JEOPARDY! fans have slammed an “illness-causing” contestant on Wednesday.
His behavior left dozens in shock during the “painful” Mayim Bialik-hosted game.
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Mayim, 46, is currently hosting Jeopardy! for the sixth week in a row, returning after alum Ken Jennings’ prior three weeks and surprise announcement that he’d be out for the foreseeable future.
The hosting slot is still on the board and will likely be decided by the end of Season 38 in July 2022.
Last night and after six wins, weatherman Eric Ahasic was stormed off-stage by Megan Wachpress who beat the latest champ by $2.
Winning again tonight with $11.6K, Megan will move ahead to her third game – while another contestant shocked fans with how much he moved, quite literally.
Clad in a grey suit, Gregory Scrugg’s gameplay was not why fans felt their well-being was in jeopardy.
At the middle podium, the Seattle Washington-based journalist would not stop swaying back and forth.
Dozens of viewers noticed and buzzed in about his whiplash-inducing inability to stand still which did not cease until the credits.
“This guy is making me seasick,” one tweeted.
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‘STOP MOVING!’
“Stop moving, Gregory!” wrote another.
“Gregory is a ‘swayer,'” labeled a third.
Another wrote, “Yo this guy has to stop moving around. He’s making my anxiety go up and up. Just sit still lol.”
A fourth fumed, “Gregory is making me dizzy!”
As a fifth wrote, “Stop him from rocking!”
A final user begged the producers to intervene: “#Jeopardy Producers or whoever PLEASE tell the contestants NOT to sway. THANK YOU from my eyes and stomach.”
Aside from the rapid movements, fans slammed Gregory’s story about a “40-mile long hike” during the Q&A portion.
“Boring story, Greg,” one viewer sadly wrote.
Another fan claimed Gregory seemingly mouthed “f**k” in surprise when landing on a Daily Double.
But Mayim’s hosting was also not so steady, her critics felt.
‘KEN HE COME BACK?’
Tonight’s episode ended with Double Jeopardy clues not completed and no time left – a regular occurrence with the actress.
One tweeted about the host tonight, “I’m at my wit’s end with Mayim. Her pauses between informing contestants if they’re right or wrong keep growing, and that contributed to leaving a clue on the board.
They added, “Ken’s not perfect but at least the game feels intact under him.”
“This episode of #jeopardy is almost painful to watch,” another Twitter user surmised.
One week in May, three of five games ended with clues on the board under Mayim.
Ken, meanwhile, announced his shocking host hiatus the day after Canadian tutor Mattea Roach ended her epic 23-game tear losing by $1
Since then, another problem has come across the board; for the first time in “nine straight weeks,” per TV News Check, Jeopardy! fell below Family Feud in ratings.
Dropping a huge 8% for the session that began with Memorial Day and ended June 5 – the show scored a 4.8 Neilson rating.
Before Ken left alongside Mattea, ratings were at a 6.2.
Mattea, beloved rideshare driver Ryan Long, Amy Schneider and Matt Amodio – all from this season – will compete in the Tournament of Champions in November, and all rank among the 10 longest runs ever.
The ratings low occurred while Ryan was still on his 16-game ride – he was bested by weatherman Eric this week (who will also be in the TOC).
But ratings first dipped 10% the week Ken left, which made one Redditor of many write, “Bring back Ken! It’s what the people want!”
Another claimed, “Seriously, I don’t even dislike Mayim, but the game is so much better when Ken hosts. It’s a completely different vibe, and Jeopardy feels more ‘serious’ with Ken.”
Ken and Mayim began filling in for the legendary Alex after his tragic 2020 passing and a fleet of Season 37 celebrity guest hosts, including now-disgraced Mike Richards.
The show’s ratings nearly doubled to 9.7M viewers when Ken made his first appearance.
When Mayim took over her hosting duties the headcount dropped to 5.9 million viewers during a college championship and she hasn’t bested Ken’s ratings in Season 38.
Especially with Ryan’s streak in the rearview alongside Mattea’s, fans seem to be missing Ken more than ever.
While many fans have found Mayim to be a perfectly palatable presence, she recently made an off-color joke about marijuana and seemed to recently misunderstand the legacy of the band Queen.
All that as fans have overall felt her handle on the game doesn’t compare to the alum’s, whether a contestant is going on a streak or not.
The fan-preferred former player surprisingly tweeted in May, “I’m handing the keys back to the talented actor-producer-writer-director (!) Mayim Bialik for a few months,” adding, “We are lucky to have her! I’ll be back before the end of the season.”
Even streak-holder Mattea stated after her go that she wanted the 74-regular-game winner to take over.
“As a contestant, there is something really special about being on stage with the greatest player of all time,” she told Vulture.
Megan will attempt her third win tomorrow night as Mayim, perhaps unlike tonight’s moving man in the middle – still has some swaying to do with fans.
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