Matt Hoffman (BB12) returns with his review of the latest Big Brother episode. You’ll find him here at BBN each Thursday & Friday all season. Read Matt’s past articles.
It’s eviction night on Big Brother, and we finally get to start forming the Jury! Chenbot kicks things off, and I’m going to tip my hat to her tonight as she actually looks pretty bangable. For a cyborg. She brings us back to a reminder of Dani’s “zombie” speech that sent Brendon back up on the block as a replacement nominee. With Brendon on the brink of going home again, we’re basically back to where we were two weeks ago. This is CBS’s way of double-taunting us for wasting our summer watching this crap.
Brendon’s stupidity confidence is riding high as he tells us, “I did not fight my way back in to get evicted one more time.” First off, yes you did. Secondly, please accept my sincere congratulations on being the first contestant in 13 seasons to ever get evicted three times in less than 12 months. But I’m getting ahead of myself here. For now let’s just take a moment to laugh quietly amongst ourselves at Brendon’s follow-up statement, “Nobody’s gonna be able to evict me twice in the same summer. Good luck, Daniele”.
Good luck, indeed.
Shelly’s also feeling safe and says that she doesn’t think she’ll be falling into zombie land. Funny, since I sometimes wonder if she crawled out of zombie land.
Dani says what a disaster last week’s HoH was, and how she needs to “clean up Kalia’s mess”. She’s talking about all the crumbs, candy bar wrappers, and potato chip bags all over the HoH room, right? Cool – just checking.
[SIDEBAR: To all the jerk-offs repeatedly commenting about how horrible it is that I make fun of Kalia’s weight – making fun of someone eating all the time (when they do) is not the same as making fun of someone’s weight. I am fully aware (and in agreement) that Kalia is an averaged-sized woman…who just so happens to consume food like a herd of ravenous cattle]
The results of the veto ceremony are bittersweet for Rachel. On one hand she may lose her man this week, but on the other hand she gets to throw yet another infamous Rachel Pity Party™ and practice more of her tearless crying. In the midst of comforting her, Brendon calls Rachel “Bookie”, which she makes into a huge ordeal and lays into him about how embarrassing and personal that is. Oh wait…no she doesn’t. Because she’s not the world’s most oversensitive pussy. I must be thinking of someone else…
…SPEAKING OF! – Brendon tells Rachel that he was sent back into the game to remind her that she can succeed. What a hero! He’s like an angel sent down from Skype.
Rejuvenated, Brenchel decide to start campaigning for votes. They start by pestering Adam, dishing some skewed logic that he should vote to keep Brendon because the house is favoring women. Adam, trying to politely play along, jokes that the game should be called “Big Sister”.
[“Big Sister”, huh? See – now this is where I could easily make an obvious “Kalia weight” joke. But I won’t. Or, in pointing that out, did I? Lighten up – I still maintain my innocence!]
Adam gets out of the conversation by saying to Brendon exactly what I’m feeling – “You make my head hurt and my stomach hurt.” Well played, sir. Brenchel are not beaten-down yet, though! Their next target (as they, themselves, float from floater to floater) is Porsche. Even Porsche can pick up on the insane desperation in Rachel’s plea. Thankfully for the entertainment of the viewing audience, she doesn’t even give Rachel a small glimmer of hope and instead just flat-out tells her that voting for Brendon benefits her in no way. This is the most I’ve liked Porsche all season, and we get to see a fantastic Rachel Pout™ (my favorite!) to finish it all off.
In the backyard, Shelly tells Jeff and Jordan that she’s done “Trojan horsing” – meaning all the sneaking around and lying to gather information and pass it along to all sides of the house. Essentially, the same thing that she spent most of the prior episode crying about in the Diary Room and claiming she never did. And in case we forgot for a second just how schizophrenic Shelly is, she ends by saying how she can’t trust Rachel anymore because of all Rachel’s lies last week. Ugh.
Once Shelly leaves, Daniele comes out to do some preventative ass-kissing to Jeff and Jordan on the likelihood that one of them will be in power next week. I don’t remember what they even talk about, though, because I am distracted by Jeff and Jordan’s matching pink hoodies. I find this kind of odd and creepy. And that’s coming from someone in their 30’s who wore children’s onesie pajamas on national television for an entire summer.
The next morning Brenchel (still with the overwhelming stink of desperation on them from the day before) forge ahead with their plea for votes. They hit up Jeff and Jordan who (like the rest of the house) come as close to laughing in their delusional faces as they can come without actually literally laughing in their faces. While Jeff makes completely logical and valid points as to why voting for Brendon would be a total bonehead move, Rachel calls them “cowards” and “sheep” for not bowing down to the Great and Powerful Brenchel. Rachel says, “I might be emotional, but I’m not stupid.” You might be emotional, Rachel? MIGHT?! Yeah…I’d say so, just a little.
