S19.E17: Power of Veto #5

[Guest]

Quote

 

One houseguest will win the coveted Power of Veto—the ability to veto a nominee up for eviction.

 

[dizzyd]

So we're just supposed to believe the veto scores were accurate? So convenient that we cannot see the whole competition and from past experience, I know it's not available on live feeds. I thought they were as off as a meteorologist's predictions.

[vb68]

Big night in the  Crazy House.

I don't know how anybody could live with most of these people, especially Josh and Paul.

[NYCFree]

Why was there no discussion of Paul using his veto on Jessica?

Why not show the veto ceremony? My equilibrium is off, Wednesdays end with a veto ceremony dammit!

[mojoween]

Dammit Jessica!  Why do you have to be sensible so I feel like I could almost like you?

[Thalia]

I somehow missed the reading of the instructions.  I can only assume they read something along the lines of, "Everyone will pretend to compete, even though the judges will, of course, award the veto to Paul."  My other thought was that winning had something to do with an ability to announce multisyllabic words.  I have to admit that, with the exception of Sesquicentennial, Paul seemed to do best by that measure.  

Josh, ugh.  That is all, just ugh.  He must have been just lovely in high school. 

[vb68]

1 minute ago, NYCFree said:

Why not show the veto ceremony? My equilibrium is off, Wednesdays end with a veto ceremony dammit!

They had to get all that relationship drama with Jess and Cody in that seemed like it ate up a lot of time in the episode.

[dizzyd]

I remember in an early season when a HG, think his name was Josh too, was immediately removed from the house for holding a knife to another HGs throat during some kinky sex time. Does Josh have to use a weapon before his psychopathic behavior is considered dangerous? I would not be ok stuck in a house with that nutcase, F the prize $, I'd run. But he's treated with kid gloves while a whole episode is spent on Cody getting in Paul's face! This has got to be scripted drama, right?

[BlackMamba]

Jesus this episode frustrated me. 

If I wanted to see Bold and the Beautiful play out I'd watch the actual show. The Jody drana took up too much airtime we almost didn't have a POV.

The Palex duo between Paul and Alex is now coming in handy.  Jessica's ongoing hatred for Alex because Cody drooled over her as a competitor hasn't left.  Too bad for her this will eventually bite her and the rest in the ass throughout the season. 

I though it was smart of Christmas to work her social game so Jessica could potentially not use her hex on Cody but maybe build confidence with once he leaves.  That way Christmas will not only have her hex ring in her back pocket but Jessica could use hers on both of them.  Elena should had been the first one in Jessica's face to be a good friend before Christmas. 

Mark felt bullied? Hmm ok.  I don't buy it.  After he threw pickle juice in someone's face first, pot called  kettle! 

Edited August 3, 2017 by BlackMamba

[woodscommaelle]

What in the world is Josh so god damn angry about?

[BlackMamba]

Just now, woodscommaelle said:

What in the world is Josh so god damn angry about?

Have you been watching the episodes? 

Josh doesn't like Mark because Mark got butthurt over a game of pool.  Mark was heated at Josh's response where he through hot sauce pickle juice at him.  So this is rivalry for better or for worse. 

[hnygrl]

I could never be on this show.

This show encourages the houseguests to be the WORST VERSIONS of themselves. We all have that inner bitch/bastard that we only allow to peek one eye out when we're angry enough. But we never let the bitch out completely. In Big Brother? She's out and proud and living life.

I think outside the house these are all (Paul the famewhore included) very nice people. But in the 24/7 world of lights, camera, action? And producers in the Diary Room ENCOURAGING you to 'ass out' all you want? You become the very worst version of yourself.

Josh is gonna HATE himself when he sees how easily he allowed himself to be manipulated.

[Caseysgirl]

I think both Josh and Mark are suffering from steroid withdrawal. Between the extreme anger one minute and the tears the next, they're both emotional wrecks!

[phlebas]

i only have two thoughts about this episode: "Is Jessica gullible enough to fall for the deal Paul is going to offer?" and "Yes."

[vb68]

10 minutes ago, woodscommaelle said:

What in the world is Josh so god damn angry about?

I think a lot of it is a big act for the cameras- he's an attention whore and he strangely seems to think he's the most entertaining houseguest ever.  But yeah he and Mark have a big running beef.  

[Thalia]

5 minutes ago, Caseysgirl said:

I think both Josh and Mark are suffering from steroid withdrawal.

I couldn't help but notice the stretch marks on Mark's body when he was talking to Cody tonight -- in the shoulder area and along his abdomen.  It made me wonder whether someone who was simply a gym rat would get those, or if they were the result of steroid use. 

[woodscommaelle]

3 minutes ago, vb68 said:

I think a lot of it is a big act for the cameras- he's an attention whore and he strangely seems to think he's the most entertaining houseguest ever.  But yeah he and Mark have a big running beef.  

I don't know. I feel like he might be that intense and shitty in real life, too. 

[BlackMamba]

10 minutes ago, phlebas said:

i only have two thoughts about this episode: "Is Jessica gullible enough to fall for the deal Paul is going to offer?" and "Yes."

I would feel sorry for her if she and Cody didn't waste both their HOHs. 

Now she is trusting a deal that she think Paul might keep. * insert Ace Ventura laugh*

She just keeps getting played. She needs Elena and Christmas to get her through the game if Cody ends up going home. Because she needs people who has some knowledge how the game works to tell her "No! Don't buy into it ol gullible one." 

