Warning! The following contains spoilers for the Jeopardy! National College Championship. Read at your own risk!
Jeopardy! traveled back to primetime recently with the premiere of Jeopardy! National College Championship, and actress Mayim Bialik tagged back in for game show icon Ken Jennings to resume hosting duties. It seems the Jeopardy! team wanted to have a bit of fun with that return, as one of the clues made a sneaky but great reference to Bialik’s former hit sitcom, The Big Bang Theory.
The moment came at the start of the second round of gameplay. The categories appeared on the screen, and one of them was a somewhat obscure reference to The Big Bang Theory. Check out the category below, and continue on for the explanation for anyone not in the loop.
For anyone scratching their head right now, “Fun With Flags” is a deep-cut reference to Sheldon‘s web show in The Big Bang Theory. In the CBS comedy, Sheldon originally started Fun With Flags as his own web series to teach vexillology, or the study of flags. Down the stretch, Sheldon eventually added Amy to the project, and the two hosted the series together. Amy was, of course, played by Mayim Bialik, which brought the reference full-circle during Jeopardy! National College Championship.
Unfortunately, unless audiences watching were big fans of The Big Bang Theory, the moment likely went unnoticed. Mayim Bialik either didn’t catch the reference while hosting the tournament or just wanted to maintain a professional attitude while in Jeopardy! mode. It is worth noting, however, that Bialik was a bit quirky throughout the evening and even briefly sang DJ Snake and Lil Jon’s hit song “Turn Down For What” during the episode.
The Jeopardy! National College Championship wasn’t devoid of silliness and fun, so I do wonder why more wasn’t done to reference the category from The Big Bang Theory. For example, what if the entire category featured Jim Parsons in character asking questions about the various flags of the world? That would be a big primetime moment (even if not particularly likely), and a perfect opportunity to generate some positive buzz for Mayim Bialik’s time on the show. Who wouldn’t want to see a clip of this in between questions?
Mayim Bialik is currently sharing Jeopardy! hosting duties with Ken Jennings, and it’s unclear at this time if she’ll get the permanent hosting gig. While Bialik had a positive reception at first and seems happy to be doing it, there were those with the show who expressed concern about her dual television filming schedule on Call Me Kat, and past rumors alleged she’s difficult to work with. Time will tell if she’ll eventually take on the mantle for good, and if more references from The Big Bang Theory are on the way.
Catch Jeopardy! National College Championship on ABC on Tuesdays through Fridays in February starting at 8:00 p.m ET. Beginning on Saturday, February 19 at 8:00 p.m., there will be three hours of quarterfinals and semifinals episodes, followed by the finale on Tuesday, February 22 at 8:00 p.m. ET. Check out other new shows happening with the 2022 TV schedule, or just binge The Big Bang Theory on HBO Max.