Big Brother 15: “House Meetings Always Go So Well”

Episode 16 – August 1, 2013

So, CBS & Time Warner are having a little side-eye fight and as of this afternoon at 2pm, we no longer get CBS.  This situation had better get resolved by Sunday, or I’ll be forced to come up with my own version of events for the remainder of the Big Brother Summer.  You basically know that means that Amanda wins, right?  And if you don’t want that, then I better get my damn CBS back.  Frankly, Big Brother and Under the Dome (honestly, the show is nowhere near as good as I had hoped but I persevere – how can they bring it back for a Season 2 and expect there to be tension?) are the only shows I currently watch on CBS, but still, Big Brother is a HUGE part of my summer TV habit.

Anyway….

The Path to Howard’s Eviction

I finally called an eviction accurately!  CBS certainly tried to get me all nervous by first focusing on the anti-Amanda sentiment that seemed to be in full swing at the top of the hour.   Spencer was fearlessly sowing discord amongst all the “outsiders” and Howard and Candice were starting to have hope that maybe a true threat (Amanda) would be voted against.  Unfortunately for Spencer’s plans though, one of those who had been approached was never on board:  Andy.  He went straight to Amanda about it, who visibly got upset at the effort to remove her.  Honestly, she shouldn’t be surprised as from this point on, she’ll likely be a high-value target until the end of the game.  She was also irrationally upset that Judd was in on this plan, but Andy seemingly reassured her that both he & Judd were never really part of that plan.

Amanda v. Spencer

So we then find ourselves outside and Spencer starts chatting up Amanda about drinking coffee in the hot L.A. weather.  First off, that’s bullshit.  It’s been FABULOUS in the city lately temperature-wise, even in the Studio City area.  So what heat is he talking about?   Second:  Amanda was in no mood for Chatty-Cathy Spencer.  She immediately launches into him and what the fuck is going on upstairs in this office building I’m in????  I swear, it’s gotta be Justin Lin playing basketball up there or something.  (Yes, that was a humblebrag that I work occasionally in the same building as the director of the last 2 Fast & Furious movies).   Anyway, Amanda and Spencer debate the merits of trying to get her out of the house.  Amanda surprisingly thinks efforts to take her out are futile and Spencer could definitely make things better for himself if he stopped all that nonsense.  Spencer disagrees!  He also throws Candice under the bus in an effort to keep Amanda confused but it’s clear to us that Candice is not really Spencer’s target.  But guess what?  Helen heard all of this while running around the backyard.

Queen Helen Pulls the Candice Trigger

Oh Queen Helen – your wonderful gameplay knows no bounds, does it?  Remembering full well that Candice was targeting her alliance-mate Amanda, Helen used this argument as a way to flip the gameboard around a bit and break up the loose alliance that formed between Howard, Candice and Spencer.  So what does she do?  She goes to Helen in full-on caring friend mode and tells her that Spencer is campaigning against her.  Is it a lie?  Nope.  It’s not totally true, but Helen couldn’t possibly know that…  And then Candice demands a house meeting, prompting Amanda’s titular comment:  “House meetings always go so well.”  LOVE HER!

So, the House Meeting.  Up until that point, there was definitely a moment when Amanda could have been the one going home.  After that outburst where Candice effectively declared war on Spencer by forcing his strategies out into the public space, there was definitely no truce to be had here.  Spencer was done with her, and she was clearly done with him.  Interesting to see how they’ll interact in the future as they are both still on the outs of the main alliance though.  As in the movie Chicago, there are some businesses where loathing each other isn’t a problem.  Big Brother survival could be one of those.

Howard the Gentle

So Howard was evicted, 7-1, with only Spencer voting against Candice.   In Howard’s interview with Julie, she briefly touched on how he was able to refrain from retaliating or fighting back against the overt racism directed towards him and others.  He rightly realized that flipping out was only lowering himself to the level of the attacks, which is very mature.  I don’t know if I could have done that myself, but it’s admirable nonetheless.  As he admitted, he and Candice were each others’ angels, being there for the other when it got difficult.  I feel bad for Candice now as she really doesn’t have anyone there at this point.  Not sure if that will unleash a new Candice upon the house, for better or for worse.  WE SHALL SEE – RIGHT, CBS AND TIME WARNER??????

Oh yeah, no HoH yet

The houseguests could still be walking on that log for all we know.  Although it looked like Elissa was about to eat it on the challenge right at the very beginning.  I have no idea who’s going to take this one.  It isn’t strength that’s needed to succeed here, but rather coordination, focus, and stamina.  Hopefully I’ll get to find out Sunday.  RIGHT, CBS and TIME WARNER????