Edited August 3, 2017 by BlackMamba

[Dewey Decimate]

How many times did I rewind Paul's trip up the stairs? Well, 6 is my lucky number...

I must have missed something in this ep, as I really didn't see what was so horrible about the way Cody and Mark reacted in the face of assholes. Paul told Jessica to come upstairs, Jessica told Cody to go with her. He didn't seem to want to be up there. He didn't take a swing at or touch Paul - in fact he agreeably stepped out until the little big man kept taunting him - totally on-the-nose with needing to have the last word.

Does Paul realize the shade of being named "Paul Bluster"? All hot air and no action? Wow, I'd pony up for a pay-per-view fight between Paul and Cody. Have no doubt Cody would wipe the floor with that spoiled little man-child.

Mark remained so still and calm during that display of mental.... well, whatever PC term would be correct to describe Josh's disturbing behavior... that I didn't even realize he was still wearing the tutu. Which I somehow found slightly attractive. That, and a little scruff actually works for Mark.

"...the storm that spent most of it's time in Blocksburgh..." Hey, thanks for your grammar fuck-ups, BB - you help keep an SAT tutor like me in business.

[slasherboy]

How does Christmas get up and down the stairs?

What's with the black finger nail polish on the guys?

I thought for sure Mark was going to take out Josh with the pots and pans.

I love Cody.  Yes, I do and I'm not ashamed to admit it.

[Michichick]

Christmas hops on her good foot to get up and down the stairs. She has a walker upstairs and her scooter thing downstairs.

[Ms Blue Jay]

Jessica is either psychotic or is trying to save face because she knows Cody is passionately in love with Alex.  Either Paul is completely manipulating her or she's acting to make the show interesting for the cameras, but I can't understand the motivation for #2, because that makes no sense to me.

I never liked Cody, but boy do I feel sorry for him now.  He tries to be protective for 'his girl' and it blows up in his face.  That bullshit fight that Jessica made up, what a nightmare.  And she did it on television.  Oh lord. What was she so upset about?  Because he yelled at Paul?  And blew her chance to strategize with / be manipulated by the Oh Holy Paul who has to be respected at All Times because he's the Lord of the Manor?  LOL!

Both Paul and Jessica did a whole lot of bullshitting today and I can't believe I actually watched it.  And Cody is the collateral damage to all of their manipulation.

I hate Paul but he is a genius.  If he's as great of a player as I think he is, he should manipulate Jessica to not use the Hex and then boot Jessica.

Edited August 3, 2017 by Ms Blue Jay

[North of Eden]

All these years of BIG BROTHER that was some of the most reprehensible stuff I have ever seen. Nearly everyone that had a speaking part was WAY OUT OF LINE.

First Paul, Christmas and Elena are loathsome...what they tried to do was actively kill Cody and Jessica's relationship OUTSIDE of the GAME as well. That is so far out of bounds I can't believe it.

If Cody had walked in while Paul was trying to turn her against him  that bearded douche would have been a bloody smear on the floor.

Jess herself does not come off any better. Cody was gallantly defending her and that is how she treats him? She's worried about him yelling a Paul? AT PAUL? Everything Cody said about Paul was spot on about him...especially being a characacter on a show. Paul deserved every thing he got and more if you ask me.

Then Paul goes down and stirs every body up and then DISAPPEARS and the Mark/Josh fight erupted. I would have cheered if Mark had pummeled Josh because the kid has been egging him on...practically begging for it. And then Elena shuns him too. Mark...Dom was your ride or die....I hope that's what stung the most from Josh's words....you threw her over and for what?

Though silent....Jason is a scum bag....they way he was sitting their laughing about the Josh/Mark fight. I'm sick of him walking around in the Marlboro Man colors and hat. Get a new shirt already.

LOL...Raven looks like hell when she wakes up.

If Jess really does Paul and he houses bidding she is out of her mind and frankly as dumb as a box of rocks.

In closing Cody was right....if there had been no Paul it really could have been his game with Mark as his deputy but Alison Grodner must have her pets after all!

Edited August 3, 2017 by North of Eden

[Caseysgirl]

I'm feeling for Cody. I believe that he actually cares for Jessica, not just as a " showmance". I'm a little less convinced about her feelings for him. He actually is pretty insightful about his chances and seems willing to step aside for her but I don't think she would do the same for him. I think he will get his heart broken and she looked like one tough bitch tonight. But she's not as smart as she thinks she is --Paul has a new gullible follower!

[Eolivet]

I don't ... understand why Jessica and Cody were so mad at Paul for nominating them. Survivor contestants don't walk around, yelling "How dare you flush my idol?" So, you play your idol and save yourself -- big deal. But the way they were pouting about it, it's like ... I think this is what happens when the contestants are too stupid for the strategic weapons they're given.

Unpopular opinion? But I loved Jessica as a person tonight. Imagine if Erika could've told Mike "No, this is not OK. I don't like how you're treating me, this reflects poorly on me outside the house." And to see Elena commiserating with her, and reminding her that they've known these guys for the relationship equivalent of two seconds ... amazing. Between Nicole using Corey as a shield and then taking the money for herself last season, and Jessica and Elena running their showmances, I feel like The Curse of the Doomed Showmance Girlfriend may finally be lifting.

(Then again, it is Big Brother.)

[helpmerhonda]

I see no way that the Jessica and Cody relationship survives outside the house. They are vastly different people.

I don't understand why Jessica thought Paul wouldn't at least try to nominate them. Even after she told Paul she had a temptation power, he was still going to nominate them to flush it out. 

