Hi, everyone!

It’s nearly over and new show is about to begin!

Here’s what is going to happen tomorrow night:

At 7:00, on CBS, we have the season premiere of Survivor: Gen X vs. Millennials!  I will be writing about that show over at Reality TV Chat Blog!

And then, at 8:30, it’ll be time for the finale of Big Brother 18!  We will see the final part of the HoH competition, followed by the jury’s questions.  Then, a new winner of Big Brother will be crowned and we’ll find out who America’s Favorite Player is!  We’ll probably also get a preview of Big Brother Over The Top as well.

As soon as the finale ends, I’ll be posting my recap here!

Can you believe it’s nearly over?

Okay, see y’all tomorrow!

Lisa Marie

P.S. And if you haven’t voted in our poll yet, go over to the right side of the page and do so!  Who do you want to see win Big Brother Season 18!?

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Hi, y’all!

Well, there’s not much to report.  Sorry about that.  That’s kind of what happens when there’s only three people left in the house.  Big Brother is kind of dragging out this final week.  I would have preferred to have them do the first round of the HoH comp on Thursday night, the 2nd part on Friday night, and then the 3rd part (and the finale) on Sunday.

I can understand why they didn’t.  For one thing, doing the finale on Sunday would have meant competing with the Emmys and, obviously, they like to do the Big Brother Finale and the Survivor premiere on the same night.  But, for some one who has to write daily about the Big Brother House, it gets tough when there’s only three people left in the house.

So, for purely selfish reasons, I wish they’d get it over with as quickly as possible.

Today, two things happened that are worth mentioning,  First off, production told the houseguests about Big Brother Over The Top and ordered the three of them to write out some advice for the new houseguests.  None of them seemed to be too happy about Big Brother Over The Top, nor were they all that enthusiastic about offering up advice.

Paul’s advice was “Play your own game and remember you’re not Dan or Derrick.”

Nicole came up with, “You’re playing Big Brother, not Big Baby.”

James … I have no idea what he came up with. James, honestly, seems to be kind of mentally checked out at this point.

However, I can tell you this: James knows.  Earlier today, while Paul and Nicole were in the backyard and swearing to take each other to the final two, James was secretly listening from the kitchen.  So, he now pretty much knows that neither one of them is planning on carrying him to the final two.  It doesn’t appear that James has made any effort to change either Paul or Nicole’s mind.  Maybe he’ll try to work on them later but, again, James just seems to be out of it.

Anyway, right now, Paul is playing pool with James.  Paul keeps saying, “Do or die.”  I’m Team Paul but if he says “Do or die” one more time, I might have to switch to either James or Nicole.  (Just kidding — but seriously, Paul really can be annoying.)

Lisa Marie

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Hi, everyone!

Well, there’s not much to really report about the house.  As Margie mentioned in the comments under the previous post, the final three did spend some time talking about the previous houseguests and all the strategizing and scheming that went on this season.  From what I heard, Paul is very confident in every decision that he made.  Nicole seems to be continually trying to convince herself that she was a stronger player than she actually was.  And James — well, James still seems to be worrying about winning AFP.

Here’s the thing: the main reason that James won AFP last season was because 1) he frequently talked about how he needed the money for his daughter, 2) he was platonically loyal to Meg, and 3) he seemed like a nice guy (especially when compared to Austin, the twins, and Vanessa).  James seems to think that he won because he pulled a lot of pranks and made a lot of jokes.  Even at this late date, he seems to think that his fans will get mad at him if they seem him strategizing or actually playing the game.

Right now, Paul and Nicole are practicing their final two speeches.  James is not.  James is hanging out in the kitchen.

As for the speeches … well, I’m biased.  At this point, I am firmly Team Paul.  Yes, there’s a lot of things about Paul that annoy me.  I probably wouldn’t ever want to hang out with him.  But, as far as this game is concerned, I think Paul deserves to win.  I think he’s played the best game.

And that’s the case that Paul is making in his final two speech.  His strategy appears to be to emphasize that he did what he had to do in order to survive.  He’s going to point out that he had a target on his back from the start but he managed to survive, both through winning challenges and making good alliances.  In my opinion, he’s on the right track as far as his speech is concerned.

As for Nicole, she’s planning on emphasizing that she played strategically and not emotionally.  I don’t know if Nicole can really pull that off.  Her strategy mostly seemed to be go after whoever annoyed her on a week-to-week basis.  Nicole seems to know that a lot of people on the jury dislike her.  Speaking for myself, as I’ve listened to Paul and Nicole practice, I’ve been kind of shocked to discover just how inarticulate Nicole really is.  Paul may be loud but at least he knows more than just 25 words.

So, here’s my question.  Let’s say you were on the jury.  Let’s say that you had pick which of these HGs would get half a million dollars.  What do you want to hear in the final speech?  What would be the deciding factor in your vote?

