Big Brother 11 Blog

Well, if you watched the on-air episode tonight, you know that Amber and Zach will remain on the block come Thursday. No backdoor, baby, and the Jeddi Alliance, as natvtxn tabbed them, or the Little Julie Chens, as they tabbed themselves, still live on.

BTW, big thanks to all you guys for the daytime updates.

Jessica and Eric are still ga-ga over each other, even though we know now that he does in fact have a real-life girlfriend named Cheryl, who happens to be quite cute. Stunning. Hey, don’t hate the playa, hate the game I always say.

A buddy of mine at work and I discussed this, and I think we’re pretty certain. We can speculate about rumors, hope that there is something else big coming up, but practically, it’s just not likely — not with only 21 days left in the game.

I still think it would have been the greatest twist of all time if Carol had been this unseen Internet love of Eric’s. But then again, I’m twisted.

Zach’s doing his best to campaign for his survival in an almost pathetic manner, like I actually feel a bit sorry for him. I’m twisted, but I do have somewhat of a soul. However, Amber has God on her side, meaning she can rely on spiritual strength and predestination for her survival.

This is a done deal, right?

I mean, Amber does have bigger and better things in store for her outside the house, like a career in modeling? Perhaps to be on the next season of America’s Next Top Model?

Personally, I’ve been clear about not liking Amber’s weepy personality. However, this season of Big Brother has been all about extreme personalities. Joe. Nick (c’mon, he had to have a psyche eval). Jen. Dick. Jameka. And Amber.

I’ll say it now. The strongest, most entertaining personalities the show has produced. Sure, it’s born out of insanity to a certain extent, but I’m looking for entertainment, not utopia.

But dear Amber is clearly suffering still from the meth addiction, methinks. However, as this video I found so aptly communicates, Amber has managed to entertain the BB community this season by the sheer grandeur of her delusions. That she has an equally wacky prayer partner in Jameka makes her survival this week, for the sake of OUR entertainment, an absolute must.

Long live crazy Amber!

Wow, what a couple of days for Eric. Not only does he WIN the PoV in his first try, he also works up enough courage to kiss Jessica after a bunch of wine.

OK, enough of that. I still need to eat today. It’s not that I’m not proud of my boy Eric (he should have done this weeks ago), it’s just that the sound of people making out literally makes me queasy.

BTW, we did not add “ferret face” to that video. Funny though.

The big question today, “strategically,” is whether America will ask Eric to use the PoV. And how awkward would THAT be if he uses the PoV against Jessica’s wishes 24 hours after making out with her.

Could be a tense 48 hours in the Big Brother house …

Does anybody else feel like we’re starting into the home stretch of BB8? Do you realize we have only 24 days left this season?

If you don’t know by now, Amber and Zach were nominated for eviction by new HoH Jessica. This upset Zach a bit, but he really believes he’s not the target this week.

If you’re asking me, I don’t think Jess really has a “target.” Nevertheless, Zach said he wasn’t mad about the nom, but why would he declare his rage, if he had any, this soon into the week?

In lieu of a food competition this week, the houseguests played a luxury comp that involved nudity. I’m scouring for video; I’m good like that. We’ll see.

We know that some of the women won clothes. I know nothing about any of the guys winning anything, but I could be wrong. What I have been able to figure out is that Amber’s breasts apparently look like pyramids.

This came from Eric, whose relationship with Jessica took a turn for the serious on Friday. We also know now why Eric said what he said to Jen on the way out the door during the live eviction Thursday night. The skinny is that Jen started telling people that Eric has a girlfriend back home.

We know at this point that there was a pregnancy scare in one of his relationships a couple years ago.

We also know that he has had a long-distance relationship with somebody, although I heard that second-hand.

But for as much as I came to Jen’s defense, insomuch as I declared how amusing she could be, I have to say that this annoys me somewhat. In the HoH room, Eric did the typical nerdy guy thing where he notes the obvious — that he’s nerdy and she’s hot.

