BB day 35

The live feeds will be down until around 9pm PDT tomorrow night so we won't be able to deduce the latest decisions among the HGs today, but it looks like Tiffany is definitely being evicted tonight. The long down time for the live feeds is for them to hold the Battle Back comps tomorrow and then show them on the special Friday night show. It's unlikely that Tiffany will be the winner of the Battle Back "(There can be only one") but they can't hold the comps until tonight's evictee is known.


Big Brother 18: James & Nicole Finally Talk & Votes Are Decided
By: Matthew Boyer | July 21, 2016 at 10:00 AM EDT

We waited all day on the Big Brother 18 Feeds for James and Nicole to have their talk and it finally happened shortly after midnight last night. They needed to make a decision whether to vote out Da’Vonne or Tiffany at the upcoming eviction.

Nicole Franzel plans eviction votes with James

As the talk started both agreed that they needed to have everyone on board so they aren’t caught in the middle. James soon admitted to Nicole that he was completely serious about being willing to vote either way. So how did the talk go?

Flashback to 12:11 AM BBT 7/21 Cams 3/4 to find James and Nicole sitting with Natalie. Natalie has “no idea what’s going on” so let’s just ignore her like the rest of the house does.

Nicole can’t tell if James is being serious when he says he would vote either way, but he promises her he is. James says what is best for our game is to figure out who each would team up with and target. They don’t particularly think Frank, Bridgette, and Tiffany are going to come after them as opposed to going after the others. Nicole points out that Day has specifically said she was targeting the couples, but James says, “that can be controlled because she’s not going to win [comps].”

Nicole worries that if Tiffany stays she could throw the HoH comp and make her vulnerable, but if they save Tiffany then she’d be indebted to them. James doesn’t think they could override Frank’s controls.

Here’s yet another bizarre concern. Nicole thinks if they keep Da’Vonne in the house then she’ll team up with Frank. That’s the second time we heard that with Paulie making the same suggestion earlier that evening. They are listening to Frank actively campaign to save Tiffany while desperately wanting Da’Vonne out, but some of them are worried that if they keep Da’Vonne she might work with Frank? I feel like I’m taking crazy pills! Tiffany has one win. Da’Vonne has zero wins. Tiffany is working with Frank. Da’Vonne is targeting Frank. Tiffany has demonstrated the capacity to win and work with Frank. Hurts my brain.


James suggests “fool me once” and that’s all it takes. Nicole relents and says they should just vote Tiffany out and move on. She says this is Tiffany’s third time on the Block and third time is the charm so “lets get her out of here.” They talk about chances of winning comps and agree that Tiffany has more of a chance to win power than Day.

Here could be the clincher. James points out that sending out Tiffany will “cripple Frank” and forces him to do what the house wants with limited support otherwise. They’ll have an easier time working with and influencing Frank with fewer tight allies around him, James suggests.

And with that Nicole heads off to let Corey know the decision. He still doesn’t like it and meets back up as a group with Nicole, James, and Natalie. Flashback to 12:27 AM BBT as Corey continues to argue in favor evicting Da’Vonne.

Corey keeps telling James that Day has it out for the guys and while she might initially target Frank and Bridgette she’ll next turn to Corey or Paulie as a backup target. He’s also convinced that Da’Vonne would never vote for a guy at the end and suggests Day has it out for the guys.

James remains unswayed and begins to argue that if they keep passing up their chances with evicting Tiffany then it’s going to come back and bite them and they’ll have no one else to blame. Along the way in this talk Corey gives in and says fine, he’ll vote out Tiffany, but he’s clearly not happy about it and wants them to agree that they send Day out in the next 2-3 rounds.

So that’s all done and decided. Right? Oh, here’s James in the closing telling Corey to let him know if they change their mind. Oh good grief. Go to bed you knuckleheads.

Aside from "making his move", he needs to win some comps in order to have some/any power to influence the game direction and so far he has exhibited little if any comps winning ability.



Thursday, July 21, 2016
When Should James Make His Move on 'Big Brother 18'?
Derek Stauffer
Contributing Writer, BuddyTV

James is one of the more confusing Big Brother 18 returning players. While James was likable, in fact very likable, in his first Big Brother season he wasn't exactly an extraordinary player. Some of James' Big Brother 17 misfortunes were out of his control -- he was aligned with people who didn't win anything and he was forced to carry most of the alliance. In Big Brother 18 James doesn't have quite the same problem as before but he still isn't making much impact. He's flying far under the radar.

