Two weeks in the books for Big Brother 23 and what a rollercoaster of a game we have seen. This group of players came out playing hard & fast. This week of BB23 was relatively easy as far as who to get rid of, but now that mob mentality has to go back to every woman or man for themselves, so plenty of new partnerships & alliances have formed. As we all know – this is Big Brother, so all those plans can come crashing down depending on who wins the next HoH – and they put their plan (or the plan for whoever is pulling their strings) into action.
But first – let’s dish out some Bacon & Tofu based on how each player fared this week. Think it is pretty obvious who the Tofurkey of the Week will be.
Tiffany Mitchell – 5 strips of Bacon – at this point in the game – Tiffany is probably in the best position. She has her hands in so many cookie jars, she knows who to talk to and even more important what to say to them. I love the way she is able to plant seeds in other people’s brains, and then let them think they are the ones coming up with the ideas. She benefited by getting safety when one of her teammates won HoH this week – so all of the information that came her team’s way has become ammo in her arsenal. Now, can she keep it up by keeping it on the down low? We’ll see.
Kyland Young – 4 strips of Bacon – if ever there was an “easy” week to be HoH – this was it. With the entire house targeting 1 person, all he had to do was put that person up with a pawn that no one would flip on. Everything worked out for Kyland – and he was able to reinforce his current bonds as well as make new bonds that should keep him safe for several weeks to come. Kyland is still seen as “the nice guy” – but his eyes are opening wider, and he sees the threats other people may pose to his game, even players he is working with.
Sarah Beth Steagall – 4 strips of Bacon – the player in the best position in the house not named Tiffany is Sarah Beth. She is covered on so many sides – and not using the power after winning this week’s wildcard was a very smart play. She was not in danger of seeing the block anyway – so why make an unnecessary move? Sarah Beth is on no ones radar, and will not make a mistake by winning HoH anytime soon that will force her to show her cards.
Claire Rehfuss – 3 strips of Bacon – we knew Claire was a gamer and she’s been very observant so far. It’s refreshing to see so many smart players early on setting themselves up for a run later. Like Tiffany, the safety that her team got this week opened up the door for more information to flow her way.
Derek Xiao – 3 strips of Bacon – 2 straight Veto wins could have painted a big target on Derek X’s back – but instead it turned him into a player that people want to work with even more. Information is now coming his way and he did a much better job this week keeping his mouth shut & ears open. While players are going to start taking shots at each other – if he can stay out of the line of fire, he should find himself in a pretty good spot.
Hannah Chaddha – 2 strips of Bacon – still not a huge part of the CBS show – Hannah made some inroads this week with Claire & Tiffany. The three of them talk everything through logically instead of emotionally as we’ve become accustomed to in seasons past. Hannah also may have convinced Brent to throw this week’s HoH so he could be targeted despite being on her team. It’s a risky move – but this early in the game, it should play out well for her.
Azah Awasum – 1 strip of Bacon – despite 2 of her teammates going up on the block this week – Azah was never in trouble – and is basically just “coasting, not floating” along in the game. While she is part of a couple of alliances (or partnerships, or whatever) – Azah is neither at the top of them – becoming a threat, nor at the bottom – becoming a liability.
Xavier Prather – 1 strip of Bacon – really a boring ho-hum week for Xavier – which is actually good for him. Basically he had the male version of Azah’s week.
Derek Frazier – 1/2 strip of Bacon & 1/2 strip of Tofu – Derek F may be losing his #1 ride or die this week – but he has a few more of them to fall back on. Problem is, no one is really seeing him as their ride or die. He’s starting to become expendable to some – but for the time being, is not going anywhere.
Alyssa Lopez & Christian Birkenberger – 1 strip of Tofu to share – ok, ok, they are not an official showmance… yet… but Chrissalyss are continuing to be seen as a duo and only a matter of time before they are targeted as such. The newly formed Royal Family alliance fell into their lap due to them being teamed up with Xavier & Sarah Beth – but they will be the first 2 cutout of the group when that time comes. I am sure CBS is trying to push them into each other’s arms as they are dying for a showmance to exploit to the TV Only viewers. This will help ratings, but not their games.
Whitney Williams – 2 strips of Tofu – the epitome of a deer in headlights – Whitney seems like she has no idea what is going on in the game. She was so blinded week 1 by the HoH, she never really tried to build relationships with many other of the HGs. So when her BB bestie blindsided her by calling her out – she really had no one else to turn to. Whitney will be an easy target or pawn – and her days in the game are numbered.
Brent Champagne – 3 strips of Tofu – as I said in my preseason predictions about Brent, there is a fine line between confidence & cockiness. I said he straddles that line, but now we are seeing he is more cocky – and that is definitely rubbing a lot of people the wrong way. Even members of his own team are looking to jump ship from working with him. One of the nails in his proverbial coffin was when he said he cannot be friends with girls he finds attractive. That mentality was not cool before – and is especially not good now. Even if he feels that way – don’t say it!!
Britini D’Angelo- 4 strips of Tofu – of all the weeks to go on the block, this was the easiest week to be a pawn. There was a common enemy in the house to just about everyone so while it’s never good to be on the block, Britini should have realized she was not going anywhere. Instead, she talked and acted like this was a personal attack on her – and she started firing back for no reason! Her bravado has only made her into a target moving forward. The best (read as most laughable) part of her week was when she was campaigning to stay this week – despite not being in any danger – how she was divulging information to people that they already knew. This game can bring out the best in some people, or in some cases like this, can bring out the worst in people.
That brings us to the Tofurkey of the Week – and for the 2nd week in a row this illustrious honor goes to the soon-to-be-evicted Frenchie. The old adage “what goes up must come down” may have not been written about Frenchie – but it sure holds true. Week 1 – he came out of the gate waaaaay too strong and erratic – and that rubbed so many people the wrong way. Sure – his plan was to get out a “meathead” and he did – but it was HOW he did it that pretty much setup his demise this week.
If you break your word to one or two people, you can still recover. Even if those people expose you – as long as you get in front of it. When you break your word to everyone – it’s hard to build that trust back. When you go around blowing up people’s games – it’s IMPOSSIBLE to come back. We’ve seen the greats of this game get themselves out of near-impossible situations. Frenchie came nowhere near that – as he had nothing left to offer anyone. It’s a shame because he was very entertaining these first 2 weeks. Just a matter of time before he is out of the house and back on BB Twitter – and I expect he’ll have a lot to say about what is going on in the game.
That’s a wrap for this week folks! The game is going to get more and more intense as we go along, and this group of HGs are doing a fantastic job of keeping it exciting. With so many players focused long term, it will be fun seeing them try to navigate their way through.
My question of the week is – which alliance or partnership do you like the most at this point in the game?
Let me know what you think of my rankings and the answer to my question of the week in the comments section below. From outside the Big Brother House, this is Adam Poch reminding you, ignorance is temporary, stupid is forever.
Catch me here every week during the BB season for my rankings. If you want more of my thoughts during the season. follow me on Twitter @HeavyMetalTeddy – and listen to my Podcast – @BigBrothersPod.