Back on the live show, Julie pops in to talk to the houseguests. Since the Chenbot is looking good tonight, we know that we’re in for some asinine questions. Because in the world of Chen, “high fashion” and “solid journalism” seem to be mutually exclusive. J.C. does not disappoint:
JULIE: Shelly, you won a phone call from home. What did it mean to you to hear from your family?
SHELLY: It reminded me that I am a wife. And a mother. And a wife. And everyone in this house is a bunch of liars. Did I mention I’m a mother? The truth will set you free, Julie!
JULIE: Jordan – that phone call was originally yours. You gave it away to Shelly and ended up with the “humilitard”. Was it worth it?
JORDAN: Absolutely! I got the house on my good side by locking Shelly up for a day, and I get to wear this funny little costume! It’s weird that people have been kicking me in the back all week, though. What’s a “dunce”, Julie?
JULIE: Brendon, America gave you the chance to get back in the house. Why do you think they chose you over Dominic, Cassi, or Keith?
BRENDON: Have you ever seen the movie “Carrie”, Julie? I see that bucket of blood hanging over my head right now. I’m a rocket scientist!
JULIE: Rachel – with Brendon sitting up on the block again, how are you holding up?
RACHEL: I feel fine, Julie, because I am certain that Brendon will be voted back into the house again. How long is this season, anyway? And when does Lawon come back?
Next up, Julie introduces a taped package from Shelly’s family back home. We learn a lot of fun facts about Shelly, like:
- Shelly got married to her husband in 2001 when she was 31 years old. (Or was it that she got married to her husband in ‘31 when she was 2001 years old? I may have written that down wrong.)
- Shelly was voted homecoming
kingqueen. - Shelly is usually the life of the party.
- Shelly’s parties are terrible.
Probably the most interesting thing that we learn about Shelly is that she accidentally had her baby switched at birth at the hospital, and somewhere in America there is a gorgeous, highly intellectual couple taking care of this:
Thankfully for Shelly, she ended up with a daughter named Josie who is not only adorable and articulate, but who also is a better Big Brother strategist than any other person on this season’s cast. Josie wastes no time telling us all about her mother’s flawed gameplay and says that she needs to “stop lying and pick a side”. Finally, Josie punctuates the segment with a loud-and-clear “shut up, Rachel”, which makes her my #1 vote for “Big Brother” Season 26.
Back in the living room, it’s time for the nomination speeches. Shelly is up first, and she’s killing me with her holier-than-thou discourse talking about “dignity”, “class”, and “honesty”. Let’s just throw this image from last night’s entry up again for good measure:
Brendon’s speech is bizarre and runs the gamut from thanking a collegiate department, talking about how he’ll be curing cancer (with rockets?), subtly threatening the rest of the house, and then closing with one of the worst Season 10 Jerry impressions that anyone could possibly muster up. In case there was any doubt in anyone’s mind, Brendon’s speech alone is enough reason to vote him out.
To no one’s surprise, Rachel talks like a hard-ass lunatic for no good reason, Adam wears a bacon-related shirt, and Brendon goes home in a 5-1 vote. Third time’s a charm, because this one’s for good! Brendon exits the Big Brother house and this time makes sure to give half of the audience whatever disease is on his hands from all of this week’s Rachel crotch-fondling as he runs through the aisles awkwardly touching everyone. Julie doesn’t have much more to say to Brendon since they talk every other week now, so after some fluff questions they get straight to the goodbye videos:
KALIA: I have no idea why America voted you back in the house, but the good news is that you’re leaving! The bad news is that I’m not smart enough to know not to throw needless insults at someone who could potentially vote for me to win a half-million dollars!
JEFF: I guess I’ll look after Rachel, but since I’ve been in a two-year relationship with someone whom I’ve rarely touched and have never seen naked, I’m not really sure what to do with a woman. Does she have an instruction manual? Or better yet, an “off” switch?
RACHEL: I am so much better without you in the house. You are completely unnecessary to my life both inside and outside of this game. Don’t hate me because I’m going to make it farther than you did last season, Bookie!
Somehow Brendon seems to miss the negative underlying points of everything he just heard because he claps like a gorilla in heat and talks about how happy and grateful he is. We end the night with a competition that we’ve seen on several other seasons (NO?!?) involving walking back and forth using a cup to fill up a container with liquid until a ball floats to the top. The first one to grab it wins and is the new Head of Household. Before Julie finishes explaining the rules, Kalia has already drank all of her liquid and eaten her cup, so she is out. The rest of the houseguests continue to compete past the show’s end, and Julie makes me a happy little man by announcing a Double Eviction Episode next Thursday. I was hoping for a Double Execution Episode, but I’ll take what I can get.
For more of Matt Hoffman’s ramblings follow him on Twitter @HeadOfHoffhold and stop by www.TheGremlinCave.com. Also, be sure to check out Matt’s video recaps of the Big Brother season on www.RTVZone.com (@RTVZone).