Gozzy

Analysis of Main Matches Alright,here is my analysis for Main Matches in every season so far,including this season. I've seen someone did this several pages before but I'll put my own input aswell and divide it into specific episodes for every season. I'll also rank the games in each episode. The rank will mostly decided by the game mechanic itself. The way games played by the casts will only take a small part in my judgement Episode 1 123 Game (S1) is simple game but can be played with variety of strategies (Junseok-Jinho even made 9 wins strategy). ID Exchange (S4) is another simple game but the existence of convict card made the suspense can be more noticed, shown by the editing in this season. Fruit Stand (S3) basically can only be won via betrayal but Kyunghoon last season did it so recklessly. I like Food Chain (S2) the best though. Basically because in this game you CANNOT make an alliance BEFORE the game started. It makes the game so fluid and dynamic compared to other alliances game Rank : Food Chain > ID Exchange > 123 Game > Fruit Stand Episode 2 I don't like Horror Race(S4).For me,it's the lamest race ever in The Genius so far because basically you need an alliance to do anything significant. Even Yoonsun who did it alone in E2 did it because she isn't asked to be in alliance. Even in the Middle Race, you can still be safe even if you play it alone (Dongmin as One in the first Middle Race). Election Game (S1) is all about who gathers more people quicker but it involves political skill and underground dealing aswell so it isn't really as simple as someone imagine. Seat Exchange(S2) was a mess, worst MM ever(?). Jury Game (S3) is an interesting game,the game depends on how well each leaders play their role and in S3 Hyunmin played it so well that the citizen get overwhelming victory Rank : Jury Game > Election Game > Horror Race > Seat Exchange Episode 3 Abundance and Famine(S1) is another simple yet can have different results depending on situation. In S1 Cha Minsoo team goes with the strategy to pick one of Gura alliance as DM candidate but if they don't have certain number of player,it won't work. King Game (S2) is one of few alliances based games where the minority can actually control the game,although in S2 it's covered by Doohee agent work . Middle Race (S3) is the most complicated MM ever but it's still very entertaining even with all those confusing roles. It gives room for alliances depend on which role you pick or work individually so it's very good Main Match from my perspective. Today Menu(S4) is modified version of Prisoner Dilemma,classic game where a single betrayal will ruin the other members and that's what happen this season. Cardbox trick was a lame gimmicj though. Rank : Middle Race > Today Menu > Abundance and Famine > King Game Episode 4 Zombie Game (S1) could have turned out better if the zombies acted well. Blackout Game (S2) definitely designed to be a betrayal game because otherwise it'll be just battle of guess. Sword and Shield (S3) is good because the leader can keep quiet to avoid betrayal or admitting he's leader to his own teammate to create best strategy possible. In S3 Hweejong made critical mistake though so it ended too fast. Fish Shop(S4) is designed too simple with 6 rounds and 12 tickets that almost everyone know that the best way for the game is to create 2 man alliance. Rank : Sword and Shield > Zombie Game > Blackout Game > Fish Shop Episode 5 Scamming Horse Race (S1) is the game which involve the skill to gather information to infer the result and fooling other people to not betting on correct horse. It makes good MM because player need to get as much as possible but only want as few as possible bet on winning horse. 7 Commandments(S2) is the game with so MUCH potential,players need to build alliance with right people to utilize their personal bill. Infinite chips is one of the ridiculous idea that unfortunately never materialized. Miner Game (S3) is very interesting game because although you played it with a team, in practice you play individually. Pairing up with 1 player from each team seems to be the best idea but there is no sure way to control it. In S3,the other players just clueless Hmin working with Dmin. Loyalists and Rebels (S4) is another game which could have turned better if the rebels acted properly. Actually if there is no Jungmoon who know the number pattern or the number used isn't Pi,it seems easier for Rebels to win even without suspicious movements P.S. : This is the hardest episode to rank so far,all games in 4 seasons are good ones IMO although not all of them being played properly Rank : 7 Commandments > Miner Game > Loyalists and Rebels > Scamming Horse Race , Episode 6 Catch The Burglar (S1) is too easy for Burglar IMO. Once he's safe as winner,the burglar can just admit and the big village suppose to have it easy. It's amazing how Kim Gura manage to lose in that situation after being stubborn in discussion. Monopoly Game (S2) is a game which we don't even remember due to Doohee ID incident,but it's actually very potential game with trading card rule and bomb card. If the similar games made without the ID,it would be better. Stormy Stock Market (S3) is modified version of Scamming Horse Race with the timing also taking part other than hints. Garnet Thief(S4) will be interesting if Dongmin didn't planted 2 spies which ruin any plan Junseok could have made Rank : Monopoly Game > Garnet Thief > Stormy Stock