September, 2016

Daily BB House Stats:
HOH – Victor
HOH Nominated – Natalie, James
Veto Winner – Corey
Evicted – #1 Jozea #2 Victor #3 Bronte #4 Tiffany #5 Frank #6 Da’vonne #7 Zakiyah #8 Bridgette #9 Paulie #10 Victor #11 Michelle

The September 4th TV show starts as James and Natalie find out that Meech is going home last Thursday night and thus realize they’re a lone duo in the game. For some reason this is a shocker to them and, of course, sends Michelle into the land of tissues and tears. It’s all Meech’s doing, though. She talks to Nicole, campaigning for the first time since being nominated, about an hour before the live eviction show and, surprise surprise, it’s too little and too late. This TV show edit is pretty on the mark, unlike some of the other ones in this September 4th show. We gotta admit that we were disappointed to see Corey’s sleep-talking get a segment when Victor’s nature watch bits with are so funny and entertaining. Hopefully Wednesday’s show will give Victor’s nature watch talents a spotlight.

The HOH competition stays pretty close but it’s slow going and everybody’s frustrated and shredding their digits throughout. Victor keeps his momentum going best. He’s a steady player… and the best! James, meanwhile has tiny fingers and works diligently but gets nowhere, like a comedy pratfaller making zero progress for nearly the entire competition though he’s clearly trying his best. The other players, though, are all getting closer to the win at about the same rate despite Nicole making silly egg puns the whole time. Soon after James gets his first letter Victor wins it all and becomes the next HOH, as we already knew. Speaking of already knowing stuff, James and Natalie predict right after the comp that they’re going on the block the next day. Correct, sir and lady!

Next we see a flashback to Victor and Paul calling their bro alliance the Sitting Ducks. But the true sitting ducks are James and Natalie, their partnership starts to crumble as James says things like, “You don’t have to like me back,” and then she comforts him that she likes him for who he is and no other reason. This isn’t exactly an accurate rendition of the Nat/James dynamic this week or even how Natalie talks to James. She’s much more of a mixed message type… and that’s putting it kindly. One minute she’s calling him her “soulmate” and next she’s saying they should just be friends. James then explains to Victor and Paul that he betrayed them the week before because of his final four deal with Corey, Nicole, and Natalie… but just as he’s making his point Corey and Nicole come into HOH and interrupt the conversation. So, James sucks it up and leaves. This is typical of James who is far too passive. Why didn’t he just ask for a minute to talk with Victor and Paul? It’s not that difficult to do. But no, he just gives up. He goes to Natalie resigned and she says, “What am I gonna do without you?” James replies, “You’re gonna win,” and she knows he’s right; (for once) Nat’s gotta play the damn game for herself. Oh yeah. In fact, from that moment forward she really starts detaching herself from James and the comments are far more on the, “Let’s just be friends,” trajectory these days. One of them is leaving the house and she’s prepping herself for being James-free. It’s actually pretty smart.

In the nomination ceremony Victor keeps it simple with his speeches. All he says is that Natalie is the pawn and James was the deciding vote that got him out. So, it’s all pretty clear and makes sense. Paul and Victor are happy. Then in the Diary Room James makes an idiotic comment about how he’s responsible for Natalie being on the block and wants to win the Veto so he can take her off and make it up to her. Why James wants to sacrifice his (non) game for her makes no sense. C’mon, James. Everything was making sense for a second there! Why’d you have to go and ruin it with your silly remarks. Are you channeling Marcellas Reynolds (from BB Season 3) now?

 

The September 4th feeds begin with a bang even though Victor and Paul are calmly sipping coffee outside. Natalie comes to join them and immediately says she wants them to vote her out and keep James. At the same time James says to Corey that he wants to be voted out so they’ll keep Natalie. Paul responds by asking Nat what she’ll do if they kept her. This stuns Natalie. She doesn’t want to answer other than saying that of course she would fight for herself. But then Nat says, “It’s just really hard being on the block with your best friend,” which really bugs them because she put them on the bock together. Victor was even evicted as a result. Victor and Paul joke about it for the rest of the day. Corey decides to integrate all of this “strategy” into his Veto speech, “Well, since you both say that you want to leave this house, I don’t see much point in using the Veto to take you off the block.” Ha ha. It might actually make a semi-interesting Veto ceremony for the first time in Season 18.

Later in the evening we get some freestyle rap from “el douchebag “(Victor’s self ascribed rapper name) and it’s hilarity in the kitchen. Certainly more fun to listen to than Nicole’s whining or Jatalie’s bickering taking place in other rooms. The rappin’ mostly involves Vic engaging Paul across the counter with raps like, “Inside his beard/ is another beard/ and inside that beard …” And he even says, “Mic check on Mr Jenkins” at one point. Mr. Jenkins, being, of course, the basil plant that Bridgette had to leave behind when she was evicted. Thank you, Victor, for the endless reams of entertainment.

