Fans reacted: “What just happened?”

JEOPARDY! viewers suffering from tournament fatigue had a change of heart after Wednesday’s jaw-dropping episode.

The Season 39 Second Chance match saw past non-winners Jake Garrett, Sam Claussen, and Juveria Zaheer claw at each other, all surpassing $30,000.

Jeopardy! fans claimed the episode was technically one of the best ever playedCredit: Jeopardy!

‘WTF just happened,’ the internet reacted, and ‘Absolutely insane game’Credit: Jeopardy!The redemption round for non-winners from last season, worth a throughway to the 2023 Tournament of Champions, got serious.

All three players brought their A-game, making it, technically, one of the most well-played episodes in Jeopardy! history, fans claimed.

In the rapid-fire Jeopardy! round, Sam, securing the first Daily Double, boasted $10,400, while Juveria had $5,600, and Jake trailed with $3,400.

Double Jeopardy heated up as Juveria dominated the Opera category, seizing the first Daily Double.

A gutsy $15,200 True Daily Double she got correct with “Lady Macbeth” propelled her into a commanding lead.

Not to be outdone, Jake snagged the last Daily Double, betting almost everything but $100 and catapulting himself into contention with an additional $7,300.

As Final Jeopardy! loomed, with only two triple stumpers, Juveria held the lead at $32,400, followed by Sam at $18,000 and Jake at $17,900.

‘CRAZY FROM START TO FINISH’
The Final Jeopardy! question under “COUNTRIES” read: “Of the 14 countries that border China, it’s the only monarchy & the only one with a population under 1 million.”

All contestants aced it with “Bhutan,” causing Jake to surge to $35,800, Sam to $36,000, and Juveria to secure an additional $4,000, winning with $36,400 – mere hundreds separating them.

Fans were left stunned by the dizzying display of intensity on Reddit.

One person posted: “Maybe the most exciting highest-scoring game ever!! A lot of risk it all & they all came through!!”

Another fan chimed in: “WTF just happened.”

A third wrote: “This might be one of the best episodes ever, congrats to Juveria on a well-deserved victory.”

Other fans marveled at the “slugfest,” with a fourth suggesting: “Bring Sam and Jake back for a third chance! This has gotta be one of the greatest J! games ever! Crazy from start to finish.”

Another fan pointed out: “58 out of 60! This might be one of the best games ever played!”

A fifth fan likened it to the legendary James Holzhauer’s famed defeat match, claiming: “Only James vs Emma [Boettcher] vs Jay was better. That one was 59/60.”

FOOL THEM ONCE
Second Chance, which debuted Tuesday, kicks off the long-awaited 2023 Tournament of Champions season.

The comeback contest unfolds over four rounds until January 8 and heralds the return of fresh questions after months of recycled clues.

It also marks a return to the norm for Jeopardy!, as the tournament was meant to kick off Season 40 before the WGA strikes.

It also introduced a glitzy new opening, featuring the venerable announcer Johnny Gilbert, 95, and a sneak peek behind the scenes.

Second Chance was previously won by Rowan Ward, who stole the show last year.

Each round will consist of three opening matches and a two-day final.

The winner will pocket a $35,000 cash prize and progress to a brief Season 39 Wildcard (for last season’s standout 1-2 day winners) starting January 9.

The two Wildcard victors will earn golden tickets to the Tournament of Champions, starting mid-February.

There, the big guns like Cris, Ray LaLonde, Ben Chan, and Hannah Wilson await.

In an unprecedented twist, all three-time champions from Season 39, including the infamous Yogesh Raut and Jake DeArruda, received invitations to the ToC, making it the largest contestant field ever with 27 slots.

The winner of the ToC nabs $250,000 and joins a short list that includes Amy Schneider and Jeopardy! James.

The ToC victor will also get invited to the next Jeopardy Masters in May, so fortune and perhaps even TV fame are at stake.

‘NO LONGER HOSTING’
Meanwhile last Friday, the Jeopardy!-verse got a major shakeup: Mayim Bialik was let go, leaving former champ Ken Jennings as the sole host.

“Sony has informed me that I will no longer be hosting the syndicated version of Jeopardy!,” Mayim wrote in a statement on Instagram.

“I am incredibly honored to have been nominated for a primetime Emmy for hosting this year and I am deeply grateful for the opportunity to have been a part of the Jeopardy! family.

For all of you who have supported me through this incredible journey and to the fans, contestants, writers, staff and crew of America’s Favorite Quiz Show, thank you.”

Jeopardy! confirmed the news on their official Instagram page an hour later.

Their statement read: “Mayim Bialik has announced she will no longer be hosting the syndicated [or nightly] version of Jeopardy!. We have made the decision to have one host for the syndicated show next season to maintain continuity for our viewers.

“And Ken Jennings will be the sole host for syndicated Jeopardy!. We are truly grateful for all of Mayim’s contributions to Jeopardy!, and we hope to work with her in the future on primetime specials.”

She heavily implied leaving was not her decision, but did not give a reason for her exit.

Mayim has since removed “co-host @jeopardy” from her Instagram bio.

Sources have claimed Mayim’s hiatus since last May in solidarity with the WGA while still under contract was a reason behind her firing, others have claimed the strikes made execs realize they didn’t need two hosts.

It’s also no secret that Mayim also faced backlash across the board for her hosting chops from fans compared to the 74-time-champ-turned-presenter.

There were criticisms of Mayim’s “pauses” before ruling on questions, and a producer also shared they asked her to change her behavior while hosting.

The actress even confessed to getting insults in person: “Sometimes I get ‘We don’t prefer you to Ken,'” she shared on her Bialik Breakdown podcast.

In addition, fans have pointed out an “unprofessional,” since-deleted social media post from Mayim while on hiatus that saw her use the Hamas attacks as a mock Jeopardy! round.

Juveria won out by just a few hundred dollars, a step closer to a ToC ticketCredit: Jeopardy!

There were just two triple-stumpers, while James Holzhauer’s defeat on game 33 had oneCredit: ABC

Ken Jennings – helming the first of three tiers in the 2023 ToC – is now the sole host after Mayim Bialik got the axe on FridayCredit: Jeopardy!