Market > Catch The Burglar Episode 7 Open Pass (S1) is legendary game,but for me it's not only good MM because of iconic Jinho moment. It also epitomises what every good MM should be,working in alliance is okay and you can have bigger way to control your card with it,but you can also play it individually to sniff chance. The different colour back card is good camouflage to hide an even bigger trick. I agree there is no replay value after the trick found but there is no use to replay it if the original is being played properly God's Judgement (S2) is another iconic episode where Sangmin totally bossed it but somehow people kinda expected there will be a trick in the dice. It still create good suspense though. Constellation Game (S3) could turn out to be good game with different number of people because it's supposed to be individual game but in S3 the condition matched perfectly so 2Min being outcasted is reasonable strategy. Seed Poker(S4) is very annoying political game,no skill involved,simply asking other people what card they have and ask them to fold/bet accordingly Rank : Open Pass > Constellation Game > God's Judgement > Seed Poker Episode 8 Kong's Dilemma(S1) is good MM. Classic dilemma problem where either you contribute more for team victory or use less for individual safety. Results can be varied depending on players personality. Minus Auction (S2,S4) showed that the same game can have different feeling if played with different players. IMO S4 players showed that this game is actually very interesting. Investment and Donation (S3) could have been more entertaining if Dongmin didn't try to be a last place from the start because the game rules actually very interesting for me if all the players looking for a victory Rank : Investment and Donation > Minus Auction > Kong's Dilemma Episode 9 Expression Auction(S1) seems easy but actually very tricky. You need to buy your tiles in perfect timing but as other players also think similarly,you'll end up with not too good scenario and may not even complete the equation. Interesting game. Layoff(S2) is similar to Food Chain and this is type of MM that i like,making an alliance depending on your own winning condition. Middle Race (S3) is good game although it's being replayed and the additional roles made it better. Horror Race (S4) meanwhile become even lamer when it's being replayed All 3 games (apart from Horror Race) are good games IMO,but if i need to rank Rank : Layoff > Middle Race > Expression Auction > Horror Race Episode 10 Confined Scamming Horse Race (S1) is modified version of the original,it's entertaining that the players need to put their trust for their partner.Big Deal Game (S2) is another MM which ruined by Yohwan act. If this game being played properly and a team can work together but still hidden undercover,it may be a good game. Chain Auction(S3) is interesting because you need to complete equation to 10 but you don't want your original number revealed. Hyunmin played the game perfectly with his strategy in that season Rank : Chain Auction > Big Deal Game > Confined Scamming Horse Race Episode 11 5:5(S1) still the best ever Top 3 MM for me,where all players show their own individual skill. Love the interaction between players and guests too when they know no idea about the rules. I don't like Elevator Game (S2) and Doubting Yutnori (S3) because the result depends on the guests too much but at least in Doubting Yutnori you don't really need to betray to win. In Elevator Game,the players simply need to betray their own team to go to final. Yohwan and Junghyun were simply too naive Rank : 5:5 > Doubting Yutnori > Elevator Game FINAL S1 final consist of 2 old games, Indian Poker and Same Picture Hunt with new game, Gyul Hap. Overall i'm okay with the games selection,although Indian Poker used so many times that season but PD must've thought Indian Poker is beneficial for Jinho while SPH beneficial for Kyungran. I'm annoyed though how eliminated players can help the players directly in Gyul Hap. Deserved win for Jinho but kinda feel anticlimatic for Kyungran. S2 final consist of 2 old games, Indian Holdem and Quattro with new game Truth Detector. Indian Holdem isn't that good game IMO because the community card play big part in your decision. Truth Detector is the game I like, I even want it to appear in DM again at some point. Sangmin's slow but safe routes vs Yohwan's unconventional but useful question make this game very interesting. It's a shame poor Quattro finish this final. Other games should've been selected ahead of Quattro. S3 final consist of 2 old games, Betting Rock Paper Scissor and Twelve Janggi with new game, Same Number Hunt. This is the best games selection in final IMO,all are skill based games,even Betting RPS is very underrated but it involves mind game that even Hyunmin can't handle Dongmin strategy. Rank : S3>S1>S2 My Ideal 11 MM Here is my ideal 11 Main Matches after that long post 1.Foodchain 2. Jury Game 3. Middle Race 4. 7 Commandments 5. Loyalists and Rebels 6. Miner Game 7. Open Pass 8. Constellation Game 9. Investment and Donation 10. Chain Auction 11. 5:5 My Conclusion - MM in S1 is simple to understand but at the same time it can be very tricky - MM in S2 is very good but the casts wasted the potential that the MMs itself become forgettable - 2Min played most MM in S3 so good that it may seem boring at times - MM in S4 isn't as good as we hope - We only like S4 so far because of the casts

