Good Job, Brain! — Episode 301: "Come On Down!"

Date: November 14, 2025
Podcast: Good Job, Brain!
Host(s): Karen, Colin, joined by guests Sarah Del Villano and Warren Grace
Theme: A game show and trivia extravaganza, featuring quizzes inspired by classic and obscure TV game shows, nostalgic moments, offbeat facts, and lively panel banter.

Episode Overview

This "game show extravaganza" celebrates game shows both new and old, bringing together trivia buffs from the show's community and adding a dash of personal stories, pop culture deep-dives, and signature quiz challenges. With Sarah and Warren—both real-life game show contestants—joining the hosts, the episode blends fun competition with fascinating showbiz stories, heartfelt nostalgia, sharp wit, and serious trivia for fans of all ages.

Featured Segments

1. Meet the Contestants & Game Show Credentials [02:31–04:42]

• Guests: Sarah Del Villano (music teacher & Trivial Pursuit champ) and Warren Grace (croupier, trivia whiz) join, both former game show contestants.
• Sarah: Jeopardy! 2019 Teachers Tournament Finalist; appeared on Trivial Pursuit with LeVar Burton.
  • “I high fived LeVar. And then other things happen. Like I maybe won a little money, but secondary to LeVar.” — Sarah [03:37]
• Warren: Appeared on The Chase and Jeopardy!
• The group recalls meeting at Sporklecon and doing escape rooms.

2. Pop Quiz Hotshot: Classic Trivial Pursuit Faceoff [04:42–12:55]

A rapid-fire warmup using Trivial Pursuit cards, with classic categories:

• Sample Questions and Highlights:
  • Q: What two countries claim 2/3 of the world's 2,000+ registered saints?
    • A: France and Italy — Colin nails it [05:52]
  • Q: What's the only fish that produces "real" caviar?
    • A: Sturgeon — Karen [07:11]
  • Q: What tagline did AOL and Kodak dream up for their joint online photo service?
    • A: "You've got pictures."
      • “I’m giving Warren 99% of that answer…” — Karen, after Warren guesses "You've got photos" [12:54]
• The segment features plenty of friendly ribbing, self-deprecating humor about sports knowledge, and nostalgia for 90s pop culture.

3. Impossible Quiz – UK Game Show-Style Segment [13:24–37:04]

Inspired by: UK quiz show “Impossible”
Format: Multiple choice with a twist: Correct answers score +1, standard incorrect is 0, “impossible” (nonsensical) answers are -1.

• Sample Questions & Commentary:
  • “Which Tom Hardy movie is currently 100 on the top grossing movies of all time according to Box Office Mojo?”
    • Correct: Inception (not The Dark Knight Rises, which is much higher!) [19:23]
  • Animaniacs trivia: Who performed the infamous belch from Elf?
    • Impossible: Phil LaMarr (wasn’t on Animaniacs). Correct: Maurice LaMarche [21:37]
  • “Which Major League baseball team first fielded Babe Ruth?”
    • Correct: Boston Red Sox. “Baltimore Terrapins” is the impossible.
  • Sally Ride collection: She was a philatelist (stamp collector); her collection is at the Smithsonian [25:42]
  • Many more questions, including on Hamilton, Animaniacs, and Lifetime movie trivia.

Score Recap:
Karen wins with a last question about who was predicted as a hologram guest for episode 300 (Answer: Tupac Shakur; Impossible: Michael Jackson) [36:25]

Notable Quote:
“Mining our own past for questions is just… so devious.” — Colin [36:55]

4. Wheel of Fish — Karen’s Original Fish-Themed Trivia Game [48:33–65:00]

Inspired by: "Wheel of Fish" game show segment from "UHF" (Weird Al film).

• Showstopper Moment: Karen creates both a physical paper wheel and a coded virtual “Wheel of Fish” that fans can play online! “Am I a coder? Not really.” — Karen [52:04]

• Categories:

  • Reel It In (fish in movies)
  • Stay in School (science/educational fish Qs)
  • Red Herring (fish-adjacent animal trivia)
  • Very Tasty (fish in food)

• Sample Qs & Highlights:

  • Deadliest Catch: Not fish—they catch CRAB [53:07]
  • Name 5 animated features with fish in 20 sec [54:01] — Sarah gets Finding Nemo, Finding Dory, Pinocchio…
  • What movie popularized Madison as a girl's name? (Splash) [63:40]
  • Most consumed fish in U.S.? (Surprisingly, salmon!) [58:13]
  • Anatomy: What do sharks, rays, and skates have in common? (Cartilaginous skeletons) [62:03]

• “Slumdog Millionaire” Moments:
  Colin aces the Splash/Madison question, revealing he’d just been discussing it with friends [64:03].

