S17.E24: Episode 24

[Nashville]

Put in that context, and it sounds like the best turd is the one floating highest in the punch bowl. :D

Edited August 17, 2015 by Nashville

[Petunia13]

As for "game play and strategy", Liz is part of the most solid alliance in the house (Austwins)

Her solid alliance with them has absolutely nothing to do with gameplay and strategy. She has to do zero effort convincing her TWIN to work with her or some desparate horny lovestruck loser.

Also yes I do think she sounds like an idiot. Whether or not other people in the house are, or say something, stupid does not negate the fact that she sounds stupid. And am not blown away by her degree and grades. And don't think they matter in judging how smart a person is especially at this game.

[Tara Ariano]

In case you missed it, here's the Previously.TV post on the episode!

 

They're No Angels / After last week's close shave, Vanessa's game is looking up…or is it?

[Nashville]

Also yes I do think she sounds like an idiot. Whether or not other people in the house are, or say something, stupid does not negate the fact that she sounds stupid. And am not blown away by her degree and grades. And don't think they matter in judging how smart a person is especially at this game.

There's always the possibility that's exactly the effect she (and Julia) are shooting for; play up the vapid omigawwwd South Beach Bimbo empty-headed blonde stereotype, and pretty soon everybody considers you more annoyance than serious strategic threat.

That is, until you're sitting in one (or both) of the F2 chairs, and they're sitting in the Jury box looking back at you and wondering what the hell happened....

[DAngelus]

I can figure out the first word is supposed to be my but what is the second word supposed to be?

 

"Goddess", with a phonetic "a" for the "o" ("Goooooddess" would look wrong, IMO), and the extraneous "uh" attached at the end, as the twins often do.

 

A bit too precious, probably.  Sorry about that.

 

[Liz's] solid alliance with [Austin and Julia] has absolutely nothing to do with gameplay and strategy. She has to do zero effort convincing her TWIN to work with her or some desparate horny lovestruck loser.

 

Except that she (and Julia) had to find a way to tip-toe through the first five weeks for Julia to even come into the game.  Liz (or Julia) negotiated safety from Da'Vonne in Week 1. Liz found a way to get Austin to talk Shelli out of using her as a (vulnerable) backdoor "pawn" in Week 2.  With their secret blown up and making them a target, Julia took a chance by confiding in Vanessa in Week 2, and created a strong alliance dedicated to protecting the twins, both for the purpose of numbers, but also by utilizing Austin's romantic interest, Shelli's sorority attachment, and Vanessa's pride in her creation and expectation of reciprocal protection.  And then Liz won HoH in Week 4 and BotB in Week 5 (in what was a very vulnerable position) to get Julia to the finish line.

 

As for the "desperate horny lovestruck loser", she's done a good job of keeping him close enough to be a meat shield but not provoking him into going full Caleb on her.  And she's also worked to keep him in the game, cleaning up the mess he made by trying to reach out to Jason.  (Not that others weren't also involved, but Liz came back into the house on Day 36 to find herself nominated [and with her BotB partner secretly planning to throw the comp] and 8/12 of the HGs in an alliance predicated on evicting first the loser and then her and her sister ["two easy weeks", as Jackie crowed constantly that week] and first saved herself with the BotB and then convinced Vanessa and Clelli to ditch their new "allies" and rededicate themselves to Sixth Sense.)

 

Yes, it's nice that Vanessa is practically the only HG ever to crawl out of a backdoor grave on her own.  (Eric Stein had the DR prepping him;  Frank got a well-timed "reset".)  But that doesn't mean that Liz hasn't been playing as well, and she doesn't have allies questioning her and enemies gunning for her the way that Lady MacV does.  Certainly Liz has done more work than the ADC/Goblins/Three Buffoons/whatever, who spent the majority of the game so far thinking they could dictate evictions by reaching a regal consensus while sitting on the couch laughing at Jason's mean "jokes" and then proclaiming it to be what "the House" wanted, and whose remnants still refuse to acknowledge that Vanessa and the Austwins are in an alliance and don't think Steve is even on that side of the house, when he's only been there since Week 1.

 

Meantime Liz is building a resume of comp wins, is tied for the lead in comp win percentage, is second in mental comp wins, is in the big alliance and the tightest sub-alliance, has two strong allies (both of whom would take her to the F2, not each other), and isn't at the top of a single person's target list.  If she isn't playing the best game in the house, who is?  (And yes, she's been lucky, but you have to take advantage of your luck. Otherwise you're Da'Vonne, out of the House in Week 2, despite the producers practically shoving Hidden Immunity Idols into her hands.)  All JMO, but I like her game so far.

