Big Brother 4: Point/Counterpoint on the Show and Remaining Contestants

Paris Cosby and Sting7 have been watching Big Brother 4, both on TV and the live feeds, and both have thoughts on this season overall and the players.

Paris

Last week I was just reading David Bloomberg's recap of Big Brother for August 12 and something he quoted struck me. "Robert says they are going to be remembered in this game." You know what? Newsflash for ya, Robert! No, you won't!

I can hardly sit through an episode of this show anymore. It's horrible! The characters drive me crazy or annoy and bore the crap out of me! The only remaining houseguests with any decency are Erika and Jack and yeah, like they'll win. I find myself just not wanting to watch it, let alone write about it.

I'll go through the characters for you and perhaps clarify why I think this season is the worst ever of Big Brother...

Alison: Can we say 'Debbie Does Dallas'? This girl is nothing short of the worst person I've ever seen on a reality show. There are no redeeming qualities to find there unless you're an 18-year-old boy in heat. Then you'd love Alison! You know, I liked her at the beginning but it's just gone on long enough. This girl would sell her grandmother to slave drivers if she thought she could get something out of it.

On one recent episode, she referred to herself as “the flirt.” Ummm, no! You're not a flirt, you're acting like an all-out "give it to me hard, baby" whore. Okay, yes, perhaps that's a little harsh. The thing that amazes me the most about this girl is that she, and everyone else there, refers to herself as being smart. How can you be an intelligent person and not realize that there are cameras on you 24 hours a day, monitoring your every move? All of this while cozying up with different men in the house while your boyfriend, Donny, watches! Then whine about how much you love him and miss him? Smart? No! Hormone issues maybe? Good lord, the girl would cuddle up to a rhino if she thought it would Veto her. Maybe I've read the entire thing the wrong way and this is perfectly okay within the boundaries of her relationship; however, I don't think she's a very nice person and not one I care to see on my television set any night of the week. Alison is one of the reasons I choose to often skip Big Brother. Even though, as Sting points out (below), she may understand how to play the game; but, for me, the way she has chosen to play it is questionable.

Justin: I kind of actually like Justin. He has played with integrity and other than his wee power trip last week, I don't have a problem with him. He's staying true to his alliance and, if he can survive this week (which I doubt), he may be able to win the game.

Jun: Ugh! Jun drives me nuts. She thinks she's Queen Sheeba or something. "I'm the Queen of the House." I am SO sick of hearing that! No, Jun, you're not. You're one of the evil step-sisters Erika needs to keep in line in the house, you are definitely not the Queen. Jun can cook, yes. Big freaking deal! It's not that difficult to cook. And, if I hear her say, "Yeah, well, y'know, like, whatever..." one more time, I'm going to scream back, "Yeah, well, y'know, like, whatever, STOP EATING SO MUCH! You're starting to scare small children in that bikini!"

On the plus side, yes, I agree with Sting (below), she does treat it like a game. I also wouldn't mind seeing her win the game because I think, even though her holier-than thou attitude drives me crazy, she's playing a great game. And not because she is cooking, but because of her alliance with Jee and the way she moves between alliances without really making herself a huge target. At least up until now.

Gosh, this is rather harsh, isn't it? I love Big Brother but this cast is making me really start to dislike the show. I spoke with Roddy earlier this week and I told him that I wasn't really enjoying this season. He said, "I've heard a lot of people say it's not as good as last year." Well, yeah! I'm sure some people are screaming to bring Brittney back; hell, even Nicole at this point! Geez! Okay, moving on...

Jee: He seems like a genuinely nice guy but could he get ANY more anal? I don't think he ever sticks up for himself either. And what was with the doorman thing? I wouldn't last a second in that house with Jee. My reaction to the whole, "Who is it? One moment while I see if he'll see you" thing would have been, "Oh, get the hell out of my way, you idiot. Where the hell do you think you are? Hugh Hefner's palace? This is the Big Brother house, you moron! Get the *&^% out of my way before I knock you over." I have little patience, obviously. I do not want to see someone like Jee win, he's floated his way through with the other two Stooges. The only smart thing he's done so far is have an alliance with Jun.

Robert: Whiny! Oh, this man is whiny! I remember watching the intro to this season and he said that he would be the one we would love to hate. That hasn't happened. All I can really remember of Robert is his whining. Do I hate him? No. Do I like him? No. I am barely aware that he's there.

Jack: Jack is an oddball, isn't he? He is one of the few characters I really like on this show. His one-liners are hilarious and even though his haircut is absolutely goofy, it endears him to me. He's the type of person I'd love to sit around with and just listen to the stories he must have to share. He's led an incredibly interesting life and that's what makes him such an interesting person to watch.

I'm not sure how he's going to pull it off but I'd like to see him in the house at the end of the show. Jack seems to know everything that goes on in the house and with an HOH win by him and another by Erika, you never know, he could be sitting pretty at the end. Jack may seem like he's not competitive in the competitions but I think he'll pull off a win or two just in time to save himself. He's playing a good, quiet game.