That part with Josh saying that since the showmances are breaking up, he might get lucky - that really creeped me out. 

Oh, and I actively dislike all of these people. Seriously. All of them.

[hnygrl]

you're right. Not gonna happen. And I think Cody knows it.

She's basically a bottle service babe who makes her biggest money flirting and being nice to drunk patron. Cody's an old fashioned cowboy of a man and he already knows he won't be able to handle her world or her job.

And there's no way on earth Jessica's giving UP her world OR her job for CODY.

Poor bastard. He knows...but he has "hope"

[endure]

I actually think little miss entitled daffy duck (Jessica) and Cody are incredibly suited to each other.  They both are entitled and narcissistic and she's a real bitch to him and he just seems to lap that up. 

[Ms Blue Jay]

I forgot to say how hot Cody looked with the weather reporter glasses.

Also every time Mark is in the Diary Room (? I am still learning the lingo) I fall in love with him because he looks so vulnerable there.

Edited August 3, 2017 by Ms Blue Jay

[North of Eden]

6 minutes ago, hnygrl said:

you're right. Not gonna happen. And I think Cody knows it.

She's basically a bottle service babe who makes her biggest money flirting and being nice to drunk patron. Cody's an old fashioned cowboy of a man and he already knows he won't be able to handle her world or her job.

And there's no way on earth Jessica's giving UP her world OR her job for CODY.

Poor bastard. He knows...but he has "hope"

I liked Ms. Blue Jay's theory that there is a part of Cody that still has the torch for Alex. You could see how much he was into her in those early episodes. It's a shame they didn't hook up. She claims not to want a showmance but tethering herself to a Paul is almost as bad. He will betray her in a heartbeat to take a goat like Josh to the end. Her and Cody as comp beasts would have been a force to be reckoned with.

[Wandering Snark]

43 minutes ago, North of Eden said:

LOL...Raven looks like hell when she wakes up.

Indeed. She was looking more than a bit rough around the edges. Also a shocker was seeing Jessica sans those caterpillars she affixes to her eyelids.

20 minutes ago, helpmerhonda said:

That part with Josh saying that since the showmances are breaking up, he might get lucky - that really creeped me out. 

Definitely... this was totally Creepsville on his behalf as you got the feeling he was only half joking... *shudder*

I mentioned that I could see a time coming when Jessica would rue the day that Cody returned to the game. Annnnnd that time would be... today. They blitzed through that 'honeymoon period' of her jumping into his arms right through to Troubletown. Now what do you think about Cody coming back, huh Jess?

I was waiting for Mark to say, a la Wayne Campbell, 'Oh, I'm being shit on, that's all. Shit on!' Poor guy's world is crumbling between the attention he can't get from Elena to the neverending presence of Josh the poor dude was too worn down to even care he was still wearing a yellow tutu. I felt a little sorry for ole Magilla.

I also felt sorry (a bit) for Cody when he realized just how untouchable Jessica would be to a guy like him outside the house. So much so he couldn't even lie that he's not always confrontational in "real life". Dude seems to have been dealt a tough draw in life so I felt a little sorry for "real life" Cody but that doesn't change my feeling about him in the game.

[Lamima]

1 hour ago, Ms Blue Jay said:

 

I hate Paul but he is a genius.  If he's as great of a player as I think he is, he should manipulate Jessica to not use the Hex and then boot Jessica.

All he has to do is tell Alex that Jess wants her gone. That also leaves Cody in the house to be the focus of next week. 

Gosh these hamsters are idiots. This is most definitely the Paul show. He has already won.

Edited August 3, 2017 by Lamima

[Gemma Violet]

7 minutes ago, Lamima said:

All he has to do is tell Alex that Jess wants her gone. 

Even better, tell Alex that Paul is contemplating putting her on the block.  It doesn't have to be true.  Plant some seeds of doubt.  Stir things up.  Make Alex paranoid.  And watch the high jinks ensue.   

[WInterfalls]

1 hour ago, Thalia said:

I couldn't help but notice the stretch marks on Mark's body when he was talking to Cody tonight -- in the shoulder area and along his abdomen.  It made me wonder whether someone who was simply a gym rat would get those, or if they were the result of steroid use. 

Mark used to be really heavy. He said earlier that he lost 100 pounds a few years back so that might have something to do with it. After I heard that everything about him made more sense I think he is still kind of a fat kid in his head so he isn't as socially competent as most of the dude bros on the show. 

Josh really is insane. He taunts Mark incessantly as Mark sits there quietly and when he finally snaps he's the bad guy? I don't get it at all. 

[Artsda]

I so laughed out loud of Cody's weather report.  This episode and how Jess reacted made me feel so bad for Cody, he didn't even want to go upstairs to begin with.

All of them at the start of the episode looked like idiots.  Especially for Paul for wasting his HOH when he was TOLD what would happen. He didn't want to listen to Jess before noms then suddenly wants to make a deal after veto.

All these comments just made me laugh at how dumb they look. "She has no temptation." / "I don't believe her." / "She's bluffing." 

Josh is horrible, that edit with that fight with Mark was not kind at all to him. He looks insane and I wouldn't have blamed Mark for wacking him with the pan.

[Rosebud1970]

How in this world is Josh still allowed to remain in the house? When he picked up those pans and began banging them together again, it occurred to me that he was thisclose to smacking them in Mark's face or on Mark's face or on his body someplace. Josh is seriously unhinged. And being stuck in an overheated environment, 24/7 where everything is fueled by paranoia for someone who is borderline intelligent is just a bad combination of circumstances.

