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Friday, July 31, 2015

At The End Of The Day...

Confession time: I did not watch tonight's episode, as I kept updated through twitter (and then later read Scott's recap) and instead fired up the feeds because...NO MORE BATTLE OF THE BLOCK! Whoop whoop! Which meant that tonight's HOH competition was endurance and I could watch it play out on the live feeds!

DIE Battle of the Block! DIE AND NEVER COME BACK! :)
Confession time: This update may read a little bit disjointed and/or out of order. I was so excited to be watch an actual endurance comp that seemed to be lasting longer than 30 minutes that I mostly spent my time watching and tweeting rather than taking any kind of decent notes to prompt my memory. Feel free to correct anything in the comment section if you notice that I've gotten anything wrong. :)

The competition involved some fun stuff; storms, lightening, wind, leaves and flying eagles. Honestly, the flying eagles were the best part of this whole thing. I laughed every time they came out.

Fly like an eagle!!
Steve and Austin are the first to fall, followed by Julia and Meg. Becky, Jackie and Liz are next to bail along with Clay. This leaves John, James and Shelli as the final three. Shelli begins to initiate some deal making just as John falls. Shelli asks that James not put up her/Clay as initial nominees OR as back doors; James agrees, included JohnnyMac in that deal and Shelli agrees to take the fall. And so JAMES is now the current HOH.

Worried Austin on the left, Jackie congratulating James on the right.
Cue the scurrying, plotting and planning! As the houseguests are cleaning up we get a few glimpses of the worry some of them are feeling. Shelli does some quick explaining to Vanessa as to why she only requested safety for herself and Clay. Liz and Julia spend some time catching up. There is such a honest dynamic between the two sisters that makes them really fun to watch as the interact. Liz spent a lot of time saying "I'm so scared! This is the worst thing that could happen!" while Julia was saying things like "I don't give a fuck about anyone in this house. I hate Austin." Have I mentioned how much I like Julia? ;)
 
Meg and Jackie and Becky all go off to sleep (of course) while everyone else is making the rounds waiting for the HOH reveal. Austin, Liz and Julia spend some time in the comic bedroom catching up as Julia unpacked. There's a super funny comment by Julia about her sleeping with Becky because she doesn't want to be a 'cock block' for Liz. I think it's just hitting Austin that having Julia in the house is NOT going to be good for his romantic game; he spends a lot of time following the twins around and you just know he's dying for some alone time with Liz, haha. Clay and Shellie spent some time in the Have Not room, but I didn't listen to their conversation at all. Shelli spent some time alternating between looking worried to looking stern, so I'm sure she was extolling the difficulties of that comp and how she feels bad for almost winning it. Or something.
 
There's a bathroom conversation with Julia, Steve, JohnnyMac and Shelli in which they spend some time trying to get to know Julia specifically. You see the glimmers of Steve's crush on Julia come out a bit here as well. Shelli claims she has been able to tell the difference between the twins for a long time now and they go over some of the differences (besides the tooth, which Julia hit in the fourth grade by running into a pole chasing a boy btw) such as height, nose bump and eyebrows.
 
Getting to know Julia.
James spent some time eating and staring at the memory wall by himself. Eventually he's called to the DR and we all know that means HOH reveal time is coming soon. Sure enough, he exits DR and we get the HOH reveal. I won't bore you with the details as they're not really important.
 
After all the usual fakeness, Meg, Becky and Jackie remain in the HOH with James, and ever more surprisingly, here's where things start getting interesting. I know, I know, I was shocked as well! ;) Becky (who may or may not be acting as a double agent for Clelli-we wont really know until we see her next conversation with them to see how much she divulges) leads a conversation with them about what the plan should be for this week. She apologizes for distancing herself from them last week but claims she did it for survival mode. She mentions that JohnnyMac asked her to give him some space as well because he thinks they're being viewed as a couple and he doesn't want that target. She thinks John is playing a very independent game and that we'll see a very different JohnnyMac once double eviction night is over. She uses gawd damn freaking skittles to lay out the alliances in the house. She talks about trifectas, who's where, who's loyal, how she thinks things went down last week in how/why Jason went up and out. Why I found this all actually interesting (since it's Becky) is because she was totally LEADING this conversation and because we don't know whether she'll report back to Clay and Shelli.
 
It comes to light that James is NOT married to the idea of keeping his deal with Shelli (YAAAAAY!) but he wants to do 'some investigating.' Feisty Jackie (the one who occasionally flashes with game) makes an appearance and she's 100% on board for breaking the deal "They did it to us last week!" Meg accurately points out that Vanessa is terrified of Jackie but Jackie doesn't understand why. (Jackie and Meg both think the Dark Moon alliance was actually legit for a period of time and have not grasped that it was fake on Van/Clelli's part). Jackie is fired up though, and ready for James to make some biiiig moves! ;)
 
This crew spends the next little while throwing out ideas for nominations, and contingencies for POV. James stated at first that he was 'for sure going to put up Steve' until it was realized by all of them that if Steve is still up come evection day, he will most likely be voted out. They really want Liz to be up as their pawn; they know Austin and Julia will never vote her out and along with Becky/Jackie/Meg votes, whoever is the final target beside Liz will definitely go home. They just can't figure out how to accomplish that. Do they put up Liz as an initial nom? Do they put up Vanessa? Shelli? They're definitely at risk of overthinking everything and that will be their biggest issue at this point. Vanessa eventually heads in the HOH room and requests some time with James.
 
Liz is in the red sleeved grey shirt, Julia has her back to the camera.
I cut out at that point in order to write this update so I'm not sure exactly what happened in their conversation. Currently, Vanessa is now in the lounge room with the twins guiding them on the pitch they should give James on why they shouldn't be the target and Austin in the HOH room with James. We all know what Austin's ultimate goal is, but I'm curious as to where Vanessa will eventually fall. Is she more loyal to the twins/Austin or to Clay and Shelli?
 
So, what do you all think? Does this week have some potential for drama? Who do you think James will put up? Who will be able to influence him the most-his own alliance (who are admittedly not the brightest bulbs) or Vanessa? Will he keep his deal with Shelli? Will Julia be able to keep her dislike of Austin under wraps?
 
As usual, you can follow me on twitter @Shienara33 if you'd like.
 
****Just as I was polishing this off, Becky went running to Clay and told him bits about the upstairs conversation. She's a total double agent! Argh! Clay is showing some loyalty to Becky though; he's currently conversing with Vanessa and telling her he just 'has a gut feeling that James won't keep the deal, that he'll try to back door us'.  Vanessa is quick though, she is already suggesting that they turn on Becky (would that be to dirty?-Vanessa) or gauge how close he is to JohnnyMac.****
 
Ok, I seriously have to go to bed now. I have no idea what'll happen while I sleep, but hey, at least things are buzzing. James could pull off a big move if he keeps his big boy underwear on, or he could be the next Howie and allow himself to be talked into targeting someone not in his best interests. (although at this point, with what we now know, it would actually behoove him to get rid of Becky.) G'nite!! :)
 
 
 
 
 
 

 
 
 
 

 
 

Thursday, July 30, 2015

Big Brother Season 17, Episode 17 Recap

I really should have called this recap "Hello/Goodbye", as tonight we will be replacing one much-loved contestant with the worst kept secret in Big Brother history.