Luckily for him, in Big Brother 18 flying under the radar might be exactly what James needs to win the game. The only factor, and it could make or break his game, is that James needs to choose his moment to make a move. If he chooses wrong he could lose it all. If he picks the exact right time, he could be the next winner on Big Brother.


Is Anyone Playing a Good Game on Big Brother 18? >>>

The Snake Winner in the Grass

Big Brother 18 is full of houseguests desperate to gain control but completely unable to grab a solid foothold. Everyone is scheming, everyone has an agenda and that leads to a household where the targets change on a daily, if not hourly, basis. While being a "floater" or under-the-radar player is typically the worst thing that you can be in Big Brother, in season 18 it is the most desirable position. Among these players, James is probably sitting in the most favorable spot.

As a returning player James is firmly within the squabbling majority alliance. He is the founding member of the now (effectively defunct) 8-Pack. He has conversations about strategy with both Da'Vonne and Frank. Both sides of the house see James as a trustworthy person. Normally that would be a dangerous place to be but because James is so calm in playing the game, he reaps all the advantages of his "double agent" role. No one sees him as a real threat so they confide in him without ever targeting him.

In addition, James now has a very solid partner in Natalie. After losing Bronte, Natalie is all alone in the house. Even if she still has a "spy girl" in Bridgette, Bridgette is so far up Frank's southern twang bum that she has no mind of her own. She is not reliable at all for Natalie. Natalie, who was always one of the most aggressive spy girls, can really form a solid partnership with James. Unlike the two other big showmances of the season, Natalie and James have escaped nearly everyone's notice. Most people are focused Corey and Nicole or Paulie and Zakiyah, and no one really cares about James and Natalie's flirtations and their burgeoning alliance.

James-And-Natalie-1.jpg
Big Brother 18 Recap: Tiffany Declares War on Da'Vonne >>>

Waiting For It

This all a long way of saying that James has all the tools to win Big Brother 18. He just needs to use them wisely, and perhaps more importantly, at the right time. James' best bet to win the game is to wait until the "leaders" have been evicted or thoroughly neutralized. There are 3 big, loud threats in Big Brother 18 at the moment: Da'Vonne, Frank and Paulie. While Da'Vonne's influence has slipped in recent weeks, she is still a force to be reckoned with and a lightening rod for activity in the house. Similarly, Paulie and Frank have made big, flexing shows of their power.

While these showboats are inside the house, James has very little chance of taking them on or aligning himself with them in a strong position. None of them are interested in sticking to a final 2 deal at the moment, especially not with James. If James were to align himself with 1 of them he would always be seen as the lackey too.

To win Big Brother 18, James doesn't just need to put himself in a power position and start being an integral part of evictions. James needs to be the person in the power, calling all the shots about evictions. The best way to do that is to eliminate or make sure all the other power players are out of the way.

James' best way to navigate Big Brother 18 is to start playing a different game than the other houseguests. Most of them are playing the short game, only concerned about their safety and their targets from week to week. James needs to start thinking about the long game. James needs to keep minimizing the threat on his back while continuing to build trust with a few close members of the house. Then when everything has settled down and/or there are few enough people in the house James can rise and demolish everyone in sight.

Of course all of this is predicated on James being smart enough to see it and not just seeing Big Brother 18 as an another opportunity to pull pranks and flirt with pretty ladies. But what do you think? Is James in the best position among the house? Could he win the season? Do you want to see him win the season?

Big Brother 18 airs Sundays and Wednesdays at 8pm and Thursdays at 9pm on CBS.

So, no big surprise that Tiffany was evicted. A unanimous vote was a little surprising given that Frank was supposedly campaigning for her. Another surprise was the elimination of the teams and the Road Kill comp. So they are back to a more 'traditional' system at least for the moment.



'Big Brother 18' Recap: Who Is the Last Evicted HG in the Battle Back?
Thursday, July 21, 2016


John Kubicek
Senior Writer, BuddyTV

It's another live eviction on Big Brother 18, but this one is quite different. The HGs don't yet know that the Battle Back competition is here and soon either Glenn, Jozea, Victor, Bronte or the person evicted tonight will return to the game. Even though some people in the house have speculated about a pre-jury buyback, the reality of it will surely shake some things up.

