Sir RaiderDuck OMS

The best guess is Jenny has a low IQ combined with an unrealistic Harlequin Romance fantasy of a prince spiriting her away to his castle. This explains her horrid life decisions. And I guess Sumit's mom's diarrhea story is her equivalent of the American "I had to walk 16 miles a day to school in the snow, uphill, both ways" speech. SteVen likely waited until she was sleeping, in the shower, or otherwise away from her phone, then created a new account, blocked her and her friends immediately, and sent new Friend Requests out to everyone. As for Kenny & Armando: Yeah, they're setting it up for the big season finale of Will He or Won't He Show Up? Armando's father is being very accepting of the situation, given the anti-gay environment in which he was likely raised. Armando and Kenny need to lighten up a bit. Meanwhile, if Kenny wouldn't mind getting married away from the ocean, maybe they could find a park or something to the east of some tall mountain where the "sunset" would be a couple of hours earlier when the sun goes behind the mountain. Problem solved! What exactly did Ari do to herself? Did she merely go on a crash diet, or did she get some facial work done as well? Her face looks WAY skinnier and not at all healthy. And while Bini may have been living it up a bit, Ari hates Ethiopia and was looking for an excuse to live in America full-time. The Kenya thing is a way of getting him away from his family and friends so the next step of "Hey, why don't the three of us just go live in America?" is easier. If Bini refuses, she has her excuse to seek a divorce.

If I were playing the next season of Survivor after this one was shown, I'd make it a point to utter some weird phrase out loud at the beginning of a challenge just to see if everyone assumed I had something. Shan doesn't bug me the way she bugs some. Yes, she's being underhanded and devious, but so what? It's a game. I find Ricard's unearned arrogance way more off-putting. Totally agree with Naseer's refusing to throw a challenge: as someone who learned to speak English partly from watching the show, he knows how often that strategy has backfired.

All it takes is Linda browbeating the boss and few other people into going, and everyone else will fall in line. You're afraid that you'll stand out if you don't go. When Linda said that, my wife responded with "In New York, they'll expect you to dress in dark colors for a job interview." In my adult life, I've made it a point to ingratiate myself with every boss and coworker I've had. It got me what I wanted and made my working life soooo much easier. My ex-wife was a lot like Linda: she'd be brusque and snarky with coworkers and bosses she didn't like, then wonder why "the ass-kissers" got opportunities she never did. The actor looked familiar, and then I realized he's Blair "Jonathan Rollins" Underwood from L.A. Law (which apparently is returning with Underwood himself in the lead --- ABC just ordered a pilot). Beanie may not look much like Monica beyond the big teeth, but she is perfectly playing an emotional child besotted with a much older man. It reminded me of that scene in Taps when one of the parents tells Timothy Hutton's soldier father "Not all of us are in the army!" and he replies with a curt "No need to apologize, ma'am." Meanwhile, I don't know if Rae Dawn Chong has had a lot of plastic surgery or the makeup is just that good, but I had no idea she was playing Betty Currie until I looked it up. Did anyone else think Bill's gift-giving in the Oval Office was intended both to make sure Monica was keeping her story straight, and also as a simultaneously warm and caring, but definitive and final GOODBYE?

I know a financially well-off gay couple who have had two children of their own. What they did was take the sperm from one of them, impregnate a donated egg in vitro, then have the embryo implanted into a surrogate mother (who was not the egg donor). Since they live in a state that is not gay adoption-friendly, they had the surrogate mother fly to a state that supports gay adoption for the birth, then stayed in that state long enough to ensure the adoption proceedings were well underway before returning home with their new baby. They did this with each child, and I believe the cost for each was in the low six figures. She CLAIMS that is not the case, but I have my doubts. My guess: her plan is to marry SteVen in Turkey, move with him to Russia, wait for him to get homesick in a year or two, then say "Well, why don't we both move to America?"

