BBOTT: Season Finale ... the winner is ...!

Tonight is the first and only live Julie Chen hosted show of the season! One of the final three -- Jason, Kryssie or Morgan -- will be voted the winner by America and win the grand prize. This version only has a grand prize of a quarter-million rather than a half-million. I believe second place still gets the 50 grand, but I could be wrong on that.

So, let's see which of the two win. Oh. Did I say two? I guess I did. Eh. I'll go with it. Let's see whether Jason or Morgan win ...! 

I had no sound when Julie started the show. Once we went back to Jason winning HoH, the sound came back.

 
Mostly recapping at this point. They're doing diary room speeches with video from the season.

Speeches over, the previously evicted hamsters are brought on stage.

Neeley's opinion -- impressed with Danielle kicking it into gear.
Scott - Shelby's being a lawyer shocked him.
Monte - Sister twist was good, proud of Morgan.
Whitney - Surprised at Shelby's secret, but knew she was smart.
Alex - Her alliance was scared America would target them if they targeted Jason.
Morgan and Alex are both sure they'll be closer now.
Shelby - Live diary room helped her, didn't hurt her.

Now we see diary room highlight clips.  Julie mentions the bad language.

Justin - A clip of his dancing. Strategy or being himself. Being himself.
Shane - Sacrificed game for Danielle? Regrets? None. Now has short hair.
Danielle - In a relationship with Shane now. 
Cornbread - Surprised to see Kryssie in the final three. He's blown away.         

Online voting.
Alex, Whitney, Shane, Neeley and someone else voted Jason.
None voted Kryssie
Justin didn't vote.

Now it's speech time with the two minute speeches from yesterday.

Julie announces the votes have been tallied.
The 2nd prize is 25 grand, not 50.

Third place and evicted -- Kryssie. What a shocker! 
Julie talks with her.  

MORGAN wins!
 

BBOTT: PoV and the Final Three - Tuesday, November 29

Determined to win?

Well, well, well. Of course, the only really big news of the day was the Power of Veto comp.

• It was called End of the Road.
• They had to run through metal police crowd control barriers set up in a switchback kind of queue.
• Jump over hay bales.
• Grab a hamster face picture, then return back the same way they came.
• Nine pictures in all. Had to get one at a time.
• The puzzle questions might have more than one possible answer.
• But there is only one correct solution using all nine.
• Justin was into making sound effects and cussing as he went along. He started to put faces in the spots first, getting a few wrong.
• Morgan decided to get all the faces first and solved some as she was bringing them back.
• In the end, it wasn't really any contest. Morgan solidly beat him, had all the answers right while he had some answers wrong on the board and didn't have all the faces.
• Surprisingly, in view of his behavior the last few days, he left the house on a good note.
• Julie came to the final three in video form, congratulating them and telling them they need to prepare a two-minute speech each.
• Those speeches will air live on Wednesday at 7pm ET/4pm PT. 
• The final three -- Morgan, Kryssie and Jason -- popped the champagne and got giddy. 

All spiffed up to host the comp

Monty was there.

Game faces on

The running was unreal.

It wasn't an easy puzzle, either.

Morgan WINS! She's in the Final Three!

Says he loves them. Yeah, right.

BBOTT: Nothing to see here. move along - into Tuesday, November 29

Eddie McGee, BB1 Winner

The Power of Veto comp isn't scheduled until 5pm today, Tuesday. I will report late tonight on its results. Otherwise, things have been pretty much the same in the house with even more tension due to the boredom.

In other news, I watched the Elementary episode from November 20th and immediately recognized BB Season One winner Eddie McGee in it! 

BBOTT: Into Monday, November 28

Jason being mellow? That won't last!

Well, Justin got up a bit more today ... 

