OK, so I've made a preliminary decision: this will be the last series of Only Connect I cover on here in as much detail. These reviews have been easier to write this series what with the return to the old format, but require a lot of time and effort that I am increasingly running out of. Plus, what with my new blog recently started too, I will need to make time to deal with that too. I'll finish this series before I decide for sure though.
Anyway, playing on Monday night were the Birdwatchers, Chris Grandison, Keli Richards and captain Lauren Hamer, who lost to the Dicers then beat the Brews on a tie-break, and the Westenders, Tom Chisholm, Abbas Panjwani and captain Megan Stodel, who defeated the Dragons but were beaten by the Ancient Alumni.
Round 1. The Westenders kicked the show off with Water, and the picture set: we saw a young lady wearing a hat, then an older lady wearing sunglasses, then another young lady staring off to one side, and finally a baby with a pacifier in its mouth. Neither side got this: they are illegalities in UK passport photos. The Birdwatchers started their show with Twisted Flax: 'Palomo', then 'Copenhagen', then 'Marengo'; they saw them to be the horses of military leaders, and picked up the first points of the game. The Westenders chose Eye of Horus next: 'Hindi slap', then 'German farting demon', then 'French wand', and finally 'Italian slipper'. They correctly identified them as translations of the names of breads (chapati, pumpernickel, baguette and ciabata), and collected their first point of the night. The Birdwatchers chose Two Reeds next, and got the music set: we heard Scottish band Camera Obscura with 'Lloyd, I'm Ready to be Heartbroken', then Whitney Houston with 'Where Do Broken Hearts Go?', then Elvis with 'Heartbreak Hotel', and finally Elton John and Kiki D with 'Don't Go Breaking My Heart'. They spotted the link from the last two, and picked up the point. The Westenders chose Horned Viper next: 'Thin and bright', then 'Heavy and dark'; they came in here and suggested them to be translations of the names of the four Renaissance Painting Modes, but were not correct. Their opponents saw 'Soft and simple' and 'Diluted and untidy', and saw them to be words with shared opposites, for the bonus point. Left with Lion for their own question, the Birdwatchers saw 'Johnny Depp', then 'Hannibal', then 'Sammy Davis Jr', and finally 'Gordon Brown'. They suggested them to all be blind in one eye, and were correct (an interesting little known fact about Mr Depp there). At the end of the first round, the Birdwatchers led 5-1.
Round 2, What Comes Fourth? The Westenders started with Twisted Flax: '1. Iowa', then '2. Hawaii'; they saw them to be US states with increasing numbers of 'I's, so offered '4. Mississippi' for the three points. The Birdwatchers chose Eye of Horus next: 'Area', then 'Wind', and then 'Precipitation'. They didn't spot this, nor did their opponents: it's the information given in the first third of the Shipping Forecast, so 'Visibility' would be fourth. The Westenders chose Water next, and got a music question: we heard 'The Reluctant Dragon' from Disney's film of the same name, then Dukas' 'The Sorcerer's Apprentice', and then 'When You Wish Upon a Star'. They knew it to be something to do with Disney, but didn't get a correct answer. Their opponents suggested it to be the first four Disney feature films going backwards, and correctly offered a song from Snow White for the points. (Cue a reluctant rendition of 'Heigh-Ho'!) For their own question, the Birdwatchers chose Two Reeds: 'Pohn', then 'Gaul', and then 'Reorge'; they saw them to be the forenames of the Beatles with the first letters switched a bit, so 'Jingo' would complete the set! For their final choice, the Westenders chose Lion, and got the picture set: we saw a Macaque monkey, then a cheque about to be written, and then a work by Rene Lalique. They didn't see it, their opponents did, and offered a chef's toque for the bonus. Left with Horned Viper for their own final question, the Birdwatchers saw 'German (terrorism)', then 'Nuclear (prolonged cold and darkness)', and then 'Arab (revolution)'. They saw them to be phrases with seasons missing, so suggested 'Indian (really hot weather)' for the two points. At the end of the second round, the Birdwatchers led 11-4.
On to the Walls. The Birdwatchers went first, and chose the Lion wall. They quickly isolated a first set, 'Haiku', 'Sonnet', 'Sestina' and 'Ballad', which are forms of verse, but got rather stuck after that. Eventually timed out, they had to go for bonus points: 'Samurai', 'Tycoon', 'Emperor' and 'Seduction' can all follow 'The Last' to give film titles, which they didn't get, 'Bonsai', 'Honcho', 'Sake' and 'Emoji' are words borrowed from Japanese, which they did get, while 'Manga', 'Peace', 'Apply' and 'Grape' are the names of fruits with the final letter changed, which they also spotted. Four points there.
The Westenders could thus make up lost ground with a good result on the Water wall. They too, were somewhat stuck initially, but then clicked two groups in quick succession: 'Alien', 'Sunshine', 'Passengers' and 'Gravity' are films set in space, while 'Friction', 'Electromagnetic', 'Strong Nuclear' and 'Elastic' are forces. They tried the final sets, but couldn't work it out in their three tries, so had to also got for bonuses: 'Spanker', 'Lateen', 'Moonraker' and 'Spinnaker' are types of sail, which they got, while 'Lumbers', 'Jib', 'Rush' and 'Judged' are books of the Old Testament with one letter changed, which they didn't see. Five points there, which meant the Birdwatchers led 15-9 going into the final round.
So, Missing Vowels would decide the last place in the knockouts, with the Westenders needing the sweep the round to stand a chance. 'People known for wearing red' was split 2-each. 'African UNESCO World Heritage sites' went to the Westenders 3-0. 'Idioms containing two animals', such as 'IT'S RAINING CATS AND DOGS' and 'A WOLF IN SHEEP'S CLOTHING', was another 2-all split, and that was time. The Birdwatchers won 19-16.
Another good show, well done both teams, well quizzed. Unlucky Westenders, but a good series of performances on the whole, thanks very much for playing! Well done Birdwatchers though, and best of luck in the knockouts!
Next week's match: the first quarter-final, the Time Ladies vs the LARPers
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