 

Also yes I do think she sounds like an idiot. 

There's always the possibility that's exactly the effect she (and Julia) are shooting for; play up the vapid omigawwwd South Beach Bimbo empty-headed blonde stereotype, and pretty soon everybody considers you more annoyance than serious strategic threat.

That is, until you're sitting in one (or both) of the F2 chairs, and they're sitting in the Jury box looking back at you and wondering what the hell happened....

 

This theory is backed up by the twin-switch session in which Julia is appalled that Liz is "playing the dumb blonde".  I mean, the accent is probably not entirely affected, but it's just an accent and Liz does seem to be making an effort to be the "Bubbly Twin" and not the "Sulky Twin".  That's strategy, to my mind.

 

Although I doubt she'll actually end up sitting in both F2 chairs.  Even Jason doesn't think she's that fat.  (J/K, I know you meant "in conjunction with her sister".  I just couldn't resist.)

Edited August 17, 2015 by DAngelus

[LoneHaranguer]

 

There's always the possibility that's exactly the effect she (and Julia) are shooting for; play up the vapid omigawwwd South Beach Bimbo empty-headed blonde stereotype, and pretty soon everybody considers you more annoyance than serious strategic threat.

Liz is definitely playing the dumb blonde. Julia refused to go to the same extreme, even when it meant risking giving herself away as not being Liz, but it's unclear if she's being herself, or compromising and just playing it less dumb.

[RedheadZombie]

You know, I'm a straight talking Midwesterner, and I pride myself on being outspoken and opinionated.  But I certainly know when to rein it in.  As pleasurable as some people found John telling Vanessa she's a bully, it was absolutely stupid to his game.  I just don't get this guy still.  He's practically comatose in his interactions with people.  He gives that non-blinking stare, and appears to slip into the first stage of sleep.  It's like they have him snort some cocaine before he enters the DR.  He is so non-existent, that even his closest friend since the beginning (Becky) does not consider him to be part of her alliance.

 

Regarding the twins - I couldn't stand them for quite a while.  I thought Liz was extremely shallow, and I'm uncomfortable watching Austin's constant hovering.  But I got the free feeds for a week, and the night I tuned in changed my mind.  They were sitting at the dinner table, and the twins were speaking in length about TLC shows.  19 Kids & Counting, Sister Wives, The Little Couple, Honey Boo Boo, etc.  They went on at length, and I found them absolutely hysterical.  They seemed much more like cable TV dorks than party girls.  Extra points for Austin sitting apart and out of camera range.  After about a half an hour of this conversation, the camera panned to John - who had been sitting at the table with them, comatose.

 

But what I probably like most about the twins, is how they treat Steve.  I read that Julia was one of the few who has talked to Steve since the beginning.  I like that Liz said Steve was absolutely off the table for noms.  I liked how the twins comforted him during his melt down.  At one point, they looked at each other over his head and instead of rolling their eyes, they seemed generally concerned.  It's refreshing when most people are constantly implying, if not straight out saying, that he's mentally ill, and he makes them uncomfortable.  Well this is how socially awkward people act, folks, and the only way to work on this behavior is to challenge yourself in social situations.  I guess it would be easier if folks like Steve just stayed at home to make others more comfortable.

[Wandering Snark]

After about a half an hour of this conversation, the camera panned to John - who had been sitting at the table with them, comatose

 

So we have Steve who only says things to himself alone in a room and JohnnyMac who says nothing in conversations but is chatty Cathy in the DR. Interesting.

Edited August 17, 2015 by Wandering Snark

[tricknasty]

Austin walking around constantly shirtless and with wild hair and beard like he's The Scorpion King or Khal Drogo.

MF is no The Rock or Jason Momoa, needs to stop.

RIP Khal Drogo....you fine hunk of man

[Dewey Decimate]

Austin walking around constantly shirtless and with wild hair and beard like he's The Scorpion King or Khal Drogo.

MF is no The Rock or Jason Momoa, needs to stop.

+100 to this.

 

I've said this before somewhere, but that tattoo encircling his right (?) nipple does him no favors, because it makes it look like a pre-teen's cute little fledgling breast.

Austin, I have seen Khal Drogo. You, sir, are no Khal Drogo.

This is verbatim what I was going to write! There was a scene on BBAD (not actually a spoiler, just hair style talk)

in which Liz is braiding pieces of Austin's hair and compares him to Khal Drogo. I wanted to tear the words out of her mouth, and vomit a little in my own, at the comparison.

Jason Momoa is possibly the most beautiful man to cross this planet, and I'm also partial to the super-hot Middle Eastern guy in the Mummy series (always dresses in black, rides a black horse). Thank gods for those fine, fine specimens; Austin will not ruin tall, long-haired, tattooed men for me!