Hmm,i agree with your points here so maybe i worded my points wrong in previous post. What i mean by luck based is the same like you pointed out,when the cards being given to the player or with the mulligan,that's where the luck play part in it. I also thought the addition of virtual players made Quattro can be more tactical games rather than social game (it's heavily social based game on S2) and i agree with you too Junseok too desperate to get Red 6 card,i have pointed it out too in my previous post. Basically,i agree with all of your comments haha

Quattro is ALWAYS like that, you complete it by having different numbers and colours. The only difference from Quattro in season 2 is the card used (in S2 the card is up to number 10) and the virtual players rule. IMO it's still luck based but at least virtual players made it not too dependant on other guests/players

I don't know if both of you realize this from the rules,but to complete quattro you need not only different colours,but also different numbers. That's why (like said in narration) Kyunghoon still need to trade his two 6 cards to complete Quattro because there can't be same number. He open Green 6 as the first card which is correct and he open Yellow 4 as second card which is correct move too,because 4 is one of the highest numbers anyway so he need it to complete Quattro. IMO Kyunghoon did have an upper hand from Junseok from the start but Junseok is just too desperate to get red 6 and wasted his chances to trade too early. Kyunghoon did what he should do at his position,he is lucky but what you can do about luck?. Just like the narration said,IF Junseok realized the possibility Kyunghoon cannot complete quattro at that time (which mean he has same numbers -which is true-) he still can win the game. It's just from the start Junseok view the possibility of unable to complete a quattro is small so he trade to get the highest number possible but it's impossible due to KH card. KH is a troll in MM,but he isn't a troll in DM (well,maybe with his ad-lib to virtual players but not from his game play)

I don't find 5 joint win entertaining because it is very one sided from the start (Dongmin planted 2 spies) and Junseok team basically can do nothing. I'd like the game to be not so one sided or not so predictable to be called entertaining. Minus Auction is entertaining because everyone can play the game fairly and there are different types of strategy to play it (Jinho-Hyunmin,Kyunghoon,Jinho all have different strategy). I consider surprising factor in ep4 as good enough to call it entertaining episode. The PD made it too focused on 2Min so it would create bigger shock when they revealed Yeonseung-Junseok alliance so i'm okay with it

Actually i'm Dongmin fan too but what i prefer from the Genius most rather than certain individual victory is entertaining game itself. Horror race is so dreadful even in this episode,the flashback when Ahyoung put the coin didn't really create much suspense. I see someone already made analysis about MM used in S4 and i'll try to post some of my thoughts too later