– Katherine Recap

Daily BB House Stats:
HOH – Victor
HOH Nominated – Natalie, James
Veto Winner – Corey
Evicted – #1 Jozea #2 Victor #3 Bronte #4 Tiffany #5 Frank #6 Da’vonne #7 Zakiyah #8 Bridgette #9 Paulie #10 Victor #11 Michelle

Most of what transpired September 3rd in the Big Brother house happens in the evening and off the feeds. The Veto competition starts in late afternoon. So then, inevitably, ends late as well. The challenge then lasts more than five hours. Corey wins the Veto while Natalie takes second place. The houseguests look like they were trapped in a mine for several days in filthy faces and ripped, dirty costumes. The effect is particularly funny on Victor, who comes out looking like Jesus – appropriate since he’s the savior of BB18 as our beloved underdog. That is until he puts his red baseball hat on and ruins the whole messiah look. If Jozea was still in there he would have fixed that pronto – Off with that cap, savior boy! … and here’s a sweep of bronzer on your Adam’s apple while we’re at it.

After the challenge Natalie and James “get real” with each other for a bit. We know historically this means Natalie tells James what’s actually going on in the house that he can’t see while he refuses to acknowledge it for an eternity. It was like this back when she convinced him they needed to evict Paulie. The circle of BB life continues to spin and loop on the feeds as Natalie tells James over and over that because she played so hard in the competition they’re coming after her. This is, of course, completely 100% the case and currently happening upstairs in the HOH. Natalie knows in her gut. But James stays clueless as she gets increasingly frustrated until finally Nat Nat says that if James teams up with Nicorey after she leaves she won’t talk to him again. That gets his attention and James finally starts listening because he’s hurt. Natalie apologizes but it’s obvious she’s pleased that he’s finally hearing her. She’s frustrated, Nat explains, “because I followed you into the dark,” and got screwed. It’s pretty true. Especially the part about him being in the dark.

James sustains a bruised ego once he realizes she’s right because HE wants to be considered a threat. James even says to Nat that to evict her is a, “waste of an HOH,” implying that she’s no threat. But we can see clearly that, as per usual, James is wrong. He continues to say he’ll fall on a sword for her but Natalie’s insistent she’s going. As of right now she doesn’t want James to sacrifice himself for her anyway. Natalie fights her own battles… and wins more often than James.

Meanwhile upstairs Nicorey and Paul convince Victor that Natalie needs to go. It’s becoming clear that her weakness and whining are just an act (we knew this) and she’s capable of kicking ass when the chips are down. Getting rid of Nat puts Nicorey in an excellent position, Nicole especially. This whole season James has played like the ultimate pawn and also a protective shield for Natalie. He’s all talk about, “making big game moves” but the only thing James ever really does is try to please people with shoving his head deeper into the sand. The votes are against Natalie because the one person who really wants James gone (Victor) doesn’t get to vote this week. Victor has good reasons for wanting to evict James. It was James who put him up on the block when Victor was evicted. Of course he wants him out. It’s rational revenge. The minute he’s out of his Jesus digs, Victor’s ready to roll with literal vengeance. Who can blame him? Not us.

Still, the plan is to blindside James by letting him think he’s going all week and then, swift and cool, evict Natalie. This way James won’t be prepped to compete in the next HOH and will also be emotionally unsteady. It gives them a better chance to win, but really they don’t need much of a leg up. James isn’t exactly a stellar competitor. You think he regrets jumping off the last HOH willingly for Nicole yet? Our guess is that he hasn’t given it a second thought. Reason #47 why we’re not big James fans up in here at Fetchland.com. Let’s see if it stays this way until Thursday. There are several days for the dynamic to change. Considering how much it shifted just from yesterday, when Natalie was allegedly thrilled at the prospect of a Paul/Victor final two, it could be a new story as soon as tomorrow. Stay tuned here at Fetchland.com for all the latest and greatest in the Big Brother house and check out our tweets @RuiningBigBro.

– Katherine Recap

comiXology summary:
All-New Inhumans #9. Gorgon stands trial! What crime could Gorgon have committed to land him in an Inhuman jail? And what does Ana Kravinoff have to do with it all?

The bait and switch 🙁

Last night at FNM (writeup coming to a Fetchland near you) I saw this week’s cover… All-New Inhumans #9.