 

As for the episode, was that HoH comp insanely easy, or was it just me? I assumed they edited in the pauses before a HG rung in, as even WITHOUT the three options in front of me, I got every friggin' question in about three seconds. Was the board a lot larger than what they showed on tv? Lame. Though the pushpin stools were kinda cute.

[AndreaK1041]

That was the dumbest HoH competition ever. I'm annoyed at everyone who was beat on any of the questions. I am also annoyed with Liz for winning by default. Terrible competition, terrible television.

[kathybgd]

Jason Momoa IS THE MOST perfect man on earth and it made me vomit a little bit to see someone on another site comparing him to Austin! What on earth were they THINKING!

Excuse me Dewey Decimate, I just read what you commented. Totally agree!

[Petunia13]

Austin's tattoos suck also. It's like he watched the 6th season of Buffy and saw when Willow became evil and her veins turned black then told his artist "I'll have what she's having"

Then they threw some random stuff with no order or creativity like doodles on a notebook.

[candall]

Except that she (and Julia) had to find a way to tip-toe through the first five weeks for Julia to even come into the game.  Liz (or Julia) negotiated safety from Da'Vonne in Week 1. Liz found a way to get Austin to talk Shelli out of using her as a (vulnerable) backdoor "pawn" in Week 2.  With their secret blown up and making them a target, Julia took a chance by confiding in Vanessa in Week 2, and created a strong alliance dedicated to protecting the twins, both for the purpose of numbers, but also by utilizing Austin's romantic interest, Shelli's sorority attachment, and Vanessa's pride in her creation and expectation of reciprocal protection.  And then Liz won HoH in Week 4 and BotB in Week 5 (in what was a very vulnerable position) to get Julia to the finish line.

 

As for the "desperate horny lovestruck loser", she's done a good job of keeping him close enough to be a meat shield but not provoking him into going full Caleb on her.  And she's also worked to keep him in the game, cleaning up the mess he made by trying to reach out to Jason.  (Not that others weren't also involved, but Liz came back into the house on Day 36 to find herself nominated [and with her BotB partner secretly planning to throw the comp] and 8/12 of the HGs in an alliance predicated on evicting first the loser and then her and her sister ["two easy weeks", as Jackie crowed constantly that week] and first saved herself with the BotB and then convinced Vanessa and Clelli to ditch their new "allies" and rededicate themselves to Sixth Sense.)

 

Yes, it's nice that Vanessa is practically the only HG ever to crawl out of a backdoor grave on her own.  (Eric Stein had the DR prepping him;  Frank got a well-timed "reset".)  But that doesn't mean that Liz hasn't been playing as well, and she doesn't have allies questioning her and enemies gunning for her the way that Lady MacV does.  Certainly Liz has done more work than the ADC/Goblins/Three Buffoons/whatever, who spent the majority of the game so far thinking they could dictate evictions by reaching a regal consensus while sitting on the couch laughing at Jason's mean "jokes" and then proclaiming it to be what "the House" wanted, and whose remnants still refuse to acknowledge that Vanessa and the Austwins are in an alliance and don't think Steve is even on that side of the house, when he's only been there since Week 1.

 

Meantime Liz is building a resume of comp wins, is tied for the lead in comp win percentage, is second in mental comp wins, is in the big alliance and the tightest sub-alliance, has two strong allies (both of whom would take her to the F2, not each other), and isn't at the top of a single person's target list.  If she isn't playing the best game in the house, who is?  (And yes, she's been lucky, but you have to take advantage of your luck. Otherwise you're Da'Vonne, out of the House in Week 2, despite the producers practically shoving Hidden Immunity Idols into her hands.)  All JMO, but I like her game so far.

 

 

This theory is backed up by the twin-switch session in which Julia is appalled that Liz is "playing the dumb blonde".  I mean, the accent is probably not entirely affected, but it's just an accent and Liz does seem to be making an effort to be the "Bubbly Twin" and not the "Sulky Twin".  That's strategy, to my mind.

 

 

 

I'm sold.

[Wandering Snark]

One good thing here though is that my show info still states that there would be a battle of the block in this eppy. So, that's now two weeks where they'd planned to still have the horrible BotB, but ditched it early.

[Guest]

That's three comp wins for Liz, and they were all mental comps. (The paint-flinging part of the BotB aside.)  Only Steve has won more mental comps.  In the words of Jason, "we know she's smart."  (Cum Laude at Loyola, I remind you.)

Cum laude isn't that impressive or rare.  At some universities about half the graduates make that.  

