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 W elcome back to Hitch, ladies and gentlemen! A month away has engendered quite the competitive spirit on the east-end, and to celebrate that spirit we tried a little something different in the midst of the evening... something that brought an impressive slate of 10's to the fore in the second round!

When Trivia Classic wrapped, eight points separated six teams! Not only that, but two teams were tied atop the standings, with the North American House Hippos returning, as the latest remix of Quiztin Tarantino, and newcomers the Fighting Mongooses certainly showing the collected competition what they were capable of! Two points behind them were friends of the M. Night Shaym-Aliens, the Tough Bretts! Three points behind the Bretts were Fake News, one half of the returning DePopp (Golden VHS Champs from June 2016 at Hitch), while the Good Folks from Laramie Cigarettes were two points behind them in fifth and a point behind those Good Folks, rounding out the field, were ???!

What was different in this week's Game Show Games was that teams then answered on their sheets to be marked! Was it possible? Was it as fun?! Well, yes it was possible but we did immediately miss the rabble rabble! Fake News grabbed the first TOP TEN in Countdown Takedown, while ??? grabbed eight points, Tough Bretts tied up with them, and the Good Folks from Laramie Cigarettes nabbed four points! Survey Says then saw the field grab the TOP TEN POINTS in our new look format! Yes, the entire field! You read that right. This made our new old look in Game Show Games all the more important, with Box Office Bulls-Eye offering the third TOP TEN of the round... something that those Tough Bretts took to with aplomb while ??? and Fake News each grabbed eight points!

Would the former co-leads in the North American House Hippos and the Fighting Mongooses be able to catch up with Fake News and the leading team heading into the third round, the Tough Bretts?! While Fake News weren't able to answer the trio of questions in Tri-Pardo with enough confidence NOT to lose points, the Good Folks from Laramie Cigarettes did in fact answer the third question correctly for eighteen points! Adding twenty-six points to their team were ??? and the Tough Bretts! This first and second correct answer combination would give the Tough Bretts the lead, although very close behind were the Fighting Mongooses (after answering the first and third questions correct) and the North American House Hippos (also answering the first and third correct, though getting hit for a six point loss on the second question), meaning the Finale would come down to the wire!

Who would be the last team standing? Especially one that only one team was able to answer correctly! That team, The Good Folks from Laramie Cigarettes had wagered all of two points, but that was enough to bring their total to forty-eight points! So now it was a matter of just how much other teams had wagered! Losing forty-one and sixty-two respectively were Fake News and ???, leaving those teams pointless! Also wagering sixty-two points, leaving one on the board, were the North American House Hippos... so it came down to the top two teams before the Finale, so see if either had outwagered the winningest one-man team at Hitch! With fifty points wagered... the Tough Bretts had to settle for third, after an excellent Game Show Games! And wagering nineteen points, usually a tough less for newcomers... instead, allowing for the win by a slim TWO POINTS!

ACHIEVEMENT UNLOCKED: FIRST AND GOLD!

Yes, winning their FIRST Golden VHS the Champions on the Monday night... THE FIGHTING MONGOOSES! That's a cool team name.
08/07/17 POINTS TABLE

TEAM	CLASSIC	CT	SS	CB	PARDO	WAGER	FINALE
The Good Folks from Laramie Cigarettes	14	4	10	0	18	(2)	48
Tough Bretts	19	8	10	10	26	(50)	23
North American House Hippos	21	0	10	0	32	(62)	1
Fighting Mongooses	21	0	10	0	38	(19)	50
???	13	8	10	5	26	(62)	0
Fake News	16	10	10	5	0	(41)	0

Congrats once again to the Fighting Mongooses, and thank you to all the excellent teams who came out to compete at our Home Away of Hitch! We'll see you all again in TWO WEEKS on August the 21st for another edition of Trivia Club on the east end, and NEXT MONTH for the FOURTH ANNUAL CHRISTOPHER HITCHENS CUP!