Let's not sugarcoat this. Jason is going home, and honestly deserves it. I like him. He's a funny kid. But after he was put up to replace Clay this past Monday, he did absolutely nothing to save himself. He slept for most of the day and night, and too much of his awake time was spent with people who can offer him no hope. Unlike a certain segment of the fan base, I don't believe in begging CBS to create fake "twists" just to save somebody I like.

Of course, Jason's futility won't be shown tonight. Instead, we'll get a bit of talks he had with Shelli and Clay, along with some phony diary room commentary that indicate maybe, just maybe they should keep him. Then the voting order will be constructed in a way that will make it look like there's a question whether he will be evicted. Don't buy into it. He's dead meat.

Once he's gone, the super secret big twist will be revealed. You know, the twist that the ENTIRE house knows about. This should be super awkward when Julia is brought into the house. Chenbot is so ignorant of what actually happens in the house that I'm sure she'll overhype it. (Note: Apparently, the house was told to act surprised when she comes in. That's embarassing.)

Ok, enough babbling about what is going to happen. Let's just get this over with. Ooooh, Chen announced that we get an endurance comp...and NO Battle of the Block. My mood has changed!!!

So it's the aftermath of Jason's nomination. Vanessa apologizes, and Jason says he has no idea why this happened. "It's not the way I wanted to do it", she says as she walks away. Jason complains how their new alliance was a "bunch of crap", and that Vanessa should have told him why he was up. "I don't need to hear some stupid apology that is as shallow as a puddle."

Jason isn't the only person upset. Jackie says she feels like a "total idiot". Well, that should be normal. It's Meg who takes it the worst, though. She immediately starts bawling, which carried on through most of Monday. Becky, though, may be the smartest person in this scene, as she decides to just "lay low". Then again, that's what she's done all season.

The sad music comes on as Jason wanders the house, telling the viewers in the diary room how this is his entire life. "I may be blindsided, but there's no way I'm just going to roll over and die." Ugh, well that's what you did, grocery boy. He heads outside, and Jackie asks if this was the plan the whole time. Jason notices that Clay and Shelli aren't upset about him being up.

In the extra room, Austin and Liz celebrate. "One more for the good guys." Ugh, come on...especially when the fake air guitar is added.

Meg heads into the storage room with Clay, and she asks if he knew. He denies it, but he's not very believable. Of course, this is Meg, so she seems to believe him. He tells her that he believes Austin made her a deal, which Meg says doesn't make sense after the eight-person alliance they created. Yes, Clay is confused. In the diary room, Meg claims that she "needs to get answers". Good luck with that.

She then heads up to the HOH to sort of confront Vanessa. Well, actually she breaks down in tears telling her that she was so excited to work with her, but now "I really feel like a dumb girl". Vanessa admits that Shelli and Clay were in on this deal. "If they pretend like they didn't know, that's going to piss me off." Great damage control by Vanessa right here.

Jackie now asks Vanessa what happened. Vanessa asks which of the two she can trust more - Jason or Austin. Liz chimes in, and complains how it was Jason who told the whole house that she was a twin. Vanessa adds that the "majority" of the house agreed with this idea, and Jackie point blank asks Shelli if that's true. Shelli denies it, and then sort of backtracks. This is easily the funniest moment of the aftermath of Jason's nomination. "Do I want anybody to go? No!" Vanessa asks Sheli if she backed her on this plan? Shelli doesn't give a very good answer, and Jackie is now pissed at her.

Meg now tells Jackie how Clay lied to her face. They've now figured out the sixth sense alliance, and Jackie points out how Clay and Shelli have been behind every eviction. Jason walks in, and they tell him what they've figured out. James also comes in, and Meg starts crying again. As does Jason. And Jackie. Cue the sad music once again! "Stop putting up my people", whines Meg.

Now we move back up to the HOH, and Vanessa is pissed at Shelli. Clay joins them, and Shelli babbles something that I still don't understand. Ok, she's actually pissed that the only people who have a target due to the Jason nomination are her and her son...I mean Clay. Vanessa doesn't agree, and says she'll be put up before they will. Shelli counters that the three of them should have had some sort of game plan to answer the questions that would arise.

After commecials, we see Jason, Meg, and Jackie outside plotting on how to get two more votes to save him. They wonder which group of two (Shelli/Clay, Liz/Austin, James/Steve) they should go after. The finally decide to "scare" Shelli and Clay that Becky would go after them if she remains in the house. Yep, it's a futile gesture.

It's late at night when Jason makes his move on Shelli. Clay also enters as Jason plans to "serve the biggest plate of bull". He tells the pair that Becky plans on putting them both up next week, and will give them whatever they want if they'll save him. "If you save me, you're on the top of my totem poll. You're on the top of Meg's...and you're in a much better spot then being the tail end of Austin's three-headed monster". He's right, but as I said in the preview it's destined to fail.

So that's it, as we now go to the house. Wait, we get a Johnny Mack family fluff segment??? Look, I love him, but let's move on.

After commercials, it's time for the eviction. Becky gets to make the first final plea, and she thanks all of her friends and family. She says Jason is "wild, but I'm basic". She loves him, but wants to stay in the house. Jason tells them to vote for the person "who will help your longterm game here, and hopefully you'll see that as me". He has "no regrets, just choices".

Voting then commences with Austin, who does a somersault on his way to vote to evict Jason. Meg then votes to evict Becky, but Liz votes against Jason. James, though, votes to evict Becky, while Steve goes against Jason. Jackie, though, votes to evict Jason (interesting), as does Shelli, Clay, and John. Yep, Jason is the person evicted this week by a vote of 7-2.

Julie announces the news, and hugs Meg and James. He tells them all to "play hard", and is out the door. After the uncomfortable moment of the house watching his picture turn black and white, the interview begins with him being "completely caught off guard" by his nomination. He says he was "real naive" to think their new alliance was real. He says that the night they created it, he felt really comfortable, which is the moment in this game everything always goes bad. He's asked who "betrayed you the most", and he responds that it's Clay and Shelli. "I would definitely say that Shelli is evil personified." YES!!! Vanessa, though, is a "smart game player" in his eyes, and did a "smart game move", but "has more soul".

He's then asked why they thought he was such a threat, and he really doesn't know. "Obviously, they see something in me that maybe I don't recognize." Day and him discovering the twins twist is then brought up, and he admits that it was a mistake to not use the info to further him in the game. He's asked about his pals, and they have to start work hard to survive. If there's an endurance tonight, they're going to have to do everything they can to win. "We all know my girl Meg has the jello legs, so she might not be too good at it." He does think she has the best chance to make it further in the game.

The goodbye messages are then played. Shelli outs the "sixth sense", and "hates" he was evicted. Jackie says he's the one person who "should have won the game". Liz then acts cocky, saying "have fun watching from mom's basement". Meg says she already misses him, and tosses him a kiss. He ends the segment by saying that he had the entire house figured out, including the evilness of the twins and the sweetness of Meg.