Maybe they filmed it last December/January when the days are really short? The question is whether a simple surgery (make a small incision, stuff the intestines back through the hole in the abdominal wall, sew the muscle shut, close the incision) in an Ethiopian hospital is better for the baby than waiting a week, enduring a long-ass flight (complete with air pressure changes) back to the US, going to an American pediatrician, being referred to a pediatric surgeon, and finally doing the operation, all in the middle of COVID. That baby's going to have the hernia a month longer doing it Ari's way. As for the mom: Methinks her real goal is get Ari and Avi home permanently. She likes Bini but ultimately considers him disposable. If Bini can move to America with Ari and Avi, great! If not, no biggie: maybe Ari and Avi can fly out once a year to visit him or whatever. Sumit's mother has learned that being hysterical and threatening suicide every few days gets her what she wants. No surprise that she's trying it now. Sumit's dad is ridiculous and it's easy to see why Sumit is the way he is. Jenny, on the other hand, is the way she is because she's dumber than a box of hair and wants her Prince Charming ending, even as it becomes increasingly unlikely. Counseling will be worthless for them. No way the parents show up and contribute anything worthwhile. SteVen and Alina are terrible. PRO TIP: If you're asking a friend to catfish your fiancé to "test" him, best just to end the relationship and move on. Either your partner is someone you can trust or they aren't. And SteVen continues to be aggressively, unpleasantly weird. I'd like to know how he got women to sleep with him: his job was terrible, he has no social graces, and dresses like Walmart exploded. Finally: Given all the iPads and MacBooks in this episode , Apple must be underwriting the show's increased costs.

Derek F and Azah are still around for two reasons: 1) They were part of The Cookout. 2) The two guys running The Cookout (Xavier and Kyland) don't consider them annoying (like Tiffany) or possible comp threats (like Tiffany or Hannah). Without The Cookout protecting Derek F and Azah, they both would've been gone a month ago. Maybe two.

If Corey had even a speck of self-respect, he would've dumped Evelin on the spot. She obviously knew what the soup was and enjoyed humiliating him. Who would want to be married to someone like that? And when the sister said "Now you're going to finish it" or whatever, I would have told her to go fuck herself. Steven is just weird. Alina has the look of someone who's seriously regretting her life decisions.

I've had to work in close proximity with people I couldn't stand. You learn to sorta like them, simply because liking them (if only in the moment) expends WAY less mental energy than being annoyed at them constantly. Owen is a good actor and has Clinton's Arkansas accent (which some impressionist once described as "Jimmy Carter with a touch of Elvis") down pat, but looks nothing like the man. Having seen Clinton in person and shaken his hand, I can verify that his charisma was off the charts, and Owen doesn't really capture that either. I almost wish they'd gotten Darrell Hammond (who did a great comedic Clinton on Saturday Night Live for years), but Hammond might not have been able to handle the dramatic stuff. Beanie Feldstein doesn't look much like Monica beyond the hair and big smile, but she's perfectly capturing a young besotted staffer's naivete.

I interpreted it more as Azah being thoroughly sick of Tiffany's shit but being too nice to just tell her to shut the hell up. The only reason Tiffany even made it this far was everyone wanting to keep The Cookout intact. Well Tiff, you did it. Now enjoy your sixth-place finish. Nobody will miss either your smug arrogance or your ratty-ass hair extensions.

Thanks for the link! Fascinating interview. I'd just assumed he went to work for GR right away, as nobody would have known who he was before the show aired. GR's Wellington is awesome, but I also recommend the American Wagyu steak: It's expensive, but after your first bite, you WILL know where your money went.

Now that the season is over, does anyone have any idea how Trenton did and whether he's still working for Ramsay two years later?

She really looked BAD. I'm thinking she has some kind of eating disorder. What use would she be on a disaster-stricken island? She'd just be one more mouth to feed. I'm glad the production only allowed her to go to that neighboring island.

Alyssa will probably need to win HoH or Veto to avoid exiting tonight. In any case, the Cookout's knives will rapid come out for each other, probably starting with Tiffany. Her ONE strategy to keep Claire's jury vote would be to tell Claire she was a pawn, vote for Xavier to exit, then act shocked and betrayed when Claire is voted out. The only problem with that is she runs the risk of the Cookout calling her (Tiffany) out right then and there. No matter. Claire will find out all about the CO when she heads to the jury house and realizes Tiffany's been lying to her from Day One. As I said last week, Tiffany's playing a pretty good Russell Hantz game but forgetting that Hantz never won Survivor BECAUSE THE JURY HATED HIS SMUG BACKSTABBING ASS. You'd think she'd pick up on the last part. Meanwhile, the Zingbot continues to be as aggressively unfunny as always.

Watching the first two famous (although I had never heard of them) chefs cook was interesting. Watching Gordon Ramsay speed-run his way through highly complex steps with difficult ingredients? All I could think was "OH MY FUCKING GOD is he good." It was like watching a Buddy Rich drum solo or David Copperfield at his peak doing sleight-of-hand or Larry Bird take over a basketball game by making every shot: the simple knowledge that neither I nor anyone I know will ever be this good at anything. I've always respected Ramsay as a chef, but had no idea he was on this level. As for the contestants: Alejandro is a nice guy but simply was not the same level as the other three.