BUT FIRST...this is my Big Brother 18 live blog!

Previously on Big Brother 18: Do you know the Muffin Man? His name is Paul.

Julie Chen promises that the vote is still being debated in the house as of now.

Tiffany vs. Da'Vonne

Da'Vonne doesn't see why she's a threat and Zakiyah loves how Da'Vonne intentionally threw shade at Tiffany. Paulie insists that he will not listen to any campaigning from Tiffany and Da'Vonne trusts his influence.

Instead of campaigning, Natalie has a stupid fight with James over him not wanting her to cook for him. He immediately apologizes because he understands women. She accepts his apology and announces that she and James are "BB Official."

Frank campaigns to Corey and Paulie about how Da'Vonne is going after boys. It works on Corey, but Paulie is determined not to let Tiffany, "a wounded animal," stay in the house. Meanwhile, Tiffany talks to Nicole and does a great job of getting her against Da'Vonne by exposing the showmance alliance. So Nicole and Corey are both on board with keeping Tiffany.

Then Tiffany campaigns to Paulie and tells him the same thing about the showmance alliance, which Paulie knows is 100 percent true. She's willing to give him everything and he's not as resistant to it as he said he would be. At the very least, she turned him against Da'Vonne.

Da'Vonne gets pissed when Tiffany dares to hang out with other people in the house. She vents to Zakiyah and Michelle, who seem on her side. Later, Da'Vonne talks to James about her desire to target the showmances, which doesn't go over too well since HE'S in a showmance with Natalie. She's only talking about Paulie/Zakiyah and Nicole/Corey, but he's not happy about it.

James tells Paulie about what Da'Vonne said, wanting showmances to be evicted. This is making him really want to take her out, but Paulie is still on the fence.

Cody and Vanessa

We get a filler segment about what Cody and Vanessa think of their siblings playing the game. Cody thinks his brother is doing great. However, Paulie's family warned him against a showmance, so they're nervous about Zakiyah. Cody thinks Paulie needs a Final 2 and he's totally gonna win.

Vanessa acknowledges that being her sister is the biggest problem for Tiffany's game. She calls out the double standard about how Paulie is allowed to play his own game, but Tiffany isn't. She's proud of her sister for throwing Da'Vonne under the bus because she was never as loyal to Tiffany as Tiffany was to Da'Vonne. Man, Vanessa's insight into the game is great.

The Live Eviction

Da'Vonne thanks God a lot and trusts everyone. Natalie is nervous and bubbly and dim. Tiffany says it's been a wild ride and says she's played a loyal game.

Michelle votes to evict...Tiffany
Zakiyah votes to evict...Tiffany
James votes to evict...Tiffany
Nicole votes to evict...Tiffany
Frank votes to evict...Tiffany
Corey votes to evict...Tiffany
Bridgette votes to evict...Tiffany
Paul votes to evict...Tiffany

Tiffany is evicted 8-0-0!

It's the first unanimous vote of the season. She knew she was going and exits with class, hugging everyone, even Da'Vonne. Tiffany wouldn't be so emotional, but she can't help it.

Goodbye Messages: Frank is sorry he didn't get the job done. Nicole knows she told the truth about Da'Vonne. Paulie keeps talking about her being a wounded animal. Da'Vonne gloats about beating her.

Battle Back Preview

We get to see the people Tiffany will compete against in the Battle Back. Glenn is cooking and hungry for another shot. He blames his team and will target the vets. Jozea blames Da'Vonne for being a snake and says he won't be as cocky. Victor only blames himself for being evicted. Wow, how mature. But his #1 target is Paulie. Bronte has enjoyed swimming and tanning. She will be brutal and target whoever switched the vote.

The Twists Are Over!

Julie Chen gathers the HGs in the living room for some game-changing news. The teams are officially over and they're all playing as individuals. The Road Kill competition is also done, so there will only be two nominees each week. She leaves them with a warning about more twists and secrets to come.

Wow, I expected teams to end, but Road Kill being over after just four weeks is a huge change that's going to make it a lot easier for someone on the outside to change the game.

The HoH will be on Sunday, and the Battle Back winner will play in it. Julie also promises more twists ahead, which is intriguing but also scary. I smell a SECOND Battle Back once we reach the jury.