,700. Jared wagered $4,000.

SHAKESPEARE'S FOOLS $2000: "The more fool I", says Touchstone on arriving at his new forest home in this comedy
(Jared: What is All's Well That Ends Well?)
...
(Alex: No, what is [*], and obviously, you don't like this one.)

TRIPLE STUMPERS IN THE DOUBLE JEOPARDY! ROUND
KILLER TV $1200: Brian Moser, AKA the Ice Truck Killer
(Alex: That show was [*].)

LATIN AMERICAN HISTORY $400: In 1520 this Portuguese navigator became the first European to reach what is now Chile
(Sandie: Who is DeGamma?)

SHAKESPEARE'S FOOLS $1200: This play's title characters have corresponding fools: Valentine's servant Speed & Proteus' servant Launce
(Alex: And that refers to [*].)

LATIN AMERICAN HISTORY $1600: When Hugo Chavez died in 2013, this V.P. became president of Venezuela
(Alex: His name is [*].)

LATIN AMERICAN HISTORY $1200: Zapatista rebels seized towns in this Mexican state in 1994, protesting possible economic damage from NAFTA
(Mark: What is Chihuahua?)
(Sandie: What is Matagorda?)

READING THE METER $1200: (Sarah of the Clue Crew shows a thermometer.) Look at the number on the lowest of the floating spheres to read the thermometer named for this Italian who discovered that the density of a liquid changes according to its temperature
(Alex: The Italian is [*].)

READING THE METER $800: You can make a simple inclinometer with a protractor, string & washer; you'll need this, the study of angles, to read it
(Mark: What is geometry?)

SCORES ENTERING FINAL JEOPARDY!
Mark: $13,900
Jared: $9,800
Sandie: $9,000

FINAL JEOPARDY! CATEGORY
OPERA CHARACTERS

VENUSIAN MONOLOGUES/MARTIAN CHRONICLES
Two-thirds for first place. Stratton's Dilemma.
Mark: Wager $5,701 to cover Jared.
Jared: You ought to wager to cover Sandie, but since you cannot win on a Triple Stumper if you do so, you should choose between wagering $0 and maximizing your winnings by betting all $9,800. You are in Stratton's Dilemma, calling for a wager of more than $8,200 (to shut out Sandie) or less than $1,600 (risking the possibility of being passed from behind by Sandie). Go with the smaller bet if you believe a Triple Stumper is more likely than a singleton miss by Mark.
Sandie: Consider risking $800, thereby beating Mark on the Triple Stumper (should Mark wager to cover Jared's doubled score).

FINAL JEOPARDY! CLUE
In an 1893 opera that was its composer's greatest success, Peter & Gertrud are the parents of these 2 characters

FINAL SCORES
Sandie: $9,000 + $6,500 = $15,500 (Who are Hansel & Gretel?) (2nd place: $5,000 if eliminated)
Jared: $9,800 + $7,000 = $16,800 (Who are Hansel & Gretel) (Automatic semifinalist)
Mark: $13,900 + $1,103 = $15,003 (Who are Hansel & Gretel) (3rd place: $5,000 if eliminated)

Total Potential Lach Trash: $12,000

GAME DYNAMICS


CORYAT SCORES
Mark: $13,400, 21 R (including 1 DD), 3 W
Jared: $12,600, 13 R (including 1 DD), 1 W (including 1 DD)
Sandie: $9,000, 12 R, 4 W
Combined Coryat: $35,000

BATTING AVERAGES
Mark: 22/59 = .373
Jared: 14/60 = .233
Sandie: 13/58 = .224
Team: 49/63 = .778

MISCELLANEOUS INTERESTING CLUES
COLLEGE KNOWLEDGE $400: In 1825 this state university of New Jersey was renamed to honor a revolutionary war colonel
(Sandie: What is Princeton?)

COLLEGE KNOWLEDGE $1000: One of these 2 "directional" schools is in Evanston, Illinois; the other, on Huntington Avenue in Boston
(Jared: What is Northwestern? University? ... What is [*]?)
(Alex: Oh. Okay. We'll give it to you.)

AUTHORS $400: This tale spinner continues to delight with more frights to come
[Sandie answers without ringing in]
(Sandie: Who is Ste-)
...
(Alex: You have to ring in, Sandie. You know the drill.)

FUNNY PEOPLE $800: She's done HBO specials & had her own late-night talk show, & in 2014, she was a mentor on "Last Comic Standing"

FUNNY PEOPLE $400: In 2014, Spike hosted an all-star comedy tribute to this beloved comedian pictured here

NOT A POP GROUP, YET A POP GROUP $1000: The two items seen here

FROM THE... $1200: French for "to cloy"--don't be this, sooo unimpressed with life
(Alex: Don't be [*].)

FURNITURE $1200: A little bird gave us this term for the space-saving furniture seen here

FURNITURE $2000: This Scotish-born furniture maker was a leading exponent of the Neo-Classical style

CORRECT RESPONSES
Athens, Greece
Chevalier
Gilda Radner
Ayn Rand
R
p
Edinburgh
gestalt
As You Like It
Dexter
Magellan
The Two Gentlemen of Verona
Nicolás Maduro
Chiapas
Galileo
trigonometry
Hansel & Gretel
Rutgers
Northwestern Univerisity and Northeastern University
Stephen King
Wanda Sykes
Don Rickles
Arcade Fire
blasé
nesting tables
Duncan Phyfe

[jeff6286]

May not see this game until Saturday, so if someone would like to post the FJ clue and scores tonight, have at it.