[Nashville]

Cum laude isn't that impressive or rare.  At some universities about half the graduates make that.  

 

... and half don't.  :)

[Ceeg]

Book smarts =/= game smarts. And also people can be good in school, but still dumb. It happens.  Vanessa graduated from Duke in 2.5 years (which was a school record) with a degree in economics, was in the top 5% of her law school class until she left, and is one of the best female poker players of all time. AND YET, she's probably in the worst position in the house, because she's made some major mistakes and miscalculations, and everyone is gunning for her. I mean...Jordan Lloyd won BB11, and she beat a lot of people who were a lot smarter than her in the real world.

 

Some of Big Brother is about being smart, but some of it is about luck. Liz was lucky that she got outed as a twin, because then that made her more desirable for the 6S, since they would have an auto-added member after a few weeks. Liz was lucky that, despite her efforts, Jeff got voted out, because now Austin is a wonderful meat shield for her. Liz was lucky that Becky cried after Clay won that veto comp, which made Shelli paranoid, which ensured Austin stayed rather than get backdoored. Liz is lucky that Vanessa is a shady, emotional, and manic player, and by Vanessa's own doing has painted a target on her back even bigger than the Twins and the Showmance.

[dolphincorn]

 

Some of Big Brother is about being smart, but some of it is about luck.

 

At least the American version is mostly about being smart. The Canadian version has so many twists that it has skewed the game to favor the lucky.

[Guest]

... and half don't.  :)

Yeah, I guess impressive is in the eye of the beholder.  

 

Her LinkedIn page doesn't even say she graduated cum laude.  It says 'semester GPA 3.52' and 'Dean's list May 2014'.  I would interpret that to mean that was her one highest semester.  It also looks like she didn't have to work much in college.  

[Nashville]

Yeah, I guess impressive is in the eye of the beholder.  

 

Her LinkedIn page doesn't even say she graduated cum laude.  It says 'semester GPA 3.52' and 'Dean's list May 2014'.  I would interpret that to mean that was her one highest semester.  It also looks like she didn't have to work much in college.

Well... my youngest graduated college cum laude last year, so I will freely admit to a degree of bias on the subject. :)

[Kris117]

And all three of my nieces and nephews who have graduated did so with magna cum laude honors, for which I take full credit, of course.

One good thing here though is that my show info still states that there would be a battle of the block in this eppy. So, that's now two weeks where they'd planned to still have the horrible BotB, but ditched it early.

O frabjous fourteen days!

Callooh! callay!

Truly BB's finest gift to the masses was the early (and, please God, permanent) death of BotB.

Edited August 19, 2015 by Kris117

[LoneHaranguer]

 

Cum laude isn't that impressive or rare.  At some universities about half the graduates make that.

Half the graduates can make cum laude because the university is strict about letting poor student slide, or because they've got a problem with grade inflation but have never adjusted the criteria for honors to match. It's been suggested that the latter tends to be closer to the truth for big-name universities since it sounds more impressive to an employer to have that "with honors" and big-name universities like to brag about their success in getting their students jobs when they graduate.

[DAngelus]

Hey, all I was trying to was rebut the "idiot" charge, and that was as much on Liz's record in the House as outside.  But whatever.  (And idiots don't pull 3.52s, anyhow.  Or, presumably, make the Dean's List.)  Still, for the statistically-minded, the standards at "LoyNO" are that a 3.5 cumulative grade average is required for cum laude (so Liz probably didn't just have the one semester of 3.52), with 3.7 for magna and 3.9 for summa.  And while I couldn't find the graduation list for Liz's class, the 2014 Loyola College of Law graduation saw 4 summa graduates, 12 magna, 19 cum laude, and 192 non-Honors graduates.  Assuming the undergrads have a similar distribution pattern, Liz would therefore place between the 85th and 93rd percentile of her graduating class.  (At the 3rd-ranked school in Louisiana, where your insane tuition/living costs do get you a 10-1 student-faculty rate, and a likely class size of between 10-19 students.) So not so much "almost half" for the Honors candidates, IMO.

 

Moving on, when I think back to the episode, I can't help but feel a little ripped off.  Usually the only thing that makes me tolerate the Fucking Fast-Forward is the belief that all the relevant details will be filled on the following Sunday's show, and here…they really weren't.

 

Why did Steve nominate Jackie and Meg?

Was he really planning to backdoor Becky?

What did he and John say to each other about using the veto? 

Did John ask for assurances about the renom? Was he worried it would be Becky?

What did each of them feel about the conversation?