IMO, he's dangerous and really needs to be removed.  Not joking around here. YMMV, as always.

[Joimiaroxeu]

That Jody fight seemed staged to me, and so did the largely one-sided argument between Josh and Mark. I think Production does something to set Josh off because it kills time and makes for entertaining TV.

Quote

I think outside the house these are all (Paul the famewhore included) very nice people. But in the 24/7 world of lights, camera, action? And producers in the Diary Room ENCOURAGING you to 'ass out' all you want? You become the very worst version of yourself.

I think the almost total lack of privacy and having to be "on" all the time would wear down anyone eventually. Some seem to able to keep their eye on the prize and not go too far off wall but others were probably were treading on thin ice before they walked into the house. Add in Production's manipulation and it's a recipe for "real" drama, the kind that can end up ruining houseguests' real lives.

Quote

If he's as great of a player as I think he is, he should manipulate Jessica to not use the Hex and then boot Jessica.

I'm not for Paul but if he pulls that off I will give him a standing ovation. Jessica would've taken the ultimate protection and let it be used it as weapon against her. She couldn't be that stupid, could she?

Edited August 3, 2017 by Joimiaroxeu

[backformore]

21 minutes ago, Rosebud1970 said:

How in this world is Josh still allowed to remain in the house? When he picked up those pans and began banging them together again, it occurred to me that he was thisclose to smacking them in Mark's face or on Mark's face or on his body someplace. Josh is seriously unhinged. And being stuck in an overheated environment, 24/7 where everything is fueled by paranoia for someone who is borderline intelligent is just a bad combination of circumstances.

IMO, he's dangerous and really needs to be removed.  Not joking around here. YMMV, as always.

I agree.  Banging pans in someone's face is pretty damn close to assault.  And then his attitude is "you better not touch me,"  like he's TRYING to get Mark to hit him and get kicked out.  But he can sure turn on the tears if anyone is being mean to him.   He is like a very large second grade kid, who doesn't know how to  make friends, so he targets one other kid, hoping it will make him popular with the older bullies.  

Nobody makes a move in this game without running it past Paul and getting his blessing.  It truly is like they've all given up on winning, and are OK with handing the win over to Paul.  

Remember when the season started?  Cody was the puppet master, everyone came to him, And I hated him.   Now I feel sorry for him and I hate Paul.  I wish Ramses was still in the game, because he was likeable.  

[Callaphera]

Cody's deadpan "ah-choo" during the Veto comp was almost the best moment of the episode.

But that honour goes to the giant musclebound man waving a pan menacingly over his head/shoulder... while wearing the prettiest dang tutu I ever did see.

Edited August 3, 2017 by Callaphera

[butterbody]

3 hours ago, NYCFree said:

 

Spoiler

Why was there no discussion of Paul using his veto on Jessica?

Why not show the veto ceremony? My equilibrium is off, Wednesdays end with a veto ceremony dammit!

Wait, Did you just spoil the veto ceremony?

I don't think I can forgive your equilibrium, man.

[North of Eden]

4 minutes ago, icemiser69 said:

I think this is an in game relationship only. 

There's been a lot of couples on BB and most didn't have "legs" but there have been a few like Brendan and Rachel that were real and everything I saw up until tonight pointed to them perhaps having a chance beyond the house but now with people actively trying to destroy that for their own benefit that could be off the table. As said that is out of bounds.

[Lamb18]

Cody is such an interesting guy. Sometimes I feel sorry for him and other times he just exasperates me. I guess one reason I find him interesting is that I know a lot of his distant relatives (second- and third-cousin level) although I don't know any of his immediate family. At least two of his relatives go to my church and another was my professor at college! One thing I like about him is that he is so clear-headed in analyzing the situation in the house and reading people. He just cuts through crap. He also has self-knowledge so he knows what his triggers are and he tries to avoid them, for example, he didn't want to go up to the HOH room with Jessica to talk to Paul. On the other hand he doesn't have a lot of good judgment in decision-making, especially regarding veto nominations.

I thought for a while Cody and Jessica might have a chance outside the house, but I don't think so now. Jessica was so harsh with him and wanted to be angry with him. It didn't matter what he said. And he wasn't the least bit defensive. His emotions are what screws him up. He's probably always been like that and being in active duty probably exacerbates it. I think temperamentally they might be good for each other but I don't see how they would compromise their so different jobs and social lives outside of the house. I think they would be miserable in each other's world.

[ghoulina]

Too much fighting and drama last night. Yikes. And that's half the reason I watch reality TV! So you know it's bad if I come away feeling overwhelmed by it all. 

Josh continues to be a freaking maniac and how Elena wants to act all appalled because MARK got in HIS face is beyond me. 

Cody needs to simmer as well. I do think he's bringing Jessica's game down. But Paul just wants to use her, and she needs to be smarter than that. That conversation he brought up was clearly before Cody was as smitten with Jess as he is now. That was back when the 3 dudes in the alliance felt more of a bond with each other than they did the girls. Things change. It's not some big betrayal. Paul is clever. He knows how to manipulate people. Jessica needs to trust her instincts, because she can usually sense that shit. 

Why no Veto ceremony? What the hell....

[Halting Hex]

8 hours ago, North of Eden said:

All these years of BIG BROTHER that was some of the most reprehensible stuff I have ever seen. Nearly everyone that had a speaking part was WAY OUT OF LINE.

