October 23, 2020 Recap

Previously on Wheel of Fortune, Nikki Gray won a rather messy front game with $26,440 in cash and trips to Boston and Barbados as she was the only person that did not make a rather painful BANKRUPT. However, she won't be FIXING MY BIKE nor be winning the Ford Explorer in the BR (What Are You Doing, PGDA). Can we squeeze in one more Bonus Round win before the week is done? Only time will tell...

Link for previous episode. And I'm sorry if I didn't do this earlier, 

EPISODE #7260: 🚌WHEEL ACROSS AMERICA🚌
AIR DATE: 10/23/20

$1,000 Tossup: Thing

_ _ _ / S C E N _ C
R _ U _ E

Valeece takes THE SCENIC ROUTE for her first grand. End of week panel...

Valeece Smith: L.A. Sales director in book publishing who's married to Ron for almost 26 yrs. w/ 2 stepsons. Also a singer & theater lover.
Alison Chavez: Hermosa Beach, CA. Marketing exec. & creative writer. Married for 7 yrs. w/ 2 boys.
Mike Villalba: Palmdale. Water service specialist for a utility in the SoCal area. Big sports fan and a new homeowner.

Since there's two devices for each player, it's bound to cause some confusion when one accidentally uses their White Thing to buzz in.

$2,000 Tossup: On The Map

_ _ S _ V I _ _ E
_ _ N _ _ _ S _ E

The final 2020 presidential debate took place here and Mike knows that's NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE.

Featured Prize: tour of South Dakota worth $7,000 (marked collette)

Round 1: The 90's (!!!)

_ _ _ / _ _ _ _ _ _
_ _ _ _ _ / _ _
_ _ _ _ _ / _ _ _ _ _ _ _

"My fifth-favorite decade of my life" - Pat

Mike: $900 (2 T's), $900 (3 S's), $2,500 (5 R's!), 3 E's, Solve Attempt ($16,750)..

T _ _ / _ R _ _ S E
S T _ R S / _ _
_ E R R _ / _ _ _ _ _ R E

PERFECTION! Let's show Mike the money as he makes quick work of TOM CRUISE STARS IN "JERRY MAGUIRE" for a big lead already.

Pre-Round 2 Scores:
Valeece: $1,000
Alison: Nothing Yet
Mike: $18,750

---

Prevagen Mystery Round: Crossword ([Blank] Way)

      _ _ _ _
      _
_ _ _ _ _
_    _

Valeece: MYSTERY near $650 (N)

Alison: $650 (L), $600 (M), $900 (K), $550 (2 Y's), 2 I's, BANKRUPT! ($3,500 - $3,000 lost)

Mike: $900 (2 H's), WILD (G), Solve Attempt ($2,300)...

     H I G H
     _
M I L K Y
Y    _

The missing word's ABSOLUTELY NOT HOLE according to Mike.

Valeece: $700 (P)

Alison: $800 (T)

Mike: BANKRUPT! ($3,500 - $2,300 + WC lost)

Valeece: BANKRUPT! ($3,500)

Alison: Free PLAY (A - No More Vowels!), $700 (F - Complete Board!), Solve Attempt ($700)...

     H I G H
     A
M I L K Y
Y    F

Alison reads 'em all for the house minimum.

Duds: N & P (Valeece), T (Alison)
Bankrupts: 3 (everyone)
DQ: Mike's blown solve

Pre-Round 3 Scores:
Valeece: $1,000
Alison: $1,000
Mike: $18,750

...that was a mess.

---

Prize Puzzle/Express Round: What Are You Doing?

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ / _ _
_ / _ _ _ _ _ _ / _ _ _ _ _

Alison: BANKRUPT! ($650)

Mike: $800 (4 N's), 2 O's, $650 (D - $2,950 at risk)

Valeece: $500 (3 G's), $650 (2 L's), Free PLAY (3 I's), BANKRUPT! ($3,500 - $2,800 lost)

Alison: Solve Attempt...

L O _ N G I N G / I N
_ / L O _ N G _ / _ _ _ I _

Knowing full well that a trip is at stake here, Alison decides to just solve and she'll be LOUNGING IN A LOUNGE CHAIR when she takes her trip to the MEXICAN CARIBBEAN (Paradisus Playa Del Carmen) worth $7,030.

Dud: D (Mike)
Bankrupts: 2 (women)

Pre-Triple Tossup Scores:
Valeece: $1,000
Alison: $8,030 cash & MEX
Mike: $18,750

---

Triple Tossup: Food & Drink

1.

_ O S _ O _
B A K E D / B _ _ N S

Alison has some BOSTON BAKED BEANS.

2.

_ _ _ _ _ T _ _ N
_ _ _ _ / _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Valeece quickly gets MANHATTAN CLAM CHOWDER.

3.

_ _ _ _ _ S _ _ _ _ I
_ _ _ / P _ _

And it's Alison with MISSISSIPPI MUD PIE.

Round 4: Place

_ _ _ _ _ - _ _
_ _ _ _ _ / _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Alison: $600 (2 R's), $900 (2 T's), $650 (H), 4 E's, A, $700 (N), $700 (D), Solve Attempt ($4,550)...

D R _ _ E - _ N
_ _ _ _ E / T H E A T E R

PERFECTION #2! Alison takes another solve of DRIVE-IN MOVIE THEATER to get closer to Mike's lead.

Pre-Round 5 Scores:
Valeece: $3,000
Alison: $16,580 cash & MEX
Mike: $18,750

Round 5: Phrase

_ / _ _ _ _ / _ / _ _ _ L _
L _ T / T _ / L _ _ _ N

SPEEDUP TIME

Final Spin: BANKRUPT! $1,500

Mike: S
Valeece: 3 L's
Alison: 2 T's
Mike: N

_ / _ _ _ _ / _ / _ _ _ L _
L _ T / T _ / L _ _ _ N

Well, I HAVE A WHOLE LOT TO LEARN in mastering this game as Mike's nailed it for said $1,500.

Dud: S (Mike)
Unclaimed: $4,500 (Valeece), $3,000 (Alison)

Final Scores:
Valeece: $3,000
Alison: $16,580 cash & MEX
Mike: $20,250

Maingame Total: $39,830
Bankrupt Trash: $8,100 + WC

The non-producing Mike will pick from...

• Thing
• Living Thing
• What Are You Wearing?

---

$100,000 Bonus Round

Mike spins up to the W.

RSTLNE:

_ _ N E _ S _ _ _ L E
_ _ N E

CBMO:

_ O N E _ S _ C _ L E
_ _ N E

My dad was correct on calling the shots - Mike's silent the whole time and can't solve HONEYSUCKLE VINE for $38,000. End total: $20,250.

Apparently, Mike has never said HONEYSUCKLE his whole life - my dad would agree.

Closing Chat: Pat & Vanna give each other nicknames...and HONEYSUCKLE will probably haunt Pat's life from now on.

Personal Rating: 6

Well, this was another up and down week. Our contestants took home $284,095 this week, which is pretty par for the course. This week has produced some really great players (Cheryl on Monday, Tim on Wednesday) as well as a lot of lackluster players (I think Tuesday's panel fits the bill very well). We did get around 2 BR wins this time around and secured another Mystery win, so it was good in some parts. However, some awful playing and a high Bankrupt trash made the overall week boil down to just average.

Weekly Rating: 6

Special thanks to kev347 for Thursday's placeholder. Next up is Halloween and I'm sure we'll all be in for a special treat filled with no tricks up Mike's sleeve.