 

All we needed was a decent amount of the conversation between Steve and John, plus 3 or 4 DRs.  (An initial one by Steve, stating his plan, maybe one of him or John reacting to John's winning the Veto, and both of their perspectives on the conversation.)  It wouldn't have taken too long, and maybe we could have left the James/Steve "bromance" for another Sunday, as they're both likely to still be around next week.

 

As it was, all we got was Steve telling Jackie that he'd heard she was considering him for eviction in Week 5.  Which is NOT a lie, that was Jackie's fallback plan (James throws BotB, Liz/James on block, if Austin wins Veto and saves Liz, then we kick out Steve), her denial aside.  In fact, if you look at 17.16, when Liz tells Austin that James was throwing the comp, they're surprised because they were told the plan was to get out Steve.  

 

(They'd consented even though they were already in an alliance with Steve [under the CBS-redacted former name], but what we might now call "Austin's Angels" had always had Steve in one pocket and Clelli in the other [as part of Sixth Sense] and figured that at some point they'd have to cut one to move forward with the other…Vanessa had simply told Austin that losing Steve was how she was protecting them from Jackie [remember that Austin had just tried to make a deal with Jason, et al, for similar protection], and he didn't realize that Vanessa had, at that moment, actually decided [foolishly, IMO] to cling on to Clelli and form "Dark Moon" with the other side of the house, ditching the remainder of her allies entirely.)

 

Meantime, while Vanessa was telling Austin that they'll have to cut Steve (LIE), she was telling Steve that they'll have to lose Austin because otherwise Jackie wants him, Steve, gone (not as much of a lie, even if she omitted her own emotional reasons for [temporarily] turning on Austin).  This was the only flashback clip we saw, and that was only for purposes of the "Vanessa's a liar" edit, where Becky is asking if Steve only got the info that Jackie was targeting him from "one person", and seems satisfied that this proves V played Steve, and manipulated his nominations, and it's her fault that Sir Jacqueline had to go to the Old Knights' Home. (Of course, Becky also thinks Vanessa is responsible for the sun rising in the East, so…) Except that Vanessa did mostly tell Steve the truth and he almost always got information from just "one person" in the group, as they were trying to hide their alliance with him.  (Not as successfully as the editors did, but still.)  So Steve's doing a little under-the-bus tossing there, I'd say.  Which is cool; good play, Steve.

 

What's not cool is losing all the other explanatory scenes just so we can see Austin ruminate about Jack and Rose from Titanic. (The water temperature was an estimated 46° F at the site of the sinking, btw.  "Take turns", and you both freeze to death.) If the only way they can show what went on is by trying to link it to their "Vanessa is EEEEVIL" edit, fine, wonderful, enjoy the homophobia, just do it.  Show the damn show, show.  Grrr.

Edited August 19, 2015 by DAngelus

[Nashville]

What's not cool is losing all the other explanatory scenes just so we can see Austin ruminate about Jack and Rose from Titanic. (The water temperature was an estimated 46° F at the site of the sinking, btw.  "Take turns", and you both freeze to death.)

 

Personally, I'd have at least scouted around to find something else to float on - but hey, maybe that's just me.  ;)

[Guest]

I like how Austin's take on chivalry was something to the effect of, "I'd give Liz the raft because I'm SUPPOSED to, because I'm a man, but how fucked up is that!  I want the raft!"  

 

I don't think Liz is stupid.  I do think it's suspect that she doesn't list honors on her Linked In page.  I think BB is full of shit.  They couldn't even name their season accurately (Big Brother Takeover), why would they try to get the HG bios correct when it behooves them to embellish things?  Was it really a "train" that hit Becky?  Was Davonne really a poker dealer, and didn't recognize Vanessa?  Austin has a wikipedia page.  It looks like his pro wrestling career (that BB lists as his profession) was short-lived and ended a while ago.  Interestingly, he has a masters in medieval literature.  He works in fitness.  I think they mostly recruit a bunch of nobodies and dig for the most interesting tidbit in their past to blow out of proportion.  

[DAngelus]

 I think they mostly recruit a bunch of nobodies and dig for the most interesting tidbit in their past to blow out of proportion.  

 

OMG, noooooooo!  I found the 2014 Loyola graduation page, at last, and it's true!  Liz did NOT graduate cum laude!  All she has is a shitty Bachelor of Business Administration degree and one lousy semester on the Dean's List.  50 grand a year, roughly, and she can only make the Dean's List once?  Loser! Uncouth savage!  Proletarian!  Gawwwd, Liz!  My love for you is like, SO over!

 

(Julia has a standard Bachelor of the Arts degree.  Bo-ring.)