With Jason out, it's time to bring Julia in. Now Julia hasn't been switched with her sister in a few days, so she's not sure that she's actually going in the house. Yet she's dressed for tonight's endurance competition, and after delaying it as long as possible, Julie finally lets Julia in on that she's now in the house!

She's sent into the house as Julie calls everybody to the living room. Julia is then introduced, and the doorbell rings to Liz hugging her. Somehow, James acts surprised by this "news". Julie then announces that the twins twist is over, as is the Battle of the Block. THANK GOD!!! She then sends them to the backyard for the first endurance competition of the season!

The competition is an old fashioned hang on the wal endurance. Ah, I think I love the nostalgia of this. They're on a "cliff" (i.e. small platform), with rocks to hold onto. The wall then tilts back and forth, and "storms" come and go. The last person to stay on the wall is the new HOH!!! (After the final set of commercials, flying "birds" are also added to the torture. I kind of like this.)

It's possible this could go on for quite some times, so get your feeds now!!! Otherwise, what did you think of the episode? Are you happy the twists are over? Are you sad that Jason has gone? Who do you want to win the endurance? Tell us what you think!










Wednesday, July 29, 2015

What CBS Didn't Show You Tonight

Like most feedwatchers, I was furious at what CBS decided to show us tonight when it came to the switch from Austin to Jason as the replacement nominee. According to the CBS edit, Austin pretty much saved himself by pleading to Shelli and Clay that he would never betray them (along with a similar plea to Vanessa).

That's not what happened at all.

To fully understand, one must go back to Saturday afternoon. As CBS did show tonight, Shelli was really proud of Clay's big POV victory. It was almost like how a proud mother reacts to anything positive her precious little son accomplishes.

Unfortunately, the rest of the house didn't jump for joy with as much enthusiasm as she did. Why would they? At the time, Shelli was so wrapped up in her own little world that she didn't even notice that they weren't ready to hand him a trophy rewarding him for the performance of the season.

CBS also did show Vanessa planning to tell Liz the big plan on targetting Austin. She was to head downstairs and apply her makeup, and immediately run back upstairs. She wasn't to hang with Austin at all, and he could NOT come up to the HOH with him.

The next 70 minutes were hilarious for those watching online. Liz did head downstairs to put on makeup, but that's not all she did. She puttered around the bathroom for quite some time, and then sat down with Austin for a chicken dinner. As I was gathering audio at the time, I can verify that it was 70 minutes before she meandered back upstairs.

In the meantime, Shelli found out that not everybody was as enthusiastic about Clay's victory as she was. Now nothing comes between Shelli and her boytoy! She was suddenly convinced that the other side of the house had banded together to go against her and Clay.

Shelli then rushed upstairs and told Vanessa that they must rethink their plans. He's a number for them, after all, and along with the twins will continue to be a target for weeks to come. Yes, Liz's chicken dinner saved Austin's ass this week!

Edit #1: Austin fed into Shelli's paranoia, and introduced the idea of the big alliance of the "other side". After Shelli brought this up to Vanessa, including the concept of keeping Austin, he was summoned. Austin admitted that he didn't have an proof, but the possibility "made sense".

But I'm jumping ahead a bit there. While that decision was sort of made at that moment, Vanessa had to dot some i's and cross some t's. Liz finally came up, and Shelli immediately gave her attitude. "I know everything", she said to a clearly confused Liz. Like CBS showed, Liz did claim to not have the same feelings for Austin as he did for her, and she also did bring up the numbers situation just earlier referenced by Shelli. Liz also made the line of the week, as she called Julia her "cock block" in dealing with Austin.

So again, at this point Austin was saved, and he was then summoned to meet with Vanessa. She made him sweat it out a bit, and he did proclaim his loyalty to her as shown on the broadcast. But, and this is a big but, he screwed himself when he was again asked about the hinky Audrey vote he cast as "Judas". He lied once again, and since Vanessa hates liars (except for herself) it looked at this point like he may have unknowingly killed his comeback.

For the next 36 or so hours, Vanessa went back and forth about whether to keep Austin or not. He was the target here and there over this time, but other names were brought up. It seriously looked like Jackie was going to go at one point on Sunday. John's name came up, as did Meg. Jason was also considered, but it wasn't until Vanessa began obsessing over the "Phone Booth" twist that Vanessa decided that Jason was lying to her. She didn't believe that Day had won that twist based on the three people whose votes were set aside. Keep in mind, this was something that happened three weeks ago! Almost the entire cast was asked with the threat that Vanessa knew the truth, which she obviously didn't. It was finally decided that Jason was indeed lying to her, and there was the reasoning this goofball needed.

Yet the story wasn't quite over yet. On Monday, shortly before the POV meeting, Vanessa had second thoughts. Maybe Jason wasn't lying. It was Jackie's turn to miss the opportunity, as she was summoned to grab Jason for a chat. Instead, she continued to brush her hair, adjust her boobs, add lotion,  and clean her glasses with the hemline of her dress. No, I'm not making this up.

Edit #2: During this time period, Vanessa became paranoid about James. Did he or did he not try to throw the BOB? There was a conversation about how he actually helped Liz with the "i" in Christine's name. She wandered downstairs and asked a semi-sleeping, confused James if he indeed assisted her. When he stupidly said yes instead of "why do you ask", she was furious. This fact didn't ultimately change anything, primarily because James was ineligible for nomination due to his BOB win.

Jason never made it up to the HOH, and he was then put up as Clay's replacements.

Why CBS went with the edit they utilized tonight is beyond me. Wouldn't it have been much more entertaining to watch Liz disobey her orders and putter around the house? Wouldn't Shelli's anger over the lack of excitement of Clay's accomplishments be much more fun for viewers to see? This is why you need to get the feeds and/or listen to the Big Brother Gossip Show!

Big Brother Season 17, Episode 16 Recap

I don't have much to say to open tonight's episode. A good portion of this will undoubtedly again originate from Saturday's Big Brother Gossip Show, with a few minutes at the end devoted to what was originally 24 hours of craziness from Vanessa. The only moment of real interest will come at the very end with the POV meeting.

So let's just get this over with by heading to the aftermath of the Battle of the Block competition, which was won by (mainly) Liz and James. Shelli is pissed that their "perfect plan" didn't go as expected. "I'm feeling so helpless right now." Vanessa rushes up to the HOH to whine, because she didn't want to remain as HOH. "The plan was to backdoor Austin, but I didn't think that I'd have to e the one to do it." She tells Jackie, Clay, and Shelli that the plan is still on, though.

Jackie is also not happy, but she's still excited about getting rid of Austin. Shelli, though, thinks that Liz should be informed. Vanessa says she has to walk around acting happy, which is hard because, as we all know, she's "not fake".

In the bathroom, James is apologizing to Becky for not losing the competition. (Ugh, that's what's wrong with BOB.) He says in the diary room that he must do everything possible to let them know he did try to throw it, and says it was Liz who was getting all the letters. "You're good", replies Becky. "Honestly."

Clay then heads into the bedroom, saying he must win POV. Johnny thinks this is hilarious, since that's been his life this entire game. It's actually a funny scene.

