Season 2 Episode Talk: It's AWWWWNN!

[methodwriter85]

     After the boring first season of Chicken George, Eddie, Karen, Jamie, and Blue-Haired Virgin Brittany that included such thrilling challenges as riding on a stationary bike, Big Brother came back in the summer of 2001 wth a completely revamped format. Featuring the machinations of Dr. Will, the constant mental breakdowns of Nicole, the evil/good versions of Hardy, toilets being cleaned by toothbrushes, sexy murder knife foreplay, the constantly crying Bunkie, and Autumn losing it over a bag of potato chips, the show proved it could be entertaing as hell. I really think it's the season that saved the show. Discuss.

 

    If you've ever done a re-watch, the show still holds up incredibly well. It's also interesting to pick up things I didn't realize when I watched it a 15-year old, like how married Chef Nicole completely and desperately wanted to bang the ever-loving shit out of Will and hating herself for that. LOL.

 

    It was also creepy to watch the scene where a giggling Autumn gets into bed with Hardy, while putting on this little girl voice. As a 20-year old, that might have been okay. But it was creepy as hell to watch a 28-year old do that. I'm glad that Autumn said she went into therapy after getting evicted.

Edited June 28, 2014 by methodwriter85

[dolphincorn]

I didn't even watch Season 2 until midway through when people started to tell me what I was missing.  Season 1 was such a bust that the show was completely off my radar.  Dr. Will really saved it for me.  Of course, he's a Capricorn like me, which explains why he's so wonderful.

[methodwriter85]

I think what made Will work so well was his feigned indifference combined with his beauty. He gave off the vibe that he didn't really care and he was just here to be on T.V., so it made people more inclined to keep him around because they didn't think he would go in for the kill to win. He played the game without actually seeming like he was playing the game, which is why Nicole kept him around. She thought she could win against him, and she liked looking at him.

Edited June 28, 2014 by methodwriter85

[karenc3]

Season 2 was my favorite season.  I loved when Will and Mike Boogie would go into the confessional, they were hilarious.  Loved when Will said to the camera the evil dr is back.  

[Kris117]

I will always remember watching Nicole (I think that was her name—the chef) falling slowly under his spell toward the end of the game. She knew exactly what he was doing, having seen him work on others, and she even said so. Unfortunately, she fell for it too. I really wanted to see someone shoot Will down that season, but it was not to be. It did make for good television.

[PhilMarlowe2]

What also made Will work so well was his overall mischievousness and playfulness. While people like Nicole, Hardy, Boogie, Monica, Krista and Bunky took the game sooooo seriously, Will was simply there to have fun. He never made it personal, he never got vicious. His boyish enthusiasm was infectious. He truly was the luckiest boy in all the land.

Edited July 3, 2014 by PhilMarlowe2

[methodwriter85]

He really was the personification of youth, I think. Which is why he just wasn't quite as much fun five years later, when he had time for cynicism to set in and his looks weren't quite as perfect. What's fun and cute for a 28-year old is just not the same when he's 33. Of course, that season, Will had the agenda of getting his buddy Mike the win, so there's that as well.

 

In any event, Season 2 still stands as a fun, great season. Who can forget "It's Awn"-ica? Or "Would you get mad if I killed you?" Or Bunky's "I just feel like Justin committed suicide, and I tried to help him but I couldn't!" *sobs* Mike dressing up as a vampire to try and seduce Krista? Shannon cleaning the toilet with Hardy's toothbrush? Nicole's constant crocodile tears as she filled up the jury pool?

 

They were also a lot less strict about music rights, so they could dance and sing, which was fun.

Edited July 3, 2014 by methodwriter85

[Maverick]

 I only watched a little bit of season 2 towards the end.  The thing I remember most is that the were in the house during 9/11.  That was when the jury wasn't sequestered and I remember thinking how awkward it must have been to come back 2 weeks after that and vote for the winner of some reality show.

[methodwriter85]

Especially for Monica, considering her cousin was killed there. I think Monica had a fair bit of denial going on, though. I got why she stayed, but if I were in her place, I know I would've gone.

Edited July 3, 2014 by methodwriter85

[Skittl1321]

I got why she stayed, but if I were in her place, I know I would've gone.

Not having access to media, it is really possible she lacked perspective on just how big a deal it was beyond just her cousins death.

[methodwriter85]

That's very possible. Like I said, not actually being able to see the Towers collapse, I don't think Monica could really comprehend it. It really was beyond the comprehension of Americans at the time that something like that could happen.

[SunDevil28]

If I remember correctly, they told them about it basically right after it happened, and told Monica her cousin was "missing".  She had no idea that most of the people working in the towers or the first responders that were "missing" were pretty much all killed when the towers came down.  And she never got another update.  So the way I remember it playing out, she was just hoping that he had been found every day that she stayed in the house.  There really was no way to fully understand what it looked like when the towers came down and how total the devastation was, without seeing it.  (Actually, even WHEN we all saw it on TV it was impossible to comprehend.) 

 

So I don't fault her for staying, especially because I thought BB was a total jackass for giving them barely enough info and no updates.  Though I know they didn't have to tell them at all.

[Iguana]

Ah, BB2. The peak of the Big Brother franchise and savior of the series. Hardy's slow descent into madness, Monica and the purple dishwasher monkey incomprensibility, douchebag Mike at the finale in his powder blue leather jersey proposing to Krista, crying Bunky and his unexpected and sweet friendship with Kent, autumn losing her mind over Shannons bag of chips, Nicole desperately wanting to hate fuck Will and losing her mind because of it, and the banners being flown over the house driving all of the houseguests out of their minds.

Then of course there is the evil, sexy, manipulative, charming Dr Will. I started off hating him then finding him funny enough to love to hate, and then just out right loving him. First and only time that's ever happened with a BB contestant. Still my favourite.

[methodwriter85]

I loved how Dr. Will was clearly obsessed with the movie American Psycho and ripped off Patrick Bateman's "I just look like a human" speech.

 

And back in 2001, it was still kinda weird for a straight guy like Will to completely shave off his body hair, and then a few years later it became all the rage because of Queer Eye for the Straight Guy.

Edited September 2, 2014 by methodwriter85

[AndreaK1041]

I didn't realize this thread existed! I've been posting comments in the previous contestants thread as I watch BB2 thirteen years in delay. It's so dark and crazy. The timing is so weird! The Chenterviews are like 15 minutes long. And Bunky's first live show vote took two whole minutes! Now they barely have time to sit down.

They also hadn't set rules for the live show at all. They would all do shout outs and talk over Julie all the time. At one point Will turned his eviction speech into a full house singalong of I Will Survive. Current Julie would malfunction at that!

Not having the veto wasn't good though. I like the veto.

I still have the 9/11 episode and the finale to watch. Maybe next holiday weekend I'll watch season 3! I started watching BB in season 4.

[methodwriter85]

Damn, seeing Will reminded me that it really has been almost 20 years. 

[AryasMum]

On 9/25/2020 at 1:37 AM, methodwriter85 said:

Damn, seeing Will reminded me that it really has been almost 20 years. 

I’ve never liked Will, but I found him really attractive his first season. On his second, I was horrified by his unnatural looking white skin, and I have the palest skin around. I never liked Will and Boogie, and I blame Will for elevating Boogie’s profile.