Jeopardy guest host Ken Jennings is nearing the end of his well-received run on the show. During his stint, Jennings was able to shift the public’s perception after some Twitter controversy, and one big way he won over viewers was with his short and sweet tributes to Alex Trebek each night. For anyone wondering why those came about, Jennings has explained what inspired his episodic Trebek sendoffs.
Throughout his three-week Jeopardy guest-hosting stint, Ken Jennings has seemingly warmed up to most viewers, despite there being some wariness within fans’ initial reactions to Jennings being the first replacement. The guest first warmed the audiences’ hearts at the top of his very first episode, and he continued that trend by paying nightly tributes to the show's deceased host Alex Trebek. Recently, author Jessica Brody gave the guest host kudos for his Trebek sendoffs, and Jennings replied with some humbled insight into how his nightly tributes start on Twitter. Check out the tweet below:
As evident by Ken Jennings’ explanation, his thankful tributes to Alex Trebek weren't inspired by anything Jennings himself had thought about doing, but were rather an idea that one of Jeopardy!'s EPs came up with. But given Jennings' close relationship with Trebek throughout the former's many Jeopardy appearances over the years, the guest host is definitely the right person to give these nightly sendoffs, which are a thoughtful and non-intrusive way to acknowledge Trebek’s influence on the iconic game show and its massive fandom. Plus, the guest host’s response elicited some positive responses from Jeopardy fans.
Since many Jeopardy fans are still mourning Alex Trebek’s death, some have been quite emotional when seeing Ken Jennings’ appreciative messages. Hearing Jennings say “Thank you, Alex” has apparently sent a few fans over the edge.
Given how instrumental Alex Trebek was in Jeopardy’s success, Ken Jennings’ continued acknowledgement has touched some fans on a nightly basis. And many have obviously felt inspired to reach out and give Jennings props for doing so.
The Alex Trebek sendoffs allowed Jeopardy fans to warm up to Ken Jennings as a possible replacement for Trebek. Some even felt Jennings was doing a fantastic job hosting the trivia game show.
Ken Jennings’ way of doing the Alex Trebek sendoffs got kudos from viewers. Some viewers enjoyed how the guest host would slide the tribute in right before the credits.
Many admired Ken Jennings’ hosting skills along with his tributes to Alex Trebek. Some viewers felt Jennings was a class act during his hosting stint.
Ken Jennings’s Alex Trebek tributes shifted many Jeopardy fans’ perspective on the guest host, and many would love for him to stick around as the permanent replacement. But while much of the fandom definitely appreciates Jennings regularly giving Trebek props, that isn’t to say that everyone is 100% into it, with some viewers not taking to it so well. But that’s par for the course when it comes to literally everything that’s discussed online.
As previously stated, many Jeopardy fans are still mourning Alex Trebek’s passing. So, hearing Ken Jennings pay tribute to him every night was gut-wrenching for them. And even those who enjoyed the Trebek tributes early on started to feel they were insincere after the first week.
Given that Alex Trebek’s final Jeopardy episodes just aired almost a month ago, Ken Jennings’ hosting stint was met with mixed reception per standard in the social media age. At the end of the day, Jennings has won over a good portion of Jeopardy’s audience while others still have their issues with the 74-time Jeopardy champ. But the guest host left an impression on Jeopardy fans as they gear up for more guest hosts in the coming weeks.