In the other bedroom, Liz is complaining about James' perfromance in the BOB. "I did that entire thing, then I'm like 'James, aren't you happy'? And he's like not happy." They are starting to understand that there is some kind of setup...but really aren't worried as they don't believe that Vanessa wasn't involved. Or is he? "Maybe they were targeting Liz all along."

Austin heads into the HOH, and says "something weird is going on". He tells her how James threw the competition, and he feels that everybody is setting them up. Vanessa lies, and whispers "Judas" as he leaves.

Back to Austin and Liz. They get in bed, and he starts tickling her. In the diary room, she says that she loves hanging out with him, but doesn't "see him in a romantic light". She's "in a bit of a pickle", though, as she knows he's starting to like her. He sees it differently, though, and after some more rolling around in bed he turns her head and kisses her. "I hate you", she whines. "You're so annoying." She claims to not have been expecting it. "Oh God, what a night. What a night." He's basking in the glory of hitting first base, and says she "felt bashful" about their grade school love.

Bad funky music comes on now, which means it's time to pick POV players. Vanessa doesn't want to pick Austin's name, and pulls out Houseguest Choice. She picks Shelli. Clay pulls out John's name, who compares it to be "calling in to work on the weekend". Becky pulls out Liz's name, which is "risky", according to Vanessa.

Upstairs once again, Becky and Jackie come in to talk to Vanessa...followed by Shelli. Vanessa still wants to tell Liz because she doesn't "want to do her dirty". Shelli at this point isn't so crazy about the idea because Liz will most likely run and tell Austin.

After a series of commercials, we get filler on the weirdness of Steve. He sits in the photo booth, and seems to have a oconversation with the cameras. It's dumb, and is only there to give him a cameo. Let's move on!

The awful funky music comes on again, so it's time for the POV. "It's time to get nutty", says Jason. The backyard is made up to look like the woods, and Meg gets her little cameo as she describes it. Then the contestants come out dressed as squirrels. Ugh, shut up Meg!!! Ugh, this whole scene is awful!

So they have to store 250 nuts to win by rolling one up a platform, and then catching it as it comes back down the other side. If they drop it, their score goes back to zero and they have to start over.

It's a painful competition to watch, especially with the diary room commentary. Clay actually claims this is harder than anything he did in football! It's terrible. Let's just go to the end. Clay won. Happy?

At this point, Vanessa is still planning on back-dooring Austin, and we're reminded of this before we head to commercials. When we come back, Meg jokes that Clay finally won something. Shelli yells some congratulatory silliness from the bathroom. "He didn't just win it. He creamed it." STFU Shelli.

Becky, though, is sad and crying in the have-not room. Jackie comes in and consoles her. Thankfully, this doesn't last long.

Finally, the fun begins. Vanessa tells Liz that she has something she wants to tell her. She tells her to go do her makeup and come right back up without Austin. Ugh, terrible edit here. What they're not showing you is that Liz took almost 90 minutes to return. She put on makeup, changed her clothes, cooked some dinner, and all kinds of other things. Meanwhile, a jealous Shelli found out that people were actually rooting against her Clay, and suddenly Austin was not the target.

Instead, it looks like Liz came right back upstairs, followed by Shelli. Vanessa infroms her of all the things that Austin has done to piss her off. Liz stands up for Austin, but says she doesn't like him in that way. She also points out that for the sake of numbers, Austin needs to stick around.

Austin is brought upstairs, and Vanessa confronts him about the Jason incident. Seriously, so much stuff has been skipped here...and will be skipped in the next few minutes. Vanessa tells him off, and starts crying. "I was trying to help us", he says. "I messed up." He asks her if he's going to be put up, and she says that it's possible. He replies that he would never vote against her, or nominate her, or anything like that. "I'd never go against you." She says that he's a good buy who is an idiot that fell in love. Unfortunately, she gave her word that she would put him up. "I don't want to do this", she says as he walks out. Wow, they're making it look like everything was decided right here.

What isn't going to be shown here is that for the next 36 hours, Vanessa was a non-stop talking machine. Anybody and everybody at some point was the prospective new nomination, including Meg, Johnny, Jackie, Austin (again), and Jason. Each of these were going up, depending on what time of the day you watched the feeds.

Instead, we get Austin heading downstairs to talk to Shelli and Clay about his situation. He takes them into the extra room, kicking out Steve along the way. He tells them that he's pissed at Jason, that he's in love with Liz. He pulled Jason aside because he was scared and wanted the twins to make it into the house together. "I fell in love with someone, and that's all that matters to me." He had an "emotional conversation with Jason, and he betrayed me". Um, ok. Clay responds that it's those very emotions that scares him about Austin, who replies that he didn't think his actions would hurt them at all. "We need that number", says Shelli. "We have to keep all of us all together."

Everybody is now suddenly called to the living room. Why? Oh yeah, it's another product placement bullshit segment. Remember that from Sunday's BOB? Each of them get to bring a guest, and Vanessa chooses Becky. Liz (obviously) picks Austin, while James chooses Clay. Yes, we gets some cutesy Meg diary room lines during this segment. They all get dressed, and the product placement is completed.

Ooops, my nap almost caused me to miss one final gameplay segment. Vanessa is with Shelli and Clay, and I once again hear the words "bath in blood". She really needs new cliches. She says that nobody will be targeting them if they backdoor Austin, so why not carry on with it? Clay says the odds for them overall are better if he stays. "My numbers are worse", Vanessa responds. Clay doesn't agree, and neither does Shelli. They begin talking about possible replacements, and after mentioning Jackie Vanessa says that Jason is their "only smart strategic player" who is "single-handedly holding them together".

With that we go to the final commercials. It's now time for the POV ceremony, and as you may guess Clay takes himself down. Vanessa then says it's her most difficult decision yet because she "adores this person". It's a person she'd be buddies with outside the house; a "person with a great sense of humor and an all-around great individual. With that said, Jason, take a seat." POW!!!

Half the house is shocked, especially Meg. (She goes on a huge crying jag right afterwards that lasted for hours.) Vanessa says she did "what was good for my game". Jackie is pissed because it was supposed to be Austin, especially since her pal Jeff was the last person Vanessa evicted. Austin, obviously, is happy. "This is the greatest thing that could have happened to me in this game. This guy manipulated me, and tried to humiliate me. Nobody humiliates Judas." Um, ok.

Meg whines a bit, and Jason then points out that it's the first "real" blindside of the season. "Vanessa is a scumbag bitch. She can sell that she's the most honest, loyal, straight shooting person there is, but she's talking out of her backside." He says that he's not just going to lie down, although feed watchers know that's exactly what he's done the last two days. "If I stay, that bitch is getting it."

So that's it. What are your thoughts? Did you hate the edit as much as I did? Are you happy Austin was saved? Are you pissed that Jason is up? Tell us what you think!!!


At The End Of The Day

Well, I'm back. I've been nursing a cold the last couple days, but it's time to stop being a big baby and get back on the BB17 train[wreck]! <<--Something I wish I could tell Jason at this point as well! ha

So to clarify, the POV ceremony was held yesterday and as expected Clay removed himself and Vanessa replaced him with Jason. It was a bit of a blindside for Jason and apparently there were a few dramatics yesterday; Meg and Jason cried, Shelli and Vanessa lied, Becky died...ok, not really to the last one but it rhymed so I had to. ;)

James pulled another prank on Meg. He put a zucchini into a condom along with some lotion and put it into her pillow. Ew.

