Ananayel

I really think that Team America went straight to Derrick's head, no doubt reinforcing an already high opinion he holds of himself. And then to get HOH right on top of it just made it worse. So I really need to have people win HOH who would put up him, Christine, Zach, and Cody. Is there such a person, who would not be led about by the nose by whatever alliance is currently full of itself? Comeuppance. It's what's for dinner. I do think some of what people think is Victoria being demanding is due to what she said in a convo with Devin. She translates in her head still, from Hebrew to English. English uses a lot of politeness words, like "would you mind" or "could you please." Not everyone uses them, but most people know of that expectation. Other languages don't, so "can you bring me a soda" is perfectly acceptable in Hebrew, but she doesn't catch herself in time to make it "could you please bring me a soda on your way back" and it comes off sounding like she's demanding someone wait on her. I cut her slack on that. I can't cut her slack on being useless and clueless though. I suspect she was cast in the hope that there would be some degree of drama around the contradictions between her stated belief system and her appearance/behavior. No matter what though, I will never dislike her like I dislike Christine.

Donny was sort of on fire. First, he announces that TA should start with the dumbest one - Caleb. Then, he deflects right back on Nicole - "did you ask me to not tell anyone?" Then, he rocked the puzzle - I was afraid Amber was going to mess it up, until she hit her groove. Now I do think that Donny telling tales out of school, so to speak, will get back to Derrick and not be good for him in the end, but he'll pull out some Donny tears and end up okay. Derrick was so wooden, standing in a polyester wizard's robe on a little circle, declaiming to Nicole that Amber and Donny were going to "come after them," in a lame and completely obvious attempt to cover up their plotting. Seriously, how is he undercover again?

So, Overland Hotel wasn't actually the season finale, but it should have been. This Licking County Jail episode was just boring, and I got way sick of hearing "Misty" over and over and over again. At least Zak ditched the stupid glasses. Season 10 (10!) premieres "this fall" with what Zak is calling "explosive announcements." Any guesses?

Grodner needs to give America's Player a rest for a while. If the hamsters are figuring it out, then it's expected, and thus, boring. Let them go a season or two trying to blame every weird thing on a nonexistent America's Player. That should be entertaining. Actually, TPTB need to give Groder a rest for a while. Like 50 or so years. Get rid of the HN room and slop. Make them eat other stuff that is edible and nutritious but unappetizing (maybe make each hammie list their "least liked" foods and go from there), they can keep the cold showers, and make the HNs be the ones who have to clean the pigsty daily. That'll make them suffer.

At this point I wouldn't mind seeing Derrick get some comeuppance as well, for being such a condescending jackhole to and about Donny, and acting like it's some monstrous chore to drag him through the game. Donny's seen every episode, when he chimes in is usually right, and has proven that he can win competitions. STFU, Derrick.

I want Devin gone as much as the next person, but I would actually love that to happen. That's how much I've turned around on Derrick since he won HOH. I wonder if the DR is encouraging the rampant HOH-itis. A few leading questions about how it feels to have ALL THE POWER in the ENTIRE HOUSE and what are they going to do with all that TASTY TASTY POWER and you wind up with otherwise level-headed and smart players pitching themselves headfirst off the deep end into CrazyTown.

Very disappointed in Derrick. Is there some kind of behavior-altering gas they're pumping into the HOH room at night? Why does every HOH go nuts like this?

I'm sure I will be able to figure out a way to work "Bluh blah, I've got it." into my daily life.

Dagnabbit! I'm guessing Derrick must have overplayed his hand, and Nicole was asserting some backbone. Derrick seems (operative word "seems") to be all about TeamAmerica, so I'm surprised he wasn't able to figure something else out.

Other than Zack, I'm glad Derrick got one of the HOHs. He should be able to make Nicole not do something stupid, but do it without insulting, demeaning, belittling, or threatening. He's pretty savvy and persuasive. There were several Chenbot malfunctions tonight. Time for a defrag, perhaps?

I don't think that rumor can be true. I think BBXtra is for the UKBB. Also, you just know Julie/CBS would have been promoting the crap out of it, and probably making us vote for who came back.

Don't forget Brittany tossed in "competitions" and "baseball," just for good measure. I don't really like her, but that was some grand work right there. Grodner, you suck. You promised a blowup, and gave me a record-scratch.

Dang it! I only actually caved and got feeds for All-Stars, just so I could watch Dr. Will do his thang. Now that BBAD is on a channel I don't have to pay extra for, I was hoping that would be enough. But clearly not this season! I have no idea what's going to happen, I'm pretty sure everyone is lying to everyone, and I have no idea who is actually with whom. Everyone seems to be involved in something, and I just can't keep up. I need a flow chart - one that is updated hourly or something.

