Ask Matt: Too Many ‘Jeopardy!’ Tournaments? Plus ‘Alaska Daily,’ Debating ‘Abbott’ & More

Welcome to the Q&A with TV critic — also known to some TV fans as their “TV therapist” — Matt Roush, who’ll try to address whatever you love, loathe, are confused or frustrated or thrilled by in today’s vast TV landscape. (We know background music is too loud, but there’s always closed-captioning.)

One caution: This is a spoiler-free zone, so we won’t be addressing upcoming storylines here unless it’s already common knowledge. Please send your questions and comments to [email protected] and follow me on Twitter (@TVGMMattRoush). Look for Ask Matt columns on most Tuesdays and very occasional Fridays.

Are Regular Games in Jeopardy! of Being Diminished?

Question: Did you see the recent announcement from Jeopardy! that all (all!) champions who win this season, regardless of number of games won, will be invited back for a Champions Wildcard tournament, the winner of which will feed into the Tournament of Champions? This is in addition to the return of the “Second Chance” tournament. All of this will start in September and take the first 10 weeks of the season. Regular episodes with new contestants won’t start until the Tournament of Champions is over in mid-November. This also means that the champion from the end of the season in July won’t be seen again until November. I really, really don’t like this idea. — JL

Matt Roush: I’m confident that nothing can shake my enthusiasm for the best quiz show TV ever invented, but this is getting awfully gimmicky even for my taste. Sounds to me that unless they eliminate the several weeks of repeats on either side of Labor Day, this latest of many tournaments could significantly limit the number of new contestants who will be eligible to play during a given season. I enjoy watching the return of fan favorites and the occasional also-ran, within limits, but I also value the regular Jeopardy! season with its ebb and flow of new contestants, mega-champs scattered among the shorter runs.

Alaska Daily in Limbo

Question: Why is Alaska Daily being canceled? It is so good, and the Native American true-crime angle is timely. Any chance of a season 2? — Margie

Matt Roush: To be clear, Alaska Daily hasn’t been canceled — yet. Last week’s episode was a season finale, albeit for a shorter season than many network dramas, but that’s becoming more common. If the show had been canceled, it would have been yanked before the main storyline ended (about getting justice for the murdered indigenous woman). The real question is whether the series has a chance at getting renewed, and I’d guess that it’s a pretty slim one, but these days it’s harder to tell with network shows. I agree about the timeliness and relevance of the missing-and-murdered indigenous women angle, which is how the show came to be in the first place. I also appreciate the series for shining a positive light on the necessity of enterprising local journalism, and while Daily couldn’t escape the trap of occasional self-righteousness and preachiness, it was a refreshing antidote to “fake news” cynicism.

If Alaska Daily returns for a second season, with a David-vs-Goliath twist in the new rival newspaper the former publisher (father of the current one) is bankrolling, I’d love to see them do an exposé of a deep-pocketed news organization that knowingly peddles lies, fearing that publishing unwelcome truths will scare away an audience that has been weaned on disinformation.

Some Abbott Backlash, and Love for Shrinking

Question: How come Abbott Elementary gets so much attention? It is a terrible show and it has not made the Top 25 viewed shows. I don’t get it. Also: Will the show Shrinking on Apple TV+ be renewed? This is one of the best shows offered in a long time. — Pat

Matt Roush: Let me start by agreeing with you about Shrinking, one of the absolute highlights of 2023 TV so far. I’m happy to report that it has already been renewed for a second season.

As for Abbott Elementary, you don’t give me a lot to work with by just dismissing the show as “terrible,” which objectively is arguable, considering all of the accolades (multiple acting and writing awards, an AFI Award as one of the Top 10 shows of 2022, notably the only network series on the list). What is without question is that not even a critical success like Abbott Elementary will be universally loved, despite the high level of comic performance and writing and the undercurrent of sweetness that pervades this tribute to teachers. (I have a special affinity for all of this because my sister, now retired, was one of the most creative and dedicated elementary school teachers I’ve ever known.) So that’s my quick take on why the show gets the love it deserves.