Becki had a little conversation with Shelli in the have not room about the 'other three' [James, Jackie, Meg] really wanting HOH this week "They're not gonna throw it." and how they were advising her to not join 'the other side' (you know, the one Meg was convinced didn't even exist just a few days ago.) but "Little do they know I gotta first class ticket." Shelli laughed at that little line.

Austin and Liz spent some time going over competitions/information in the hammock. Meanwhile, James and Jason were chatting on the couch. Jason noticed Liz counting on her fingers and comments that the only time you see people counting with their fingers is when they're counting votes, counting people in alliances or counting days.

Jackie and Becky have a little chat in the have not room; Becky thinks they should target Steve on double eviction night, deflecting the target from Clelli (she's definitely with Clay and Shelli in my personal opinion.)

Vanessa emerges from the house and spends a little bit of time on the couch with Jason. She currently makes me nauseous right now though, so I didn't actually listen to their conversation too much. Instead, I focused on Austin teaching Liz some wrestling moves. Not gonna lie, I personally found this both fun and interesting, despite the cheese factor. I was a huge wrestling fan with my dad when I was a little girl so I enjoyed this little spectacle. Jackie eventually joins them, and there's a great gif out there of Austin bouncing between Liz and Jackie 'punching' him. Meg joined Jason on the couch after Vanessa left and they chatted a bit on how amazing it would be if Jason stayed. He hinted he's not done yet, he plans on doing some campaigning, which he hopefully follows through on because he hasn't done much(any really) of it yet and I hate when they roll over and die.

Austin/Liz rasslin' and Meg/Jason dreaming.

They get a booze delivery and Shelli hides two bottles. The others end up finding it and everyone minus the have nots (Shelli, Clay and Steve btw-I had jumped the gun in the last update when I named them as Shelli, Clay, Austin and Liz in my last update. Apparently Steve volunteered.) They all drink in the kitchen and Jason toasts everyone "Thanks everyone, for everything!" which sure sounds like throwing in the towel to me. They're all joking around though and having fun. 

A good mood Jason, not campaigning. At least he's not death sleeping?


Liz and Austin take a moment in the lounge room to 'toast to the demise of Jason, aka The Devil's Rejects'. They make sure to let us know that it's a movie title, not a name they made up, even though they think it's a bit funny. They do that weird arm crossover toast that I've never seen the point of because I believe in just drinking my drink. ;)



Shelli, Clay and Steve stay out in the hammock while the kitchen crew drinks. I missed some of the conversation while listening to the kitchen, but when I did get back to them, they're game talking. Shelli is clarifying  how double eviction works; she got a tiny bit snarky because neither of them understood what she was trying to say. Steve got a little too focused on minor details of what she's asking and she sniped at him. Clay and Shelli move on to talk with Steve about who would make good targets during a double eviction. Clay is very confident that he and Shelli can survive a DE: "If we go up, one of us wins POV, then we vote whoever else out, and whoever put us up, their ass is grass." They put out gentle feelers to Steve wondering how he'd feel about targeting Becky and JohnnyMac during a DE, with the idea of voting out Becky so that he[Steve] could get closer with JohnnyMac. Steve points out that JMac might not want align with him if he voted out Becky, but that thinks it's a possibility.

Steve leaves the hammock area and Shelli and Clay continue chatting for a bit. They have this small moment where they consider that John and Becky could be the strongest couple in the house. The kitchen crew moved over to the hot tub and Clay and Shelli realize that it might look a little anti-social to stay by the hammock so they decide to join the rest of the house by the hot tub. They're trading embarrassing stories about dating/hook ups at this point in time.

I'm gonna end this here tonight as it looks like they're pretty comfortable around the hot tub and I feel as though story time will go on for a while. I'm really hoping that Jason follows through with his intent to campaign at least a little bit tomorrow (Though I feel as though he's already conceded defeat, never a good attitude in BB) or that perhaps Clay and Shelli will continue along their train[wreck] of thoughts regarding Becky and decide that it's best for their game to vote her out. Hey, a girl can hope right? Imagine the fun fireworks on Thursday if Jason stays, Becky gets a blindside vote out, and Julia comes into the game! Keep your fingers crossed and maybe it'll happen! ;)

Tell me your thoughts-Do you think Jason has a chance to stay if he campaigns well? What do you think of Clay/Shelli and their position in the house right now? Do you think Meg will ever pull her head out of her ass and actually play Big Brother?? As always, you can follow me on twitter @Shienara33 if you feel the inclination. :) Have a great night! :)

Sunday, July 26, 2015

At The End Of The Day...

Whoa. Miss a 24 hour period, you miss a lot! At the end of this day, I honestly have no idea what is going on! ha

When I last posted, Vanessa was HOH, Clay and Becky were on the block and the back door target was Austin. Well, POV picking and competition has been held and Clay won. Things...and by things, I mostly mean Vanessa...are in a bit of a tizzy right now. Obviously Clay will use the veto and remove himself from the block so the current question has become who will go up as the replacement nominee.

I tried my damndest to catch up on twitter, but Vanessa apparently confuses you all as much as she confuses me. Honestly, if you haven't already, please give a listen to the Big Brother Gossip Show podcast that Mike, Scott and Colette put together on Saturday. It touches on everything you need to know, including how bat shit turned up Vanessa is and why the target has come off of Austin. Listen with a glass of wine, trust me, you'll need it. ;)

I *think* by all accounts at this point, Vanessa has settled on targeting Jason. She believes he lied to her about who had The Last Laugh power (because that's just so relevant to the current game play. Like it was relevant when it happened, because of it's big impact on the game. Pfft) and will use that as her 'reason' that she will put him up. As opposed to the alliance member who has been a PROVEN liar. I'm all for Austin staying as I do think there will be an interesting dynamic in the house once both twins are in the game, but Vanessa's circular thinking, desperate need to have a 'reason' to nominate someone, along with how she 'hates liars' and 'her word is her bond' talk make me crazy. I need her to be nominated soon. Just to see how that makes her head implode.

I didn't really watch much of the feeds tonight, hence this being so short. I listened to the podcast, watched the broadcast episode that Scott so kindly recapped and just turned my feeds on in the last hour.

The houseguests are still on indoor lockdown. A group of them got their Outback Steakhouse dinner and apparently Clay ate so much he can't spit or swallow right now. Make of that what you will. Vanessa and Becky had a long discussion in the HOH room where you can see that Vanessa is basically trying to lead Becky by the nose into doubting Jason. Becky talks about how she trusts Vanessa, Clay, Shelli, and John.

Not much else that I can see has been going on. Currently Vanessa and Meg are in HOH and I'm positive that she will be working her circular talking game on Meg soon. Most of the others are gathered in the living room. Vanessa just confirmed the twins to James so he went down to bug her. John, Jason, James, Liz, Jackie, Becky, Steve and Shelli are in the living room just general chit chatting and clarifying which twin was in for what event.  I'm out for the night. Look for POV ceremony to be held tomorrow so I'm sure there's be some interesting last minute scrambling by some of them as Vanessa searches for her reason to put Jason up. If that happens, I can't lie, I hope something magical happens and Becky gets voted out. Have a great night! :)

Big Brother Season 17, Episode 15 Recap

Once again, I'm back!!!! I was out on the road with one of my favorite artists, Lydia Loveless, assisting my friend Gorman Bechard create a documentary about her next record. My travels are now completed, so you're stuck with me the rest of the season. I also must thank John (@uselesstraffic) for sitting in with me on the last couple of episodes.

