‘Big Brother 18’: Who Should Go Home This Week? [Op-Ed]

Even before Michelle was out the Big Brother 18 door last week, The Final Four (Paul, Victor, Nicole and Corey) had James in their sights. And when Victor won Head of Household, it was a done deal. For about five minutes at least.

BB18-Natalie-Or-James-Evicted

It took almost no time for Nicole and Corey to decide Natalie would be the better option to go this week. Apparently they think she’s more of a threat. When really we know that it all boils down to one or two things. Probably both things, really. Let’s discuss.

  1. Nicole is jealous of Natalie and has been for quite some time. She constantly talks about how flirty she’s been with Corey and how she would tell him he’s sexy, and that even before the Live Feeds came on she professed her love for Corey. And as we’ve seen all season long, Nicole has had zero interest in working with any female in the game. Fans on social media claim that Nicole just doesn’t like other women. And I’m not sure they’re wrong.
  2. Maybe Nicole and James really do have that preseason alliance. A lot of people have thought it, including myself. Big Brother 8 winner Evel Dick swears by it on Twitter. And I think this theory could have some legs. We heard that BB16 winner Derrick sort of put together his own little army of James, Nicole and Paulie before the season, and even though there’s obvious proof against that now, what about just James and Nicole? Even if Derrick had nothing to do with it, Nicole and James have sworn not to put each other up and James was Nicole’s mom’s favorite HG last season. She must like pranks (eye roll). Anyway, I feel like I’m rambling here, but there’s just a lot of proof that Nicole and James have more going on than any of us have seen.

So that leaves us with a pretty clear answer as to which of James and Natalie should go home this week. It depends on the pair. For Paul and Victor, it’s a much better idea for James to go home. For Nicole and Corey, it’s a much better idea for Natalie to go. Actually, that might not even be what’s best for Corey because there’s a slight suspicion in the back of my mind that Nicole could even cut Corey for James if it comes down to it.

Victor and Paul don’t control the votes this week, so they’re kind of backed into a corner with what Nicole and Corey want. But as a foursome, they should all agree on a target and Victor and Paul should push for James to go. But they’re all basically on board with getting Natalie out. Paul and Victor are annoyed with Natalie and that’s enough for them. For two guys who have really amped up their gameplay the past several weeks, they’re taking several steps back this week on this decision.

If James stays this week, then there’s a part of me that wants to say — no matter how painful it is — that Nicole might actually be outplaying Paul and Victor. Of course if Paul wins HOH then there’s no discussion here. James will go home next unless he wins Veto and then Nicole and Corey will get split up.

And Nicole knows that’s a possibility. She and Corey are already practicing for the next HOH because they know they can’t let Paul win. Their No. 1 priority is to not lose one of the two of them, but they’ve yet to say if they’ll even go after James if they’re in power. Sure they will have ditched Natalie, but that doesn’t mean they have to go for James.

And James should be really upset with Nicole and Corey after this past week, but is he? If he’s not then we will know almost for certain that there was a pregame agreement and Victor or Paul will be screwed this week.

What do you think? Who should go this week? And will James staying spell trouble for Victor and Paul?

JOIN THE DISCUSSION

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111 Comments

  1. I wouldn’t say Paul & Victor are making a mistake by not pushing harder for James to go….. They have limited power in the decision, and you definitely don’t want to upset Nicole & Corey if you don’t have to.

    What they SHOULD do, is get into Corey’s ear and try and get him to see what may be best for his own personal game instead of Nicole’s.

  2. Please stop with this preseason conspiracy theory BS. If Nicole and James did have a firm preseason alliance, Nicole wouldn’t have spent her last HOH keeping James in the dark about all her plans. The reason why Nicole wants to keep James might be because she trusts James better. Can some of that trust originate from knowing him outside of the house? Yes. Is that a preseason f2 pact? No.
    As for Paul and Victor, assuming James stays this week, they should try to break up Nicorey for the next round

    • ty my thoughts exactly on the conspiracy theory.. No poof just theory….I think Branden is a tad bored and wants to keep the James and Nicole secret pact alliance going so the posters will have something to post about.. we will all know at the end of the show if there was a “secret” alliance between the 2…

      • Completely agree, this James/Nicole preseason conspiracy needs to go away. Neither of them are good liars and they’ve both discussed their preseason conversations with Derrek and their “alliance” with other HGs. None of these conversations have indicated anything fishy.

