Big Brother Shenanigans: BB17: Let the Madness Begin

Sunday, June 14, 2015

BB17: Let the Madness Begin

There are 10 days until the premiere of another summer of maddening preoccupation: Big Brother. The first frustration has already begun, one that's existed since CBS took over the feeds. But this year it's worse. There is little chance I will be able to watch the feeds since CBS has packaged it as all access. Anyone outside the US is stuck with zero access at the moment.

They might be doing me a favor. 95% of the frustration, anger and aggravation comes from watching the shenanigans on the feeds, then comparing it to the pristine CBS version. That won't stop me from having opinions. I mean come on! I didn't have a personality adjustment *wink*

There have been a lot of rumours scuttling around but I don't deal with rumors. Until they actually release the identities of the HGs, there is no way to know if it will be all newbies, returnees or a combination of both. There is one guarantee though, if they follow their 16 year casting formula, there is 100% chance of fan rage throughout this season.

The casting formula has become as predictable as their so called twists. I'll attempt to populate the house now.

The Alpha Male: The good ole boy. The testosterone laden man who will more than likely attempt to form a boy alliance that will crush any girl alliance with a swift outrage of entitlement. He/they will attempt to use the bobble-headed girls (see below). Their fan base is predominantly other males and females who forget what they're watching.

The Bobblehead Girl Next Door: She will allow herself to be the Alpha's tool to get to the end. Any attempt from others to ally or help will be met with... well a blank stare. They make it to the end more often than not but have won this game only once. They will be a great source of frustration for fans which often generates scorn. They might be likable and have fans but if she or they allow themselves to be used in the game, it won't last for long.

The Superfan Nerd: We get them every year and put a lot of faith in their ability to use their brains to outwit the above two but it's not always a rewarding endeavor for the fan. Not all of them are Ian Terry (BB12). Some of them are Jordan Parhar (BBCA3) or Ronnie Talbot (BB11.) They will be a big source of aggravation because of our high hopes.

The Puppet Master: He(usually)/She(rarely) will put the others under their spell and work their way through the house. This person will hopefully be entertaining not a pill that kills all excitement for fans *coughDerrickcough*. Of course, their endgame is to win but our endgame is to be supercharged with drama!

Speaking of drama...

The Hot Mess: She (usually)/He(occasionally) will drive the other HGs and sometimes the fans crazy but will probably be the biggest source of entertainment for the fans. I mean who doesn't love a good meltdown, house meeting, tears, suspicion, yelling etc? If you say you don't you're lying. From Vegas cocktail waitresses to media moguls, we love to hate them or just flat out hate them. They serve their purpose. Ratings.

The Parent: This isn't really a category in of itself because the parent can be any of the above but 98% will use the fact that they procreated to blackmail and guilt trip the others, either effectively or not. He/she might use their parental status to lull the others into trusting them or they might annoy the hell out of everyone (certainly many fans) resulting in them being targets...

Anyway, these are my predictions. Nothing would make me happier to be wrong but I doubt it. The fans are excited now, but it will only take a couple of weeks for the revamped aggravation to set in: with the HGs, with the twists, with CBS interference, with the TV edit and with each other.

Let the fun begin!!!

Stay tuned ;-)

Big Brother Lexicon

There are certain terms that have been used in the course of this show that should be clarified. Here is a list:

Team America: Yet Another tool for production to manipulate the game. Three players will be placed in alliance by "America" and will be given tasks that apparently will change the game. So far, it didn't change Joey's game, first member of Team America slated to be evicted first.

Battle of the Block: The 2 nominees of each of the 2 HoHs will battle each other. The winner duo save themselves and dethrone the HoH who nominated them, throwing them back out of power at risk of being a renom.

AGP: Allison Grodner of Fly on the Wall Productions which is the company that has been hired by CBS to produce the show.

PoV: Power of Veto. This allows the holder to save one of the nominations for eviction. The last PoV of the game is the most powerful, as it determines who will be evicted.

HoH: Head of Household. Along with getting a primo suite, a letter from home, pictures and treats, this person decides who will be nominated and renominated should the veto be used.

Floater: This term is often misused. A "floaters" strategy is legitimate way to get through and win the game. A prime example of this is Jun Song (BB4). This strategy allows the player to switch alliances when necessary, win when necessary, but always work under the wire. It doesn't mean just going with the power in the house (let's call those floppers). It means manipulating the house, ergo having the power. In later years, the term has been misused for players who do not make any moves in the game but work for whoever has the power.

Backdoor: This strategy is used when the true target for eviction is not initially nominated, does not get a chance to play PoV, is subsequently nominated and evicted.

Blindside: When a player is evicted without even suspecting that he/she is the target.

Pawn: This is a person who is nominated but is part of the HoH's alliance and is used as a decoy, to ensure that the other person nominated gets evicted. It has often happened that the pawn has been blindsided.

America's Player: This is a player in the game, chosen by the viewing public, who is told how to act and vote in the house. They do this for a separate monetary reward.

Fast Forward: When there are two evictions in one week. Typically they tape an eviction on Tuesday followed by a quickie HoH. They have nominations later that night, followed by a PoV competition and PoV ceremony the next day. The second eviction and HoH comp for that week happens live on Thursday.

Double Eviction: On the live show on Thursday, there is an eviction (sometimes pre-taped), followed by a quick HoH comp, immediate nominations, a PoV competition, PoV Ceremony, followed by another Eviction, culminating in the second HoH comp which is usually a physical skill or Endurance.