 

So, Liz lied.  Then again, it is Big Brother, so maybe she was just practicing.  (Or some CBS schmo messed up.  Also very possible.) I do find it amusing that Liz's middle name is "Clayton", given Clay's presence in the cast.  Not as odd as Shelli having originally been named "Audrey", as she mentioned in episode 17.01, but still nicely coincidental.

 

(*-For those that didn't hear Shelli's story on BBAD, I'll explain in her thread.)

[Joimiaroxeu]

You know it's a bad BB season when the audience is reduced to pooh-poohing castmates' college GPAs, grammar-checking castmates' LinkedIn pages, and throwing shade on the colleges the castmates attended. (Some of this is going on in other threads.) Who cares? Plenty of people have won this show without having attended college at all or having stellar LinkedIn pages. Why is it a thing now? I get that it's been sort of an issue with Vanessa because a big deal was made right off the bat about how she's some kind of academic genius (and pretty good at poker) but it's been clearly shown that her books smarts have not necessarily translated into BB game-playing smarts. On the outside chance that BB cast her to make that point, I doubt they meant it to extend to the entire house. Best I can tell, this show is more about how women's communication and competition styles differ from men's.

Edited August 19, 2015 by Joimiaroxeu

[Guest]

I don't see anyone throwing shade on colleges or grammar checking.  We're discussing if 'cum laude' on her BB bio means (a) she's super smart and (b) if it's even true.  

I don't think it's a bad season or we are bad viewers.   Though I can certainly see not everyone caring about this particular aspect of the discussion.  

[Joimiaroxeu]

I don't see anyone throwing shade on colleges or grammar checking.

Some of it is going on in other threads. For example, let me just throw the word "gerunds" out there.

[Petunia13]

I'm confused by some of the comments and maybe humor? This all started because Liz was called smart. I said I think she's an idiot.

So her bachelors and GPA was brought in to prove she is in fact smart (Based on my personal life Im not awed and also think uni education matters not in terms of BB or if one is actually an idiot. I know idiots who have MBA and phd).

People questioned if that stuff mattered or was true. Then the advocate of Liz's intelligence dropped it, flipped it, and reversed it (thanks Missy!).

Putting this delicately.....The way it's all phrased I feel like it was said to get a reaction.

[Guest]

Some of it is going on in other threads. For example, let me just throw the word "gerunds" out there.

Oh, I see.  Yeah.  Well, for the record I just got tired of seeing 'cum laude from Loyola' thrown out repeatedly as evidence of superior intellect.  If that impresses you, by all means, be impressed.  I just thought it should be said that overall, it's not that impressive a feat (even when it's true).  

 

I'm confused by some of the comments and maybe humor? This all started because Liz was called smart. I said I think she's an idiot.

So her bachelors and GPA was brought in to prove she is in fact smart (Based on my personal life Im not awed and also think uni education matters not in terms of BB or if one is actually an idiot. I know idiots who have MBA and phd).

People questioned if that stuff mattered or was true. Then the advocate of Liz's intelligence dropped it, flipped it, and reversed it (thanks Missy!).

Putting this delicately.....The way it's all phrased I feel like it was said to get a reaction.

I think the last post by D'Angelus was his/her way of saying BB is *not* nobodies, Liz *is* special.  So not so much reversing it as just playing semantic sarcasm games.  I will ignore from now on.  

 

Peace and love!  We're all special honors students in my heart!  

[Nashville]

You know it's a bad BB season when the audience is reduced to pooh-poohing castmates' college GPAs, grammar-checking castmates' LinkedIn pages, and throwing shade on the colleges the castmates attended. (Some of this is going on in other threads.) Who cares? Plenty of people have won this show without having attended college at all or having stellar LinkedIn pages. Why is it a thing now?

Hey, stalkers-in-training have to hone their skills somewhere.... :D

[Joimiaroxeu]

If that impresses you, by all means, be impressed.

The point I guess I haven't been making very well is that I couldn't care less what college any of them went to, what their GPA was, or whether their LinkedIn pages have proper grammar. It's really not a significant factor in this game, IMO. [snip]

 

Hey, stalkers-in-training have to hone their skills somewhere.... :D

:D indeed. The Fans of Reality TV site got into a bit of legal trouble a few years ago because some of their posters on the Bachelor forum were in fact stalking that season's bachelor and members of his family. They posted paparazzi-style photos in order to bolster their claims of who the winning girl was. (And the problem was compounded by having a relative of that bachelor openly participating in the threads throughout the season.) Anyways, the site now has strict rules about doing stuff like that. I'd hate to see Previously.TV run up against that kind of problem because this season's housemates are perhaps leaving much to be desired on the game-playing front and some viewers are looking for other things to bring up.