Look at that cover for a second. Quick-like; like you were passing it on a comic shop rack, mayhap on the way to your second round of Standard. Note this is a Marvel comics cover. Seriously: What character do you see?

Wolverine, right?

I immediately moved to the rack. I thought Wolverine was dead* in Marvel Comics**.

I mean, I wasn’t necessarily going to jump into All-New Inhumans with the ninth issue, but I did want to know what was up with Wolvie. Curiosity, you grok?

How could it be anyone else?

I mean, the cover is an obvious homage to the various Marvel Comics Presents covers that Barry Windsor-Smith did in the early 1990s. There are many, but this seems like the most direct inspiration:

Barry Windsor-Smith’s cover to Marvel Comics Presents #78

No beef with cover artist Stefano Caselli; seriously… But that All-New Inhumans cover sure smells like a lift homage to BWS’s classic, doesn’t it?

TLDR: IT’S NOT WOLVERINE ON THE COVER.

Per the ComiXology summary, it’s Inhuman Gorgon on the cover; I guess you would know that if you were a regular reader of All-New Inhumans… But as a comics cover (i.e. something that is meant to draw in potential readers who are not regular subscribers of a comic on a monthly basis) I didn’t know it was Gorgon. I thought maybe I’d get the DL on a once-central character who has been dealt a really raw hand in the comics universe [that in other circumstances would have grown right back].

Boo, All-New Inhumans #9 cover!

Boo… And well played.

LOVE
MIKE

* Except for Old Man Logan; another time.
** Wolverine being Marvel’s more-or-less most popular character… Whose film rights are owned by someone else.

Daily BB House Stats:
HOH – Victor
HOH Nominated – Natalie, James
Veto Winner – TBD
Evicted – #1 Jozea #2 Victor #3 Bronte #4 Tiffany #5 Frank #6 Da’vonne #7 Zakiyah #8 Bridgette #9 Paulie #10 Victor #11 Michelle
Battle Back Winner – Victor & Victor (again)
Return Ticket Holder – Paul
Have-Nots – None
Have-Not Supplement – N/A

On September 2nd Victor finally makes his HOH nominations after an interminable wait. The houseguests play dominos all day while patiently anticipating Victor’s decision. Of course, he puts Natalie and James on the block, as expected. But what was surprising after the fact was their reaction, especially from Natalie who says she, “can’t wait to see Victor or Paul win $500K,” and also that she just wants to win HOH so she can put Nicorey up on the block. It’s so lovely to see that putting Natalie on the block has recharged her cheerleader bunny batteries and completely cured her HOHitis. She’s out of her slump – hooray!

Speaking of Natalie, now that she’s bright and bubbly again she can make anything fun and cute, including a solid hour of nose strip application and removal. She and James stay up late and beautify together while they talk game. Her revitalized personality shows us a crucial Nat Nat attribute. Turns out she’s one of those people who’s at their best under pressure. This bodes well for her in these final weeks. So, watch out, houseguests! We predict that Natalie’s going to be playing hard in these final days and the way James has been acting (he said “I love you” to her on September 2nd) it appears that he’d be happy to fall on a sword for her.

The consensus on Twitter agrees with Natalie that Paul and Victor deserve to be in the final two. In fact, several feedsters and updaters have commented that if they end up there they’ll be the first truly deserving final two EVER in Big Brother history. This is largely due to the fact that many great players get there by leaving their alliances in the dust, whether it’s by choice or not. These two are tight, though and will do everything they can to stay together. It doesn’t mean they’re guaranteed to make it all the way to the end as a duo because luck plays a critical element in the game of Big Brother, like in most games.

Next we’ll see the Veto competition and subsequent drama confetti, so tune in to Fetchland.com for all the deets. You can also check our daily updates on twitter @RuiningBigBro.

– Katherine Recap

Daily BB House Stats:
HOH – Victor
HOH Nominated – TBD
Veto Winner – TBD
Evicted – #1 Jozea #2 Victor #3 Bronte #4 Tiffany #5 Frank #6 Da’vonne #7 Zakiyah #8 Bridgette #9 Paulie #10 Victor #11 Michelle
Battle Back Winner – Victor & Victor (again)
Return Ticket Holder – Paul
Have-Nots – TBD
Have-Not Supplement – TBD

The September 1st Big Brother live TV show started off with a fizzle but soon sparked into an emotional boom. At first, the show focused on Corey’s BB bribe by attempting to inflate the paranoia James aroused when he propositioned Corey to give it to him. But, as we know, this was much ado about nada and Corey did the expected move, bribing Victor to do what he was going to do anyway (evict Michelle) as a gesture of goodwill among alliance members. It just so happens that five thousand dollars is our favorite friendship token and now it’s probably Victor’s too. Meanwhile Meech, nat and James are completely clueless about what’s going on. Yawn. They remain utterly clueless in captivity.