I'd like to disagree with this, as I did suffer through S8 (Dickless Donato cheats all the time and Grodner cheats for him, too!) and S15 (racists and sleazeballs and Nazi apologists, oh my!), but this episode was so insufferable that it moved me to register to properly vent, so it's not as if I'm not "genuinely" in 99% agreement with you, I admit.

(Yes, I'm so fucking sick of fucking Tiny Dick [Paul admires Dickless, he's tiny, and he probably has a tiny dick, so…] overusing that one word, I admit.  Especially "genuinely" is rather a bastard form of an adverb; there's not an instance where Paul uses it that couldn't be better served by saying "truly" or "honestly", honestly.  What's next, "authentically"?  "Verifiably"?  I mean, really.)

Spoiler

By the way, Donato fan tickles completely misrepresented S8 in the previous thread.  Dickhead may have claimed that Jen brushed against his cigarette while gesticulating in the moment, as his excuse to production, but he later admitted that he had burned her deliberately, twice.  (The second time after she had cried out "You're burning me!".)  Just as he denied putting the blue ball in Jameka's tube (disqualifying her) during the double-eviction HoH, claiming it must have bounced in accidentally or something, but later admitted in private that he had done it on purpose, pocketing the ball for just that reason early in the comp, as the footage ended up showing, on closer examination.  Not to mention the numerous other instances of cheating that he and Princess Danorexia got away with that season.  (What do you mean, you're not allowed to touch the stone when you're curling? Princess is too tiny to have to use the handle, so we'll let her cheat! And she still wouldn't have won that Veto if Amber hadn't thrown it…)

As to the "he won 6-1, so they all admired his gameplay" canard, when third-place finisher Zach Swerdzewski went to the Jury House, Dustin told him that the Donatos were so despised by the jury that, had Zach made it to F2, he would have won 6-1 against either of them.  (Assuming that which ever Donato Zach booted had voted for the other, which was likely despite Dickhead and Dickspawn's "we don't talk" shtick.  Which was a lie, considering that they'd auditioned for Season 6 as a "secret pair", and had also tried out for The Amazing Race as a team.)  Fairly impressive for a guy who had only been recruited four days before pre-sequester, knew nothing about the game, had been accused of racism by one of the jury [Jameka] and had been called a "sick child-fucker" by America's Skidmark, Eric Stein, and thus spent a good portion of the game as the House Pariah.  But even so, compared to Grodner's Pets, Zach was a shoe-in in the vote, had he made it there.  The only player Dick could have beaten was Daaaaaaaaaaniele.

Well, that's years ago and largely irrelevant now, but it's good to know my Donato-hate still survives, I guess. There's still acres and acres more (the aired episodes completely distorted the "Crazy Jen stalks Nick and Daniele's Twu Wuv" nonsense storyline, for example),  but I'll move on.

 

Quote

First Paul, Christmas and Elena are loathsome...what they tried to do was actively kill Cody and Jessica's relationship OUTSIDE of the GAME as well. That is so far out of bounds I can't believe it.

I can certainly believe Paul being loathsome, given that virtually every time he speaks he's being a bully or victim-blaming or being emotionally abusive, as seen in this episode.  If it wasn't so disgusting, it would be laughable, given how much Paul actually sucks at this game.  His just assuming that all the Temptation powers were the same (why?  Wouldn't the fact that the Consequences were different be a clue that the Temptations were, as well?  Not to mention how the Den set keeps changing…) and that therefore he'd be able to do a renomination after the Hex was deployed is only his latest screw-up; let's remember that he did get himself backdoored in Week-Fucking-1 while just assuming he had Cody snowed.  (And that he thought Christmas would stay by a 10-2 vote, instead of the 8-4 it actually was.)  Not to mention his foolish long-term "plan" of being the leader of the anti-Cody alliance instead of taking a smaller role on either side; even if he survives against the current "targets", who does he think becomes Target #1 the minute Cody (and maybe Jessica) leaves?  He is fortunate that he's in there with a coterie of mindless sheep who, AFAiK, have never even discussed cutting Paul before finishing off the other side, but still.

Spoiler

Idiotic statement of the season, made on Sunday night's BBAD, without Paul in the room, and apparently said "genuinely":

"We need Paul for our game.  And I think he's honest."  Wow, SO FUCKING STUPID.  On both counts.  And this from a player (I'll disclose who later) that I thought was much better than that.

 

But still, the worship of a player who only got to the end because his bromance-cum-meatshield, El Fit Vic, kept getting sent back into the house to take Yet Another Bullet for Paul is bizarre.  And "Showmance Killer"?? WTF? Paul, in case you've forgotten, went to the F6 last season with his buddy and two showmances!  There literally wasn't anybody left in the F6 besides "Yer Boy", Yer Boy's boy, and the showmance pairs.  Great work, "Killer".

(Okay, so he did work to evict Paulie's showmance, Zakiyah, earlier in S18.  But that might just be more fuel for Ms Blue Jay's "Paul targets black players" hypothesis.  [Paul also did evict S18's other black player, Da'Vonne, on his HoH, before he kicked Zakiyah to the curb, but he claimed that was due to House pressure, and he actually wanted to get rid of the other nominee, Bridgette…who was Asian-American.] The larger point is that TinyDick has done less to evict showmances than any longterm player in recent memory.)

However, Christmas was an especially-vile piece-of-shit in her "fuck with Jessica's real life" attempt, I agree.  Even without her gleeful clapping at the idea of making Jessica miserable, or her smirking DR, she was going to Jessica as a friend, and using that perceived friendship to torment Jess.  Fake "friends" like that are the lowest of the low, IMO.  That's "Andy Herren spewing hate behind Elissa's back" sort of vile, to my mind.