  • “Within the last week, I was talking with friends… did you know this movie is considered to be the catalyst for the name Madison becoming a popular first name?” — Colin [64:03]
  • Bonus outtake: discussion on Jalen as a name made popular by NBA's Jalen Rose [65:05]

5. Game Show Memories & Aspirations [37:45–46:59]

Participants reminisce about their favorite game and competition shows, longing to play:

• Beat Shazam (Sarah & Warren’s pick)
• American Ninja Warrior (Colin’s “pipe dream”)
• Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego? and The Crystal Maze (Karen’s childhood dream; tells a moving story about getting to participate in Crystal Maze Live in London as an adult) [39:33–44:55]

Standout Story: Karen's Dream Come True

Karen recounts her childhood obsession with UK’s Crystal Maze, finding a live version in London, recruiting listeners to join, and just “obliterating their record” — a moving moment about childhood dreams realized.

• “All this to say thank you to whoever made the Crystal Maze…” — Karen [44:55]

6. The Monty Hall Problem: Probability, Game Theory & Controversy [66:23–76:38]

Colin explains the famous probability puzzle inspired by Let’s Make a Deal, breaking down why switching (“You will have a 2/3 chance of winning the car if you switch…”) is mathematically superior.

• Notable Quote (Colin):
  "This question, I just want to make very clear, can cause fights in families…" [70:29]

• The logic is discussed step-by-step, and the hosts stress how even mathematicians resisted the counterintuitive solution. Monty Hall himself is quoted confirming the math [75:03].

7. “Winningest” Reality Competition Alumni [77:15–81:44]

Karen reviews which reality show stars have achieved the highest net worth:

• American Idol: Carrie Underwood ([78:35] — $20M)
• X Factor: Harry Styles (UK), Camila Cabello (US)
• The Voice: Morgan Wallen (nearest notable alum, but didn’t win)
• Last Comic Standing: Amy Schumer (not a winner, but most famous after)
• Star Search:
  List includes Brad Garrett, Ray Romano, Alanis, Beyonce (“Girls Tyme”) — “She’s a billionaire.” [81:26]

8. Closing & Prize Announcement [81:54–84:22]

• Sarah & Warren, as winners, select charities for their $1,000 prize (from Karen’s “Chase” winnings):

  • Gender and Sexualities Alliance (LGBTQ+ youth advocacy)
  • World Central Kitchen (Jose Andres’ humanitarian food org)
  • “We thank you for allowing us… to do good in the world.” — Sarah [83:43]

• Sentimental finale as Sarah notes her relationship has lasted as long as the podcast, having listened “to every episode for 15 years” [84:01].

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• “This is our game show extravaganza. We’ve all prepared mystery quizzes and segments about game shows or in the style of game shows. So come on down!” — Karen [12:55]
• “If you get the impossible, that’s minus one!” — Sarah, explaining Impossible [14:51]
• “Mining our own past for questions… so devious.” — Colin [36:55]
• “Karen, this is my lifelong dream. I used to fall asleep thinking—how would I play Wheel of Fish?” — Colin [49:38]
• “Am I a coder? Not really.” — Karen, about her virtual Wheel of Fish [52:04]
• “All this to say thank you… I wish everyone can live out their dream.” — Karen [44:55]
• “We can’t even get through five minutes without finding out a fact.” — Sarah, on Jalen Rose trivia [65:36]

Timestamps for Key Segments

• 02:31 – Meet the Guests: Sarah & Warren’s game show resumes
• 04:42 – Pop Quiz Hotshot: Trivial Pursuit round
• 13:24 – Impossible Quiz (UK format, custom by Sarah & Warren)
• 37:45 – Game show dreams and Karen’s Crystal Maze story
• 48:33 – Wheel of Fish: Fishy trivia with spinning wheel
• 66:23 – Monty Hall Problem Explained
• 77:15 – Reality competition "winningest" stars
• 81:54 – Charitable prize announcement & heartfelt sendoff

Final Thoughts

This episode is quintessential Good Job, Brain! — warm, witty, nerdily competitive, and deeply celebratory of the delight in learning. Through custom games, personal nostalgia, and perfectly timed trivia surprises, the show captures both the brains and hearts of its listeners.

Listen/Play Along:

• Try the virtual Wheel of Fish: goodjobbrain.com/wheel
• More episodes, resources, and community at: goodjobbrain.com

Supporting Quotes & Sources: All transcript quotations from [MM:SS] as referenced above.
Note: Recap omits sponsors/ads for clarity.