BTW, here's an audience clip from a couple of the shows I attended:




Honestly, I'm not expecting much out of tonight's episode, as there is bound to be way too much Jackie for my taste. Yet I'm intrigued to find out just how much of the broadcast will be a direct copy of last night's Big Brother Gossip Show. The last few episodes have been direct copies, outside of diary room chatter and competitions, so I will not be shocked to once again see the same clips as we aired.

We begin the evening with the aftermath of Jacky and Vanessa's HOH wins. Jackie speaks and my ears bleed. She's apparently a "queen", while Vanessa trots out her favorite phrase about not wanting to get "blood on my hands". She's happy she's the second HOH, though, as Jacky would have probably targeted her since she was responsible for Jeff's departure.

Austin pulls together a couple of chairs to do some working out, and an otherwise quiet Clay, James and John start talking about how the girls have been rolling all over them. "We're just little minions underneath their heels", says Clay. They all predict that a guy will be going home this week, but all Austin cares about is ensuring the twins remain safe as they get to officially enter the house next Thursday.

We then go back to the previous day when Austin stupidly announced to Liz his "Operation Jason". As I predicted they'd show on last night's Big Brother Gossip Show, Austin has this plan to tell Jason everything about the twins.

But first, we have to watch the pair trade off, and Julia freaks out when Liz says that Austin tried to kiss her. "I didn't." Julia complains that she's a heartbreaker, and then Liz fills him on this idiotic Operation Jason plan. "I don't think that's a good idea", says Julia. Neither do we.

So then we get to see Austin make his godawful move. Jason says he has known all along, and laughs in the diary room that confirming this to him is not a good move for him. He also says that he is falling for Liz, but is not a big fan of Julia. He's hoping that Julia doesn't make it to jury.

Jason then crawls into bed with Meg, and tells her the whole story. "He likes one, but doesn't like the other." Julia then walks through the room, and then Jason finished the story. The next morning, the pair tell Shelli everything Austin told Jason. To say the least, Shelli is not happy. "That was our listtle secret, man!"

Vanessa then walks into the bathroom, and she is filled in on everything Austin told Jason. Yep, she's not happy either. I tried to slow down her diary room conversation, but the meds had clearly kicked in. Let's just say that it was about the fact that having both twins gives them an extra number in their alliance. "That's like selling out your alliance, and I'm not ok with that.'

Shelli now runs upstairs to tell Clay. Can I remind you again that we're still covering things from the day before Vanessa and Jacky won HOH? This all could have perfectly fit into Thursday's show if they hadn't wasted so much time on Audrey's family and an interview with Britney. Clay, Shelli, and Vanessa just go round and round with the Austin situation, and they think they should tell Julia.

Now we are finally back to the "present", and Vanessa and Jacky are still babbling. Vanessa hopes the two can find some "common ground", and again we get the exact same clips we played last night. *sigh* Just go listen to the show instead of expecting me to transcribe the conversation. They both talked about who they want to nominate, and Austin and Liz's names come up.

Thankfully, we get commercials...but we come back to the insipid "who wants to see my HOH room" dullness. Bathroom time!

Back to the game. Vanessa is complaining to Austin that she doesn't want to be HOH this week, and in the diary room she says she has to be "100% sure" before she can backdoor him. She asks him what he said to Jason, and Austin completely lies. (Again, straight from our show.) Vanessa is pissed. "Don't lie to me or I'm going to be pissed."

James then comes into the HOH...but it's only to tell Vanessa that her mom is hot. "Too bad she's married." Why did they show this? Vanessa then carries on, telling Austin that they have to hide the fact that they're working together for Jacky's sake. When he leaves, she tells the camera "there it is. He just lied to me." His love of Liz is "clouding his judgment".

Now Julia is in the HOH. She knows that Jacky is going to put her up, but Vanessa says there's no way that she's going home. Vanessa also tells her that Austin isn't "acting very clearly". Julia confirms that Liz doesn't want Austin, so Vanessa again tells the story about Austin talking to Jason. I guess CBS watchers now understand how difficult it is to endure Vanessa's constant retells of the same stories. Now Julia is pissed. "She doesn't even like youuuuuu, so the jokes on youuuuuu."

Time for more adverts! When we return, Vanessa's "favorites" (Clay and Shelli) come in, and we get the retell of Austin's lie to Vanessa. Wow, this episode stinks. Jacky then comes in, and Vanessa says that she wants Jacky to remain HOH. Jacky's idea is to go after Liz, and if it doesn't work then it will be the opportunity to backdoor Austin. They then discuss who else is be to put up as noms, and Clay volunteers to go up with Becky. What a dummy. Becky is then summoned, and she agrees.

But who will be put up with Liz as a pawn? Jason, Meg, and James are brought up, and Vanessa says that Austin betrayed her. She also sort of verifies the existence of the twins. The idea is that it would be best for Austin to go home first, and then go after the twins. The three are told that Austin can't be told about this plan. Jason and Meg like the "concept", but they really don't want to be nominated (plus Jason says he just can't throw a competition). James is then talked into doing it, mainly because he can't say no to a girl.

Time for even more commercials, Austin comes into the HOH, and Vanessa tells him that Jacky is putting up Liz, but the plan is to get rid of Steve. She also says that she's going to talk Clay into volunteering to go up with Becky. "Why wouldn't she put Steve straight up?" Good question. Austin says the "hero in me" wants to go up on the other side and throw it for Liz. "That's stupid", says Vanessa.

It's finally nomination time, but we all know what's going to happen (even if you just watch this episode). Jacky goes first, and nominated James and Liz (aka Julia). Jacky says it's because both of them have previously nominated her. Vanessa then nominates Clay and Becky. She says it's because Clay hasn't been nominated yet, and it's just a "game move" when it comes to Becky. Austin, of course, is worried about Julie. Johnny, though, is so happy to NOT be nominated for the first time this season. "What do I do with myself? Do I just sit here?"

Upstairs, Vanessa informs Julia that she's not the target. "I adore you."

Julia is then sent to the diary room to make her switch, and she says she has decided not to tell Liz about the Austin situation so that she doesn't screw up BOB. Liz is told, obviously, that she is nominated. Julia can't help but throw a dig in about Austin though. He's a "scary creep".

Back up in the HOH, Shelli comes in to talk to Jacky and Vanessa. "Seeing (Clay's) face on the wall made me want to vomit", she bitches. Vanessa reassures her that this is the best case scenario. And again, we get a "pool of blood" line from Vanessa.

Finally, it's BOB time, and the memory wall lights up with last year's cast. Ugh, why remind us of that mess? They head outside to the "BB news room". They have to throw paint at items in the "news room", which will give them letters to use to spell out cast members from last year.

