This was a really sad week in the BB house and for me as we said goodbye to Tommy. I know I said that last week was my Ode to Tommy since I thought he was going, but I need to say one more thing. I think Tommy Bracco is an amazing person and I hate the way he left. I wish Cliff and Nicole had just said they were sticking with the F4 and that the 4 of them did not put Tommy through what they did – Jackson making up the lie, Holly backing him on it, and all of them making Tommy feel awful. I have empathy for Tommy and sympathy for his family and friends having to watch the short clip Thursday night and extended clip on Sunday. I loved Tommy from his preseason interview, through the season due to his constant positivity and kindness and even more due to his classy exit after the way he was treated. Kudos to his parents for raising a great kid! Tommy Bracco for AFP! He has my votes.
My ranking is completely biased, since it reflects how much I want them to win. However, I try to be as objective as possible when discussing their game play and position in the house.
Favorite
1. Nicole: Nicole has shown so much personal growth this season. She came into the house seeing herself as a tough New Yorker and quickly realized that there wasn’t much bite to her bark when she was away from home. Everyone she was friends with left early – Ovi, Kemi, Bella and Sam. Those she was allied with also left – Kat, Jess and Nick. She learned to show her silly quirky side and that people liked her for it. She has had fun being silly with so many of the house guests – Tommy, Kat, Holly, Jackson, Jess and Sis. Her loyalty to Cliff has been constant, from the Fellowship of the Zing, to Cliff’s Angels and then their F2. She will most likely win AFP because she is loved by many fans and CBS is finally giving her some air time!
Position in the House: Nicole is safe this week as HOH. However, she is going to have to win the F3 HOH competition in order to make it to F2. Neither Holly nor Jackson will bring her to F2. If she wins the F3 HOH, hopefully she is smart enough to bring Holly with her. She can beat Holly, but I don’t think Nicole can beat Jackson unless the jury is really bitter.
Game Play: Nicole has a great game story and I think the jury will realize it, especially with Nick and Cliff there to advocate for her. Underdog to DE HOH winner, followed by F5 veto and guaranteed F3! Nicole was in the minority for 7 weeks. Not only was she on the block, but Holly, Kat and Sis wanted her out other weeks. She survived being on the block and has also developed great relationships with all of the HGs and jury members. Now she has two critical competition wins (both mental and physical) and broke up the Tommy and Christie duo (something BB fans have wanted ALL season). If she wins the F3 HOH competition, she will get even more respect from the jury.
Meh
2. Cliff: Cliff really disappointed me this past week. He told Jackson, Holly and Nicole that he would do whatever Nicole wanted, but it was clear through his words and actions that he really just wanted to convince her to evict Tommy. I do think he considered it for a brief period of time, but I think most of the waffling was just leading Tommy and Nicole on. I think Cliff realizes now that Nicole was right – don’t go to the F4 with a showmance! Cliff isn’t my favorite HG, but I still think he’s a good guy and I like his relationship with Nicole (and his family).
Position in the House: Cliff is gone this week. Jackson will use the veto and evict Cliff and keep Holly. I don’t see any type of reset happening this late in the game, especially with the lengthy (or potentially lengthy) competitions this week. Luckily for Nicole, Cliff will be a big cheerleader for her game play in jury!
Game Play: I am not a huge fan of the floater game, but Cliff made it work for the first 7 weeks. He came back from banishment. He came back from eviction and won HOH. He was in the minority for 7 weeks. He has been on the block 5 different weeks – now 6! Cliff’s biggest mistake was not breaking up the showmance at F5. He truly believed that Jackson was willing to evict Holly at F4 and go with Cliff and Nicole to F3. This didn’t make sense to any viewers and I have no idea why Cliff believed him.
Can’t be redeemed and I want them out ASAP
3. Holly: Well, Holly moved up this week because, every time I think I can’t dislike Jackson more than I already do, he proves me wrong! It would bring me great pleasure for Holly to beat Jackson at the F2! If Nicole doesn’t win the F3 HOH, I am hoping for a REALLY bitter jury!
Position in the House: Holly is now in the best position in the house. She might not know it, but she is now guaranteed F2! Jackson and Nicole will both bring her with them.
Game Play: The only chance Holly has of beating someone in the F2 is if the jury is really bitter against Jackson. She probably has two votes (Kat and Jess) against Jackson, but the rest do not think she has played her own game. It won’t help her case that she was willing to throw the F4 HOH competition to Nicole. The only other possibility would be if Holly won the F3 HOH competition and took Nicole to F2. That might earn her enough respect from the jury to win. I doubt it would happen, but it’s possible.
4. Jackson: I respect his game (see below), but I have no respect for him as a person. When it comes to Jackson, I don’t think his poor treatment of others for the first 7 weeks and poor sportsmanship in the game (e.g., as a HN) should be rewarded and I hope he isn’t in the F2. If he is, I sincerely hope he doesn’t win.
Position in the House: As the F4 veto winner, Jackson is completely safe this week. He also has a great chance of going to the F2 because he is great at many types of competitions and Holly would bring him to the F2 with her if she wins. The only way he won’t go to F2 is if Nicole wins the F3 HOH competition.
Game Play: Jackson has played a good game. He has the respect of the jury, despite them all acknowledging at different times that they don’t like how he treats people. He won camp director and managed to not be an immediate target. He was part of the majority alliance for the first 5 weeks. Though he was the catalyst that caused it to implode (telling Jack about Kat and Holly knowing each other), he still managed to survive the block during Jess’ HOH and to get back with Tommy when Tommy was HOH. Since then, he’s been back in the majority with Holly. Jackson’s social game has been inconsistent. He originally had a great social game with Jack, Cliff, Nicole and Tommy. However, his social game with Sis, Nick, Kat, Jess and Christie was all over the place. Though he has recently upset Tommy, Nicole and Cliff, I still think they’d all vote for him to win over Holly. I hope the jury is bitter against him, but I actually don’t see that happening. I think he will beat Nicole or Holly at F2.
I know some BB Fans think that Jackson “deserves” to win. First, I don’t think anyone “deserves” to win. It’s a game. There is no deserving in a game. They are all still there and whoever makes it to F2 “deserves” to be there. Who wins will be determined by the jury. As a HG, it’s your job to get to know your fellow HGs. It’s your job to “read” the jury and figure out how you think they will vote. And, it’s your job to play the game accordingly. There’s no set of criteria the jurors are given to weigh the F2. There’s no judge to tell them what “evidence” to regard and disregard. They each will use their own personal criteria to determine who they want to win – just like we do as fans! Do I disagree with someone who wants Jackson to win? 100%!!! But, that’s the result of their criteria. Based on my criteria, it’s way past time for Jackson to be out of the house!
Thank you for reading my thoughts, if you got this far! Please reply and let me know what you think. :)
