DC Comics, 2007.Question of the Week (from Megatron): Which movie star/entrepreneur claims to have developed a machine that can “mop up” the Gulf oil spill? (Answer at end of article.)(Trivia Tuesdays is a brand-new Voracious column. Its main goal is to seek out trivia nights from bars across Seattle and critique them for any drunken know-it-alls looking for a good place to flex their brain muscle before it’s poisoned for good.) The Bar: The Living Room (Capitol Hill, 1355 East Olive Way), Sundays at 7 p.m. The Living Room is a cozy nook of a bar and started hosting a trivia night only four weeks ago. The mood was very casual and attendance was sparse. This meant a pretty small cash prize, but an increased chance for rapport with the quizmaster and bartender.
In reference to one of the team’s being named “Rock You Like A Hurricane”, the night’s soundtrack was changed to The Scorpions’ Pandora station. However, Metallica’s “Enter Sandman” was promptly vetoed by the bartender.
The Quiz: There were five categories of 5-15 questions. The night’s quiz had a grand total of 43 questions. The quiz seemed to be most forgiving to geography buffs and film fans, but not a lot of curveballs were thrown, making The Living Room ideal for trivia tyros.The Host: Meg(atron) also hosts at Paddy Coyne’s (Tuesdays) and The Duchess (Mondays). Megatron loves trivia because it’s “cheaper than a movie, and less obnoxious than karaoke.” She says, “You can still socialize while playing trivia. It’s not like going to a club where you have to scream over the music every time you want to talk to someone.”Length: Time was possibly the biggest fault of this particular trivia night — although scheduled to start at 7 PM, the first question wasn’t asked until after 7:30. Also, despite the quiz having a relatively low number of questions, the winners weren’t announced until about 9:30. Still, the leisurely pace may be a boon for casual players, so long as you don’t mind sticking around for a few hours.
Special Effects: One “fill in the names of the states on an unlabeled map of the East Coast” round (something I like to call a “smoke break round”) and something I’ve never seen at a Trivia Night before–a small crossword puzzle based on this year’s World Cup.
Drink/Bar Food Specials: The Question Mark cocktail is concocted by the host herself, and goes for $3 throughout Trivia. Don’t bother asking what’s in it; Megatron assures us she tries to change the recipe every week.
The “Shot n’ a Beer” (sic) special with Pabst and Evan Williams bourbon (two personal favorites when it comes dirt cheap swill) goes for $5, and is a perfect choice when it comes to getting a kick start to the all-important “trivia buzz”.
Other notable discount cocktails are the $4 White Russians, aptly renamed “The Dude” for trivia’s noticeable pop culture bent. The $4 Vodka Cucumber Sodas are also perfect for summer evening refreshers.
The Verdict: If you’re looking to get your feet wet with a friendly group of people more interested in the social side of trivia nights than the ultra-competitive side, then The Living Room is a great place to start. Megatron is a charismatic, experienced host with a knack for warming up trivia skeptics — not a fat, beardy troll of a man just in it to make fun of people who don’t know the name and function of all the hatches in Lost.
Note: “Horror Films” is a confirmed category for next week’s quiz.
Question of the Night’s Answer:
Kevin Costner(Costner reportedly claimed that he would not just give the machine to the cleaning efforts, saying that “nothing is free in Waterworld.”)
