Geez, Natalie. Where was the spoiler-alert in your pre-vote speech? Those of us who hadn’t been keeping up with the live feeds might’ve thought there was a chance Kevin would’ve been swayed by Russell’s argument. Still, I have to give it to Julie for the psych-out she gave Natalie when she announced the eviction tonight.
Tonight’s episode started up with the nasty aftermath of the Veto ceremony. We all knew we’d see some drama after Jeff took Kevin off the block and nominated Russell in his place. Even Jeff was prepared for it, going outside to duke it out with Russell. Jeff’s argument for why he went after Russell didn’t really make sense though. Is having a final-two deal with someone in your final-four deal really considered a betrayal? After all, isn’t it likely that Jeff has some sort of unspoken final-two deal with Jordan? Does anyone really think he’d pull a Drew and evict his girl over his friend? I’m thinking Jeff’s not the type to put the bro before the ho-puppet. So was Russell really in the wrong for having an alliance with Michele? Couldn’t he still maintain his final-four deal with Jordan and Jeff while also having an end game?
Russell attempted to work on Kevin, knowing he’d be the swing vote among the three houseguests set to vote. Swing-vote is putting it very loosely as its obvious Kevin’s loyalty is with Natalie. Still, he knew he could probably hang on to Michele and there was no chance at getting Jordan considering he’d called her fat numerous times when they were fighting. Incidentally, I think I might have taken Jordan’s angry response to Russell’s personal attacks a little more seriously if her bikini top wasn’t soaking through the front of her shirt. Back to Russell. He tried to convince that it was in his best interest to keep him around over Natalie. With Russell still in the house, Kevin could hide behind the bigger target and have someone who might actually be able to beat Jeff in a competition. Russell also argued that he’d be a better final-two partner than anyone else in the house since most of the people on the jury don’t like him. These are good arguments but would they be enough to break Kevin’s loyalty to Natalie?
Before the voting, Julie told the houseguests that there would be no more have-not punishments for the rest of the summer. With only five people left in the house, the feeds are going to get dull enough that we don’t need lethargic, starved houseguests lounging around the backyard for hours on end.
For the pre-vote speeches, Natalie thanked “CBS Productions” and everyone else who got her on the show. Then she thanked the three voting houseguests in advance for honoring their words not to evict her. Is she allowed to do that? I’m thinking not. How did Russell follow that up? Rather than slinging insults as he has done all summer, he reminded the houseguests that personal attacks are part of the game. Eh, yes and no. Calling a girl fat isn’t exactly “part of the game” any more than Lydia and Jessie’s tent-business was. But it happens, yes. Still, Russell gets credit for being gracious in his speech, especially considering he knew he was walking out the door and could’ve used the time he had to tell people off.
Jordan, Michele and Kevin all evicted Russell and when Julie announced it, she did the classic Ryan Seacrest fake-out by saying the name “Natalie” after “By a vote of three to zero…” Russell froze mid-way through standing up but then Julie told Natalie she was safe, Russell made his departure. While I can’t blame the houseguests for evicting the stronger competitor, I wish Natalie would’ve gone. As much as I hate to admit it though, she’s safe tonight because she’s good at scheming and that’s gotten her as far as it has, given that she hasn’t won any competitions.
The HoH competition is a semi-endurance one. The houseguests have to run/slide back and forth on a long track, carting a cup filled with chocolate milk (or some chocolaty liquid) from a bucket to a big ball. Whoever fills their ball up first, wins.
SPOILER ALERT!
Last I checked the feeds, Kevin was in the lead with Michele trailing behind him. Natalie and Jordan don’t look like they have a chance unless Kevin and Michele lose their steam (they’d have to stop for a while if the other two had any shot of catching up).
Latest update: Feeds cut out for a while but have been coming in and out since. Jokersupdates.com is confirming that Kevin won.
