JEOPARDY! fans were rocked when Ryan Long won his 9th game Wednesday.
But not before a banter blunder from host Mayim Bialik about the band Queen many said showed a “lack of knowledge.”
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Mayim, 46, is hosting Jeopardy! for a third week in a row, returning after Ken Jennings’ prior three weeks at the helm and announcement he’d be out for “months.”
The permanent hosting slot, however, is still on the board and will be decided by the end of Season 38 in July 2022.
Tonight, returning champ Ryan, a Philadelphia, Pennsylvania rideshare driver, drove his way to his ninth straight win with $173K total.
But not before a Q&A speed bump from host Mayim that fans rock-N-rolled their eyes at.
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Regardless, Ryan – now the highest-earning regular gameplay champ from Philadelphia – has made great TV with his big personality, big bets and quizzical Q&A stories.
Tonight, he shared he grew up watching the storied show with his mom, who thought “Alex Trebek was so handsome.”
Last week, he shared he worked on an “Amish farm” in high school, then noting, “People are gonna think I’m weird with all these stories.”
The broad-shouldered bet-maker also sweetly shared he once fostered “four baby kittens” and “bottle-fed them” before his mom adopted them.
And during his first Q&A, the contestant pumped out an Arnold Schwarzenegger impression, as one fan applauded, “Ryan’s stories make me <3 him even more.”
Ryan is also, as mentioned, a bold better when needed; he’s bet a huge $8000 on Daily Doubles multiple games as one fan on Twitter praised his gameplay, “8k Daily Double again. Nice bet Ryan.”
Ryan also sweetly shared in a bonus clip his bead necklace was made by his 8-year-old son – Mayim visibly teared up in the moment of family-friendly empathy for all involved.
The rising star has also been keeping it real on his Twitter, sharing that he forgot his glasses in Philly last week.
“In case anybody’s wondering why I’m constantly squinting and adjusting during the game…it’s because my glasses are 3000 miles away, where they will do the most good,” he posted.
Though thankfully, the specs appear to have been flown into Culver City as the wins keep doing the same.
BIALIK’S RATINGS SPEED BUMP
As TV News Check reported, ratings slid 10% to a seven-week low of 5.2 the week Mayim returned for Ken.
While many fans have found her to be a perfectly palatable presence, she has had some “painful” games since returning, others felt.
She had a few noticeable banter blunders during the 7-week ratings low including replying to a story about autism research with a joke about “spitting in a tube.”
And multiple games that week, and before Ryan’s impressive streak, went unfinished with Double Jeopardy clues left on the board but no time left.
“That’s multiple shows now where they’ve run out of time with clues left on the board,” one viewer lamented on her literally slow start mid-May.
Another concluded on Twitter tonight, “Love Mayim but @KenJennings brings a Trebek vibe to #Jeopardy that is comforting and genuinely entertaining. Mayim brings performance, which feels inauthentic. Bring back Ken.”
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