    • I don’t think the had preseason but I am still sure that is not winning comps for some reason!

      • Maybe he’s not winning because he’s just not that good. He has thrown a few comps but no way do I believe the he has thrown as many as he, or some fans, claim.

    • I do think they have a preseason alliance. Nicole kept him in the dark because that’s how they’ve played all season. They haven’t talked game or hung out all season, but for some reason James trusts her 100% and she finds reasons not to vote him out. It just doesn’t make sense why they trust and look out for each other if they don’t have something going on.

      • Well, I’ll add that they’re both recent vets that were fans of each other (with similar small town backgrounds). James openly admitted early in the season that he had a crush of sorts on Nicole. And as we’ve seen, that’s enough for her to trust him, and vice versa.

      • Doesn’t James have a crush on every female until they make it clear that they’re not interested in him and even after that he persists?

      • Sure seems that way. I’ve seen that approach sometimes work too. I feel bad for the guy, he’s got a good heart and really means well. Hope he finds what he’s looking for.

      • I don’t see any difference. They all have their own alliance/deals now…At this stage of the game, you have to win Hoh, Veto’s and avoid being OTB..that’s how you get to end.

      • This is the first time he’s on the block. And it’s better for her game to get rid of Natalie.

    • I may be missing something but what would be the difference of making a final two deal preseason and making it on day 1?

      • Because they had time to make a bond outside the house which leads to more trust between the two. I don’t necessarily think that they have a f2 deal, but have an agreement to keep each other safe for as long as they can to benefit their own games.

    • Hard to say .. if they agreed pre-game to not vote and/or nominate each other on the block, and attempt to persuade their respective alliances, in a way to not allow their nominations .. then, really not necessary to be talking about it during the game, especially with all the cameras / microphones all around ??

      Body language, cues, code words, etc, done covertly is possible? Ha !!!
      What’s that old saying about the Number One Rule of Fight Club is to Not Talk About Fight Club, etc ?? :)
      Regardless, the rest of the House, from the Get Go, knew from past Seasons that, goal is to evict the returnees, but rarely does that ever happen, for whatever reason? Same as Jury Buyback with evicted HG’s in the season … How many times have the remaining HG’s said that the first chance they get, they will turn the returnee / evicted HG out the door, and yet .. ??

      • I respect your take on the matter, but I think if there was really a STRONG loyalty between James and Nicole prior to the beginning of the season, there should be more significant clues as to them working together. An alliance would require more than not nominating or voting against the other person, it would require a lot more communication and co-ordination over who should be sent out each week when an alliance member gains control. And throughout the season, we have not seen a lot of that between these two HGs

    • I agree. All these assumptions about a preseason agreement is just that assumptions. James and Nicole have plenty of private conversations and many times they’ve talked about how they were excited about seeing each other in the house. They didn’t know each other we’re going in. If they had a pre agreement they would of been talking a little about it.

      • If we knew who was going in (Hamsterwatch predicted it before), then I’m pretty sure they knew. They wouldn’t necessarily need to talk about it if it was just an agreement to look after each other. I’m not saying it’s true, but I do believe it is a possibility.

      • There were other rumors floating around (I.e. Reality blurred) that changed their stories once the real returners were revealed, but hamsterwatch did not post until they knew and were correct.

    • James and Nicole chatted on the upper deck after Nic became the first HOH. They promised to do their best not to evict the other before final 3 or 4. They said nothing about f2 at that point.

  3. Silly question (my apologies) but where did that pic of James and Natalie posing and looking into camera come from?

  4. Paul and Victor have already discussed keeping Nicole as their final 3, so they plan to get rid of Corey soon. Paul does not like Natalie so even if Victor wants her to stay he knows Nicole and Corey don’t want her there either.
    James or Natalie winning HOH won’t make much of a difference since they won’t vote. Putting up Paul and Nicole is the best option for whomever stays. They could break the tie.

  5. James has not played BB . . .he has slept the season away in bed with a girl that will not give him the time of day as soon as they get out into the real world. But I would like to see Natalie go because no matter what she pretends, she is thrilled that James is taking a knife for her and no way would she have used the Veto on him had she won it !!! I really do not like the way she kind of turned on James . .blaming HIM for her mistakes ! Poor James . . . . falling on his sword for a damsel who could care less !!!

