The two semifinal jousts are set and after this episode we will have two jousters left to face off for the championship.
Episode 9: ‘Charge On’
The competitors are treated to a nice dinner and get a chance to relax a bit before the semifinal jousts. Jake talks trash about the joust with Matt and is confident that he can win. Matt thinks his biggest obstacle is himself but is also confident that he can win the joust.
At practice Matt is having difficulty with his lance accuracy and on one pass smashes his finger into the arret. Later that night Rope is helping him with his finger. The nail is black from the blood pooling underneath it. Rope heats up a needle and pierces the nail to release the blood and relieve the pressure.
Jake chooses Navarro for his joust and at practice doesn’t connect with the horse and is unable to successfully joust while riding Navarro. Jake decides to go with Jefferson, his backup horse.
The jousters suit up and prepare for the joust. Can Jake defy the odds again and move on or will Matt put aside his injuries stand victorious? Let’s find out…
Semifinal Joust #1
Jake Nodar riding Jefferson
vs.
Matt Hiltman riding Crispin
Pass 1:
Red Team, Jake: Miss
Black Team, Matt: Unhorsing +10
Pass 2:
Red Team, Jake: Miss
Black Team, Matt: Miss
Pass 3:
Red Team, Jake: Miss
Black Team, Matt: Unhorsing +10
Pass 4:
Red Team, Jake: Miss
Black Team, Matt: Miss
Pass 5:
Red Team, Jake: Miss
Black Team, Matt: Miss
Pass 6:
Red Team, Jake: Miss
Black Team, Matt: Strike +1
Pass 7:
Red Team, Jake: Strike +1
Black Team, Matt: Strike +1
Pass 8:
Red Team, Jake: Miss
Black Team, Matt: Miss
Final:
Red Team, Jake: 1
Black Team, Matt: 22
Matt Hiltman wins and moves on to the Championship Joust.
On the first pass Matt nukes Jake and Jake hits the ground quick and hard. The hit was all Matt needed to win, it took Jake out of the joust. After that hit Jake was sitting to the right and flinching at every hit. On the third pass Jake had his weight wrong and the hit put him on the ground again. Pass 5 was a mess Jefferson took off and Jake wasn’t ready. He had to throw the lance and try not to fall off the horse. It was certainly Jake’s worst joust of the season. Matt is now moving on to the Championship joust and a chance to win $100,000.
Before the last semifinal joust Avery and Knowles contemplate the joust and their friendship. They have known each other and worked together for years. They are ready to put their friendship aside, at least for one joust, and win the joust.
Semifinal Joust #2
Josh “The Wolfman” Avery riding Crispin
vs.
Josh Knowles riding Navarro
Pass 1:
Red Team, Avery: Broken Lance +5
Black Team, Knowles: Strike +1
Pass 2:
Red Team, Avery: Miss
Black Team, Knowles: Strike +1
Pass 3:
Red Team, Avery: Miss
Black Team, Knowles: Strike +1
Pass 4:
Red Team, Avery: Strike +1
Black Team, Knowles: Miss
Pass 5:
Red Team, Avery: Strike +1
Black Team, Knowles: Miss
Pass 6:
Red Team, Avery: Unhorsing +10
Black Team, Knowles: Unhorsing +10
Pass 7:
Red Team, Avery: Broken Lance +5
Black Team, Knowles: Unhorsing +10
Pass 8:
Red Team, Avery: Miss
Black Team, Knowles: Miss
Final:
Red Team, Avery: 22
Black Team, Knowles: 23
Josh Knowles wins and moves on to the Championship Joust.
The joust started out good and ended great! There were points scored on every pass except the last. Pass 6 sent a charge through the jousters and the spectators. Both jousters got back up and celebrated the unhorsing. They mounted up and were ready to go again. Pass 7 could have been called a no hit for Knowles but his lance hit the vamplate, which is a legal target area, giving Knowles a second unhorsing. Avery was able to break his lance on Knowles but not unhorse him. Only one point separated them going into the final pass. Honestly I would have liked to see these two guys square off in the Championship Joust. I think the Knowles v. Hiltman joust will be great
Miss the joust? Here it is…
Inside the Joust: Avery v. Knowles
The jousters meet lakeside for the Championship match-up announcement. It is an all Black Team final. Josh v. Matt for the ultimate prize; $100,000 and the title of Full Metal Jousting Champion.