Jess said that, for her, it’s way more about personality, adding that she’s seen his boyz, meaning that she knows “what she’s getting herself into.” She added that she never would have thought she would develop feelings for anybody in the house, one of the first times she’s acknowledged to Eric verbally what she’s said for weeks now non-verbally.

In terms of strategy, there is some buzz heating up that the D&D/J&E alliance could come to a crashing halt if either Amber or Zach gets pulled off via Saturday’s PoV. Why? Jessica ain’t putting up Jameka. Not a chance.

She’ll put up Dick, and Dick will go home. Promise.

Here’s why I think this. Based on the conversations and posts and your discussions and the videos I’ve seen, I’m not 100 percent sure that right now, in this stage of the game, that Dick would even have his daughter’s vote.

It’s not a matter that she now “hates” her dad, even though they have bickered the past couple of days. It’s that Daniele seems to have a clearer and clearer vision of the end. Of winning. And, I don’t think she wants it to come down to a jury picking between her and E.D.

***

On a side note, before BB8 totally winds down, we want to invite you to our new Web venture: must-read-tv.com. It’s a blog devoted to information and conversation among tv geeks — those of us who like reality television, those of us who like scripted shows, those of us who watch game shows, TV news, soap operas, whatever.

We want your comments, and we want your participation. If you have a show or subject you’re passionate about, and you can assemble a sentence, let us know. Truth is, this blog is nothin’ without you guys commenting and arguing and speculating and laughing about a show that eats up two months of boob-tube (and beyond) viewing each year.

So, if you just want to check us out, that’s cool. We’re just getting started.

However, we’re open to written participation. Heck, maybe you have a YouTube account and want to do a video blog each week about your favorite show. Cool. Seriously, like the houseguests say, “whatev!”

***

My questions to you guys this fine Saturday:

1. Do you think Dick will get backdoored?

2. Who do you think the houseguests would evict between Amber and Zach?

3. Do you think that once the show is over and Jessica is watching it back … do you think she’ll still “like” Eric the way she does now? Will she like him more? Or, will she want nothing to do with him?

Really, I thought this would go the other way. However, big-brother-blog.com visitors decided that Jen Johnson should be sent to the sequester house on Thursday night.

If she goes.

Right now, it seems to be up in the air whether she even stays in the house up to the live show. She’s made mention of a discussion with her agent before sitting in a jury house with Dustin, and the idea that she wouldn’t get much face time between now and Sept. 18 might just make her co-existence with the Big Brother franchise too personally unfruitful for her to bear.

Nevertheless, just about 35 posters, out of 134 posts — about 60 to 70 percent of which had actual votes on them — said Jameka should be sent packing. Many BB fans have tired of her apparently pious ways, her sow-like eating habits and her way with the words, “Hmmm. Mmmm and Mmmmkay.”

However, many more posters found Jen to be the bigger threat, and many referred to the fact that Jameka is not able to play for the HoH for three more weeks. Not even Jen’s wackiness this week was enough to save her.

So, by the power of Greyskull or whoever runs this joint, in the name of all that’s Big Brother Holy, we evict Jen Johnson from the Big Brother house and banish her to stay with Dustin. Alone. For a whole week.

It’s been a crazy week in the Big Brother 8 house with Jen going nuts, Dani and Amber playing “Power of 10,” etc. etc.

So, let’s open up the online diary room. Do you evict Jen, or do you evict Jameka?

Spell out your strategic reasons why you choose the way you do, and we’ll count up the votes tonight at 9 p.m. BBT (11 p.m. CDT). We’re 2 for 2 in picking who will be evicted, so let’s see if we can make it 3 for 3!

Voting is open …

So, have you been away from our blog for awhile? Don’t have the live feeds, you say? Oh, you just watch the TV show part of Big Brother 8?

Holy moly. Where have you been?