As for not making the Top 25, referring to the list published in each issue of TV Guide Magazine, that only charts live viewership, which tends to favor traditional CBS dramas and comedies, reality competitions and special events/sports programming. So many viewers are watching TV on so many more platforms in so many ways in their own time that the metrics of success aren’t what they used to be. Obviously, it’s better for the business when a show is watched while it’s airing in real time, but DVRs, On Demand and nowadays streaming have changed the equation for good. Which if it means more flexibility for a show like Abbott Elementary to find its audience, I’m on board.

A Booby Prize?

Question: Have you seen more episodes of The Big Door Prize beyond the three that were initially dropped last week? Because I’m not seeing what you’re seeing in those first three episodes. It does have some charm, but I’ve never seen a show that was ostensibly a comedy with so few laughs (actually none, by my count.) Maybe this is going somewhere I can’t see, but it’s not keeping my interest while it gets there. You said it looked like a Twilight Zone episode if directed by Frank Capra. I disagree. Capra would have covered these first three episodes in one episode because he understood the value of pace. Maybe if the show were presented in weekly episodes I would stay for another few episodes. But bingeing the first three episodes of this show was the kiss of death. — Rick C.

Matt Roush: To my knowledge, Frank Capra didn’t dabble in weekly episodic TV, and I was thinking tone more than pace. Although I wouldn’t accuse the character-driven The Big Door Prize, with its weekly half-hour episodes, of being as bloated as many streaming shows I’ve trudged through. To defend my enthusiasm for this offbeat little show, of which I’ve seen roughly half the season, I’ll also point out that I never used words like “hilarious” to describe it, instead leaning on “whimsical,” “disarming,” “ironic” and even “poignant” to convey my reaction. The show may not be joke-driven, but I was often amused, especially by Chris O’Dowd’s frustration that everyone around him was buying into this magical “life potential” machine that was disrupting the small town’s complacency. Charm goes a long way for me in these less-than-charming times, and I’m sorry if anyone who sampled it was left cold. It happens. To repeat the oft-used refrain: To each their own.

Parlez-Vouz Anglais?

Comment: I’m willing to suspend belief to a certain extent for TV shows, but every time I sit through an episode of FBI: International on CBS, it drives me crazy. (And in my case, it’s not a very long drive!) How is it, wherever the so-called “Fly Team” goes in Europe, everyone who’s relevant to the story always seems to speak perfect English? Think of the odds: Every witness, every member of any police agency, every waiter at a restaurant serving them food, every perp they catch, has somehow learned the Mother Tongue! And many of them speak it better than Americans in the U.S.! I know this is fiction and our language remains one of the most common in the world, but that doesn’t mean every single person they run into over there should be proficient or fully fluent. Even if they try to couch it by using an accent. It strains credibility. Mon Dieu! — Aaron F

Matt Roush: This is what challenges your disbelief in a weekly procedural that typically solves a major case in each and every episode? These shows are escapism, and I imagine (though wouldn’t want to generalize) that the average FBI: International fan wouldn’t be keen on watching an episode full of subtitles. In my experience of traveling through Europe, including Budapest and some of the other locales where the show is filmed, it’s rare to find an authority figure or service provider who can’t communicate quite well in English. It’s kind of humbling, to be honest, to know how few of these people we could meet even halfway in their own language. Maybe International should aim for more realism in this regard, but that’s hardly its intent.

And Finally …

Comment: I feel Accused on Fox is so impressive that it deserves its own category on the Emmys. Every episode delivers standout performances by various actors. The show itself definitely warrants an Emmy nomination. — Fred

Matt Roush: It will be interesting to see if a dramatic anthology, a rarity on network TV, can get noticed. There is some good work being done here, although the formula of a good person committing bad acts while trying to do the right thing is becoming more obvious through repetition. The acting nominations would all have to be in the guest categories, and those can get very crowded. Something tells me Accused may have to settle for the consolation prize of its recent and very welcome second-season renewal.

That’s all for now. We can’t do this without your participation, so please keep sending questions and comments about TV to [email protected] or shoot me a line on Twitter @TVGMMattRoush. (Please include a first name with your question.)