Sigh.. Disappointed Junseok eliminated,he's my favourite alongside Dongmin. He always had good strategy but always lack something to execute it right. For the actual MM itself,i don't find it very entertaining. The first Horror Race give good moment when Dongmin can sense difference weight,but other than that it's pretty lame. 2 new rules help in the dynamic of the game but i would've still pick new game rather than recycling this idea. I love the guests though. Ahyoung-Dongmin couple is back, Doohee getting bantered for his ID incident, Poong-Sangmin-Ahyoung working together(somehow unexpected). And we finally see 3 Genius kings working together. Basically we all get what we want in this episode. Glad Dongmin realized from the start Hyunmin won't work together with him. I would've preferred Hyunmin to be eliminated. I admit he's smart but he basically put both feet on two sides and when things aren't going well for him,he immediately goes to Dongmin to ensure the token. He's done great as helper,shown in Minus Auction too,but even in that game he made a lot of helping moves to several people so he can get token. At least I like Junseok because he tend to stick with his own team but he seems never know there is something going on behind the scene. Kyunghoon made questionable moves when he isn't helping Hyunmin strategy and his "they can come back as an enemy" is invalid because he end up being last. At least Quattro isn't as bad as I thought it would be though. The virtual players made the game actually can be strategized a little bit. Although Kyunghoon have MUCH bigger advantage from the start,the narration have shown that IF Junseok think like shown in narration,KH may not even complete quattro

Hongchul isn't a comedian but I (and definitely most people) will have expected him to do better than Dongmin for example because he has shown in IC he can handle mind game and show his clever tricks while Dongmin persona before Genius is rude but funny character. Dongmin has elevated comedian status by his unexpected Genius side,but if another comedian casted after Dongmin,there is no doubt people will expect he/she to do well again like Dongmin. I'm sure some comedian can do that indeed,so that's up to the PD if they want to make season 5 to select the right cast. Honestly,season 2 cast is full of potential as the more known players are either expereienced players(Jinho,Sangmin) or already shown clever character in TV (Jiwon,Hongchul) but it turned out to be disaster

Park Jiyoon certainly my number 1 wishlist.too. Genius definitely lacked of memorable and good female players,and from what i've seen in Crime Scene she definitely has potential. She has fun personality,easygoing aswell but at the same time can be scary too. She also good in analyzing systematically (remember her Venn's diagram in S1?) so i think she should handle Genius games well. Another artist i'd like to see in Genius is Jung Joon Young. He is very cunning and tricky in 1N2D and his out of the box thinking is very interesting if can be applied to The Genius. Shame it's very unlikely for him to join though but if Yoo Jae Suk can join TvN program,why not Jun Young? Another comedian might be good but i worry they might be put off with high expectation after Dongmin. I mean it could turn out to be another Hongchul situation

That is correct aswell,although i'd like to see him win DM before he get eliminated (if Jinho didn't make it to the final)

That is correct, I just remember it now that you've mentioned it

Him knowing that the others are offering $1 and he still offering $3 is stupid mistake. He knows he won't get it,so why do it? Even Kyungran and Dongmin,his trusted allies also offering $1,so what's the point to agree to pointless agreement? IF Hyunmin isn't so greedy, Jinho will be guaranteed last at that episode. Kyunghoon giving up mutual wins for Junseok isn't as fatal as Jinho's stubbornness in E4

Totally agree. I also admire Jinho for his heroic Season 1 victory,but to be honest he's been underwhelming this season (and for Crime Scene 2 too). Maybe you are right,we want to see Jinho as Genius like what we've seen in Season 1,but if this season is season with whole unknown cast without previous achievement in Genius before,will you see Jinho as the worthy winner at this stage? ABSOLUTELY NO . Jinho made some stupid mistake this season (not executing his own plan in E2, stubbornly not offering $1 in E4, helping Jungmoon in E7 This is like the case when Yeonjoo got into top 5 last season and I see her as the least worthy candidate out of other remaining players Probably this is the best situation where Jinho can turn out to be winner though,like in S1 and CS2 where he didn't really being noticed at first and only turned up at critical moment (Found out Open Pass trick when being alone, 5:5 Game, succesfully playing as criminal). One time when Jinho take the spotlight from the start in S2,it turned out badly for him. There will be no more Open Pass Jinho moment IMO,but he definitely has potential to be a winner this season

