Christian Birkenberger is out of Big Brother Season 23, but according to him, that's not entirely a bad thing. In a statement that may shock some who have tuned in this season, Christian very candidly told CinemaBlend that when it comes to his showmance Alyssa Lopez, she's likely better off in the house without him.
Christian Birkenberger spoke to CinemaBlend the morning following his eviction and made the revelation in the midst of a question about Alyssa's biggest strengths in the game. Christian seemed to understand the popular thought that he more or less acted as her shield, but he seems to believe she'll be just fine without him.
Her biggest strength is herself. I hated the fact that everyone thought she wasn’t a competitor without me, and I hope and I think that she will do better without me. It sucks to hear, and it sucks to say, but I was the reason she was on the block Week 1. And I hope that because I’m gone she never has to see the block ever again. . .her social game is so much better than my own and she made all the decisions that I made when it came to my social game because I knew she was an over-thinker, I don’t think at all, and I needed someone to kind of control all those decisions.
Christian Birkenberger's confession that he let Alyssa Lopez take control of his social game may be a factor behind how his Head of Household went the way it did. Alyssa pushed for Christian to nominate Hannah Chaddha, though Christian ultimately thought he had a better relationship with Hannah in the game than he did Whitney Williams. Of course, both Christian and Hannah were entirely ignorant of the existence of The Cookout alliance, so hindsight is 20/20 on not voting Hannah out over Whitney.
Christian Birkenberger also talked about the weaknesses in Alyssa Lopez's game so far, and his key concern may not be much of a surprise to Big Brother viewers. Christian talked about Alyssa's biggest in-game weakness right now but pointed out that it really may not be a weakness at this stage of the game.
The downfall to Alyssa is that she has not won a competition yet. I don’t think that really stands very strong, if that’s my biggest concern. That’s not really a concern at all because I went home by winning competitions. She doesn’t have any wins. So, based on that logic, she should never go home [laughs]. I hope she never goes home. She will eventually have a competition that she does win herself, completely, all on her own, she’s already been close twice and I’m going to be the biggest cheerleader for her from now on within the game and outside the game. I really do care about her a lot, and I want the best for her.
Alyssa Lopez has been close to winning a few competitions but still has yet to win anything to get her some power in the house. She'll get yet another chance with the new High Rollers Room, which will allow Houseguests to gamble for power in the game with currency awarded to them via Big Brother viewers. With the new Head of Household Kyland Young eyeing Alyssa as a potential target to head to jury this week, now would be the best time for her to win a secret power or a veto competition and ensure she spends another week in the game.
As for what Christian Birkenberger has planned for the coming weeks, he's already laid out his plans for the weeks up until the game is over. Christian confirmed to CinemaBlend that he intends to continue watching the show and the feeds to see what's going on with Alyssa Lopez. Also, if it wasn't apparent by that goodbye kiss on eviction night, he's absolutely ready to see her once the game is over. Christian spoke a bit about his showmance and expressed some regret he couldn't stay in the game to help her out just a bit longer.
When it comes to Alyssa, the first thing I’m doing when she’s leaving this house is reaching out to her, contacting her. I really want to see where this goes. Since I’ve left the house, there has not been a moment where she has not been on my mind and that is what is killing me the most. Because I know that if I survived one more week, I could’ve potentially been in the jury house her. Or, even better, I could’ve been the person swaying the entire house to vote for her if she was sitting there on finale night. And I would’ve pitched just as hard as I did for myself to survive in this house last week. I would’ve pitched that hard for her to win because I genuinely want the best for her in everything in life and within this game.
Alyssa Lopez isn't entirely sunk in Big Brother. She still has former Kings teammate Xavier Prather looking out for her best interest, at least until the time comes to cut her loose so that The Cookout can be the only remaining Houseguests in the game. Xavier is still in the process of trying to keep a target off Alyssa's back as we speak, but it remains to be seen how receptive Kyland Young and others in the house will be towards cutting their fake alliance members out of the game so soon.
Of course, things can change 100 times over in Big Brother, so for now, perhaps Christian Birkenberger is right that the only thing Alyssa Lopez needs right now is to win a competition to better her position in the house. Whatever decisions Alyssa makes, it appears Christian will be cheering her on every step of the way.
Big Brother airs on CBS Sundays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays at 8:00 p.m. ET. Continue to stick with CinemaBlend for more on Season 23 and to get the inside scoop from the evicted Houseguests on their plans for after the game and how they would've played things differently.