Ramsay letting anyone keep their jackets is rare, and a major sign of respect from him. My guess is they probably had to do it for an hour or so, then were told to go back in. I like how the show FINALLY acknowledged that the HK restaurant we see on the show is not the actual HK restaurant at Caesars Palace. The right two people went home. Brynn's anxiety attacks during service are a major problem, and this was the second service where Steve emotionally shut down at exactly the wrong time, grinding everything to a halt. Brynn and Steve are both talented chefs whose futures may not be in the rapid-fire world of a busy metropolitan restaurant. Trenton's arrogance finally bubbled to the surface and it was not a good look. I'm rooting for Megan at this point.

And remember that they've already had sex, so Kenny knew exactly what he was turning down. Methinks that like a lot of people (male or female) who use sex to get what they want from near-strangers, Demi's actual bedroom skills are nothing to write home about. I've read accounts from former BiP contestants who say the actual resort (Playa Escondida) is pretty dumpy, especially the parts they don't show on TV. The producers remove the TVs and disable the AC units in the rooms so they're hot, boring and unpleasant, forcing everyone out onto the beach. So you're stuck on this crappy beach with no TV or Internet, away from your friends and family, forced to interact 24/7 with a bunch of vapid famewhores. No wonder some people say "F this" and leave early. No doubt they'll blame the editing. (eyeroll)

THIS. Tammy can make out with whoever she wants. HOWEVER, when you've been casually dating Aaron on the show and know Thomas and Aaron hate each other, you don't: 1. Grab Thomas and lead him to a make-out couch, walking right by Aaron, 2. Make out with him in front of Aaron, including MOUNTING HIM, then asking Thomas: "Is Aaron still staring laser beams into the back of my head?", making it clear you damn well knew what you were doing. 3. Act innocent to Aaron and say "I don't know how I feel about you both." YES YOU DO. STOP LYING. You wouldn't have dissed Aaron like that in front of everyone if you still remotely wanted him. My wife and I have spotted the women wearing necklaces from Nordstrom (because she owns identical necklaces) and men wearing button-up shirts from Old Navy (because I own identical shirts). Tre's blue shirt with the white flamingos? Got one hanging in my closet. As for the Kenny/Mari/Demi/Tia triangle (quadrangle? whatever): Here's how I see it. 1. Kenny and Mari were dating and making out, blah blah blah. 2. Mari tells Kenny "I want to be able to explore relationships with other guys," which makes Kenny feel like she considers him strictly a backup until someone better shows up. 3. Demi takes advantage of the situation and makes Kenny feel WANTED and DESIRED right when he's feeling jilted and down. 4. Kenny naturally responds to this favorably. 5. Demi takes Kenny to bed and throws herself on him. 6. Once again, Kenny responds as you might expect. 7. Mari flips her shit at Kenny and Demi for no reason. She was obviously expecting Kenny to either wait around whilst she sowed her wild oats, or chase after her madly to "prove" himself, rather than just moving on to the next option (i.e. Demi). Basically, Mari treated the situation like a teenager (i.e. "I'm beautiful and sexy. How dare you not fall over yourself for me?") and Kenny treated it like an adult (i.e. "You don't want me as a first option? No biggie then. Have a nice life. I'm going to look elsewhere."). 8. After her ridiculous tantrum, Mari tries walking back everything she told Kenny. If I were Kenny, the conversation would have begun and ended with "Demi made a nice, sincere gesture with that cake, and you threw it in the fire in a snit. I don't want anyone like that in my life. Goodbye." 9. Tia shows up and shows an interest in Kenny as well. Kenny, who's seen enough of Demi on TV to know she likely sees him as a fling, shows an interest as well since Tia actually seems to be looking for a husband. Kenny knows he's 40 and ain't getting any younger. 10. Kenny tells Demi she's going on a date with Tia. For the first time ever on the Bachelor franchise, Demi drops her guard for a second and we all see that behind her bluster and bravado is a scared little girl who desperately wants to be wanted. Demi's problem is that her highly calculated "Alpha Slut" persona will chase away exactly the kind of man (or woman) she wants and needs in her life.