I agree he should not get the hero edit from The Genius editing team because clearly he isn't and I agree with you Kyunghoon is certainly a troll,but not an innocent one. Even in Ep2,the moment where he put his coin "accidentally",i'm sure it's just the part of his acting. Basically Kyunghoon is smart enough to realize even if both him and Yohwan could get at least 1 coin,there is no guarantee Kyunghoon won't be the sole loser. His acting makes Yohwan guaranteed to be the loser and at the same time making no one notice his betrayal so Yohwan need to pick someone from the other team. By the way,he exposed Jungmoon as a spy simply as camouflage for him,he himself didn't exactly know Dongmin put another spy beside him. It's his instinct which played part in it and it's good decision by him He's a trolling actor,but certainly a good one in it. The whole Jinho alliance didn't realize it in E2,basically everyone is fooled in E3 DM,and his team fooled again in E6. Basically only Kyunghoon (and probably Sangmin) can pull this kind of persona off,but everyone else already aware of Sangmin danger

This post basically what i want to point out regarding Kyunghoon move too. In short,it is probably the last 'calculated risk' a player want to make as all the remaining players are strong. Kyunghoon may not work with Dongmin next episode anyway,but he did this incase he need alliance and Kyungran didn't really scared him as elimination candidate. It is BAD move for Kyunghoon IMO,but it's not USELESS move. He did this to gain something in the long term, although whether Dongmin want to work with him again in the future remain unclear

Yeah,Kyunghoon (esp after Sangmin's elimination) is what keep this season entertaining apart from Dongmin (but Dongmin entertaining act somehow limited in the actual broadcast as he's too dominant in the alliance based games). Your Hongchul+Yohwan analogy seems interesting too,but it's I don't really agree with it. Hongchul is expected to be trickster when he's casted, and he's good to manipulate mind in IC,but in Genius he disappointingly only end up with loud and annoying character. He never set solid strategy when playing MM. Kyunghoon may "ruin" the MM (S3 E1,S4 E1&3) but the way he's "ruining" the game make the game more entertaining. The way Yohwan ruin the game however make the game frustrating to watch. Basically Dongmin is what PD expected Hongchul to be. Entertaining,but on the other side actually able to play mind game. One thing PD never expect is he's too good even the other good players seems unable to take spotlight

I myself not a Kyunghoon fanboy and i don't see his last move as wise at all but your post seem so anti-Kyunghoon that makes him like the worst player. It's not like he made the last move without eyeing a potential benefit. He made the move to gain Dongmin,basically the strongest player out of remaining player. Dongmin now basically have no trustworthy ally after Hyunmin prefer to side with Jinho in E7 and basically doesn't work at all with Dongmin in E8,so Dongmin also need trustworthy partner in top5 and he definitely see Kyunghoon as trustworthy partner now he works together with him 3 times. Kyunghoon know at this stage,reliable strong partner maybe the one you need most rather than victory in MM. It's not top3 already,when victory in MM ensure your way to final. His move to "betray" Kyungran makes his chance to be picked later on by Kyungran bigger,but he already volunteered himself in E7 to be in DM anyway,and Kyungran isn't someone you want to avoid in DM so i guess there is small risk. I know victory is better for him,but as Junseok pointed out,there is no way Kyunghoon will get sole winner at the last round. Dongmin won't get token of life that way and he feels it's better to gain Dongmin 'trust' by not agreeing to joint winner possibility. It's risky move,it's something i wouldn't do it either,but i understand his motivation And i also against the over-editing of Kyunghoon but i'm not hating on him because of it. Basically PD need a character to make refreshing content for TV and overall this season lack of it other than Dongmin dominant aura. Sangmin,Kyunghoon and Junseok make the first 3 episodes eventful,but after that they struggle to find another persona as Junseok become a little bit cooperative, Jinho and Hyunmin basically struggle so they end up with Kyunghoon "wow,this guy is rather good too" and Jungmoon " hopeless spy" character