  6. I believe there may be something to James and Nicole teaming up. In the egg competition I could tell James wasn’t trying to win!

  7. I know everyone wants there to be some big conspiracy theory with James and Nicole, but I think all that’s going on is that they’ve gotten to know each other through BB stuff outside of the house and are friends in real life. Obviously if you get put in the BB house with someone you’re already friends with you’re going to have some implicit trust. And when you are in an alliance together for most of the game, that helps also. I have no idea why people keep insisting that two people who might want to go back to working together to the mutual benefit of both of them have to have made some sort of preseason deal. Anything to avoid having to respect Nicole’s amazing gameplay I guess.

    Strategy wise, obviously Nicorey want James over Natalie. Natalie was gung ho about voting Corey out two weeks ago and James voted to keep him. Plus James has been aligned with them in some way for much of the game. Out of those two, who do you think is more likely to work with you? In fact I think Corey is already starting to work on James. It’s a simple question of building an edge over the Sitting Ducks going into the final rounds, and there’s doesn’t need to be much more to it.

    • Agree. James loyalty was a vet kinship and past relationship. I think Production is driving this just to run a storyline. This group is conspiracy driven anyway so it doesn’t take much.

      • Yeah it’s impossible that he’s referring to the alliance all the Vets made pretty much immediately. The season’s definitely rigged and Alison Grodner is secretly an Illuminati lizard person.

      • We don’t know, though, do we? One speculation is as good as another.
        Oh, you heard that, too, about Grodner? hahaha

  8. Your right on…all F4 are members of the Women Haters Club, included Nicole. Truly the most catty, tied with Paul this season. I hope Michelle stays on point in the Jury House and dissects all that transpired to the top heavy female team. Nicole is a snake. Nicole will not win 2nd. In the end she lose a summer romance, $500k, and respect and integrity. I would have LOVED if Nat had non-chalantly dropped her ‘secret life’ bomb being a NFL Cheerleader and did a somersault. Corey would have dropped his jock strap!

    • I have to respectfully disagree with you here. First of all, Paul & Vic were all set to take James, Nat and Meech to F5 –that is 2 women with their 3 guys…and second of all, their first choice for a F3 was with Michelle, not a guy. So, I ask, how does that make them woman haters? Paul has a foul mouth I will give you that and he has annoyed me as much as he has made me laugh this season. But Victor is another kettle of fish altogether. Vic has not insulted any woman in the house, even after Michelle and Natalie betrayed him, he was a gentleman about it and did not react by calling them names or attacking them. He has played with class and respect…and imo, Victor is in no way shape or form a “woman hater”. He appears the exact opposite in fact…he is a flirt who seems to love women. Hell, seeing his mama made him cry on national TV!! Imo that is not a woman hater.

  9. Nicole has not carried on about jealous or catty things as much as Nat has. Almost daily you hear her say something. Even about the evicted female hgs. Nicole has said and she is very correct, if she is the last female she will be taken to the final 3 and then boom..wins the final HOH. Could happen. Sounds like a woman with a plan. One that she has thought out from the beginning. JMHO!

    • Of course she hasn’t recently. Most of the females are gone. Just because she hasn’t carried on much in the last few weeks, doesn’t mean she hasn’t done it.Repeatedly.

    • Nicole can’t win. There would be 5 girls voting and none of them will vote for Nicole to win. I think there would only be 4 guys voting and I think Paulie may vote for any guy to win.

      • Zak will never vote for Snakole after Meech get through telling her everything Snakole said about her after she left the house. Not to mention Day doesn’t like Snakole, for good reason, and will be heavily in Z’s ear regarding Snakole.

    • I agree with you. She’s been playing since day one. She tried the 5 girl alliance until Day blew that up. She likes to stay out of the catty drama.

    • As of three weeks ago or so, Nicole hadn’t done anything but stay under the covers with Corey. She is catty and whiny and jealous and just a pathetic person, imo.

      • I’m over her too! The girls this season were awful IMO. I really hope production does a better job next year.

      • Agreed. IMO the smartest girl this year was Bronte and (unfortunately) she aligned herself with the idiot “messiah” (cough) Josea and that was her downfall.