I didn't have an opinion on her one way or another until I saw her on Sing Your Face Off earlier this summer. It was just silly summer fluff with no actual prize, but she threw herself into it completely, was game for anything, and had a huge amount of fun. I was prepared to write this season off, what with the return of Brandi and the loss of Joyce, since I really liked her and Mr. Joyce, but this might pull me back. That and Camille's wardrobe.

They spotted some poachers (they were just outside a protected area) who were after some deer. There was a lame fakeout where they tried to make like Ranae (who was on the other side of the river) was in danger. But other than that, nothing. Oh, and there was another lame fakeout where they tried to make it seem like Matt fell off the cherry picker or something. They didn't even show anything related to that "cliffhanger" when they came back from the commercial. This show's the worst.

One of the parents gestures toward the two kids on the other side of the display case. That ad enrages me. If you want precious to sleep, leave it at home with one of the parents. A trip to get new phones is hardly an emergency.

I think America got it right, for once. The three Team America members are all different, with different styles of play. Frankie's been starting bizarre activites all over the place, and is able to persuade people to join in rather easily, so if one of the missions is to get X number of players to participate in Y activity, he's got that on lock. Derrick is an observer and behind-the-scenes manipulator, and Donny is so sweet and seems so trustworthy it's likely that he'll get away with some stuff before anyone figures it out. Also, no one with any sense will let Donny anywhere near F2, so if he gets a chance at some more money, that's great. Devin was talking to someone in the HOH last night on BBAD, and I swear he was flapping his jaws so much and so fast he actually winded himself.

I really really want the next pair of HOHs to agree that each one nominates one of Devin/Caleb, along with another person who will throw the BOB. That way at least one of them is virtually guaranteed to go. Even if the one that remains on the block wins veto, the other one can be backdoored. Those two douchebags exhaust me just reading about them, I can't imagine what it's like to live with them. And if they completely lose their shit and go off the rails, they get removed. Win win.

I watched the rerun on TVGN last night, specifically looking for Cody's foul. And of course, the feed chosen for broadcast wasn't anywhere near Cody. It was focused on Hayden's spectacular wipeout, and Devin was right next to him, if I'm not mistaken. I did see Devin near his buzzer, it looked like he hit it, but since Cody hit his first, Devin's didn't buzz. I think Devin was clapping, so he must have thought he won, and then stomped off after Julie announced Cody's name. They'd better show a different feed's replay next show, or I declare shenanigans.

Now, I'm afraid on several counts. One, that Donny has now come into contact with the toxic stew that is Grodner's twist. Two, that Devin will try and put him up again. And three, poor Amber's not going to get a minute's peace. Talk about a worst case scenario. I can only hope that Grodner cranks up the DR pressure for a non-Donny nom, so part two of her lame twist doesn't also blow up in her face. I am happy for Donny though. Unless the missions are incredibly lame ones, I don't think Team America has a chance of accomplishing any of them, but I'm glad he got the affirmation that his presence on the show is appreciated. And I'm sort of proud of the voters for not going the obvious route in Frankie, or one of the hot girls or musclebound loons.

Does the house know who his sister is yet? I can't imagine CBS would let a montage of people finding out languish on the cutting room floor, and I haven't heard anyone talk about it on BBAD at all. I think he's mentioned having a sister, and maybe called her "Ari," but has he spilled the rest or anyone connected the dots? If not, he might not blab it, because he seems to be doing just great as is, and it might upset the dynamic if people knew.

Boo to whoever designed the little lice letter tiles. I couldn't see any of the letters, and I feel I was deprived of mockery fuel. I had to trust the narration. I wanted to see "caltoru," and I still don't know if Donny spelled "splitters" or "splinters." Hayden could have a career as a death metal vocalist after this.

Why did Joey apologize?! Why!? I understand why Caleb was able to tell her it was too early to form an alliance with a straight face - he's a psycho, who creates his own reality. But man, she's really terrible at this game. I was watching carefully, and they spelled Jocasta's name correctly in the credits this time. Donny may be on track to be one of my favorite hamsters of all time. Not only does he seem like a genuinely sweet, good-hearted person, he's got the right attitude and the right approach to the competitions. What works for the others won't necessarily work for him, and he knows how to work with what he's got. It's going to be funny watching Caleb and Devin twist themselves in knots trying to figure out what his deal is. Soon they'll be thinking he's an actual ninja. And I hope they feel crazy stupid when they get out and watch the episodes.

If you get IFC, there are July 4 weekend marathons, starting Friday at 6:00am Eastern (all day until 5:15), some blocks on Saturday, and a Sunday morning run. After that, it look like daily blocks in the morning and in the afternoon.

And another one! July 4, H2, starts sometime in the morning before I'm up, goes to 11:00. Alas, without my faves Aliens and Bigfoot and Aliens and the Wild West. If you get tired of Twilight Zone on Syfy, drop into H2 for actual Twilight Zone stuff.