Would you vote for the player who played the best game or would you vote for the player who you felt most needed the money?  Would you vote for the most likable player or would you maybe consider voting for someone who you personally couldn’t stand?  Would you vote for the most loyal player or would you vote for the player who did what he or she had to do in order to win?

In short, if you were on the jury, on what would you base your decision?

Lisa Marie

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Hi y’all!

Well, they finally got around to doing the 2nd part of the HoH comp last night.  Since Paul won the first round, he got to sit this one out.  Only James and Nicole competed in round 2 and, to no one’s shock, Nicole won!

Now, I don’t know for sure but I’ve seen some people speculating online that James may have actually thrown the comp or, at the very least, he didn’t try very hard to win it.  Going into round 2, James was confident that Nicole would take him to the final two with her.  The online speculation is that James may have thrown the comp because he felt that Nicole would have a better chance of beating Paul in round 3 than he would.

Knowing James, that logic wouldn’t surprise me.  This entire season, James has been more concerned with trying to win America’s Favorite Player than trying to win the game.  He doesn’t want to have to work too hard.  Instead, he wants to pull pranks and make jokes and do everything else that he believes his “fans” want to see him do.  Little does he know that a lot of his fans have turned against him specifically because of his refusal to actually play the game.

Well, regardless of whether James threw it or not, Nicole won the 2nd part of the HoH comp.  On Wednesday, she will face off against Paul.  The winner will be the final HoH and will be guaranteed a spot in the final two.

Nicole earlier told James that she would take him to the final two but she has also told Paul that she would take him.  Paul, meanwhile, has told Nicole that there’s no way he would take James to the final two.  It’s possible that either one of them could be lying but neither one of them seems to have much respect for James at this point.  They have both said that they don’t feel he deserves to be in the house.

But you know what?  This is Big Brother and you win by taking the weakest player with you to the final two.  Paul and Nicole may be pledging their loyalty to each other right now but come Wednesday, I still wouldn’t be surprised to see the final HoH take James to the final two.

We’ll see what happens!

Lisa Marie

By the way, if you look over at the right side of the page, you’ll see a new poll!  WHO DO YOU WANT TO WIN BIG BROTHER!?  Let us know and happy voting!

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Hi, y’all!

Well, I was hoping that I would be able to tell you who won the second part of the HoH competition but they have yet to do the competition tonight.  Earlier tonight, James was telling Nicole that he thinks that they’re not going to do the comp until tomorrow.  However, according to the Pop TV twitter account, the comp is going to be held tonight and that’s why Big Brother After Dark is currently showing a rerun.

As of this writing, however, the LFs are still up.  Nicole is currently talking to James about how she hates social media and she only needs a flip phone.  So, inside the BB House, they seem to be convinced that round two will not be until tomorrow.

So, who knows!?

What did everyone think about tonight’s episode?  Usually I hate the flashback episodes because they’re so obviously scripted and, for the most part, they only tell us what the producers think we want to see as opposed to what the viewers actually care about.

But this flashback episode was actually okay.  I could have done without watching everyone in the house cry.  Crybabies are never that much fun to watch.  And I wish someone would tell both James and production that the pranks got old pretty quickly.

But I did enjoy the little memorial montage that they ran for all the past houseguests.  I’m glad that they acknowledged Pablo the Pelican.  And I enjoyed the little montage of Victor laughing and the diary room segment.

OKAY — back to what’s happening in the house right now!  James just returned from listening at the door and he said that he can hear construction going on in the back yard.  So, I guess they’re getting round 2 of the final HoH comp set up.

I’ll keep watching and if we have a winner before I have to log out for the night, I’ll mention it in the comments below!

Lisa Marie

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Hi y’all!

With only three people left in the house, there’s really not much to report but here’s just a quick update on where we currently stand as far as the final HoH competition is concerned:

The first part of the three-part competition to become the final HoH was held last night.  It was an endurance comp, which is usually James’s strength.  In fact, I’m starting to believe that endurance might be James’s only strength.  However, James still lost.

And who won part one?

PAUL!

Here’s my theory: I think Paul actually wants to win.  James doesn’t care whether or not he wins.  He views this entire season as a chance to promote his own “celebrity” brand.  His main concern is winning AFP and maybe securing a spot in another reality show.  Since James’s main concern isn’t winning, he’s not willing to make the extra effort.

Paul, on the other hand, has had to fight to stay in this game.  For the first few weeks, he was everyone’s top target.  (It kind of reminds me of Dan Gheelsing’s first season.  The main difference is that, after managing to survive being targeted during the first few weeks, Dan decided to lay low for a while.  Paul’s taken the exact opposite approach.)  Even though Paul eventually did make some strong alliances, he’s never really been safe in the house.  Since Paul has actually had to play the game (as opposed to just floating to the end), he has a personal stake in actually winning.  As a result, he’s willing to make the extra effort.