      • To be fair, the reason Nicole didn’t do anything was because she didn’t need to. She got herself in a good position early on by getting Corey to give her the first HoH, got herself in the center of two alliances surrounded by bigger threats, successfully deflected every accusation that came her way, and slid through until Paulie’s eviction, at which point she got herself in a great position within like a 5 minute conversation with Natalie. But yeah, Nicole sucks and has done nothing, girls are the worst.

      • She has done things since Paulie’s eviction, before that she slid through. That isn’t a plan, imo, that is getting lucky enough to stay off of other’s radar.

      • Nicole definitely floated her way through most of game by selling out the girls. She has 2 great moves though. The best was getting Natalie and Meech to completely believe her lies about Paul, which prompted them to betray Vic and Paul. That move never should’ve worked, but somehow it did. Nicole’s 2nd big move was talking gullable James into giving her HOH – although they do have a pre-season alliance.

      • Lol to “snatch”… very pertinent to the topic of my post.You’re so clever! I’ll take it as a compliment that out of all the avatar’s Mucky could choose, she chose mine. A Vols convert. ;)

      • Thanks, gal. I’m corny sarcastic, and if you enjoy it, that really makes me smile. I definitely never have any malicious intent. I don’t take it that serious unless I am purposefully trying to aggravate someone who does take it way too serious. Those arrogant type get on my last nerve. :)

      • I’m going to miss your posts as well. They make me laugh…even if I don’t necessarily call Nicole a Dingus ;) you don’t come across hateful or mean, just amusing.

      • Happy you get me! Were you on last year, maybe using another avatar or something? I don’t remember posting with you. It’s certainly been a pleasure to do so this year. :)

      • Fair enough. I do think that sometimes doing nothing is the correct game move when you’re in the right position. You’re probably right that she got into that position primarily through luck, though. Either way, I doubt she’s winning, since the HG’s respect her game about as much as the viewers do. :P

      • Depends who she’s against in F2. If she’s against James I think she will for sure have Corey, Paulie, Victor and Pauls vote. James will have Natalie, Michelle, Bridgette and Days vote. Z is a toss up. And if her and Paulie have made up then she votes for Nicole. She never liked James.

      • Sorry I disagree. She’s played from day one and hasn’t stopped. From getting someone out that was after her in the first eviction to keeping herself off the block all season to staying in a strong alliance to winning and getting someone else out that was after her and now to getting rid of Natalie. She was a target from day one and has never been on the block. Great game play. IMO

      • You have said that before. She hasn’t played from day 1, imo. She got lucky from day 1. She started playing a few weeks ago.

      • IMO she’s played from day one. And you’ve also said all the name calling nasty comments about her before. At least I’m voicing my opinion on game play. And not nasty name calling.

      • You are wrong. I promise you…this is the first time I have ever used a name toward a HG. I too am voicing my opinion on game play…Nicole didn’t play until a few weeks ago.

      • I thought her game was more ruthless this season. She was ready to lie.lol..Optic wise, her partnership with Corey didn’t help her image. Viewers are seeing that, but not her game play.

      • Her game was more ruthless, but only around the time of her two HOH wins. She became a part of a major alliance, and then she just went along with whatever the people who have control of the house went with. She was always playing to stay safe, but not to gain control. Hence we think that she was more focused on her boy rather than the game
        However, I will give her credit for her and Corey’s gameplay for the last few weeks, when Paulie left the house they stepped up their game very rapidly when they knew it was potentially them against the entire house

      • Exactly. And I’m for the game play. I could care less what she’s got going on with Corey. And I’m tired of all the nasty disgusting comments about it. Comment about the game.

      • You can’t deny that her being part of a pair has been a major factor in this game. It’s not just something she has on the side in her free time. Her relationship is intertwined with her game.

      • The season isn’t over…still time for Snakole to be OTB. Lucky game play. That’s my opinion!

      • Exactly! Considering the whole house was against her Corey and Paulie, she turned it around and has put herself in a good position. Haters are gonna hate.

      • Although I’m not a fan of Nic, I still think she’s one of the main player here. She’s been behind on most of the evictions in the house to avoid being OTB Muted game though…but not in bed. lol

    • That would absolutely be James smartest move…the only smart move he would make this season….but he’s James, so he probably won’t!!!

      • How is it smart? Paul and Vic want him out and Nicole and Corey want him f3. James can’t beat Paul and Vic. He has a chance against Nicorey.

