We’re just one day away from the Big Brother 18 finale on Wednesday and decisions appear to have been made inside the house as the winners of the first two rounds know they’ll need to be prepared to make what could be a $450,000 decision on the spot.
Update: Nicole may be preparing a sneak attack on her F2 deal. Read more details here.
After listening to talk both between the winners of the first two rounds of the final HoH as well as their private talks I’m ready to lock in my prediction for who makes the Final Two on Big Brother.
We’ll soon be watching Paul Abrahamian and Nicole Franzel face off in Round 3 after they both took a win in the previous two rounds. That leaves James Huling on the sidelines waiting to see if whoever wins R3 decides to take him on to the finish line. As of now, I’m going to say no one is planning to do that.
Over the weekend we saw things shift from including James in talks of the F2 to leaving him on the outs once Nicole secured the second round. Paul and Nicole spent days preparing for the mental challenge with Paul seemingly dedicated to the cause of keeping James from the F2. Initially it sounded like Nicole might have been wavering as she was telling James she’d take him to the end, but now those talks have vanished.
After the tipsy talk we saw on Sunday night, which is worth going back and watching on your Live Feeds, I was even more convinced that Nicole had come around to settle on taking Paul if she won R3. Nothing changed on Monday for those two, but James did finally catch up with their mindset.
Yesterday around noon Paul and Nicole sat alone in the backyard talking about getting to the end together and their final steps in the game. Right around 12:43 PM BBT we found James eavesdropping on the pair from the hidden safety of the sliding door as they talked about no regrets even if they lost to each other. Whatever he managed to make out from their discussions seems to have finally opened his eyes.
Last night at 8:02 PM BBT we saw Nicole and Paul head outside to sit and chat in the hammock. Both agreed that James seemed to be in a much better mood and each wondered if the other had said something to cheer him up. Meanwhile, at the very same time inside James remarks, “ahh, whatever. I know you all are voting me out anyways. A–holes. Shoulda damn kept Corey. F–ked up.” Yeah.
Well he’s right. Corey told Nicole to take James, not Paul, for the easy win and I think Corey was correct. If Nicole wins R3 and takes Paul I do think she’ll lose, but if she’s making this decision based on her perceived situation of going before a bitter Jury against James who hasn’t really offended anyone then in a vacuum that’s a logical decision. We of course have more information and know things like Da’Vonne coming around to admitting Nicole will deserve respect if she gets to the end, though she may not get the votes if she goes there against Paul.
Likewise Paul will take Nicole if he gets the R3 win. Nothing has changed there for him in the past few weeks. He wants to be at the end against Nicole, not James, but unlike Nicole it appears that Paul is still making this choice for personal reasons. He told Nicole that he thinks he has a better chance against Nicole than James (I disagree) but also because he doesn’t think James deserves to be near the F2 and its prize money.
As for who I think will win Round 3, these are usually a toss up competition as you’re trying to guess an A/B answer from the Jurors and it could be something silly or a serious answer. Those are not easy questions, but knowing your fellow HGs can be key. As Nicole has admitted in her F2 speech rehearsals, she didn’t make many personal relationships since she stayed in bed this summer to avoid getting backstabbed like she did last year. That’s her explanation, so don’t jump up and down at me.
Last year the pivotal question in R3 was JMac’s joking response that he was happy to not have to see his patients all summer. Knowing his sense of humor made this one easier to answer and it scored Steve the R3 win and eventually the F2 win. If we’re in the same spot again then Paul could have an edge though both Paul and Nicole did very well in the “What The Bleep” HoH comp where they had to accurately recall things the HGs had said.
I’d say R3 could be very close but I’ll give the edge to Paul for the win there. Although, like I detailed above, I don’t think it matters which of them win as they’ll take each other to the end.
We’ll need to keep watching the Feeds today to see if there are any final day plan changes, but it’ll take something big to make this happen for either of them. With that in mind I’m sticking with my prediction that our Big Brother 18 Final 2 will be Paul and Nicole as James leaves in 3rd place.
Update: Nicole has been whispering to herself tonight and on several occasions suggested she may not be planning to take Paul. Flashback to 6:06 PM BBT as Nicole whispering that she can’t beat Paul in a little speech. Few mins later, 6:12 PM BBT, as Paul walks by and Nicole whispers again saying “He knows I’m not taking him. He’s not dumb. I don’t think he’d take me so I don’t know why I’m feeling guilty.” Well there you go. She had me fooled even though it never made much sense for her to take Paul. It’s a smarter move to cut Paul for her chances so we’ll see what happens. She still has to win R3 while Paul knows the other HGs better.
What do you think will happen? Which two HGs will make up our F2 this season? Vote now in the poll below and share your thoughts.