Wednesday, March 3, 2021 Game Recap and Discussion (SPOILERS)

[DBear]

runs: B.C., Megaliths,
Daily Doubles: (matter)
trash: esquire DD, Nike, resilient, Cupid,
FJ: Matched Jon (and most of you) with Notre Dame

[Bamaman]

I had the Chunnel.

A chance at a tie-breaker is always fun no matter how it turns out. Glad Melis made the right wager. (Or rather, didn’t make the one really stupid wager). Impressed with her speaking, would not have guessed English is not her native language.

Kazakhstan was in the top row above “the capital of Puerto Rico”?

[mas3cf]

I had the Chunnel.

A chance at a tie-breaker is always fun no matter how it turns out. Glad Melis made the right wager. (Or rather, didn’t make the one really stupid wager). Impressed with her speaking, would not have guessed English is not her native language.

Kazakhstan was in the top row above “the capital of Puerto Rico”?

It is number one exporter of potassium. Puerto Rico has inferior potassium.

[davey]

I admit I wasn't quite convinced that I knew what the clue was getting at, and I worried that the Pyramid was from the '70s, but I thought Louvre was a good guess (though Notre Dame revealed gave me a shiver of doubt).
I feel a little redeemed from yesterday, when I had the right response and threw it away...

Here's a Merriam-Webster definition of to-
3—used as a function word to indicate position or relation in time: such as
a: BEFORE
five minutes to five
b: UNTIL sense 2
from eight to five
up to now
I'm not too bothered by the clue's wording.

[jeff6286]

I admit I wasn't quite convinced that I knew what the clue was getting at, and I worried that the Pyramid was from the '70s, but I thought Louvre was a good guess (though Notre Dame revealed gave me a shiver of doubt).
I feel a little redeemed from yesterday, when I had the right response and threw it away...

Here's a Merriam-Webster definition of to-
3—used as a function word to indicate position or relation in time: such as
a: BEFORE
five minutes to five
b: UNTIL sense 2
from eight to five
up to now
I'm not too bothered by the clue's wording.

I think the point is that if no foreigners worked on it from the 1500s to the 1980s, then how can the correct respone be a building famously worked on by a notable foreigner from 1984-1989? Saying "we only meant 1500s to 1983" is kind of lame. I don't have a great way to re-write this that fits in the usual restraints of clue length but I think they needed to return this one to the drawing board.

[Xu Donym]

Of the principal architects working on it from the mid-1500s to the 1980s, like Pierre Lescot & Hector Lefuel, none were foreigners

I.M. Pei began and finished his Louvre work during the 1980s. Was Pei naturalized as a French citizen before or during the design and construction of his pyramid? If not, "the Louvre" cannot be a correct answer, can it?

If we're going to squabble over the language rather than the timing of architectural work, "to 1980" certainly conveys a different terminus ad quem than "to the 1980s." The former ends on 12/31/80; the latter ends on 12/31/1989. Furthermore, if the writers believe that both phrases imply an end on 12/31/1979 there would be no reason to specify "to the 1980s" rather than "to 1980."

Maybe what the writers were shooting for was something like: Until a foreign architect worked on this landmark in the 1980s, none of its principal architects (including Pierre Lescot & Hector Lefuel) from the mid-1500s onward were foreigners.

We've already seen two perfectly acceptable hosts who could carry on respectably in Alex Trebek's footsteps. But if the clues don't improve, no host will be able to keep the show at its former level of excellence. Once the powers-that-be settle on a new host, I hope they turn their attention to what seems to be increasing sloppiness coming from the writers' room.

[seaborgium]

Melis added a "Hi" in her FJ! response. It kind of looks like Ayden though I'm not sure about the "e".

I know there's a Turkish name Aydın complete with dotless i. I can't see the mystery character as that, but food for thought. Edit: she confirmed on Facebook that it's Aydin, with a dot (pronounced like "Aidan" rather than with the Turkish pronunciation).

I got Louvre; it feels more like luck than skill, but nothing else felt as right. I hate to see Jon taken out like that. I wish Melis had left herself $1, but better for her that she didn't.

For FJ wording, how do y'all feel about "into the 1980s"?

[twelvefootboy]

Why not just say a foreigner finally worked on it in the 1980's after four centuries of existence?

I (think I) know Napoleon built the Champs' Elysee, I (think) Notre Dame is 11th Century so why would they start in the middle of it's life cycle. Why do extant buildings have architects in perpetuity?

I overlooked Pierre and Lefuel as French names and took Hector and Lescot as possibly Italian to fit my narrative of the Leaning Tower of Pisa, which famously got reinforced (again) in recent times. And it harkens from Galileo's times so it must be about the right age. I can date the Louvre in the relevant time period since it was replaced as the King's quarters by the Palace of Versailles.

A gentle word to TPTB:

PUT AN F'ING SCOREBOARD ON THE SCREEN, AND ADD CLUE VALUE REMAINING ON THE BOARD

You had an epic comeback finish which we all could have enjoyed if we weren't busy reading milli-second glimpses of the scores and trying to add 2-6 score totals in real time while doing differential math.

For that matter, why not a countdown scoreboard visible to the contestants as well. You may have more players laying it out there, and even get better DD wagers.

[Golf]

You may have more players laying it out there, and even get better DD wagers.

Ha! Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!!! Hee hee hee hee hee. ROTFLMAO!! HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!!!!!!

[MattKnowles]

37R. 1/4 on big clues. Tough game for me. Instead of getting esquire first I dismissed barrister, and then I chose lawyer over attorney. Couldn't think of anything for maser. Guessed Pont Neuf for FJ. I wanted to go with Leaning Tower of Pisa but Pierre is just too French to ignore.