Door-to-door is one of the WORST jobs there is. Flipping burgers would literally be a step up. Jenny as a Hare Krishna??? HKs are supposed to radiate peace, love and/or good life choices. None of these apply to Jenny. $50,000 for a wedding? Run, dude. Just run away as fast as you can. Pizza Lady is just bound and determined to burn her life down. As for Kenny and Armando:

BTW: What exactly is Tiffany's problem with Sarah Beth? Her weirdly personal hatred reminds me of Memphis' bizarre animus towards David last season.

Azah could have said "I don't lend my clothes out. Everyone has different body shapes, and your bigger bust will stretch the dress." Simple, polite, and to the point while being complimentary towards Alyssa. As for Tiffany: her nonstop cackling and unearned sense of entitlement are off-the-charts annoying. She's playing the Russell Hantz game: backstab your way to the Finals, trample on all of your alliances and piss everyone off, then act shocked when the jury hates you and votes for the other guy to win out of pure spite. And I'd be willing to bet money that when she loses, whether in the finale or by getting voted out earlier, she'll instantly make it a racial/sexist thing: "The other houseguests weren't comfortable with a strong, beautiful woman of color such as myself." No, Tiffany: the other houseguests were fed up with your entitled backstabbing and finally had enough.

I wonder if Tiffany's vote for Sara Beth wasn't for two reasons: A) Sara Beth went to her and said "I know I'm a goner but I don't want it to be unanimous" (SB more or less confirmed this during her exit interview). B) Tiffany wanted to make sure Kyland wouldn't have a Perfect Game* (Yes, she really is that petty). Meanwhile: Is Derek F. really struggling that much to say "I vote to evict," or did he genuinely mess up the first time or two and now considers it his "trademark?" Did Britini actually threaten to punch out a statue??? I wondered at first why they were making such a big deal out of a bee, but it was a pretty funny turn of events (Derek gets spooked and bails out of the hammock, leading to Hannah hitting her head, leading to everyone running outside to see what happened, leading to unattended cooking food catching fire and almost burning the BB house down). Benjamin Franklin would've LOLed.** The only chance for Alyssa or Claire is to become the only non-CO player left and worm their way in with whoever wins HoH that week. At that point, the CO members may adopt an attitude of "She's no threat, and we can vote her out anytime we want" while the focus turns towards eliminating each other. Survivor 9's Chris used that exact strategy to win the whole season against the odds. *A Perfect Game is when someone wins BB unanimously without having any eviction votes cast against them during the season. Cody did it last year, but it's only happened three or four times total. **Benjamin Franklin once said "For want of a nail, the shoe was lost. For want of a shoe, the horse was lost. For want of a horse, the rider was lost. For want of a rider, the message was lost. For want of a message, the battle was lost. For want of a battle, the war was lost. For want of a war, the kingdom was lost." In this case, a stray bee nearly led to an inferno. Claire used that "Coin of Destiny" thing to secretly overthrow Tiffany as HoH. Since Tiffany wasn't the official HoH afterwards, she could play in the new HoH comp. Claire also played (as nobody knew she was the HoH), but production told her beforehand that she was required to throw it before the end.

I'd completely forgotten, as it's been at least five minutes since she mentioned it.

The pathetic part is that Jenny had about a million warning signs that moving to be with Sumit this time was a terrible idea, but she was bound and determined to do it because she was in love and Wuv Conquers All and stuff. As someone upthread mentioned, she comes off like someone who read a bunch of Harlequin Romances when she was growing up and didn't realize they were written as FANTASY, not reality. She really thinks she's met her Indian Prince and they're going to live Happily Ever After. If she wasn't such a demanding harridan, I'd almost feel sorry for her.

HK was a trainwreck for the first three seasons or so. It improved after that because of a new rule that only chefs who had cooked professionally for at least two years could apply for the show (I don't know if that rule was in place this season). I'm pegging Steve as the winner because he has the most on-camera charisma of any of the remaining chefs, and because Ramsay obviously likes him. If Ramsay is less concerned about charisma, Trenton would be the best choice. This season has been the most enjoyable in awhile. Mrs. RaiderDuck pointed out that having younger chefs means you don't have a cast full of chain-smoking burnouts. They're all young enough to still view cooking as a great adventure rather than a career they're trapped in because they think they're too old to start over doing something else (and in some cases, earlier decisions make that doubly hard: try getting a job in a doctor's or lawyer's office with neck tattoos and ear spacers).

It reached its nadir a couple of seasons ago when Stephanie said "I hope my mother never finds out I'm gay!" right before making out with another woman on national television.