Where to start. First, Jen douses Dick’s cigs in Clorox and eats, a violation of her previous PoV agreement to chow on slop the rest of the show, while Dick gets pissed and nearly in a fistfight with Jen moments before the California nanny got a penalty nomination for violating the rules, a decision from producers that affects Jameka greatly given Jen’s newly found lame-duck status …

< coming up for breath >

The day that Dani and Amber, who won 1st and 2nd place in this week’s PoV, earned a trip to New York, not for some day at the spa or something relaxing but to appear on the new CBS game show “The Power of 10,” in which one or both of them could win millions of dollars (seriously), throwing other parts of this game into limbo unbeknownst to the rest of the house, who find out early Tuesday afternoon that Jen only got a penalty vote not a nomination, something producers decided to rectify so as not to unjustly affect Jameka …

< take a big breath >

Dani and Amber leave the house for 24 hours, and insanity ensues.

For about 18 hours, it did look like Jameka was a goner given Jen’s new strategy to break every rule imaginable. However, given the decision of Big Brother to do right by Jameka, it looks like Jen will be evicted sooner rather than later.

We’ll open up the diary room tomorrow for your say in the matter, and I have a feeling you’ll disagree with Thursday’s outcome. However, to say things can change on a dime in the Big Brother house is an understatement.

My question to the community is this: Has Big Brother gone to far with the tinkering this year? We’ve heard countless times about DR sessions in which producers make recommendations, and then today BB gets way involved, changing its mind on the fly.

My take is this: I agree with one poster who said this is probably the most entertaining cast yet on Big Brother, but at the same time, it’s the most maddening, the most crass and the most vulgar. However, I’m not ashamed to admit my guilty pleasure, and I like a lot of the tweaks Big Brother has done this year. However, I would advise them to tighten up their rulebook next season so houseguests won’t be able to take advantage so easily.

Now, it’s your turn … Your thoughts?

Jen’s nominated, and now she’s gone scorched earth.

First, she’s eating regular food, which I suppose would have earned her a penalty nom. I wouldn’t be surprised if she walked before Thursday. Seriously.

Second, she consults with the diary room about destroying Dick’s cigarettes. DR says she can hide ‘em but not destroy ‘em. Alas, considering she’s going the scorched earth route, she’s taking the Clorox to his Marlboro reds.

Sacrilege!

BB steps in apparently and saves three cartons, or perhaps they replaced his destroyed cigs with new ones. I can’t tell. However, at this point, it’s war, and she isn’t going to leave the Big Brother house quietly.

At one point, Jen grabs a smoke from Dick’s hand darn nearly causing a fistfight on the porch. The feeds went to trivia, and Showtime went to black. However, the feeds came back, and Dick turned on his charm in one of the funnier videos (sorry, it’s mean but it’s funny) this season.

One of the great things about Big Brother is the Power of Veto. Even if the HoH wins it, he or she can use it to trump their initial nominations in lieu of something more certain because, face it, the backdoor nomination always goes home, right?

Well, Jen Johnson’s time to head to jury could be two days from now.

Amber traded one week of Daniele’s safety next week should she win HoH if Daniele would hook her up this week. What Amber didn’t know was that Daniele planned to do this anyway … That Daniele is a smart cookie. Nevertheless, the two of them were slated to spend some time together outside the house (overnight, even) as part of a prize they won from BB.

Look, Daniele’s target was Jen the entire time, and everything on Daniele’s birthday week is just coming up roses. Her dad stayed. She got a letter from Nick. She won PoV. She won a trip outside the house, and … she pretty much got to pick the evictee this week … Jen.

Considering Jameka cannot win HoH for at least two more weeks, she’s 100 percent safe for now. Why anybody would vote to evict Jameka, strategically, at this point is beyond logic. Jen isn’t really aligned with anybody steadfastly, and she competes well enough to be a threat. Unfortunately for those of us who like a little suspense, this is as close to a slam dunk as we could possibly get.

Right now, in fact, it would be unanimous, 5-0.

Unless America tells Eric to evict Jameka, it will be unanimous. At least America allowed him to give his Woobie to Jessica. I’m tellin’ ya’, he gives the nerds of the world hope because I could 100 percent stalk that woman.

I kid. I kid.

