Andy’s Weekly Thoughts (12/16): More Thoughts On Mayim’s Departure

Current Champion

Nikolas Polsinelli, career statistics:
44 correct, 6 incorrect
2/2 on rebound attempts (on 5 rebound opportunities)
35.96% in first on buzzer (41/114)
4/5 on Daily Doubles (Net Earned: $10,600)
1/2 in Final Jeopardy
Average Coryat: $17,500

To win:
3 games: 64.111%
4: 41.102%
5: 26.351%
6: 16.894%
7: 10.831%
Avg. streak: 3.786 games.
(Click Here for Methodology)

Upcoming Encore Presentations

September 26-27: S42 E174 (May 7, 2026)
October 3-4: S42 E175 (May 8, 2026)
October 10-11: S42 E176 (May 11, 2026)
(Source: Bell Fibe TV program guide)

All Time Winnings

All Time Jeopardy! Winnings, Regular Play Only:

1. Ken Jennings $2,520,700
2. James Holzhauer $2,462,216
3. Matt Amodio $1,518,601
4. Amy Schneider $1,382,800
5. Jamie Ding $882,605
6. Cris Pannullo $748,286
7. Mattea Roach $560,983
8. Jason Zuffranieri $532,496
9. Scott Riccardi $455,000
10. David Madden $430,400
11. Julia Collins $428,100
12. Matt Jackson $411,612
13. Austin Rogers $411,000
14. Ray Lalonde $386,400
15. Harrison Whitaker $373,999
16. Adriana Harmeyer $349,600
17. Caleb Groen $346,968
18. Adam Remsen $306,415
19. Ryan Long $299,400
20. Arthur Chu $297,200

All Time Jeopardy! Winnings, Including Tournaments (and Consolation Prizes):

1. Brad Rutter $4,968,436
2. Ken Jennings $4,372,700
3. James Holzhauer $3,614,216
4. Matt Amodio $1,964,601
5. Amy Schneider $1,864,800
6. Yogesh Raut $1,598,403
7. Victoria Groce $1,023,801
8. Mattea Roach $897,983
9. Jamie Ding $885,605
10. David Madden $785,733
11. Cris Pannullo $754,286
12. Roger Craig $706,200
13. Andrew He $684,365
14. Larissa Kelly $671,930
15. Matt Jackson $623,612
16. Jason Zuffranieri $549,496
17. Paolo Pasco $548,717
18. Scott Riccardi $533,000
19. Jerome Vered $499,102
20. Julia Collins $495,767
21. Austin Rogers $493,000
22. Juveria Zaheer $491,000
23. Ben Ingram $449,201
24. Adriana Harmeyer $446,600
25. Buzzy Cohen $441,603

Welcome to another dose of Andy’s Weekly Thoughts!

I had a full editorial column just about ready to go—and the happenings of the last 48 hours meant that I probably should push the more evergreen items back a week.

The Fanbase Is Definitely Divided, Even If You Don’t See It

As someone who keeps an eye on multiple facets of social media, the reaction to the news of Mayim Bialik no longer being a syndicated host on the show differs greatly based on what platform you’re reading the news on. The very pro-Ken Jennings Reddit practically broke out in celebration, with the news already being the 5^th-most upvoted post on the r/Jeopardy subreddit of 2023, in less than 24 hours since the announcement. However, looking at Facebook, the enthusiasm towards this news is much more muted, with many fans on Facebook expressing their disappointment. Mayim definitely had her fans. It should also be noted that the majority of the show’s audience is much more likely to congregate on Facebook than it is any other social media platform. It’ll be interesting to see how Ken resonates with the Facebook crowd going forward.

Something To Be Mindful Of

Something that I think a lot of people have lost sight of: Someone has lost their job. Moreover, someone who hasn’t fomented hate or harassed people has lost their job. Celebrating that someone has lost their job in this case feels really gauche to me.

Mayim Bialik Could Still Be One Of The Faces Of The Show

On June 4, I stated, “I think it’s very important for Jeopardy!’s place in society that Mayim is one of the faces of the show.” I would also like to point out that while Mayim clearly won’t be hosting any more syndicated Jeopardy!, both her statement and the show’s have left open the possibility that Mayim will return for primetime specials.

And, as much as some are very closed to the idea at this point, I absolutely think that it’s an avenue that should be pursued by Jeopardy! and ABC. The concept of “see one to be one” is still crucial in today’s society, and it does look very good to have a woman host a knowledge-based game show. (My other comments from June 4 still stand, in that Mayim’s “anticipating the flow of the game” could stand to get better.)

Mayim May Have Inadvertently Done Jeopardy! A Favor By Announcing It Yesterday

Certainly, the biggest “talking point”, especially on Reddit, in the hours prior to the host news was the revelation of the untelevised play-in round for Champions Wildcard in January. And, as much as Jeopardy! seemed to be caught off guard by Mayim’s announcement yesterday, she may have inadvertently done the show a big favor, as this has completely changed what fans are talking about today when it comes to the show. This news is definitely going to dominate the talking points over the next few days.

In order to redesign our merchandise area to serve you better in 2026, all merchandise sales have been temporarily taken offline. Look for a return in late 2026! All previous orders will still be supported.

What Fans Did Think About The Play-In Games

In the 24 hours after the news was released about the play-in games, the general consensus from those who gave their opinion was definitely that it isn’t a major issue if the games aren’t televised—with the caveat that the games do need to be made available online. For the sake of transparency and completionism, it would anger a lot of people if these games were played behind closed doors without everyone eventually being able to see the happenings themselves.

Many times, Michael Davies has talked about how he sees Jeopardy! as a sport. While I do grant that games “behind closed doors” do happen in sports, those games are generally closed off to in-person spectators, instead of cameras being forbidden. I must therefore reiterate that I think that it is absolutely crucial, for the sake of both transparency and completionism, that these games are filmed and released online.

I should also mention that in my cursory research of potential hiccups here, the people with more expertise than myself in terms of syndicated broadcasting contracts do not believe that it would be an issue for Jeopardy! to release “bonus content” online. I am also presuming that these play-in games would lead off a normal taping session; thus, your whole production crew is already in the studio, so it would not lead to much extra expense in that department. (There were a couple of concerns on Reddit about “production expenses” that I wanted to dispel here.)

In Closing

You’ll get to see most of my initial column next Saturday. I hope everyone enjoys next week’s games!

---

Add The Jeopardy! Fan to your preferred sources on Google by clicking the button below!

Become a Supporter now! Make a monthly contribution to the site on Patreon!

Contestant photo credit: jeopardy.com

When commenting, please note that all comments on The Jeopardy! Fan must be in compliance with the Site Comment Policy.

If you are going to quote any information from this page or this website, attribution is required.

Have you had a chance to listen to our podcast game show, Complete The List, yet? Check it out! It's also available on Apple Podcasts.

---