Question: We are fascinated by the continued success of James Holzhauer on Jeopardy! I’ve heard rumblings that he’s ruining the game, or even that his dominance is somehow boring. Do you think his approach will change the way Jeopardy! is played, and is that a bad thing for my favorite quiz show? —Dana
Matt Roush: For Jeopardy! to become a national obsession again in its 35th season is remarkable, and so is the game play of Holzhauer. Just about everyone I know (including my mom, who watches precious little TV anymore) is talking about him, almost always admiringly. His bold approach to working the board from the bottom in the first round, amassing a bank his opponents can rarely keep pace with — and then going all in on Daily Doubles — is riveting. The opposite of boring, in fact. Will this change the way the game is played going forward?
It’s possible, although when things get back to “normal” once James’ run is over — and one of these nights he’ll make a big wager, get stumped and not be able to recover — we’ll likely learn that very few can successfully adopt James’ strategy. There will always be players who try to shake things up, but there are just as many who revere the game played traditionally. I’m just glad Jeopardy! has become must-see-TV again, not that it has ever been anything else but that for me.
To submit questions to TV Critic Matt Roush, go to: tvinsider.com