It's particularly disgusting because Jessica keeps giving Christmas chances despite:

• Christmas just assuming Jessica was behind Cody's backdooring of (Paul and her) in Week 1, when in fact Cody made that "maverick move" without input from Jess, after the Alex nomination had strained things between her and Cody.  (If anyone was in the loop, it was Mark and Dominique, as the Week 3 narrative claimed. But I don't "genuinely" know how true that was.)

• Christmas refusing to talk to Jessica about the backdoor, not giving her a chance to tell her side of the story, and then accusing her of being part of the conspiracy during her live show nominee speech, when Jessica was forbidden to speak in reply.  As Jessica said, that was a coward(ly) move.

• Christmas apparently having some drug-addled recollection Jessica and Cody "never came down" from the HoH to welcome her back into the House when she returned from surgery, despite Jessica actually being the very first person to do so, as we saw in the relevant episode.  And Cody (along with Matt) freaking carried Christmas to the DR when she got hurt, with Jessica right there with the initial set of crutches that Christmas (I assume) was unable to use at that time, so the idea that C/J were somehow cold to her injury is nonsense.  And then Christmas sniping at Jessica when Jess dared to interrupt her and correct her on these facts.

• And of course last week's blindside, when Jessica tried to "make amends" with the House for Cody's return, instead of just putting up, say Paul/Christmas and sending the Producer Puppy to "the farm".  And she lied to Jessica right up until the vote, of course.  Not even the courtesy of a heads-up.

I grant you that

Spoiler

Christmas might be upset that Jessica's feelings for Cody are likely cock-blocking any chance Xmas has of a S15 Aaryn/Jessie-style Jury House hookup with Jess, given that apparently the early-game lesbo-teasing between Xmas and Elena ("washing each other's backs" in the shower, casual boob-fondling, Elena mock-muffdiving Christmas on the couch) was more about Elena craving camera-time than Christmas treats, and while the three girls all bonded over raunchy sex talk, it was Jessica, rather than Elena, who picked up on Christmas's somewhat-subtle allusions to getting sexual with women (her "colorful past" remarks) and seemed at least mildly interested, but that's still pretty thin.  I have no idea how "colorful" (as in "rainbow", I guess) Jessica's inclinations might be, even allowing that Jury House might motivate that sort of boredom-bred exploration, if only that darned Marine wasn't around to ruin everything, but I guess i can see Christmas nursing some anti-"Jody" resentment, then.

…but IMO that still hardly excuses this sort of ecstatic schadenfreude-fueled manipulation.  Even if the DR is, as seems likely, encouraging it.  (Anything that helps Grodner's Boy, right?)

Elena I give somewhat more of a pass, given that she's apparently so stupid she's falling for this same line of deceit wrt her own relationship with Mark, and so her encouraging Jessica to make the same mistake (the two of them aren't getting off of Paul/Alex's hitlist whether they stay with the guys, kick them to the curb or kick them in the nuts, let's be real…) isn't so much about breaking Jessica's heart as it might be about "genuinely" wanting to help Jessica in the game.  While some mean people can also be stupid people (see, obviously, Josh), the two don't necessarily go together.  Thus I choose to believe that Elena is only a moron, rather than a sociopath like Paul or a bitter bitch such as Christmas.

Although, I grant you, the sight of Christmas Joy practically wetting her pants with Christmas joy at the thought of ruining Jessica's relationship and making her suffer MIGHT have clued Elena in that the "ditch the boys and join the winning team" pseudo-olive branches being extended to her and Jessica were not exactly being offered "genuinely", as it were.  But apparently Elena had her brain cells sucked out to make way for her lip fillers, so…

Quote

Jess herself does not come off any better. Cody was gallantly defending her and that is how she treats him? She's worried about him yelling at Paul?

Nah, I gotta go with My Girl here.  (It's obvious that Jess is My Girl, right? I mean, I'm not being subtle in my rooting, I'm sure.)  Cody may have had good intentions, and I might have loved to see him turn Paul into the bloody smear referenced by North of Eden, but Jess is correct that walking away was the proper game move, and Cody needs to keep his emotions in check.  Just as Mark can't crush Josh's wrists into a sticky paste, it does Cody no good to have those sort of confrontations with TinyDick, gallantry aside.  And it only gave Scumbag Paul the opening for the later "friendly advice" campaign that his deputies waged.

Also, there was no need for Cody to move his belongings into the have-not room, when he's not a have-not.  If he wants to have a quiet lie-down, that's fine, but moving the bag looked like a rebuff to Jessica, at a time when she was sensitive.  Bad move, in the literal sense of the word.

10 hours ago, North of Eden said:

I'm sick of [Jason] walking around in the Marlboro Man colors and hat. Get a new shirt already.

It's particularly galling because the shirt is a freaking AD for Jason's business.  Scott Dennis had shirts taken away for merely mentioning his hometown of Bangor ME, and plenty of houseguests have had their clothing removed for being too white or having too many sparkles or whatever.  (GinaMarie nearly had a nervous breakdown about this…granted that it wasn't a long drive to Crazy Town, in her case.)  But you're letting this jerk wear a freaking billboard 95% of the time??  Fuck off with that shit.  At least Trivago Matt's one-shirt was the standard-issue BB college gear.  (Whether you went there or not.)