Edited August 20, 2015 by Stinger97

[Ceeg]

FWIW, I don't really think this season has been bad at all. Maybe it's because I value good people over drama, but I'd rather watch mostly good but boring people maneuver their way around the house and the game than watch a house full of homophobes and racists. The worst thing most of us can complain about this season are people being idiots (Meg), people being vapid or annoying (Becky, Steve, Vanessa), or people being unclean or gross (Austin).

 

It probably would have shaped up to be lackluster had James not won that HOH a few weeks ago, and turned things around. It's pretty amazing that he managed to blatantly go back on a promise he made in front of everyone by nominating Clay and Shelli, and subsequently not be put on the block at all in the next 3 HOHs. I don't even think he was an option for Liz this episode. It was pretty much just John and Becky, with a possible Vanessa surprise bc she's Teh Ultimate Evul. 

Also, I see a lot of complaining about this week's filler moments (the bromance, the Titanic discussion), but tbh, I kind of enjoy that sort of stuff. It's what was missing when they still had BotB, because there was just no time for any personal stuff while there were so many comps happening. Yes, the time could be better spent on gameplay discussions, but personal conversations unrelated to the game are still preferable to BotB, for me. And I love it everytime they show James' dumb pranks too, like scaring Steve and Julia.

Edited August 19, 2015 by Ceeg

[Guest]

The point I guess I haven't been making very well is that I couldn't care less what college any of them went to, what their GPA was, or whether their LinkedIn pages have proper grammar. It's really not a significant factor in this game,

I'm not making my point well either because I'm actually in agreement with you.  It's DAngelus I was referring to as being impressed with cum laude and bringing it up multiple times per thread, usually italicized and with a scolding, "you stupid heathens" implication.  

 

Does it matter that the cum laude claim in her bio is made up?  Not to the game.  But I think it's interesting as a viewer to unearth the bs they shovel upon us.  It's like, "This is not just ANY gorgeous blonde, this one is also a SCHOLAR!"  "This is not just any tatted California musclehead, this one is a PRO WRESTLER!"  lol

 

I think there's a big difference between actually stalking, in person, with a camera, and reading someone's public LinkedIn page.  

Edited August 19, 2015 by Guest

[ghoulina]

Also, I see a lot of complaining about this week's filler moments (the bromance, the Titanic discussion), but tbh, I kind of enjoy that sort of stuff. It's what was missing when they still had BotB, because there was just no time for any personal stuff while there were so many comps happening. Yes, the time could be better spent on gameplay discussions, but personal conversations unrelated to the game are still preferable to BotB, for me. And I love it everytime they show James' dumb pranks too, like scaring Steve and Julia.

 

I agree with your entire post, but especially this part. I love those lighter, silly moments as well. Sure, we want to see gameplay. But I also just find interesting to see how the different players get on in the house, who they get along with, how they pass their time, etc. That stuff generally doesn't bore me at all. The only time it annoys me is when there has been a lot of important game play and they drastically reduce it or leave it out to focus on something silly. 

[Wandering Snark]

[Joimiaroxeu]

I think there's a big difference between actually stalking, in person, with a camera, and reading someone's public LinkedIn page.

Agreed but I think some of what's been happening here has gone beyond simple reading. I think it's been brushing right up against doxxing. That info may be public but people are free to seek it out for themselves if they're curious. IMO it's not really relevant here.

 

FWIW, I don't really think this season has been bad at all.

Yeah, I don't think it's been as horrible as, for example, BB15. However, I don't feel like this season I'm seeing any really outstanding game play. This season seems dumbed-down to me. It also seems to me like production is massaging the show images (versus what's shown on the live feeds) unusually hard. Look at the effort they're going to to create some kind of arc for Steve. The only hope I see there is if Steve has been pulling a master con and isn't in fact the socially-challenged fish out of water he appears to be.

[Kris117]

Steve did impress me when he turned off the tears as soon as the twins and Vanessa left and said, "50% acting."

I am enjoying this season because of the number of weeks that started out with an obvious target and ended up with an entirely different person going home. The back-and-forth has been a lot of fun for me.

And like Ceeg and Ghoulina, I enjoy the filler. Even the silly week of boy band appearances was fun to watch. It makes a nice change to have no one to actively despise, and a group that mostly likes each other when they're not focusing on the game.

Because of that, I didn't find this episode boring. It was frustrating because of what was left out of it (see DAngelus's post above for a list), and it was certainly not as dramatic as some episodes have been, but it was fun to watch.

[DAngelus]

I don't see anyone throwing shade on colleges or grammar checking.  We're discussing if 'cum laude' on her BB bio means (a) she's super smart and (b) if it's even true.  

