EPISODE #5655: AMERICA’S GAME (WK. 5)
We’re not ending on “Shopping Spree” as I first thought, but rather “Wheel Across America”.
$1K Tossup: WAYD?
L _ _ D I _ G / _ Y
E _ A _ P _ E
Audra blows it w/ LEADING MY ESCAPE.
L E A D I N G / B Y
E _ A M P _ E
Jessica’s LEADING BY EXAMPLE. Here are the final players of S29…
Jessica The: church choir teacher married to Christopher w/ two kids from Newport Beach, CA (orig. from Miles City, MT)
Audra Robson: member of a rock band named Rhombu$ who also works at a dive bar and is the co-founder of a non-profit organization called Makeshift from Bellingham, WA
Phil Sze: Marine Corps dispersing accountant married to Vanessa from Vista, CA
$2K Tossup: ON THE MAP
_ _ _ / _ _ S _ _ _ _ I
R _ V _ _
Audra screws up again w/ THE MISSISSIPPI RIVER.
_ _ _ / _ _ S S _ U _ I
R _ V _ _
Phil capitalizes w/ THE MISSOURI RIVER.
LAST FEATURED TRIP OF THE SEASON: Marriott Chateau Champlain in Montreal worth $5,425
Jackpot Round: TV TITLE (w/ a ! at the end; and I no-lettered this one!)
He calls an automatic dud of T while on the green 1/2 KIA. Second, Jessica wastes a spin w/ the MDW’s left side. Third, Audra puts up two Jackpot L’s, buys three I’s, but then BANKRUPTS near the WC. Phil says his second straight dud of L while on the Bed Bath & Beyond gift tag. Jessica next finds a $600 V (the last word’s LIVE!), two E’s to clean out the vowels but nothing else w/ B while on the trip. After Audra gets the same MDW BANKRUPT, Phil picks off four M’s for $10K…
_ I M M _
_ I M M E L
L I V E !
…and solves “JIMMY KIMMEL LIVE!”.
DUDS: T (Phil), B (Jessica)
BANKRUPTS: 2 (women; Audra 2x)
UNCLAIMED JACKPOT: $9,100
Mystery Round: SAME NAME
Jessica immediately takes $4K worth of four T’s via the MW near the MDW (bad move), buys an E and three A’s, but loses her turn w/ H. Second, Audra finds herself in LaT territory. Third, Phil FPs a dud vowel of I and plugs in two N’s for $1,600, the $450 D and the last vowel of two O’s, then come $600 B and L doubles, a $1K S couple, a $400 P, twin M’s for another $1,800…but then the BANKRUPT near the WC to forfeit $6,200. Jessica then gets the trip w/ an R…
B E L L – B O T T O M
A N D / S M A R T _ –
P A N T S
…she solves BELL-BOTTOM AND SMARTY-PANTS for a total of $8,925 in cash & Montreal this round (she could’ve taken the lead w/ $15,925 instead).
SOLE DUD: H (Jessica)
SOLE LaT: Audra
SOLE BANKRUPT: Phil
Phil: $12K/Jessica: $9,925 cash & trip/Audra: NOTHING
PP Round: FOOD & DRINK
Audra gets the other 1/2 KIA right away w/ an N, but her O buy is no good (and it’s the only bad one of the board). Second, Phil claims a $1K S pairing and two E’s, but the MDW’s other BANKRUPT flushes away the $750 remainder (that’s his second one this episode). Third, Jessica puts up two T’s for $600 and six A’s, but the LaT strikes. After Audra repeats the N, Phil puts in three M’s for $1,800 (that was probably the consonant Audra wanted to say) and the rest of the vowels (one I and two U’s)…
_ A _ A M E _
M A _ A _ A M I A / N U T
_ _ U S T E _ S
…he adds another $1,300 and will dine on some CARAMEL MACADAMIA NUT CLUSTERS on his trip to the Turtle Bay Resort in OAHU worth $5,950.
SOLE DUD: O (Audra)
SOLE LaT: Jessica
SOLE BANKRUPT: Phil
SOLE DQ: Audra’s N repeat
Phil: $19,250 cash & HI/Jessica: $9,925 cash & Montreal/Audra: BUPKIS
$3K Tossup: PERSON
T H _ T / S P E C I A L
_ O _ E O _ E
THAT SPECIAL SOMEONE who finally avoids going down as the last gooseegg victim of the season is Audra.
Final Speed-Up: MOVIE QUOTE
The last FS of the season’s $1,300.
Audra: S
Phil: N
Jessica: R
Audra: T
Phil: L
NULL CYCLE
Jessica: P
Audra: W
_ _ _ S T _ N / W _
_ _ _ _ / _ / P R _ _ L _ _
Why Audra didn’t call the H’s is beyond me, but she still recites the “Apollo 13” line “HOUSTON, WE HAVE A PROBLEM” for $3,900.
FINAL SCORES
Phil: $19,250 cash & HI/Jessica: $9,925 cash & Montreal/Audra: $6,900
GT: $36,075
BANKRUPT TRASH: $7,700
$100K Bonus Round
The last spin of the BW this season stops on the ***.
Category: PHRASE
Here’s some of the bottom line…
_ _ _ _ / _ _
_ _ _ R / _ E E L S
CMHA adds besides the obvious H…
_ _ C _ / _ _
_ _ _ R / H E E L S
…not much else and he’s wrong w/ a quiet guess of PACK UP YOUR HEELS. Don’t KICK UP YOUR HEELS in celebration, Vanna, because he loses the $30K and we have our fourth and final TOTAL TAPING DAY WASHOUT this season.
Well, that’s all she wrote for 29. Here’s the season in review:
- Jim Thornton became the show’s permanent announcer at the start of the season (“Home Sweet Home”; he made his appearance at the end of said theme week).
- The 1/2 car plates were introduced for most of the season. We had 17 winners of the 1/2 car prize (16 for the $15K Kia Soul and 1 for the Ford Fiesta sedan worth $1 shy of the KIA’s value).
- We had the Secret Santa Sweepstakes for most of November, where WWC members had the chance to win the exact same winnings their in-studio partners ended up with.
- After going through a winless streak of cars won in the BR early on, seven of them have been claimed. Two solo players (Melissa Templeton and Mike Giampilis) won two cars on their respective episode.
- There were 70 wins in the BR, which is less than the previous three seasons. The only time we had a 4-1 week was the one to end 2011.
- There were four outright BR SHUTOUTS (I’m not counting those theme weeks w/ 3, 4 or 6 episodes).
- We had eight $100,000 losers throughout most of the season, but the grand prize was finally won twice this season. The first one was by Sharon Adams (April 26; $110,500) and the other was by Emily Eichelberger four days later during their four-week stay in Portland ($111,250).
- There were quite a few close calls regardless of the outcome in the MDBR — three occurrences where a solo player or team was two spaces away, one where Cheryl Bloom was one space off (March 8), and the one time during Emily’s $100K episode.
Well, there you have it — I’m finally DONE w/ S29! I hope to see you soon for the start of S32…
MY EP. RATING: 6
WHEEL of FORTUNE with Andy Nguyen 