(Actual Trivago guy Tim Williams looks better at 50 than Matt does at 33, IMO.  I'm just saying.  But then I've never had to watch Tim Williams pretend to like Raven le Poseur, so I might be biased there.)

10 hours ago, North of Eden said:

Raven looks like hell when she wakes up.

Poor thing.  It must be all the constant throwing up that her "two terminal diseases" make her do.  She can't keep any food down, you know! She's dying,dying, dying…any day now, she swears!

Spoiler

Of course, there's no way CBS would let an actual terminal patient in the House (think of the liability issues!) and it's been 40 days now and Raven keeps scarfing down the gluten and the dairy…and hasn't tossed her cookies even once.  It's a (proximity to-) Christmas miracle! Hallelujah!  Maybe Raven will buy another $36,000 brand-new Kia in celebration!  Sure, it cuts into the money she so desperately needs for all those medical bills (hence the $200K scam, er, Go Fund Me her mom is running for her), but sometimes you just gotta have the wheels, you know?

Also let's not forget that she's met Paul outside the House and is likely a CBS plant sent to protect him.

Or how she does classic mean-girl tricks like hiding Alex's glasses (which Alex needs to see!) and cat ears (okay, I kind of understand that) and then blaming it on Jessica.  And swearing she's telling the truth by having Alex put her hand on le Poseur's "stomach pacemaker", so y'all know Arkansassy can't be lying!

Oh, barf.  If only Cough-Cough Camiile could…

 

I think she's why I'm giving Elena a bit of a pass.  I can't have a Top Four Most-Hated that doesn't include le Poseur along with Paul, Christmas, and Josh, so there's no room at the Inn of My Despised for Elena, who's actually a semi-nice person most of the time, IMO.

Alex continues to be disappointingly dumb (she was the one who made that Incredibly Stupid BBAD quote, spoilered up-post) and she still seems to hate women.  Which makes Christmas just as dumb for not realizing that Paul has dumped her for Alex and that Alex will never work with her.  I doubt Christmas survives much past the start of Jury, honestly.  

10 hours ago, North of Eden said:

If Jess really does Paul and "the house's" bidding she is out of her mind and frankly as dumb as a box of rocks.

I think she's just giving the DR the "maybe I will" soundbite they demand.  Remember Week 3 of Season 12, where Mensa Matt was HoH and gave those obviously-reluctant DRs about "if all the stars align, maaaaaaaybe I'll backdoor Brendan or Rachel" when he had not the slightest intention of doing so, since Brenchel had bought the story of Stacy's Phony Leg Disease 1000% and were sure Jury votes for Matt, had he made F2?  (Brendan was going to cure Stacy's leg…with physics!)  That's the whiff I'm getting here.  I don't think there's any real danger.

Or maybe I'm just hoping My Girl doesn't get suckered for the second consecutive week, and there's still a chance to evict Paul before Jury.  Not to mention that I REALLY want Jessica to pull the plug on the eviction in full Charmed-style theatrics, and thus provide me with an awesome icon screenshot to replace the "HH" currently over <---- there.  Fingers crossed…

Finally, I continue to enjoy Cody's determination not to do the fake-enthusiasm nonsense that Grodner craves like she craves assholes.  That little "achoo" for when he was prompted to sneeze in the Unexplained Point-Scoring and Untimed but NEVER Rigged, oh, NEVER Veto (too long?) was hilarious.  Best thing since Julie told the four evictees about the BattleBack and we got cheering, clapping, and fist-pumping from Cameron/Jillian/Dominique…while Cody gave a slight nod of his head.  

Keep up the good, honest work, Cody.  And keep him around, Jess.  Peace.

[ProfCrash]

I am reasonably impressed with Cody and Jessica. They actually discuss what their problems are and are reasonably articulate in where their heads are at. Cody took his stuff out of the room to give Jessica space, which is pretty darn mature. Cody was actually pretty clear that he didn't know what to say to make Jessica be happy or deal with their problems. He was honest with her about his behavior and how it happens. She was honest with him as to why it was a problem and why he couldn't do it. To be frank, it struck me as one of the most mature conversations I have seen in the history of the game. Both of them are talking to the people that they trust about their differences and trying to understand what happened and how to deal with the other. I like that Mark listened, I am annoyed that Elena tried to use it for game.

I don't have to like how Cody responds or agree with him politically or think he is the brightest bulb in the house but I do think that he is pretty good about talking to Jessica and trying to figure all of this out. I doubt the two of them are really compatible but I like that they understand that talking is necessary and they are not running from the big issues. I actually like that they balance each other out. Jessica gets Cody out of Paul's face. Cody is there to defend Jessica. Seriously, I can't think of a season of this show where I have seen this type of relationship. It feels far less contrived.

Any way, Josh is an asshat. But we know that. Mark is spot on that the entire group is targeting Cody and is annoyed that they are all doing Paul's bidding. Josh explodes because Mark is aghast at what is happening. And Josh thinks that Mark is a bully?

And Paul is the ring leader of the entire mess.

I really wish we had the opportunity to watch these idiots watch the episodes and maybe the highlights of the live feeds. Because their faces would be freaking priceless.

[RedheadZombie]

9 hours ago, WInterfalls said:

Mark used to be really heavy. He said earlier that he lost 100 pounds a few years back so that might have something to do with it. After I heard that everything about him made more sense I think he is still kind of a fat kid in his head so he isn't as socially competent as most of the dude bros on the show. 

Josh really is insane. He taunts Mark incessantly as Mark sits there quietly and when he finally snaps he's the bad guy? I don't get it at all. 