Erika: She's another "sleeper" that, I think, will spring into action when the chips are down. She showed us last week that she can win an HOH competition when she needs to. She isn't stupid and she's got one hell of an alliance partner in Jack. I'd be surprised to see the either of the two of them win but it would be a satisfying outcome to an otherwise annoying edition of Big Brother.

Sting7

I go by a totally different parameter. While I agree that last season was much more compelling, as were the people, I don't think anyone could call this the worst season ever (not when BB1 happened – I actually did stop watching that show).

Here's why: this is Big Brother 4, and from the live feeds, we know almost all of the HouseGuests were fans of the show (except for maybe Robert), so they know the drill. They all came in with game plans. Some of have worked better than others:

Alison: She really is a smart player. She may be a ho, ho-ish, ho-esque, but that doesn't make her stupid. She's won a mental HOH comp, she managed to get Nate to pull her off the block (at the end of the day, shame on him for falling for it), she has successfully gained a pseudo-ally in the head of the Stooges (her ex-boyfriend, Justin) while maintaining a nodding acquaintance with the Alliance. She is also smart enough to know that at some point, remembering various facts about the players, games, and events throughout the season will come back in a competition (and probably an important one), so she is constantly quizzing herself to make sure she is fresh on these facts. Ho-ish, sure. Stupid? Nuh-uh.

Justin: I actually kind of like Justin too. He's doing what he has to do to survive, and he is trying to play the game based on who lied to him (as David Bloomberg said in his recap, Jack only did it once, but he IS on the other team). He's not using personal vendettas, emotions, or any of that in his decision making. Looks like the game is about to catch up to him, but if he can save himself, I wouldn't be too bothered if he won.

Jee: A part of me thinks Jee is an idiot. I say that because Jun is leading him by the nose. While they have something of a secret alliance, she would slit his throat in a second if it served her purpose, and I don't know that he wholly understands that. He's also allowed himself to be Curly by letting Robert and Justin tease him relentlessly – and sometimes it's just downright MEAN. How can you be in an Alliance with people who don't respect you? But then he shows you that he may not be as dumb as he looks. Jee has shown he has some self-preservation mechanisms in taking Erika's deal in the cage, but then was so wracked with guilt over it (or pretended to be), he confessed it to the Stooges. He was so remorseful, Robert and Justin spent more time consoling him than remembering that he kind of did them in. Jee could just win this game.

Jun: She is something, ain't she? She is clearly a very smart woman (works in the financial world, went to college on scholarships), but she has a rather inflated view of herself. And her game plan seems to be to ride on the Stooges’ coattails while feeding info to both sides. It really bugged her that she was excluded from things during Justin's reign, and then declared herself true to the Alliance, much to the Alliance's surprise. Maybe Jun has decided the Stooges are history, but it may be a bit early for that. She thinks her cooking in the house (smart to entrench herself in the role) will make people reluctant to put her up, and that may have been true for a while, but her day of reckoning could be coming. The simmering Ali/Jun war will be brutal! Robert has issues with her too, and he has shown a propensity for smiling in your face and planning your demise simultaneously. What I like most about Jun is that she does understand IT'S A GAME. And while she may take tattling to a whole new level, I never get the feeling it's personal for her.

Robert: Waste of flesh. I don't even like seeing him on my feeds. How did he even get picked? Was Erika that compelling to have that BB was willing to drag this driftwood along?

Jack: Is on the verge of playing himself. He has quietly tried some maneuvering that always seems to blow up in his face (his attempt to get rid of Dana is what led her to put him up the first time; he tried to keep Ali swung the way of the Alliance, and that went way wrong; tried to sway Jee, no dice). While he tries to lay low, he's not made that way. He's obviously a threat and everyone knows that. If I were on the show, it would be job one to get the ex-FBI guy out. Even Erika has made a contingency plan in case Jack falls. Too sharp, too savvy. He really has to win HOH to stay alive. But his performances in the competitions have been so bad, the Stooges think he's throwing them! He isn't, he is very aware of his position, and the benefit of not winning the competitions (you're not seen as a threat) does not apply to him. I'm not sure that even winning HOH will do any more than buy him an additional week.

Erika: I was in the Erika camp till I saw those electric green pants. I saw the pink J-Lo boots on a live show, but I dismissed it as a momentary lapse of judgment. Those electric green pants tell me she may not be sane. Besides, her tendency not to speak is unnerving. You're talking right to her: she doesn't uh-huh, she doesn't nod, she says nothing. She is giving you no ammunition to use against her and how can you trust that completely? While you are talking about your plan, she may be thinking of her own plan that's gonna work perfectly now... or mess her up... or that you are about to make a huge mistake... argh! Erika has opened up a bit more during her HOH reign, enough to show the others that she is competing and not just gravitating in air. Erika is very sharp, she and Jack's scenario planning often leaves my head spinning, but she matches wits with the smartest guy in the room very well.

Want to keep up with important events in the house? Check out our Big Brother 4 Spoiler Page for news on who wins contests and other ongoing info.

Paris Cosby is a Canadian mother of three. You can send her fan mail, hate mail, or junk mail at pariscosby@hotmail.com. Sting7 can be reached at stingseven@yahoo.com.

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