Rare Tie Vote And Revealing HoH

Posted by I.A.

I think the offseason BB is impacting my memory for show trivia, because this is the sort of thing I should know by heart, but during tonight's show it occurred to me that tie votes this early in the season (at something other than 1-1 or 2-2) are pretty rare, because there's so much incentive to not be stuck in the house with a surviving player that you voted against. But Matt's campaigning worked about as well as it could have, and he persuaded both Sheila and Adam to vote to keep him. Unfortunately, Chelsia was a lost cause as James's ally and Joshuah and Sharon stuck with Ryan, which left James to cast the decisive vote.

One common Big Brother cliche is that whenever it looks like there might be a tie vote, he head of household always talks big about how they're going to make a dramatic speech and send their choice out the door in a way that will make everyone forget the Gettysburg Address. But James, who definitely enjoyed the power of the HoH office, was the model of simplicity by simply saying "I vote to evict Matt." Perhaps he finally realized towards the end of his tenure that all of his trash talking wasn't helping his game, satisfying as it might be in the short run.

I thought the first segment was more of that famous Big Brother misdirection, leading us to believe Matt had a shot to stay when he really didn't, but it played out pretty close to indicating what would happen, as Sheila really did shift over to Matt's side. I don't think his incessant complaining about being alone on his birthday (what is he, 10?) had anything to do with the change of heart, though. Matt's protests about not having done anything to anyone weren't fooling people; he might not be the biggest gamer in there, but he's not as subtle about it as someone like a Sharon. His overpromising, which James called him out for a couple of weeks ago, was the epitome of unsubtle; and while he wasn't really very malicious, I don't think anyone in there saw him as someone who was going to be a faithful partner--with the possible exception of Natalie, who apparently does think they have a shot outside the house. Matt's groan when he heard her say that in the Diary Room was the night's highlight.

The head of household competition, which was borrowed from last year, asked pairs of houseguests questions about the evicted, with the prize being that whoever won the question (by answering right or having their opposite number answer wrong) got to pick the next two who had to try answering. This sort of competition is designed to be won by someone who is outside the main house rivalries, which is why the midgame of the season is the ideal time to try it. Jessica won it last year because no one was really gunning for her, and so it proved to be the case this year. Of the five people who were chosen to compete in the competition (7 overall houseguests competed, and Joshuah and Chelsia started out by random draw), Adam was the fourth picked, indicating that no one really cared if he won HoH or not (Natalie, who figured to be the most upset about Matt leaving, was picked to play right away).

And so Adam is HoH, and who knows what he'll do in there. He isn't especially popular with anyone, but hasn't made any enemies either, treating BB as an opportunity to eat, smoke, and read the Bible. All that is going to end, but it will be interesting to see if Adam has an independent game of his own, or if he'll be manipulated by others. Most of the heavy duty string-pullers are out of the house now, so this provides a chance for Joshuah, James, and Sharon to try to maintain control. My guess is that all three will be able to keep off the block.

Oh, and in other BB news: Dick knows the guy from Suicidal Tendencies. Evel, how can I be as cool as you?

Got a question? Ask Big Brother Here. Your question may be read on the air on CBS's Housecalls!

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