Jen is quite disappointed at what has transpired, but there’s nothing she can do. She did tell Dick that there was no way either he or Daniele would have her vote, to which he replied that she should quit pouting. By the way, it was the first time I’ve seen Mr. Donato inside the gym.

With everything going right for the birthday girl, you’d think she was actually “Alice” in Wonderland …

Anyhoo, do you think there’s any chance Jen survives this? I don’t, but we’ll open the online diary room tomorrow to let you guys cast an official ballot.

In an expected move, HoH Daniele nominated the twosome we’ve come to know as the Bible Belt — Amber and Jameka. It’s Amber’s second time on the block, after her nomination in Week 1, but it’s the first for Jameka.

As things stand now, Daniele’s hope is that one of them wins the PoV so she can back-door Jen. Jen doesn’t know about this, and from all accounts would be devastated given that she believes Dani likes her. So, as it’s been the past several weeks, there’s a good chance the Bible Belt won’t be split up at all.

The intrigue over the next couple of days will center on the reaction from Amber and Jameka. Amber’s taken to an extremely somber disposition, spending most of her time in bed on the verge of tears. On the other hand, Jameka has kept a relatively positive outlook.

What will also be interesting is whether the other PoV contestants will actually heed Dani’s wishes should they win. And will this be Eric’s first PoV competition?

Which of these two would you most like to see go home? Or, would you prefer another houseguest to get backdoored? Right now, it looks like the only backdoor options are Jen or Zach, but perhaps you see this playing out differently?

Post those comments …

The feeds are back on after the Big Brother 8 houseguests finished the food competition — a rousing round of slop pong, a take off on the houseguests’ late-night beer-pong battles.

I do believe I heard Zach say that it was ironic that the people who normally played beer pong did not fare well in the slop version, which was contradicted by Zach eating two giant ham and cheese sandwiches, alongside a grilled cheese sandwich, washed down by a big, frosty Diet Coke.

Ahhh, the product placement. I’m hungry.

Zach did say that Eric hit the winning shot, so maybe I misheard.

Jen and Jameka are in the gym talking about nominations. Jen asks her who she think new HoH Daniele will nominate, and the 28-year-old school counselor from Maryland said she had no idea.

Really?

Just minutes before, in the storage room, Jameka told Amber that she had a feeling that this was going to be a good week. If you’re asking me, I’d say it’s cut and dry that Dani’s going to nominate Amber and Jameka and then try to backdoor Jen.

However, what has made BB great is its sheer unpredictability. One argument, one slip-up, one banner, one secret can turn this game on its head. It looks like nominations will be forthcoming in the next couple of hours with a PoV competition slated for early Saturday afternoon as usual.

In weeks past, I’ve posted my houseguest rankings, an effort I abandoned last week given the volatility of the house. However, here’s how I see things shaping up in terms of odds to win the whole thing:

Daniele: - She’s not the best player mentally, but relative to competitions, she’s the best. The absolute best. We have to remember that if she can survive to the Final 4, the game depends pretty much solely on competitions. Plus, she’s aligned with a great strategic player.

Her chances? Excellent.

Dick: - He was part of the biggest coup in Big Brother history, and I really think he’s gained some game-respect among his competitors. However, with Amber, Jameka or Jen gone next week, there is still a chance that Zach or Amber or Jen (whoever’s left) can win an HoH. Dick’s problem is that he’ll be THE target in that case.

Nevertheless, he’s a good, good player strategically. A great player, and seriously, the comparisons to Dr. Will we scoffed at earlier should be considered very seriously right now.

His chances? Very good.

Eric: - He executed this great coup, and he’ll take all the heat eventually. However, he’s a brilliant strategist and short-term alliance builder. But if he were to make it to the Final 4, I don’t like his chances in the competitions, and he’ll lose a final vote to anyone given that I do not believe the jury house will know of the twist. I write this because Dustin’s exit interviews with various Web sites do NOT acknowledge “America’s Player,” which they did with everyone else.

Nevertheless, Eric’s as good as Dick strategically.

His chances? Moderate.