(James seems to be so convinced that both Nicole and Paul are going to take him to the final two that I wouldn’t be surprised to learn he threw the final HoH.)

We’ll see the first part of the HoH comp tomorrow, on a special Friday episode of Big Brother.  Inside the house, Friday night is also when they’ll be doing the 2nd part.  It’ll be James vs. Nicole and whoever wins will move on to face Paul in Part 3 on Wednesday.

When last I checked on the LFs, Paul and Nicole were talking about how little respect they both have for James.  Paul says that he’ll take Nicole to the final two and Nicole has said that she’ll take Paul.  But, honestly, I don’t think either one of them is being totally honest about that.

I have a feeling that, regardless of who wins, James is going to be in that final two.  Right now, it seems that he would be the easiest person in the house to beat.

We’ll see what happens!

Lisa Marie

P.S. By the way, I’m adding a new poll to the site!  Over on the right side of the page, you can vote on whether or not you’ll be watching Big Brother Over The Top on CBS All Access.  Thanks!

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Hi, y’all!

Well, the highlight of tonight’s episode was definitely getting a look inside the jury house.  It’s amazing that Natalie is even more fake as a juror than she was as a houseguest.  (“I am so excited…”  Sure you are, Nat.)  Meanwhile, is anyone shocked that Zakiyah and Paulie are back together?  We all knew that was going to happen.

I was skeptical when Big Brother promised us an “explosive” jury house confrontation but Paulie and Da’Vonne going off on each other was pretty explosive.  Both Da’Vonne and Paulie have a very high self-regard and neither one is ever willing to back down from an argument.  The bearded Big Brother security guard probably stepped in at exactly the right time.

Of course, once Da’Vonne was led out of the room, Bridgette tried to get some camera time for herself.  The thing with Bridgette — and this was true in the Big Brother House and the Jury House — is that she’s only willing to speak up if someone else (like Da’Vonne) speaks up first.  Bridgette tries to come across like this she’s tough and outspoken but we all remember how she let Frank run her HoH.

As for what happened in the Big Brother House, it was pretty much what we all expected.  Paul did not use the veto.  James cast the only vote and he sent Corey to the jury house.  Corey kissed Nicole during his pre-eviction speech but after he was evicted, he seemed to specifically turn his head so she wouldn’t be able to get a second kiss.

(It’s funny that to think that, at the start of this season, everyone was convinced that this would be the Girl Power season of Big Brother.)

Anyway, your final three:

Paul

Nicole

James

That’s two veterans and Paul.  There will be no more veto comps.  The final three are now taking part in a three-part competition to see who will become the new HoH.  The new HoH will be guaranteed a spot in the final two and will pick both the final juror and who he or she wants to compete with for the final prize.

They’re doing the first round of the competition right now so the feeds are down currently.  When they come back up, we’ll find out who won the first part of the final HoH comp!

Lisa Marie

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Hi, everyone!

If you’re on the west coast or you DVRed it and you have yet to watch Tuesday’s episode, you need to stop reading now because I’m about to reveal some spoilers as far as the final four is concerned.

Okay, here’s your last chance to go to another site.

Tick tick tick tick tick…

TIME’S UP!

Okay, so tonight, Victor was voted out on a 2-0 vote.  Nicole and James both voted to evict Victor and he left the house for the third and final time.  No big surprise there.

Instead, the surprise came during the HoH competition.  Paul, James, and Nicole competed for the role of HoH.  The competition was one where they had to answer true or false about what certain houseguests send inside the house.  By his own admission, James is terrible at mental comps and he proved that tonight, only correctly answering three out of seven questions.

Instead, the comp ended with Nicole and Paul both tied at 6.  So, they did the thing where they had to guess a number and the one who guessed closest to the actual number got to be HoH.

And…

PAUL CAME TO THE CLOSEST AND WON HOH!

So, Paul is now HoH and has gone from being the number one target to being the only safe person in the house.

The feeds are not scheduled to come back on until 10:00 Big Brother Time.  That’s going to be 1:00 am, my time.  I may be out and about at that time so I’m going to go ahead and reopen the Diary Room.

Out of the three HGs who can evicted on Wednesday, who would you vote to evict?

Do you vote to evict:

COREY, the only tall person left

NICOLE, the only girl left

JAMES, the only father left

Cast your vote in the comments below or in the poll on the right side of the page!  And then tune in on Wednesday to see who Paul nominated, who won the veto, and who will be sent to the jury house!

Lisa Marie

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Hi, everyone!

Well, since the feeds are going to be down until late Tuesday night, let’s go ahead and open up the Diary Room!  Who do you vote to evict!?

Do you vote for

PAUL, the man with the beard and the laugh

or

VICTOR, the other man with the beard and the laugh

Cast your vote in the comments below or in the poll over on the right side of the page!  And then be sure to watch on Tuesday to see who will be sent to the jury house!

Lisa Marie

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