Next week we will also get the Wildcard Joust for $25,000. My pick for the Wildcard is Josh Avery V. Rope Myers.
Here is a sneak peek at next week’s episode.
What are your thoughts on the semifinal jousts? Leave your predictions on the Champion and the Wildcard picks in the comment section.
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Comments 12
Agreed- I think Avery vs Myers would be a good wild card. I was really sad to see Avery beaten- I really thought he had the joust until Knowles unhorsed him again
I wanted to see both Avery and Knowles in the final joust. Despite not being the FMJ Champion I think Avery will go far in the sport
I agree with both of you and have said on another thread that I feel that the bracketing was unfairly created. The good riders consitently had to rejoust each other, Rope, Joe, Nathan and James who should have won the tournament and likely would have it bracketing had been fair. The midevil times riders just totally got a pass which I don’t get at all, shouldn’t they not be saying the name on TV? It strickes me a free, in kind, advertisements.
@miclane I don’t think the brackets were unfair. In the quarterfinals there was only one joust where two jousters were from Medieval Times. And James was matched with Jake “the Underdog.” James was one of the favorites to win the show. He should have easily won his match and moved on. He let his emotions get in the way and was unable to focus. As with any sport skill only takes you so far, you need to master your emotions and stress as well.
@Archivist
You make all great points. I just don’t want someone who clearly did not win, winning. Don’t you think there is a sense of justice which should be addressed?
I am not going to watch the finish, I will read it online. My reasoning is that Matt Hiltmann did not fairly get into the finals therefore, the last match is a fake. We were really enjoying the show too which makes it annoying for me and our family. My husband is annoyed and calls Matt a whimp and a girly man. I agree with that stupid, long hair of his and what a cry baby about his nail. Ridiculous. So, maybe next season the History Channel will have its act together more so and not have fakes in the final match.
If the History Channel had any kind of ‘balls’ they would pull the quarter final’s erroneous results and have the actual and real winner, Joseph McKinley in the Final Match….. what in the world are they thinking holding a sham as their final tournament??? This fact should draw many people to next season’s series…. if there will be one as a result of this ridiculousness.
We did not watch History’s latest joke of a show FMJ considering it was a fraud and that Dousche Matt H. was in the finals but never actually qualified. What in the world!!
Now a great show is the Nat Geo Show Knights of Mayhem, we watched through amazon. We really enjoyed it and it made us feel happy for the guy who has been working to bring the sport into the realm of andrenaline sports, Charlie.
@Archivist
Hi Archivist, just wondering what your thoughts are regarding my point of the last match being about simple truths and justice? Seriously, having someone jousting for a 100K purse who didn’t actually win? Your thoughts?
@miclane I have no problem with Matt being in the final. There are bad calls in every sport and some of those calls decide champions. We as viewers have the luxury of seeing the hit over again in slow motion. The judges are watching it at full speed and have a split second to see the hit and make the call. Human error is part of that process.
The best way to avoid those situations is to hit the other guy hard and often to break lances or unhorse him. Then there will be no doubt who the winner is.
I stopped watching this show when they kicked Landon out.
I fully support what Landon did.
It’s very simple: the safety of a man should Always come before the safety of the horse.
Anyone trying to claim some sort of PC morally superior position should kill themselves to give the rest of nature leave of their oppressive stupidity.
“charge on”… unless it might hurt the horse.
@Archivist I agree. Matt is a pretty boy but if my memory serves me right he is the one who took the lance in the friggin leg and barely missed a main artery. That had to be one hell of a hole and hurt to ride for a while. I am just saying there are a lot of guys who would have been gun shy after that. All good points though.