So "Splashy Headlines" begin after dumb diary room scriptreading, including another "blood on my hands" from Vanessa. Let's just sum up what happened. James tried to throw it, but Clay and Becky are so stupid that they still couldn't win. Liz kicked ass, and basically won it all by herself. All of the best plans were led astray, and Vanessa remains as HOH with Clay and Becky as this week's nominees.

That's it! What did you think of the episode? Are you happy that not everything went as planned for Vanessa and Jacky? What about Austin's silliness? Comment it out! Do it! Now!


Saturday, July 25, 2015

Big Brother Gossip Show #505: Turgid Member

One would think that Audrey's controversial week would be the main focus of tonight's episode. While we certainly chatted about her eviction, the main focus was Austin. From his self-sabotaging "Operation Jason" to the big lie to Vanessa to a shocking change of circumstances due to Liz's chicken dinner, we cover every silly thing that ever happened in the house this past week.

Besides house activities, you'll definitely want to download tonight's episode just to hear Colette's erotic fiction. Trust me, you need to listen to this to believe it. Grab this from the usual sources, including iTunes and Stitcher, or...

CLICK HERE TO DIRECTLY STREAM OR DOWNLOAD!!!

Thanks to Mike and Colette for their help, and check out Colette's site!!!

At The End Of The Day...

Hey folks! :) Back for another quick little update! If you happened to read John's recap of Thursday's episode, then you will know that Jackie and Vanessa won the two HOH positions.

Between then and now, a few more things have happened so I'll catch you up to speed on the big ones as of now: In terms of nominations, Vanessa nominated Clay and Becky while Jackie nominated James and Liz. The original plan was for James to throw the competition so that Jackie could remain HOH, Vanessa would be dethroned and they could take the opportunity, depending on POV results, to back door Austin.

Alas, as the saying goes, sometimes the best laid plans go awry...and that means a scrambled house for us to watch! So it was Julia in the house for the HOH comp and nominations (and she was made aware of the plans to back door Austin. He's been a bit shady and not shy about making it known that Liz is his priority, not Julia). However, there was a twin switch today and so Liz was officially back in the house for the actual Battle of the Block. She was not a happy camper about being nominated.

The BotB competition took place and Clay and Becky lost!! According to houseguest reports, it was some kind of comp based on past house guests. Lots of names spelled wrong etc. James apparently did try to throw it, Liz has been complaining that at one point she caught him walking; she had to go back and get him at one point as well. So Becky and Clay remain nominated, Vanessa is HOH (Jackie dethroned) and Clay/Shelli/Liz/Austin are Have Nots this week. Wonder if they'll be able to turn the lights off...

Clay and Becky aren't exactly thrilled that they lost, but they're both being very positive about it all. Shelli is pouting and freaking out more than Clay is. I think she's afraid her brother Chris will escape from the attic and leave her behind with the twins. (If you get the reference, you can thank @ColetteLala for that gem!) Vanessa is freaking out because if she follows through with the back door Austin plan, she will be 'swimming in blood'. She really didn't want to have to be the one to put him up. She's also losing her mind over the acne on her chin; she can't figure out why she's breaking out so badly.

The cams spent a lot of time on Austin and Liz in the bathroom as well. It's a bit uncomfortable to watch them to be honest. Austin is very touchy-feely; he strokes her hair, rubs her back and strokes her arm and leg. Now, I'm not ragging on Austin in terms of him doing these things because Liz is not telling him to stop; it's just extremely obvious to most of us that Liz is allowing it for game reasons; her body language makes it very clear that she's not into him. It feels like Austin would like to absorb Liz into his being or something.

 
Ok, despite all that, they did have an interesting conversation that really exemplified that Austin is delusional about more things than just Liz. He really is not aware that he is the target at this point. A couple things are fishy for him (And Liz) but they're both thinking that Liz was the original target. Liz brings up that Julia told her she's not sure Austin 100% has their backs; I guess she brought up Austin telling Jason about them. Austin is super offended at this since according to him, he's been protecting and looking out for them this whole time. This conversation also demonstrates how good of a position Clay really is in-even Austin has said if he wins POV he'll take Clay down. Austin would like to target Steve though if that happens. He rags on Julia a bit; he thinks she's playing the game all wrong-she spends too much time talking with JohnnyMac and playing chess with Steve.
 
Jackie and Vanessa are both in the HOH room discussing the situation as it stands. Jackie is an odd one for me right now. She was such a part of the background scenery for so long you basically forgot she was there. Now that Jeff's gone and she's spending more time actually gaming and strategizing, she's a tiny (tiny) bit more interesting. She has flashes of awareness that give me hope, followed by the most amazing delusions and lack of knowledge as to bring me back down. lol She spends most of the time reassuring Vanessa that they can still hit their target this week; that worst case scenario is that Austin wins POV because then they can't nominate him, but they can always throw Steve up too. She's not aware that Vanessa is working with Steve though. Jackie also brings up multiple times that the twins will be target next week as well, also unaware that Vanessa is working with the twins. Jackie isn't sure what kind of game the twins will have once they're in the house together. "Oh, so we'll have twins for a week, ok. Then, bye!"  Clay eventually joins them and again they go over everything. Clay is confident that James really did try to throw it, no one is blaming James.
 
In the kitchen, Becky, John and James are chatting. Someone, somewhere has apparently told Becky they think she's a comp beast. Um, ok. But Becky is kind of quietly freaking out about it-she thinks it's because she has sculpted muscles while the other girls don't. "But I'm not really a comp beast! It makes me think people are telling me this so that they can plant the seed that I'm a target!" She also talks about this some more with John in the comic bedroom.
 
At this point, Jackie and Vanessa are asleep in the HOH room and the rest of the house guests are in the kitchen eating like all their food is going to be taken away tomorrow. So that's it for now; whatever happens from this point forward will depend on who wins veto. Veto picking ceremony should be tomorrow as well as the veto comp later on in the day.
 
There won't be an update tomorrow, I have a birthday sleepover date with one of my nephews so I will be busy spoiling him. Make sure you take the time to listen to the Big Brother Gossip Show live tomorrow night if you get the chance. I might be slightly biased, but I think it's the best BB related podcast out there! (and I thought this BEFORE I started writing these little updates for this site! haha) If you can't listen live, they'll tweet out links on where you can download from iTunes so I'm sure you are already following @ColetteLala (linked above), @BBGossip and @bigbrothrgossip since you're on this site. I just really like using my newfound knowledge of linking in an article! ;) If you're so inclined, you can check me out on twitter as well @Shienara33 Have a great night!

Thursday, July 23, 2015

Big Brother Season 17, Episode 14 Recap

It’s the fifth day of Audrey’s meltdown and all #BB17 fans except those who only watch CBS know that tonight is her swan song. Her breakdown got literally only five seconds of coverage on last night’s show. Lots of people have speculated that the audience will be stocked with friendly CBS employees and that the show won’t even be live, all to make things easier for Audrey. How much attention will Audrey’s mental health get during the eviction episode? Let’s find out.

