There was a weird vibe going on at the Lion & Crown this Thursday. IFFY! Was seated around the fireplace where the Ninja Turtles usually held court. The Turtles were sitting at the table where Pickles on a Plate usually sat and Pickles got bumped over… You get the picture. No team sat where they normally sat. Even Stealth Texas couldn’t get a seat at the bar and found himself uprooted to a high table!
We’ve all read about messing with your opponent’s head to gain an advantage and I think IFFY! may have started a chain reaction. Gamesmen call it ‘Psych’. “There are stranger things in heaven and on earth than are dream’t of in your philosophy, Horatio…” So said Hamlet when his pal wondered if Hamlet really had seen a ghost! But the supernormal atmospheres that permeate the pub on King Trivia Pub Quiz night are palpable and perceptible. And results don’t lie!
It can be argued that the absence of “Home Field advantage” had an effect on the scores, but for my money, I’m a believer! Ninja Turtles, who usually win, didn’t even place this week! And when six of nine teams Doubles or Nothing in one round, you know something is going on in the zeitgeist!
* Won Tiebreaker
Humongous! Gigantic! Colossal! These words describe the crowd at the Lion & Crown in Allen, TX on Thursday night as we commenced our weekly King Trivia Pub Quiz. Thanks in part to The Dirty Thirty! This sizable band of birthday celebrants swooped in and took over not only the pub, but the pub quiz as well! Well… Almost! Resident champs the Ninja Turtles, though smaller in number but hotter with trivia checked this wild bunch into second place! It was like watching Chris Adams and his small group defending the village against Calvera’s bandits. It is in this spirit that this week’s recap will be presented in screenplay format to the tune of The Magnificent Seven!
EXT. SMALL FARMING VILLAGE – DAY
CALVERA and the Dirty Thirty ride into town. CHRIS NINJA TURTLE stands in the street along with VIN NINJA TURTLE directly in their path. The mounted band draws to a halt.
CALVERA
I should have guessed.
CHRIS
Guessing in trivia can be dangerous.
CALVERA
How many of you are there?
CHRIS
Enough.
CALVERA
Hah! You seven won’t give us any trouble.
CHRIS
There won’t be any trouble if you ride on.
CALVERA
Ride on?!? Where will my band drink beer and play King Trivia
Pub Quiz?!? Somehow, I don’t think you’ve solved my problem.
CHRIS
Solving your problems isn’t our line.
VIN
We deal in trivia, friend.
CALVERA
So do I. We’re in the same business, eh?
VIN
Only as competitors.
CALVERA
Generosity! That was my mistake!
CUT TO:
INT. LION & CROWN PUB – NIGHT
CALVERA and the Dirty Thirty sit along the central length of the pub taking up nearly the entire dining room. The Ninja Turtles are tucked away by the fireplace.
QUIZMASTER LOU ascends the stage, grabs the microphone and announces…
QUIZMASTER LOU
Ninja Turtles Double or Nothing in Round One have grabbed the lead with sixteen points! Looks like Dirty Thirty is going to be chasing them all night, tonight!
MUSIC SWELLS as CALVERA slams his beer mug down in frustration and the pub goes wild!
As always, until next week…
* Won Tiebreaker
Nice atmosphere at the Lion & Crown this Thursday, with the pub staff and owners getting ready for a big Octoberfest weekend. A new team, 3 Generations, joined in the fun last night. While they came in last, their esprit ‘d corps was definitely first place! Local champs Ninja Turtles, after getting shut out of a first place win for two weeks in a row, came back strong this week by going Double or Nothing in Round Two and outdistancing the pack for the rest of the night. Beer Logic made a strong second place showing all night while Pickles on a Plate chased Ship It! (who had been gone for two weeks – Welcome back!) for third position. Pickles caught up and overtook them in the final two rounds for a third place upset. And as always, a shout out to Iffy!, who bring their contagious enthusiasm to the game every week! Until next week, I remain, ever, Quizmaster Lou!
* Won Tiebreaker