  10. I think Natalie is just doing what she needs to, to survive I don’t think she means what she says to about James.

    Natalie is likely toast

    • Natalie is trying to get her opinion across to James. She may not be doing it well because of her personality, but she is hurting because her game was blown up. And even though she had final say, she did listen to James’ advice, which is why she is going home.

  11. There is NO question that Nicole and James had a “pre-game” F2 the disgusting part is, they both thought it would be best to have showmances. sexmances, even though I wouldn’t call what James and Nat have as a showmance since she obviously can’t stand him physically. A showmance, or fakemance as in James and Nat is one thing but Nicole took it too far when she let it go all the way to sex. They are all pathetic but don’t be surprised if Nicole comes out of the house preggo….since she is worried about being a few months late on her cycle….oooop….sorry not sorry. Neither of them deserve to win this game. They have spent the majority of the game in bed and not even playing the game and even if they were to pull out a win at the end [which I don’t see] they have ruined their reputations and as we all know, you can’t unring a bell. Nicole will be known for having sex for money and James will always be known as the sick little puppy who gravels over a “princess wannabe” who will not give him the time of day after the show. Vic is my favorite to win but he and Paul are the only two to REALLY play the game without damaging their reputation forever! #GoVic

      • It was trashing Nicole. My response gives you the idea where it was going . I’m glad the comment was deleted it was uncalled for.

    • How do u have a preseasoned alliance with somebody when u did “not know” they were going to be in the BB house with u???? If I remember correctly Nicole (in a DR session) was to surprised to see James and Frank as well…As Vets Nicole and James understood the importance of sticking together.. Both realized that they were big targets from the beginning and tried to help each other.. On the other hand Frank and Davonne did not as they were enemies from day 1… Actually James had both Nicole & Davonne on his side in the beginning.. The preseasoned crap is just that “crap” ..Its expected that when ur a HG on BB that u make friends in the house and associate with them after the show…It would be dumb to think otherwise..so again the preseasoned conspiracy theory is just something else to talk about not proven…

  12. Snakole and Corey are already paranoid. They’re trying to figure out why Victor and Paul want James to stay instead of Natalie. Paranoia maybe what keeps Natalie in the game if left up to Snakole and Corey.

  13. If I remember correctly, Nicole and James recently talked about a mutual $10,000 bribe. Production’s solution was to force them into some weird, vague statement denouncing such a deal. Let’s face it, even the dimmest of HG would probably ask more questions, but did that happen? No. According to production, nothing to see here. Now, we have 2 pretty smart players just swaying with the wind to evict Nat, when their first instincts were to evict James. Neither of them like James, and his eviction would be much better for their games. I don’t pretend to know what’s up here, but something isn’t making any sense.

    • Paul is the one actually making the decisions..so u would have to get his take on why Natalie needs to go…and I think the ‘”bribe” situation was downplayed because it was a “if” one of them won scenario but Production wanted Nicole and James to clarify that gifts are not allowed..

  14. So, this is completely off topic, but why do I keep reading posts that Nicole may be preggo?? Did she say something to make people say or think she was?

    • Probably because she has been sexually active all season and she made a statement about having issues with her period. But she mentioned it was most likely stress related. I doubt she is pregnant.

    • Z did it so now she has to also, probably just to make sure everyone knows that she too can reproduce. Yay. Ironically, this may be the one thing Corey wasn’t stupid about.

    • In the LF her and Corey had a fight and she complained about not having had her period in a couple months… Since Corey didn’t immediately jump off the bed and run like the wind, (lol!) I’m assuming she has already told him about this problem and has chalked it up to stress of the game.

  15. I’m amazed that James thought for one second that Natalie was ever into him for real. She disgusts me. And I’m not a big fan of James to begin with but she completely faked liking him the entire season and it was so obvious from the start. Forget having sex, have they even kissed? Like a real kiss besides the kiss on the lips thing at the kissing booth or whatever that was. She’s so fake and even though James is a grown man and should know better I still feel bad for him. In a weird way she is like Paulie and James is like Z. Not that she emotionally abuses him but she really couldn’t care less about him, and he just comes back for more snd more all season and it’s sad.

  16. I can’t stand Nicole! This disgusting woman won’t win BB & I’m going to lmao when she walks out the door as the biggest idiot of all time!

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