[floridagator]

MOTHER! What a hot, hot game that was! There would be a lot less grousing on these boards if more games went like that. I had a feeling late in DJ that all three players would be semi-finalists. Of course, they didn't know what the cutpoint for a wild card was, so two of them made very risky bets that would have left them out if they had been wrong. The third player made a small bet to buttress his standing for a wild card. Imagine the discomfort they must have felt when the FJ category was Opera Characters.

Just imagine how edgy Rebecca & Julia would have been had that game been Thursday's instead of Friday's!

I expect the semi-finals to be very exciting! More here next week.

P.S. Shoutout to SavoyGirl - What was the correct answer to your rah rah rah question on Wednesday's game thread?

[TheyCallMeMrKid]

Opera Characters
In an 1893 opera that was its composer's greatest success, Peter & Gertrud are the parents of these 2 characters.

Spoiler

Who are Hansel and Gretel?

Jared Hall: $9,800+$7,000=$16,800...Automatic Semi-Finalist
Sandie Baker: $9,000+$6,500=$15,500
Mark Japinga: $13,900+$1,103=$15,003

[MiloTheMayor]

Julia Collins advances. Our 48-hour panic is over.

[TheyCallMeMrKid]

Imagine the discomfort they must have felt when the FJ category was Opera Characters.

Probably my nightmare category.

Sitting in their positions (of course, with my current level of knowledge, I'd never be sitting in their positions), I was thinking I would've wagered $0 and taken my chances, since I know almost nothing about opera.

Then the question came up, and as I suspected, was not really familiar with anything in that clue.

Based on the German sounding names of the parents, though, just to have something to write down, I said, "Who are Hansel and Gretel?"

WHAAAAAAAAT? I got an opera FJ right??????

[grindcore]

Entertaining game, definitely a good one to finish the week. Surprised the dudes didn't pounce on Magellan, seems like a one or the other situation. I think the only lach trash i got was Chiapas. Does it count as an instaget FJ if you blurt it out but don't believe it? I thought it was way too easy.

Sandie really out-Sandied herself when she jumped the gun there, pretty endearing. Bring on next week.

[Bamaman]

In Mark's spot, I'm betting zero and taking my chances that total will be enough for a wild card. As it turned out, had he made the normal MSB and gotten it wrong, he still has a wild card.

With the other two, I wouldn't feel safe with those scores, even though they were both in with a zero bet.

I got FJ right, but it was pretty much a guess.

[floridagator]

Julia Collins advances. Our 48-hour panic is over.

You're behind on the news. Julia's status in the tournament was assured yesterday with the elimination of two of Thursday's contestants.

[TenPoundHammer]

0/15 at the first break. Not even a WAG or clam, unlike most times I'm in that situation.

Got only 3 right in the entire round, all in the Pop Group category. That was a clever category. NHO Swedish House Mafia or Arcade Fire.

I had Vonnegut, Special K, and Wayans, but they got lost between my brain and my mouth.

Had only four right in DJ! $400 in Furniture, Meter, and From the..., and oddly, Gestalt.

Precalled Dexter in Killers, but knowing very little about the show, I didn't get it.

Opera characters? Yeah, this is a "no" for me before I see the clue.

Mom: "Who are Hansel and Gretel?" Me: "There wasn't even an opera about them, was there?! This could be literally anything."

[econgator]

This could be literally anything."

Any time you say that, you should simply punch yourself in the face. Maybe that'll stop it.

[xxaaaxx]

Yup. Opera. I knew Friday's FJ was going to try to kneecap me after going 4-for-4 this we-

Oh...that's it? Thanks. Easy 5/5.

When I saw the category, I felt even worse for the contestants, since they had WC spots already, but of course had no way of knowing that.

[Golf]

After seeing a ToC FJ that TPH's creator could instantly answer, I'm really liking the idea of having the same boards for all QF games.

[Abraxas]

This was a great game, easily the best game of the week. I got 25 clues correct including Gilda Radner, Ayn Rand, As You Like It (DD), and FJ.

[TheyCallMeMrKid]

NHO Swedish House Mafia or Arcade Fire.

You must not have seen any of these:

July 1, 2014 http://www.j-archive.com/showgame.php?g ... rcade+fire
December 16, 2011 http://www.j-archive.com/showgame.php?g ... rcade+fire
November 19, 2010 http://www.j-archive.com/showgame.php?g ... rcade+fire

[NYCScribbler]

After seeing a ToC FJ that TPH's creator could instantly answer, I'm really liking the idea of having the same boards for all QF games.

Yeah, but then you'd get Monday's players disqualified for screaming out the answers in frustration sometime around Thursday.

[TenPoundHammer]

So what was the tipoff on this FJ! anyway?

[econgator]

So what was the tipoff on this FJ! anyway?

Parents of two characters -- probably makes them kids.

[Carpe Diem]

MikeDupee has a line in his book about opera being the FJ! category that strikes fear in the hearts of J! contestants like no other.
Mark's 2/2 on operatic FJ!s.