<sigh> What I get for not reading anything
for a week... :)
While I understand that these
are young kids-- obviously you can't throw regular
questions at them-- there's a limit to how far you can dumb
things down and have it be either interesting or
erudite. And, let's face it, Jeopardy tries *real* to be
erudite, to cultivate the idea that not just any schmuck
off the street can play it.
Beyond that, just
how many 12 year olds actually *watch* Jeopardy? I
did, but I'm an unusual case. Honestly, I'd say not
many.
I just believe that there must be a way to put
these kids on without asking them the Jeopardy
equivalant of "Name this grey, trunked mammal" and "Name
this curved yellow fruit". After all, they're using
middle schoolers, and by middle school you ought to have
learned *some* substantial information, not just trash
(especially if, as they seemed to be making out, these kids
were really gifted academically).
And as to how
many regular Jeopardy questions I could answer at 12,
it's quite a lot. Maybe not under pressure, but I knew
what they were. And if they can't find kids who don't
choke, don't show it. But particularly don't show it
when it's not Sweeps Week and you don't need a
gimmick.