Nice review as usual snowdjinn,but who the hell is JISEOK? LOL

This. And with Kyungran being the elimination candidate,Kyunghoon should know he has big chance to win even if he end up chosen by Kyungran. I mean,if you need to go to DM,the last 2 episodes is probably the best time to go. You beat relatively easier opponent and at the same time other players will be scared to pick you later on but with the remaining players left i don't think they have easy choice to make anyway

Yeah,i thought her move to give up -20 was confusing too,more confusing than when Kyunghoon took the last cube. By taking -20 cube,she may increased the chance for her to be picked for DM by Dongmin,but she still CAN hope for token of life from the winner (and at that time Jinho still have big chance to win). Overall,i think she looks kinda clueless in this episode,she never type of player who strategize a lot like Jinho/Hyunmin and it's been proven during this season but she made a lot of questionable move in this episode

Either word is fine I guess LOL but Dongmin is really merciless this season. Even as Yeonseung helper against Yohwan he made it so that no Yohwan pieces in the board during the game. It must takes very special move* by a special player to eliminate Dongmin this season. Like Hyunmin said, even he would be beaten comfortably by Dongmin in Gyul Hap *or with Quattro. Sucks it's still left when only top players remaining

To be honest,i can't blame her, Dongmin is respectable choice and anyone else is just scary aswell when it comes to DM. Like she said in the end,she wants to lose in close match at least. She didn't even think she would lost the match by big margin. I suppose she seems confident with Gyul Hap but when Dongmin called Gyul in first 2 rounds,her confidence sink. This is the worst elimination for a player in The Genius (apart from DM where other player take part,like BlackOut game where Doohee eliminated)

What a job God Bumdi! He/She done an even quicker job this week. My first thought on this episode,it's finally nice to see everyone in the set actually want to play and set the strategy instead only want to avoid last place after 3 episodes with hopeless Jungmoon. It's a bit weird though to see everyone's intention like it shown during the broadcast. Everyone(aside Kyungran I guess) seems to build an alliance with someone else but none of it really have solid connection. Junseok want to work with Dongmin in the opening and also receive help from Hyunmin but he wants to make Kyunghoon as winner. Hyunmin also want to help Jinho as their number are close and there will be a chaos if one of them hinder each other (*cough* Jiwon and Yohwan). In the end,even Jinho who give token of life to Hyunmin didn't even have the most solid plan/connection. Jinho did the best all he can with the strategy to get as much chips as possible with high number and getting help from Hyunmin is needed,but if not for Kyunghoon at the end he wouldn't win it. I thought Kyunghoon role is the most vital in this episode. At first,i thought there is no benefit for him to not agree to joint victory with Junseok. But at the end,i think it's the choice between Dongmin/Junseok for him. He thinks Dongmin is the better partner for him and he already calculated Kyungran will be last place anyway,so after seeing his confidence after victory against Jungmoon, he must be confident if he end up chosen by Kyungran. Like he said in the end,what's better for him than simply survival by getting MM victory, Dongmin's trust is the best according to Kyunghoon. I can't blame him really,Junseok is unaffected with this result too so all is okay. And that is THE most sided DM ever in The Genius. What a play by Dongmin but it's time for Kyungran to go anyway. She would have been slaughtered by Hyunmin/Kyunghoon in Twelve Janggi too so it's nice to see the remaining players are the one best in 1v1. Ah,i wish Yohwan still in the Top 6 somehow

This. I still thought S1 final would've been closer if the eliminated players don't help directly to the game itself. I think S3 is the first time we have the proper final,where the eliminated players role simply to give items for the finalist they support

Ah you are right,i forgot about Junseok helping Jinho for Gyul Hap in the final. Hmm that makes the current roster is very interesting then,it's almost impossible to predict who'll win the DM. I guess Kyungran naturally still a little bit better than Jinho in Gyul Hap,her lack of courage in the final must be connected with lack of help she received. If i can predict one thing,it'll be almost impossible for anyone to escape from near death experience by bluffing,like Dongmin managed to do against Yeonjoo last season