Mike nominated Nicole and Sheryl for eviction because he saw it as a perfect way to guarantee Nicole's exit. But can she actually pull it out? Big Brother 2's new way of voting can cause some changes in strategy that just might make it possible for Nicole to stick around.
It occurs to me, as we move towards the first eviction, that one of the changes made to this year’s Big Brother stands out among the rest as having the most impact on the game. Instead of being voted out by the viewing public, contestants are voted out by each other. Now obviously this is a big change – that much is obvious. But what might not be so obvious is what kind of strategic changes the players themselves have to make in the face of this. For example, if the old rules were in effect, Nicole would be dead in the water. Nobody dislikes Sheryl – why should they? There’s nothing to dislike as far as the viewers can see. But because the fellow contestants are voting, they aren’t just going to go with who they like; they’re going to have to factor strategy into it. So because Sheryl is so well-liked, this may be the best opportunity for some of the other contestants to boot her out the door.
Indeed, this is exactly what Kent is thinking, and he may not be the only one. Nicole has been going person-to-person, trying to talk people into sticking with her. She’s very adamant that she won’t “whore” herself or change who she is, but she’s not just giving up either. In fact, she’s found a new lease on life because she has a mission: Get rid of Will. She doesn’t care if she ends up losing, as long as she goes after the arrogant jerk. Bunky has also made it his mission in life to get rid of Will. He views Nicole as an ally in this and so may vote to keep her around. Kent is definitely in the anti-Will camp. Then again, he has been hopping around in strategies so much, he might be Will’s best friend by next week.
So, what else went on during Tuesday’s episode? Let’s start with Bunky. You may have noticed that Bunky is rather hirsute. In fact, if he laid down, he might be mistaken for a rug. Well, Krista decided to get a little creative and she shaved (with his permission) “BB2” into his back hair. I knew they were weaving promos into the show, but I didn’t know they’d go quite that far. Anyway, he continued his coming out party and eventually it was Kent’s turn. He had been avoiding telling Kent because Kent had earlier talked about homosexuality being perverse and the like. But Kent was surprisingly understanding. The two of them talked about Bunky’s childhood and growing up gay. Bunky said he would be straight if he could, and Kent said he admires Bunky for being who he is in a straight world. They even hugged at the end of their conversation. It was kind of a surreal moment and I almost find myself not disliking Kent so much. In fact, compared to some of the other folks we’ve gotten to know better, I’d rather keep Kent around!
Speaking of those other people, let’s get back to Will. In summary, Will is an arrogant ass. Sure, they filled up about half an hour showing just how arrogant and just what an ass he is, but take it from me, you don’t need to see it all. He talks about himself as if he is God’s gift to humanity – especially women (and 14-year-old girls!). The incredibly strange thing is that Shannon continues to hang out with him, snuggle with him, sleep with him (so far it does appear to just be sleeping), and listen to all of his crap. Frankly, it’s amazing. My respect for her is dropping by the minute. My estimation of her intelligence is as well.
But some of the others are falling for his act, too. He called for a 24-hour fast, claiming it was some sort of spiritual cleansing thing. But in private, he told the camera that it was simply his way of exercising power over the others, acting as puppet-master and making them dance as he pulled the strings. A few of them figured this out, but others went along. It’s amazing what bored people will do.
Kent and Justin – allies as of just last episode – also got into a fight that almost looked like it would turn physical. Kent brought his own “personal pillow” from home and Justin took it to bed with him. Kent stormed in and got it, claiming it was the second time that had happened. They yelled at each other for a while before Justin stormed back in. Of course, Justin would later say that he was just goofing around, but it’s rather difficult to tell when he’s serious and when he’s not. I think the assumption should be that he’s never serious, and, from what I’ve seen, usually a jerk. But who knows?
Two other things they did were put together by Big Brother. First, they did a video tour of the house and turned it into an amusing little movie. There were actually some scenes that got a laugh. But even that showed how much Will wanted to control everything. The other was a contest for a good meal, where they had to spell out the meal with their bodies and Mike, the Head of Household, came in and looked down at them to see if he could figure it out. He did – filet mignon (they just spelled “filet”). So everybody was happy – well, Nicole’s a vegetarian but she went along with it and hoped to get a nice baked potato.
So, where is everybody in terms of voting? Justin said he doesn’t want Nicole to leave. Kent wants to get rid of Sheryl. Krista wants Nicole to stay. Bunky wants to keep Nicole so she can help get rid of Will. That’s five votes (including Nicole herself) against Sheryl.
Will wants Nicole gone (he admitted that he’s scared of her). Shannon will almost certainly vote with Will. So there are three votes against Nicole (including Sheryl’s).
Mike cannot vote because he is Head of Household and put forth the nominations.We didn’t hear much from Hardy and can’t really judge how he might vote. Autumn seems to want to get rid of Will, but similarly doesn’t want to get rid of Sheryl. She’s a mystery for now. Monica is up in the air as well. Kent tried to lobby her over to the side of Nicole, but I rather doubt that worked. He’s not exactly Mr. Subtle. So three votes are up in the air. Nicole only seemingly needs one of those three to come over to her side in order to actually pull this one out. Then again, there are still several days and anything could happen during that time.
As I said at the beginning of this article, the strategy has definitely changed.
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