I really feel for Mark.  I can't imagine what it would feel like being perpetually tormented, while the bystanders laugh their asses off.  He specifically mentioned that the others refuse to intervene, and simply watch.  That strikes me as the worst part of bullying, and would flashback to Mark's childhood of bullying.

8 hours ago, butterbody said:

Wait, Did you just spoil the veto ceremony?

I don't think I can forgive your equilibrium, man.

I think the OP was referring to discussion of using the veto.  Like - why wasn't the possibility of Paul using the veto on Jessica discussed.

[Pondlass1]

Last night's episode was so frustrating.  I don't watch TV to get all irritated.  Surely ratings will slump if they keep this up?  Should be renamed "Paul Says". 

Unless it's just crazy editing none of it makes any real sense.  Why would Jessica care that Paul wasted his HOH?  She should be smirking. And don't they do some kind of psychological vetting before casting?  If they do - how did unstable Josh get through? The veto competition was a joke.... and stupid.  The Jessica/Cody argument  contrived. 

I want more Kevin.  We don't get enough Kevin.  He's having a great summer.

[Halting Hex]

5 minutes ago, RedheadZombie said:

Mark used to be really heavy. He said earlier that he lost 100 pounds a few years back so that might have something to do with it.

Mark was an offensive lineman for the University of Buffalo from 2010-2013, and the linemen are encouraged to be heavy, so that the defensive players can't run over them.  He was a teammate of current NFL Defensive Player of the Year Khalil Mack all four seasons, and likely spent lots of time (futilely) trying to block Mack in practice.  This 2011 promotional article mentions that Mark weighed 306 pounds in high school. Whether he was naturally big or whether he was encouraged to add weight for his football prospects, that I don't know; I suspect it might be some of both.

(Mark was invited to a regional "combine" where the NFL scouts players ahead of the draft, but was not invited on to the national combine, where more-prominent players such as Mack were directly sent.)

I'm glad he wasn't sent out of the game wearing a tutu, anyway.  No matter how much I would love to see Josh get what's coming to him.

By the way, take one guess which attention-whore spent the second half of the episode wearing Alex's tutu skirt, despite the fact that he didn't even play in the comp. Seriously, TAKE A FREAKING GUESS.  Urrgh…

[ghoulina]

12 hours ago, Thalia said:

I couldn't help but notice the stretch marks on Mark's body when he was talking to Cody tonight -- in the shoulder area and along his abdomen.  It made me wonder whether someone who was simply a gym rat would get those, or if they were the result of steroid use. 

I mentioned this on Sunday's episode, because my husband noticed it. He works out a lot and many of his friends do as well. He said stretch marks like that are a big sign of steroid use. Especially on the shoulders. You pump up a lot quicker than your body can keep up with. Sure, you can also get those during adolescence, because of a growth spurt. I did. But they're generally on your hips, stomach, thighs - not necessarily the shoulders. I don't know, though, I've never found Mark overly ragey. I don't watch anything but the actual show, but I've only ever seen him get super angry with anyone but Josh, and I'd think Josh would provoke that reaction in ANYBODY. 

 

11 hours ago, North of Eden said:

First Paul, Christmas and Elena are loathsome...what they tried to do was actively kill Cody and Jessica's relationship OUTSIDE of the GAME as well. That is so far out of bounds I can't believe it.

I'm not sure I see this. I don't think any of them are focused on anything outside the game; just getting Cody out right here and now. At any rate, it's not like this is some long term love affair. They've known each other a month. 

 

11 hours ago, North of Eden said:

Jess herself does not come off any better. Cody was gallantly defending her and that is how she treats him? She's worried about him yelling a Paul? AT PAUL? Everything Cody said about Paul was spot on about him...especially being a characacter on a show. Paul deserved every thing he got and more if you ask me.

I'm not sure what was "gallant" about Cody's behavior. I don't even know what needed defending anyway. I don't love Paul, but I didn't think his "keep your voices down" was out of line. I thought he just wanted to keep the conversation quiet. Cody was just looking for a reason to go off on him. If Paul had said, "Shut your mouth!" to Jessica, that would have been different. But I didn't find his choice of words OR tone to be disrespectful or anything. I don't think Jessica did either. I do believe she got a little too bent out of shape about Cody's reaction, acting like he can't even function in the real world. BUT...she's playing the game and his constant blow ups are fucking things up for her. I get it. 

 

11 hours ago, helpmerhonda said:

That part with Josh saying that since the showmances are breaking up, he might get lucky - that really creeped me out. 

Ew, I know. Who does he really think is going to give him a second glance? Elena? After his feud with Mark?

 

9 hours ago, backformore said:

agree.  Banging pans in someone's face is pretty damn close to assault.  And then his attitude is "you better not touch me,"  like he's TRYING to get Mark to hit him and get kicked out. 

Josh is the definition of the person who provokes you into hitting them first. I HATE people like that. 

4 minutes ago, Pondlass1 said:

Unless it's just crazy editing none of it makes any real sense.  Why would Jessica care that Paul wasted his HOH?  She should be smirking.

That's not what she actually cares about. She wants to save her Hex, and ensure her safety for longer. 

Edited August 3, 2017 by ghoulina

[Halting Hex]

1 minute ago, ghoulina said:

Who does [Josh] really think is going to give him a second glance? Elena? After his feud with Mark?

Eh, Elena would flirt with Alison Grodner if she thought it would aid her "career", IMO.  Josh isn't exactly whistle-nutting in the dark, I wouldn't think.