First, an editor’s note: Once again this is John (@uselesstraffic) writing, subbing for Scott (@bigbrothrgossip) — he’ll be back soon. As before, I’m writing this live during the east coast airing and without the benefit of a DVR, so sorry there’s no photos. If I got anything wrong, please do clarify things via comments below ... nicely. :-)

“When Audrey didn’t show up for the veto meeting, her behavior started trending on Twitter,” says Julie Chen to open the show — an admission which actually surprised me. The narrator says in the opening summary that Audrey's fight with Clay sealed her fate. And Julie asks, “Now everybody is wondering: Will Audrey leave the game before the house gets a chance to evict her?”

It’s Day 33. Vanessa talks about how it’s history-making for the replacement nominee not to attend the veto meeting. Shelli, Jason, and Squeaky John talk to the DR about Audrey, either lamenting (Shelli) or rejoicing (the others) that she’ll be gone.

CBS flashes back to six hours before the veto meeting, showing Audrey wearing her cloak and disappearing into the Diary Room. And we see her going to sleep on the DR room’s chair while the other house guests talk about that she’s starting to melt down.

“It shows less pride to walk out the back door,” Shelli says. Austin speculates to the DR that Audrey might be walking out. Jason: “Me and Audrey have had plenty” to disagree about, “but I’d like to see her go out with her head held high.”

Now the caption tells us it’s one hour before the veto meeting, and the house guests in the kitchen notice that Audrey just reentered the house — confirming she was gone for five full hours. Everybody keeps speculating that she might leave because she just can’t handle the game any longer.

James takes an omelette to Audrey in her Have-Not cave where she’s been hiding with the lights out — a nice gesture, actually. A bit later, Audrey goes back to the DR with her cloak and sunglasses on.

Now we’re back to Julie Chen, confirming for all of us that Audrey did indeed remain in the house all week, not quitting early — and there she is, in the living room with the others, looking pretty and presentable. It’s commercial time. Wait, CBS, is that it? Audrey spent forever in the DR and there’s nothing more you can show us? Nothing about all the rules she broke (missing the veto meeting, eating real food, turning the lights off without permission)?

Julie starts talking with the house guests. “Thought I would lighten the mood a bit,” she says, and addresses Jason and the Whackstreet Boys. “The Whackstreet Boys have taken the country by storm!” Julie claims, to audience cheers (ugh!), and shows the house guests a tweet from the real Backstreet Boys. She makes them do a live performance at the front of the living room while the TV shows a live view of the studio audience clapping. (Is that Liz or Julia dancing along with John and Jason?)

Now Julie takes us back to the Audrey story, wondering aloud how Audrey’s family must be reacting to the season. Now we’re in Audrey’s real family’s living room, watching them watch the show as she confessed her transgender status back at the beginning. We hear from Audrey’s parents, who seem to me like genuinely nice people. (This sort of episode recap might typically include sarcasm, but let me be very clear: at this moment, that’s not my intent whatsoever. They seem like a normal, lovely family, talking with reasonable candor and insight.) One of her family members notes that Audrey started playing the game “from the get go” while other house guests were just trying to get their bearings. And her family admits to the camera what I’ve said and many of you have said: Audrey played the game too quickly and managed to get herself excluded from friendships and alliances in the house. Julie sends us to commercials before the eviction vote.

Julie says Audrey receives one penalty vote in advance for breaking the Have-Not food rule. I’m actually shocked that CBS acknowledged she broke the rules.

Audrey’s eviction speech starts with a plea for fans to follow her on Twitter (ugh!). She tells the house guests “This is what you’ve wanted for a few weeks now, so merry freakin’ Christmas.” Squeaky John’s eviction speech is … WTF? I could barely understand him. CBS, would you please let the poor guy speak in his normal voice? Because the way you make him talk makes him appear ridiculous!

Clay and James vote to evict Audrey, but Austin votes to evict John. Jason says “For Da’Vonne, I vote to evict Audrey.” Vanessa, Becky, Jackie (in a rare appearance), Steve, Julia (Julie introduced her that way, clueing us into which twin is in the house at the moment), and Meg all vote to evict Audrey.

Audrey hugs Vanessa and then walks out the front door to a cheering audience. Julie says she’ll talk one-on-one with Audrey next, and we go right to commercial - which is very odd! Will it be a pre-taped interview? Will we get to see house guests’ recorded goodbye messages?

After the break, Julie does interview Audrey, asking her about her admission of being transgender and how she felt on the first day being so accepted in the house. “It was a spectacle moment in my life I’ll always remember.” (That's not a typo -- it's what she said.) “Was playing BB harder and different than you thought it’d be?” Audrey said she felt she didn’t play the game the way she had thought she would, and she talked a bit about  her “allies” Shelli and Clay (and Vanessa, Julie prompts).

Julie does play goodbye messages from Shelli, Squeaky John (to whom I say, STFU!!), Jason (who is fairly nasty to Audrey), and Steve. No hardball questions to Audrey from Julie before she sends her on the way and viewers directly to the live HOH competition. (By the way, BigBrotherGossip.com's IndyMike notes that Julie also didn't mention the Twins Twist to Audrey. Is there a chance that Audrey isn't really going home?!)

For this week's HOH, it's a (the?) music memory comp. Players have to remember whether the music to be played is from HOH, BoB, or Veto comps. Steve and Jason are up first, and Jason gets it right. John and Austin go next; Austin’s right. Jackie then eliminates Becky. Vanessa & Liz (really Julia) go next, and Vanessa rings correct. Jackie and Meg will go next, but Julie takes us to commercial.

Jackie rings correct. Austin and James are up (to the audience’s amusement, given the wide disparity in their heights -- they totally reminded me of Schwartzenegger and DeVito in the movie "Twins"); James eliminates Austin. Next, Vanessa rings in correctly first. James and Jackie are back (Julie says one will become the first HOH); James rings in first but incorrectly, so Jackie is the first HOH! I’m already looking forward to this.

Now it’s Vanessa and Jason for the second HOH spot: Vanessa rings in first and correctly, so she’s the second HOH! We go to commercial.

Now it’s time for Julie to visit with Brittany Haynes (of #BB12 and #BB14), “one of the most likable and hysterical house guests of all time.” Julie asks Brittany about motherhood first, and then about why #BB17 is one of her favorite seasons. “I love Jason - we could have been the Twin Twist. I really like Vanessa as a player. She’s smart and has a good read on people. And who doesn’t love Johnny Mack right now?” (I don’t!) “Nobody knows what he is right now. Is he human?” They talk briefly about the Twin Twist, and then Brittany says “Vanessa has a great shot” at winning the season. “Either Shelli or Clay will get picked off pretty soon.” She comments on Jackie being a mostly-absent floater, but now she’s HOH. “I just saw her for the first time!” Ha — okay, that interview was slightly more entertaining than I thought it’d be.

Julie promotes the Twin Twist for next Thursday — if the twins survive next week’s eviction, they’ll both be in the house as players. And … that’s it! We’re done for now.

Should CBS have given us more in-depth coverage of the Audrey meltdown, particularly her hours and hours of time in the DR? Now that “staff member” Jackie is HOH, giving her a chance to actually do something of substance in the game, do you think she will work with or against Vanessa? Is Audrey being sequestered for a possible return even though it's not jury time yet? Comment below or hit me up at @uselesstraffic.
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