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For a certain kind of game-show nerd, high-levelJeopardy!is like the Super Bowl.
Everyone knows how to play the game to maximize their chance of winning.
The Daily Doubles take on supreme importance, so you hunt for them.
Its chaotic and tough to follow, grounded only byAlex Trebeks indefatigable professionalismand even-keeled command of the show.
You play for prestige as much as money.
Unsurprisingly, I was more than ready forJeopardy!
All-Star Games, the latest twist on the showssemi-regulartournamentsthat bring back the best of the best.
The show invited 18 champions back for a two-week tournament with a team format.
Six captains selected two players apiece in a September draft.
Each player on a team would play one round per game.
(I offered to make T-shirts, but we ran out of time.)
They remain fantastic players.
Brads a little more machine-like, but still way looser than I ever was up there.
Theyre both terrors on the buzzer.
while Ken and Brad jauntily rack up thousands of dollars.
Amid the Ken and Brad show, though, several other players confirmed their place as all-timeJeopardy!talents.
It added too many rules for too little return.
Making the tournament workrequired an incredibly complicated format.
The strategy element fizzled, too, despite its enticing premise.
Who do you play?
When do you play them?
Given the amount of preparation the contestants undertook 364,878 flash cards, anyone?
they undoubtedly thought about every scenario.
Buzzer rounds clearly matter most.
Therefore, top contestants on each team played Single Jeopardy first and Double Jeopardy second.
The second-best played Double Jeopardy first and Final Jeopardy last.
The tournament seemed like a logistical nightmare to tape, too.
The stop-start-wait rhythm of gameplay seemed to make some contestants struggle in a way unrepresentative of their phenomenal skill.
Im not against bringing backAll-Star Games, of course.
But I hopeJeopardy!scraps this team format so we can see these all-time contestants play normal games again.
Maybe soon well have the second Ultimate Tournament of Champions and finally get some answers.
