It was “Prank Week” in the Big Brother house, but the stakes this week couldn’t have been more serious. It was a pivotal week for the house guests, where front-runners finally emerged as the house got rid of one of the most dangerous (perceived) players of the season.
I’ll try to avoid spoilers above the warning label, but as I do at the beginning of every one of my Survivor recaps, please heed the following: Remember that this recap assumes that you are caught up on all of the aired episodes of Big Brother 21. If you are not and don’t want to be spoiled, please come back later! It’s important to add that while we WILL hit on all of the important developments since the last recap, so if you need to go further back please click on the “Big Brother” Topic on this page to access past recaps…also, this is not a linear “blow-by-blow” recap, but is more of a discussion and reaction of what we just witnessed together.
CLICK THE CONTINUE READING BUTTON FOR MORE, AND THIS IS YOUR LAST *SPOILER* WARNING!
It was going to be hard to match the epic events of last week’s “Taco Tuesday” blow-up, but what followed in its wake was a precise, strategic strike against Nick, the one player this season who really has gotten the short end of the stick. As we discussed last week, Nick actually has been playing a loyal and mostly honest game…of the original “Gr8ful” alliance members, he seemed to take the brunt of their break-up. First, they betrayed him and Bella, voting out his new girlfriend. Nick somehow was able to get over this and realign with those that just betrayed him, only to get painted over-and-over again as a disloyal “sneak” who would backstab his way to the half-million dollars if given the chance. The truth is, Nick’s game play was far from dirty, but Christie and the others were correct in thinking that he needed to go. But before Christie? Time will tell if it was a good decision.
One thing is clear: It was a great decision for Jackson (Michie) and Holly, as they have simply taken over the game in the last few weeks with a barrage of competition wins. Michie – heading into the endurance HOH comp that ended tonight’s episode – has won the last three competitions that he’s had a chance to compete in (two Vetos and one HOH). Holly of course won HOH on the week Michie wasn’t allowed to compete. Their path to complete domination of the game is made much easier with Nick gone, as there simply aren’t any other physical competitors left. It’s quite possible that they could run the table the rest of the way, alternating between HOH wins over the last month of the game.
Nick tried, and though he was unanimously voted out, he felt the most burned by Tommy. He gave us some great insight in his televised post-game interview with Julie Chen Moonves, by saying that Tommy pretty much threw his game away by voting for Nick this week…he painted Tommy as being a very disloyal player and not dependable when it counts the most. But he also added that the jury now consists of three – Jack, Sis and Nick – that were once Tommy’s allies that he voted for each time. To the viewer, it appears that Tommy is likable and might have a good shot of getting to the end, and he still may, but Nick made us aware that he may not have a very good chance of actually winning.
Jessica – Miss “Snooze-fest” herself, according to Zingbot – also gave us some good insight on how the game is shaping up heading into September. Basically you have three pairs: Jackson/Holly, Tommy/Christie and Cliff/Nicole, with Jessica as a third. She implied she could latch on to any of these pairs moving forward, but in actuality she has been most loyal to Christie…which means that with seven players left in the game, Christie has somehow worked her way back into a power position despite having been on the block the past three weeks and despite surviving a week where she was the obvious target. If what Nick said about the jury is true in regards to them not wanting to vote for Tommy to win, this threesome could be an absolutely brilliant set-up for Christie…both Jessica and Tommy would take her with them to Final Two, and Christie would probably then win against both. But oh yah, there’s one or two hurdles in Christie’s way…
Michie and Holly. Should Michie or Holly win HOH yet again, what will they do now? They had struck a deal with Christie to use her as a pawn moving forward, but clearly Christie and Tommy have to be Public Enemies number one and two this week right? Michie/Holly have indicated they would like to sit next to Cliff and Nicole at Final Four, so with the numbers dwindling, I think that Christie’s time might finally be up this week should either Michie or Holly win HOH. It could be Christie and Jessica on the block, with Tommy put up as a replacement should one of them have to come down. Vice versa, if Tommy or Christie were to win HOH, I don’t see how they couldn’t target Michie, whether it be via back-door or straight-on…deals be damned.
The forgotten dark horse right now has to be Cliff, who had already been voted out, fought his way back in, has won some comps and who is playing a stellar social game. As Michie and Christie take each other on, Cliff is getting further and further into the game…and if he gets within striking distance, he could win a comp and find himself the winner of Big Brother. Nicole? Sorry girl. You’re likable but too soft for Big Brother, and you haven’t quite done anything at all in this game…although watching her take out her built-up aggression by smashing pies in people’s faces this week was quite entertaining.
I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention Zingbot, and also the actor who played the mustached cosmic police officer (he has been a staple on Big Brother for a while now, having also appeared as Jack‘s annoying alien sidekick earlier this year…does anybody know this actor’s name? I spent some time trying to Google it but couldn’t come up with anything). I thought the Zings were mostly tame this time around, with the exception of the brutal Zing given to Nicole about not having any friends in the house or in the real world. Ouch! The best use of Zingbot is to give it to the players that America thinks deserves it the most (Christie!), but oh well. And one of the funniest replies that didn’t make the show (but was on the live feeds), was hearing Jackson respond to his Zing: Jokingly, he was shocked to having been called “pompous,” as he’s never been called that before…but he admits that “douche-bag” is something he’s heard from time to time.
This is a crucial HOH, because with Nick out of the house and all of the deals that have been going on, there doesn’t seem to be clear targets on any side. But oh, there will be. And add to that, we’re getting a double-eviction next week? This week is definitely shaping up as potentially one of the most unpredictable and exciting ones of the Summer!
Quick Recap of the (past) Week
HOH: Holly
America’s Prankster: Nick, gets to choose one of the nominations
Original Nominations: Holly nominated Nick, and America’s Prankster (Nick) nominated Christie
POV Winner: Michie, who did not use it
Final Nominations: Nick and Christie
Evicted: Nick, in a vote of 5-0 (everyone voted for Nick)
New HOH for upcoming week: TBD (Endurance Comp ended the episode)
Upcoming Big Brother Episode Schedule
- Sunday, 9/1 – Find out who wins HOH, and who he/she nominates for eviction
- Wednesday, 9/4 – POV competition and ceremony
- Thursday, 9/5 – Double Eviction!
This Season: You can count on at least one of these Recaps each week, usually following the Eviction. That means that I’ll be back with a Recap following next Thursday’s episode. I’ll discuss everything that happened over the course of these three episodes (above). In the meantime, if you have comments or are dying to discuss the show, use the comment section of this article (below) as a sounding board! Here’s looking forward to a fun-filled Summer full of “unexpected” twists, as we look to cover everything going on in the Big Brother House, from A to Zingbot.
See you next week!
TELL US – WAS NICK THE RIGHT CHOICE TO EVICT OVER CHRISTIE? CAN TOMMY STILL WIN THE GAME? AND WHO ARE YOU ROOTING FOR AT THIS POINT?
[Photo Credits: Monty Brinton/CBS ©2019 CBS Broadcasting, Inc. All Rights Reserved]