The banality of this opening segment shifts into a higher gear soon, though when the houseguests each get a video greeting from their families. Victor and Paul both collapse into sobs and it’s pretty darn terrific to see how cool, warm. and loving the families all are to their beloved Big Brother contestants. Victor’s family especially gets a nice long segment where they show lots of Victor-growing-up photos. His parents are lovely and sweet in all their pride. It just makes us adore Victor all the more to see how he completely loses himself in tears upon seeing his parents. He’s smart, cooks and cleans, works out, gorgeous, and hottie’s sensitive too!

In the live eviction that follows Meech gets feisty, especially when Nicole ends up breaking the tie votes to evict her. Michelle declares that they all have to get Nicole out of the house because she’s “gonna float her way to the final two,” which may be true but it doesn’t exactly make Nic regret voting her out. Speaking of floating, Meech steals Paul’s floaty, Pablo, on her way out and then threw him into the audience. In his goodbye message to Meech, James says if she’s been evicted then he was blindsided and that gets the #SadMeech waterworks flowing. Yes, the level of cluelessness James has come to perpetrate in the house this season wreaks havoc upon many of the houseguests’ games, including his own.

It’s another classic Big Brother HOH competition after this with the chicken wire coop egg challenge. It’s called “Poached Eggs” and the houseguests wear fox ears as they steal eggs from chicken coops and then roll them down chutes to knock over the letters H.O.H. It comes as no surprise when our hero, Victor wins the HOH yet again. It only takes about two hours after the TV show ends (and the challenge  began) to finally accomplish this arduous task. Looks like Victor will nominate James and Natalie, who will finally not be surprised by what’s actually going on in the house but it’s too darn late to do anything about it. We’ll admit it, we’re mostly sad for Natalie in this case.

– Katherine Recap

Daily BB House Stats:
HOH – Nicole
HOH Nominated – Michelle, Paul
Veto Winner – Nicole
Evicted – #1 Jozea #2 Victor #3 Bronte #4 Tiffany #5 Frank #6 Da’vonne #7 Zakiyah #8 Bridgette #9 Paulie #10 Victor
Battle Back Winner – Victor & Victor (again)
Return Ticket Holder – Paul
Have-Nots – Victor, Corey
Have-Not Supplement – Squid and seaweed

The August 31st TV show is a fun extravaganza to watch thanks to the Christmas-themed Veto competition. It’s the noteworthy “counting competition” that Big Brother engages every season. Corey throws the Veto challenge to Nicole with a pretty obvious bad guess of one billion. So, now she has all the power in her hands and we know that in the end of the episode she won’t use the Veto, leaving Paul and Meech on the block.

The TV show reveals the origin story for Michelle’s cave-dwelling with a scene about #sadmeech where she takes to her bed and cries, wailing that it’s all falling apart for her. Natalie tries to console her but, alas, she cannot be comforted. She’s lucky she has Natalie to turn to. Many houseguests in her same situation from all the years of BB have done this alone with virtually nobody to turn to. Michelle will likely look back on this and realize she was not in the worst position even if she felt like it at the time. In the Veto meeting the only noteworthy event is Nic’s choice of shirt, which was an abomination – especially paired with cutoff jean shorts. Yikes.

Meanwhile in the Big Brother house we see on the feeds Michelle has gone full-blown cave dweller now. She’s barely functioning and sleeping twenty hour a day. For some reason James and Natalie seem oblivious to the blatant friendship between Paul/Victor and Corey/Nicole. They seem blissfully unaware although nobody’s really hiding their strong connection. In fact, Corey finally uses his Big Brother bribe on August 31st, giving it to Victor. It’s a sweet interaction because Victor’s genuine delight at the $5K is a joy to behold. Never mind that he certainly didn’t need a bribe to vote out Michelle and keep his best buddy, Paul. It’s a glorious exchange and seals the deal for this Final Four Alliance. They are a quatrain of truth and it’s lovely to finally see Nicorey playing the game. They could have just set it up so Corey used the bribe to have Nicole keep the nominations of the block in the Veto ceremony, as she did. But they wanted to show good faith and help out a buddy – Victor. We approve 100%, Nicorey. Anything that gets Victor closer to the final two is a bonus in our book.

Thursday night’s eviction is most likely going to be a final farewell to #SadMeech so the real action comes in the next HOH competition. We can’t wait. Check out Fetchland for Big Brother 18 TV show recaps and live feed updates.

– Katherine Recap