I don't think it's a bad season or we are bad viewers.   Though I can certainly see not everyone caring about this particular aspect of the discussion.  

 

Yeah, really, the last thing I wanted was for this to become an issue.  I just thought "idiot" was a bit much, and I'd been pleasantly surprised to learn that Liz had in fact, achieved good (if not perfect) grades at a good school.  (If not "the Harvard of the South", as Ian Terry's Tulane is sometimes called.  Of course, there are multiple "Southern Harvard"s;  Vanessa went to one, as well.)  The rest was just my love of research, and it was all meant to be in fun.

 

Some of it is going on in other threads. For example, let me just throw the word "gerunds" out there.

 

Well, if Becky's alternating gerunds aren't you're cup of tea, then so be it.  I personally thought it was hilarious that she not only apparently couldn't remember whether she was using or not using them in her "four point plan" (either is fine, but you're supposed to be consistent), but that she was so regular in her switching back and forth.  But then I'm someone who thought the "who among us can resist the allure of really funny math puns?" conversation was one of the highlights of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, so to each their own.  I know that my humor isn't the same as everyone else's necessarily…but I did think it would be recognized as an attempt at humor, at least.  Oh, well.  Sorry about that.

 

The point I guess I haven't been making very well is that I couldn't care less what college any of them went to, what their GPA was, or whether their LinkedIn pages have proper grammar. It's really not a significant factor in this game, IMO, and I'd rather not see so much page space on these threads taken up with those tangential discussions. 

 

I had no idea space in the threads was at a premium.  Why doesn't anybody tell me these things?  (This is also a joke, if I'm still being unclear. [Not necessarily a good one, I admit.  But still.])

 

I'm not making my point well either because I'm actually in agreement with you.  It's DAngelus I was referring to as being impressed with cum laude and bringing it up multiple times per thread, usually italicized and with a scolding, "you stupid heathens" implication.  

 

I think there's a big difference between actually stalking, in person, with a camera, and reading someone's public LinkedIn page.  

 

Not necessarily "impressed", but definitely surprised, given Liz's characterization on the show.  And I did think it might be a bit much that people were brushing off the cum laude from Loyola is if it meant nothing more than an Associate's degree from Florida Atlantic.  (Which is where Liz went before transferring for her last two years.)

 

As for the italics, while I do sometimes use them for emphasis, that's not the case here.  It's simply that cum laude has to be italicized, as it's a Latin phrase and that's the accepted usage. I wasn't scolding anyone, per se, just trying to be consistent.  Honestly.

 

And I'm pretty sure the only person I (mock-) insulted was Liz herself.  If she's reading this, I apologize.

 

But I hardly think that reading what the HGs themselves have put out there is an invasion of privacy, much less "stalking".  Seriously, I was just funning.  (But "idiot" is still a bit much, IMO.)

[Joimiaroxeu]

Well, if Becky's alternating gerunds aren't you're cup of tea, then so be it.

Right there is prime reason why one would want to be careful about parsing other people's grammar on the internet. But if you did that on purpose, well, golf claps for you. When Becky gets booted tonight (hopefully) her ability to use gerunds properly will still be irrelevant to Big Brother. Just my opinion, of course.

[Guest]

Not necessarily "impressed", but definitely surprised, given Liz's characterization on the show.  And I did think it might be a bit much that people were brushing off the cum laude from Loyola is if it meant nothing more than an Associate's degree from Florida Atlantic.  (Which is where Liz went before transferring for her last two years.)

 

As for the italics, while I do sometimes use them for emphasis, that's not the case here.  It's simply that cum laude has to be italicized, as it's a Latin phrase and that's the accepted usage. I wasn't scolding anyone, per se, just trying to be consistent.  Honestly.

 

Ok, good to know, thanks for explaining.  Italicizing commonplace foreign words hasn't been the norm in quite a while.  I work in education and had never heard of that so I read some history on it.  Not that you need to change your writing style, this isn't an English paper, but in case others think you're using italics for emphasis when you're not, it might be good to know.  

 

I'm as impressed with any bachelor's degree, to be honest, and not surprised at all Liz has one.  I think the show has made it clear from the start she's playing a little 'dumb blonde' at times.  I don't think she even sounds or seems particularly dumb.  

 

 her ability to use gerunds properly will still be irrelevant to Big Brother. Just my opinion, of course.

Yes, but we talk about all kinds of things irrelevant to the game... Meg's lipstick, dark hair roots, Julia's butt, Austin's beard, John's voice...  

 

I actually do get some game intel from their grammar.  So many of them use the word "myself" incorrectly in the DR I finally concluded it's not their own words, it's one of the cue card writer's.