[Warning: The below contains MAJOR spoilers for the Friday, December 19 episode of Jeopardy!]
Faddah, a manager from Memphis, Tennessee, entered with a one-day total of $11,200 after a triple fumble on a sports Final clue in the last episode. She faced Joe Asaminew, an ER physician from Winnipeg, Manitoba, and Maria Lauro, a contract specialist from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
In the Jeopardy! round, Asaminew gained an early $1,000 on the “Science Bookshelf” Daily Double, which was in the bottom row, so it was also valued at $1,000. It was, “It’s the structure of DNA & the title of James Watson’s book about the discovery of it,” and he had no trouble correctly responding “Double Helix.” The returning champ finished the round with $4,800, Asaminew with $3,800, Lauro with a lead of $5,200.
In Double Jeopardy, Faddah dropped $2,000 on the second Daily Double, unable to get the “World Religion” clue seeking “Taoism.” Similarly, Asaminew dropped the same amount on the remaining Daily Double, a “Mr. & Mrs. Lit” clue seeking “Dalloway.” This allowed fellow challenger Lauro to lead going into Final Jeopardy with $10,800, the champ held $10,400 and Asaminew $9,000.
It all hinged on the “Movies and Law” clue which was, “‘Drafters…have to have a little fun sometimes’, said the author of this law when asked if he was inspired by 1931’s ‘Little Caesar’” It was a triple stumper, as no one came up with “RICO act.” It all came down to the wagers.
Both Faddah and Asaminew opted for mid-sized wagers, while Lauro went nearly all-in from the lead. “Go big or go home,” she said with a shrug. “You had to do it,” Ken Jennings replied. In quite the twist, Faddah survived the scare, winning with $5,800 for a two-day total of $17,000.
Fans flooded the Reddit thread for the episode, reacting to the narrow victory, the triple-stumper and the questionable placement of “Double Helix” at the bottom-row.
