With the start of the season, Jeopardy! has a new opening sequence: Various categories names with corresponding objects surrounding them. The Jeopardy! logo zooms out to the center of the screen, with gold beams of light appearing on both sides of it, creating a purple sky background. Finally, the white Jeopardy! logo then zooms forward, revealing the 2013-2024 set.
The contestant introductions, Daily Double, Video Daily Double, Double Jeopardy!, Final Jeopardy! graphics, and the split-screen closing credits gained a new look to match the season's title card.
The Daily Double logo next to the contestant's right shoulder has a shadow outline and a different animation.
The Jeopardy! Clue Crew consisted of only Sarah Whitcomb-Foss and Jimmy McGuire, also the original members, which continued until the end of Season 38.
October 4, 2019: The real 8,000th episode of Jeopardy! aired, which is Show #8065.
October 7, 2019: Two of the three Daily Doubles are seen on time.
October 31, 2019: Steve Moulds finishes with a 3-day total of $85,603.
November 2019[]
November 4-15, 2019: The Tournament of Champions airs after another two years of absence. James Holzhauer won the tournament and $250,000. Emma Boettcher received $100,000 and Francois Barcomb received $50,000. He defeated Boettcher the second time they match up, and became the last Tournament of Champions winner in the Alex Trebek era. A tribute is also made to honor Larry Martin, who died on January 25, 2019, shortly after winning the tournament. James became the longest winning streak, the highest regular winnings for a ToC winner. Emma is the first 3-time champ to make a ToC final since S24 player Doug Hicton. She also becomes the fourth and last finalist as a 3-time champ.
December 2019[]
December 16, 2019: Jennifer Quail finishes with a 8-day total of $228,800, surpassing Larissa Kelly as the second highest-winning female contestant.
January 2020[]
January 7, 2020: Karen Farrell finishes with a 8-day total with $159,603.
January 7-14, 2020: Jeopardy! The Greatest of All Time airs on ABC, making the last Jeopardy! event hosted by Alex Trebek. Ken Jennings won the tournament and $1,000,000. James Holzhauer and Brad Rutter received $250,000.
Due to The Greatest of All Time being held, the College Championship is delayed until early April.
January 17, 2020: Veronica Vichit-Vadakan finishes with a 4-day total of $89,001.
January 20, 2020: The closed captioning sponsor is announced right after Alex Trebek reveals the Final Jeopardy! category.
February 2020[]
February 17, 2020: Two of the three Daily Doubles are seen on time.
February 27, 2020: MacKenzie Jones finishes with a 8-day total of $204,808 and is the last female 5 or more time champion in the Alex Trebek era.
March 2020[]
March 11, 2020: Paul Trifiletti finishes with a 5-day total of $106,801.
March 16, 2020: Two of the three Daily Doubles are seen on time.
April 2020[]
April 1-2, 2020: This is the last time in the Alex Trebek era where two of the three Daily Doubles are seen on time for two days in a row.
April 6-17, 2020: The College Championship airs.
The Sports Jeopardy! music package is used, including the Final Jeopardy! segment. Previously, the music from Rock & Roll Jeopardy! was used for the College Championship.
This is the last time the College Championship is held in the syndicated version.
Nibir Sarma won the tournament and $100,000. Tyler Combs received $50,000 and Xiaoke Ying received $25,000.
April 30, 2020: Sarah Jett Rayburn finishes with a 4-day total of $89,300.
May 2020[]
May 4-15, 2020: The Jeopardy! Greatest of All Time encore event airs, including Ken Jennings first and last appearances from 2004 (the former aired May 4 and the latter May 15 — The Greatest of All Time shows from January were all split into two and aired May 5-14)
May 18-22, 2020: These episodes are taped without an audience due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
May 25-June 5, 2020: The Teachers Tournament aired, making the last Jeopardy! tournament hosted by Alex Trebek.
He announces at the top of the show that these episodes are new and hopes everyone is staying safe from COVID-19.
As Alex makes his entrance, a disclaimer at the top reads "Taped February 2020".
Ben Henri won the tournament and the $100,000 cash prize. Meggie Kwait received $50,000 and Will Satterwhite received $25,000.
It is also the last Teachers Tournament in the syndicated run and the last two weeks of shows with an audience in the Trebek-era.
June 2020[]
June 8-12, 2020: These episodes are taped without an audience due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
June 9, 2020: Zach Newkirk makes his Jeopardy! debut.
June 12, 2020: Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Season 36 ends early. It is also the last time until October 14, 2024 that the host approaches the contestant lecterns for the interviews.
Post Season[]
June 15-September 11, 2020: Summer reruns air, including classic episodes from the Jeopardy! vault like the first two syndicated episodes of the first season, Chuck Forrest's run, Frank Spangenburg's run, Celebrity Jeopardy!, Million Dollar Masters, and the 15 champions from the 2019 Tournament of Champions.
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