Jessica: - She’s tied at the hip with Eric, but she came out of Thursday’s Dustin eviction clean as a whistle. She’s virtually a shoo-in for the Final 4, and at that point, it’s all about competitions.

Her chances? Very good.

Zach: - Opinion on the 30-year-old Florida State grad has changed in terms of game strategy. He was integral in Dick’s survival, but everybody in the house still overlooks him. Nevertheless, he sucks at competitions but would be a viable candidate to win in the finale given that he hasn’t alienated too many people, meaning the other houseguests will look to target him sooner rather than later.

His chances? Moderate.

Jen: - She’s goofy. She’s not very well liked. She gave up half the prize winnings, virtually ensuring a loss in the finale. However, she’s good at the competitions, meaning she could survive for a while. Long term though, she’s got no chance given the prize-money surrender.

Her chances? Poor.

Jameka: - Eric said it better than I could when he noted that she’ll beat anybody in a finale. She’s right, but only because she’s stayed true to herself even in the face of house criticism. Jameka is like Dick in a lot of ways in that, with her, what you see is what you get. In fact, a finale with Jameka and Dick would be very, very hard to call.

However, her decision to forfeit HoH opportunities was a killer. If she doesn’t go this week, she will absolutely go in the next three weeks. If not, it will be truly a great survival story, like her or not.

Amber: - When we had a survey asking all of you who was the best player so far, the Las Vegas cocktail waitress got all of one vote. While I hate criticizing women for being “emotional” given that it’s a criticism men often make of women unfairly, Amber takes it to a whole new level.

I’ve literally never seen anybody cry so much. Ever. In fact, she is so down in the dumps right now, I hope the producers have hidden all overdosable pills.

If she were to win this show, I would be stunned beyond belief. In fact, she’s the one houseguest I think stands no chance. None.

Her chances? I just told you.

Now for some questions that have come up in the comments:

1. Eric and the money. He has to complete FIVE tasks to get $10,000. It’s not $2,000 per task; it’s $10,000 for five. He has to complete five to get anything, and at this point, I suspect he is close to earning $20,000 or is starting the next five toward $30,000.

Now, for those of you who don’t know, these houseguests are paid. It’s nominal, but if you’re in the jury house, I think you get about $2,500 per week. Not chump change at all. Eric will walk away with a good amount, probably equivalent to what the runner-up gets, regardless.

2. Big Brother does it all for the ratings. OK, I’ve seen a lot of these comments, and knowing something about the television industry, I wanted to clarify a couple of things.

First, summer television shows do not rack up big ratings, no matter what. However, in the industry, these shows can be cash cows. They’re cheap to produce, and frankly, if they make anything, it’s a win.

Right now, NBC’s “America’s Got Talent” is the biggest summer show on television. Normally, it will pull a 2.8 to 3.2 rating on Tuesday nights, and Big Brother will do a 2.6 on the same night with a 2.0 on Sundays and a 2.6 to 2.8 on Thursdays. All of this numbers mumbo-jumbo relates to how many millions of TVs are tuned to this show.

OK, before I bore you to death with numbers, here’s the kicker. Big Brother’s ratings have climbed into that 3.0 to 3.2 range, a significant climb from last season. Our show is doing so well right now relative to network expectation that it’s almost assured of returning for the next couple of years, and we (the online community) are among the reasons why.

Sure, CBS probably wanted Dick to stay in the house, but I’m telling you that even more than Mr. Donato’s survival, they noticed us arguing about it. Being passionate about it. Blogging about it. In fact, the YouTube era of online video sharing has only served to make this game even more popular.

Does that mean CBS would try to compete with the big boys of the fall or winter seasons? No. The network isn’t trying to produce American Idol like numbers. They want a small but dedicated and insanely loyal group of viewers during the summer months, when television watching is traditionally down.

In other words, while the producers certainly didn’t weep at Dustin’s demise, they aren’t doing anything out of the ordinary to “rig” a show that’s only getting a 3 rating.

If you have comments or questions about the show itself you’d like answered, I’ll be “America’s Researcher” for you and do my best to get the info and post it here. So, ask away!