Each week, it looks like Jeopardy! is the topic of a brand new controversy. Points have been introduced up with the clues in current episodes, together with people who concern sexism or Taylor Swift‘s relationship life. A lawsuit has been filed that brings up discrimination claims towards Jeopardy! and Wheel of Fortune. This has led followers to declare that Jeopardy! has misplaced its magic, with a Reddit thread discussing their points with the present’s present period. These points aren’t fully unfounded, both. Jeopardy! was just lately eclipsed by Wheel of Fortune within the scores, which is a significant deal.

However has Jeopardy! misplaced its magic? I do not assume so; the final idea of the present hasn’t modified, and present host Ken Jennings has confirmed himself to be an important successor to the late Alex Trebek. The present season does show that there are a couple of tweaks that might be made to the present, so this is what I really feel Jeopardy! may do to win again its followers.

’Jeopardy!’s Classes Ought to Focus Extra on Data Than Gimmicks

One component that I do really feel Jeopardy! has misplaced out on is the give attention to testing contestants’ data. A part of the enjoyment of watching Jeopardy! is seeing who has the brainpower to get to the ultimate spherical; that is what made Jennings stand out when he competed on Jeopardy!. Nevertheless, current episodes put a heavy give attention to popular culture and tried to shake up the normal classes. Essentially the most notorious of those shakeups is “Rhyme Time,” the place contestants’ solutions rely on whether or not they can guess the key behind a clue that rhymes. Jeopardy! followers are not followers of “Rhyme Time,” because the class reappeared on this week’s episode and led to a flurry of livid posts suggesting that Jeopardy! scratch the class completely.

I do not assume “Rhyme Time” must be absolutely eradicated, however I consider it must be spaced out with different basic classes like “Earlier than and After,” and even “4 Letter Phrases.” There also needs to be extra of a give attention to common data, with a splash of popular culture. Do not get me incorrect, I like placing my popular culture data to the check, however having a contestant who is aware of a broad vary of matters makes for a extra fascinating recreation. Subsequent month may also see the debut of Pop Tradition Jeopardy!, a present hosted by Colin Jost that can check groups of contestants on their popular culture data. It is one of the simplest ways to present Jeopardy! a spin-off whereas specializing in a honed-in subject. That method Jeopardy! can proceed to deal with popular culture data with out letting the principle present get overrun.

There is a Cause for the Fixed Tournaments on ‘Jeopardy’

One component of Jeopardy! that has bothered followers was the string of tournaments in 2023. All through final 12 months, occasions together with the Event of Champions, Second Probability Event, and Champions Wildcard Event introduced again previous Jeopardy! contestants to take part in numerous match video games. Followers as soon as once more vented their frustrations on-line… however they failed to acknowledge that final 12 months noticed the twin strikes by the Writers’ Guild of America and the SAG-AFTRA Guild. The WGA strike hit Jeopardy! onerous, as its writers weren’t round to craft new clues. (Sure, there’s precise analysis that goes into these Jeopardy! clues!) Producer Michael Davies even mentioned the impact of the WGA strike on Jeopardy! on the Inside Jeopardy! podcast:

“Our primary, form of, crucial proper now could be to get the post-season again on monitor. After which after that, our common season, as many weeks as attainable of the common season after that post-season.”

Certainly, current episodes have gotten again to Jeopardy!‘s customary construction, which I am glad about. However there’s one present development that I really feel may backfire on the present, and it entails Ken Jennings himself.

‘Jeopardy!’ Shouldn’t Be Pushing So Onerous for the Subsequent Ken Jennings

The most important remark within the Reddit thread that actually caught out to me was a fan saying that Jeopardy! appears to be centered on discovering contestants who might be “tremendous champions.” For these unfamiliar with Jeopardy! terminology, a brilliant champion is somebody who’s gained 10 video games or extra in a row. Whereas it is cool to see the rise of recent tremendous champions, it additionally results in a scarcity of selection in contestants. Once more, the enjoyable of Jeopardy! is seeing of us from all walks of life with the ability to take part within the present, and having tremendous champs take part can take among the suspense out of issues.

It additionally looks like Jeopardy!‘s crew is hoping for somebody to succeed in the identical standing that Ken Jennings did. However Jennings is a one-of-a-kind contestant; when he participated, his successful streaks had been a rarity in Jeopardy! historical past, whereas his demeanor made him an important option to function the present host. Attempting to duplicate that success is a one-in-a-million shot, and Jeopardy! ought to as a substitute give attention to diversifying its pool of contestants. Total, I do not assume Jeopardy! has misplaced its magic. However it ought to recalibrate a little bit. Once I was a child, I beloved watching the exhibits and making guesses to the purpose the place my mother and father stated I ought to go on the present. I might like there to be an surroundings that might give me that likelihood.

Jeopardy! airs each weeknight on ABC within the U.S. Episodes are additionally out there to stream on ABC.com.

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