The game came alive in the Big Brother house this week, with Dan pulling off a move that may go down in history as one of the best moves in the series' history. It falls right up there with Nakomis' Six Finger plan to get Jase out, or Maggie's plot to get Howie to nominate James. (I was a Sov 6 fan, but you can probably trace Maggie's Season 6 win straight back to that conversation with Howie). Dan's negotiating skills rivaled his own big move in Season 10 when he made a deal with Ollie that he never intended to keep. That happened during an endurance competition a week ahead of a double eviction, which is exactly what the houseguests face this week.
Spoiler Alert: The following post includes spoilers from the live feeds from Thursday night (8/30), including the outcome of the Head of Household competition, and their pre-nomination conversations.
Those watching last night's live episode know that Britney was evicted, and the houseguests were left spinning on discs as they revolved around a big tan-squirting sun. The odds of Joe and Jenn winning an endurance competition weren't good, but it wasn't exactly a spectacular display of physical prowess that both of them come down before the episode even ended. No judgment on a personal level, but as a spectator, that was a disappointing showing from both of them.
Being the first to fall, Joe earned himself a "punishment," which is to hula-hoop every time he's prompted to for the next 24 hours.
Danielle seemed like a big contender to win the endurance, but apparently she has motion sickness issues and she dropped not long after the feeds came back on. Dan came down next, seeming to fall. It's entirely possible he threw the competition. I think he'll want to be in the running for next week's Head of Household, and he probably thought the odds were better that Frank would go up this week (or that he could convince whoever won to put Frank up).
It came down to Ian and Shane. They stayed up for a while, and though Ian complained about having to go to the bathroom, it seemed like Shane was hurting worse, of the two of them. Eventually, Ian and Shane asked the houseguests for privacy. They quickly struck a deal, with Shane asking Ian to assure him he wouldn't put up him or Danielle. He didn't include Dan in this deal (which I actually think is good for Dan, since it shows that Shane doesn't really have Dan's back). Ian agreed and Shane dropped.
Of course, everyone took a turn chatting with Ian after he got his HoH room. Frank tried to pitch Ian on the idea of going to the end together, or else, at least keeping him in the house another week, since Frank can't play HoH next week (Veto punishment). Ian was willing to discuss it as an option and told Frank he should use not being able to play for HoH as a big reason to stay this week. But he didn't really commit to anything.
Dan spoke to Ian later and the two discussed the Quack Pack. Ian seems intent on honoring that alliance, and that includes Dan. But they also talked about Shane and Danielle's closeness and how they're both third wheels in that situation. Ian seemed kind of iffy about agreeing to ally with Dan inside the QP alliance, especially because he's concerned he couldn't win against Dan in the Final 2. Dan argued that, as a former winner, it wasn't likely that the jury would give him the prize again. I disagree, but it's a good argument. Still, Ian didn't seem sold... until Dan brought up "going Renegades" together, after which Ian perked up. Ian talked about how he's probably not in Chilltown because of what he did, and seemed interested in the idea of being a Renegade, though he said he probably wouldn't commit to anything until his HoH week was over.
Dan bringing up his alliance with Memphis and offering Ian membership may be the thing that hooks Ian. As a Big Brother fan, Ian is all about the title and the game, which I can respect (even if I don't always love his game play). I have a feeling the prestige of joining a winning alliance means a lot to Ian as far as his legacy in the game, so Dan made the right call in casually dropping the Renegade business card on the table.
Dan and Ian's conversation was followed up by a quick pow-wow in the HoH room with Ian, Dan, Danielle and Shane, during which the Quack Pack alliance was re-solidified and Ian basically said it would be Frank and Jenn going up. Granted, he could change his mind (or he could have been lying or less certain than he was letting on) so we'll have to wait and see what happens later today. Nominations happen this evening.
