Just as a random observation, I'd point out that this *is* the first go-round for the whole Merriweather process, so some missteps would only be natural. Maybe (some of) the judges were concerned about being too lenient, and went too far in compensating? I expect a lot of this will settle down as they get more practice.
Tough on the writers of this round, though.
Thanks for sharing, Mere & Lynn! Fascinating stuff...
PJ