After reading the comments on here I think Jon and Tim should be brought back.

I had a really tough time on TITLES & HONORIFICS, STARTS WITH AN ANIMAL, and "WEE" FOLK.

I was prepared to answer pied piper but then the clue wanted Robert Browning all of a sudden. Who got that one?

[morbeedo]

I was prepared to answer pied piper but then the clue wanted Robert Browning all of a sudden. Who got that one?

This guy did

[seaborgium]

I was prepared to answer pied piper but then the clue wanted Robert Browning all of a sudden. Who got that one?

I did; I think there was an excerpt of his version in a book of poetry my siblings and I had.

[MarkBarrett]

I did and I would hope so by now:


#7874, aired 2018-11-29 PEOPLE IN POEMS $1200: In a Robert Browning poem, he got rid of the rats! That "fought the dogs and killed the cats"
#7189, aired 2015-12-10 PIPES & PIPERS $400: Robert Browning wrote a poem about the Pied Piper of this German town
#5152, aired 2007-01-23 POETS & POETRY $800: He wrote "The Pied Piper of Hamelin" to amuse a sick child
#4970, aired 2006-03-31 A LITTER OF ALLITERATION $2,000 (Daily Double): From a poem by Robert Browning, it now has come to mean anyone who makes irresponsible promises
#4692, aired 2005-01-18 BRIT LIT $400: In his 1845 work "Dramatic Romances", Robert Browning introduces us to this musical rat remover
#4377, aired 2003-09-23 MY AUNTIE THE POET $400: I had bad dreams when Auntie read me Browning's poem about this guy who gets rid of the rats -- & children
#4265, aired 2003-02-28 ANIMAL TALK $400: In Browning's "The Pied Piper of Hamelin", "Out of the houses" these "came tumbling", great, small, lean, brawny...
#3465, aired 1999-10-01 QUOTATIONS $1000: In this poem Robert Browning wrote, "Rats! They fought the dogs and killed the cats"
#3406, aired 1999-05-31 SAY CHEESE! $800: This Browning work says, "Rats! They fought the dogs and killed the cats...and ate the cheeses out of the vats"
#779, aired 1988-01-14 BRITISH LITERATURE $1000: Among this 19th-century writer's poems are "Pippa Passes" & "The Pied Piper of Hamelin"
Final Jeopardy! Round clues (2 results returned)
#1606, aired 1991-09-02 POETRY: Robert Browning's poem about him contains the line "Rats! They fought the dogs and killed the cats"
#1105, aired 1989-05-26 FICTIONAL CHARACTERS: According to the Browning poem, he could also get rid of "The mole and toad and newt and viper"

[seaborgium]

Melis was a contestant on Master Minds on June 23 last year, winning $1,000.

[This Is Kirk!]

I thought this game was a dud all around. Just really bad clues overall including FJ.

Another one for Notre Dame, by the way.

[davey]

I admit I wasn't quite convinced that I knew what the clue was getting at, and I worried that the Pyramid was from the '70s, but I thought Louvre was a good guess (though Notre Dame revealed gave me a shiver of doubt).
I feel a little redeemed from yesterday, when I had the right response and threw it away...

Here's a Merriam-Webster definition of to-
3—used as a function word to indicate position or relation in time: such as
a: BEFORE
five minutes to five
b: UNTIL sense 2
from eight to five
up to now
I'm not too bothered by the clue's wording.

I think the point is that if no foreigners worked on it from the 1500s to the 1980s, then how can the correct response be a building famously worked on by a notable foreigner from 1984-1989? Saying "we only meant 1500s to 1983" is kind of lame.

If it's all right to say 1500s and not specify a year to begin with - the building has been around since the 12th C.- why is it wrong to give a range of "the 1980s" for when the situation changed? The "terminus" is the event (the hiring of I.M. Pei), not the decade.

[MarkBarrett]

Melis was a contestant on Master Minds on June 23 last year, winning $1,000.

Line added, thanks.

***********

Thank you to BDM for a breakdown of Melis's first name.

[A Wray]

I was rooting for a scoreless tie after Mt. Rainier was a TS. I had no idea my wish would be so close to coming true! Rainier is the highest U.S. peak outside of AK, CA, and CO, and given its proximity to the dense population around Seattle and Tacoma, when (not if) it erupts, it has the potential to be the worst natural disaster in American history. That is one mountain that should be on everyone's radar.

And yes, the FJ wording was extremely confusing. I guessed Notre Dame with little confidence, being pretty sure it was older than 1500s.

[bomtr]

I thought this game was a dud all around. Just really bad clues overall including FJ.

Another one for Notre Dame, by the way.

I agree with this, and I'd take it a step farther. I think the clue writing this season has been notably worse than in previous seasons. There have been all kinds of word clues in all kinds of categories in which a weak definition is given that is somehow supposed to lead you to one specific response, and many, many are vague and poorly pinned. Most of these are regular clues and not FJs, but this FJ certainly fits that description.

Another one for Notre Dame; I thought the clue intimated that architecture work ended in the 1980s and all architects were French. Fair clue if something hints that a non-native did some work after that time.

[floridagator]

I thought Final Jeopardy was defensible, and I am impressed that the Challenger played to a tie after how inauspicious his beginning to the game was.

I guessed Notre Dame. I knew the cathedral was older than the 1500s, as a result of the fire two years ago.

It seems like principal architect is someone who is in charge of a building, who supervises all of the many construction projects that go on at a large facility. Did I M Pei fulfill that role? I think his function was only to design the pyramid. He was probably never architect in Residence at the Louvre.