• Unfortunately, he decided Morgan is his buddy now.
• Now, they're both slated to go head-to-head in the Power of Veto comp (today, Monday) together.
• She's been almost constantly studying or spending time with Jason and Kryssie.
• In comes Justin.
• The not so smart thing he does is to keep talking about how he has to win this comp, then the game, then "rub it in their faces."
• Um.
• He's saying that to his competitor.
• Morgan has been actually restraining herself quite well -- not saying much about how SHE needs to win the comp and then the game!
• Kudos to her for her restraint!
• At one point, she did say something. Justin claimed none of the people in the house have souls. She said, rather quietly, "Everybody has a soul."
• Justin, at one point, sat down with the rest and ate something. As they all talked, I noticed he was paying absolutely no attention to the others, would occasionally glance up at a camera and then start dancing in place to music in his head. 
• The others are right that he's very camera-conscious.
• I don't know how Morgan is putting up with all of Justin's bragging about his game and how he will win.
• Darn it, she wants to win, too!
• He told her how the LNJ had to keep fighting to keep in place and now the ones remaining have deserted him.
• Heck, Justin. Morgan's side also had to fight with the up/down power changes week to week! And, she's the sole remainder from the Ball Smashers!
• I'm also sick of hearing him tell how many women are willing to have sex with him and how much he misses having sex. @@
• We'll know more once the PoV comp goes down.
• May the best woman win that one!
• Heehee. 

Justin actually posed for one HoH camera shot

Morgan studies some more

I don't like any of these people

BBOTT: It's Official - Two of the Final Three Confirmed - into November 27

Just a few more days ...

Nothing much has changed in the house.

• Jason is still HoH.
• Kryssie is still Kryssie and will always be Kryssie.
• Morgan has been repeatedly going through all the comps, things in the house and hamsters trying to prep for the Veto Comp tomorrow.
• Justin has been in Audrey mode, occasionally coming to life, but mostly in bed.
• The decision to take someone to the final two became official yesterday.
• But we knew since he won HoH, Jason was choosing to take Kryssie.
• That's what started Justin's poor behavior in motion.
• On the other hand, I've been very impressed with Morgan's behavior in the house since her best and last ally Shelby got the boot.
• She's mixed. She's mingled. She's been partaking in things. Plus, every moment she can, she's studying.
• I hope she wins the veto!
• As for Justin, I'd say I'm disappointed.
• But I'm not, really. I've said all along he was just coasting and being himself. He's entertaining when he wants to be, but he hasn't been playing the game of Big Brother. 
• In this last stretch, he has to play the game or get the boot.
• Instead, he's still working on America's vote -- talking to the camera about all is love and how he wants to start a fishing program for the kids in New Orleans.
• True, that's a worthy goal. But it's not something you need a half-million dollars to put in motion! If he really wanted to do that, he could get active in the community and work on getting people to sponsor the much less than a half-million needed to get it off the ground.
• I think he wants to convince America that he's all that, a bag of chips AND has these lofty goals to give back to the community.
• Personally, I don't care what reality show folks do with their winnings ... with the exception of the arrest/drug stupidity of a few. That's total stupidity.
• It's their money. They went before the public eye, endured mocking and ridicule to win it. They can spend it however they want -- college loans, bills, homes, cars or wasting it away. I don't expect anyone to suddenly become a philanthropist and give it all away to a good cause. Very few do that.
• All will tell tomorrow when either Justin or Morgan win a place in the final three.
• At this time, I'm really hoping it's Morgan. She's been very impressive lately. Well, with the exception of that 11 minute time in the Maize Maze, that is. 

It's AUDREY! Er, I mean Justin.

Repeatedly going over days and comps

Opening last nicotine patch

BBOTT: Dwindling Days - into Saturday, November 26

Memorizing the days, the comps

The Justin rift in the house continues.

• Justin said his poor behavior on Thanksgiving was due to being homesick.
• True, he is young. True, he's often said he's never been away from home for more than two weeks.
• But, as his fellow hamsters tried to tell him, they're all pretty much in the same boat.
• Had he told them that he was homesick and needed alone time, it may have been understood.
• Instead, he just slept the day away, showing up to eat only. He didn't partake in any of the special things BB had set for them for the day.
• Kryssie ended up preparing Justin's mother's turkey recipe.
• He didn't even help clean up.
• And, coupled with his bragging about how great his game has been and his obvious bitterness about not being Jason's one safe pick this week ...!
• He went around apologizing "if he offended people" instead of owning up to bad behavior on his part.
• Morgan tried to tell him there's a difference between confidence and arrogance ... and he's been coming off as arrogant.
• Yet he maintains how he's made so many moves and been a great player.
• Go figure.
• The others are right that he's been playing up to America.
• One thing I've noticed is that he tells his fellow hamsters that he's thrown comps. He's told us that he has sucked at them.
• Even now he's putting on a different face for us than he is for his fellow hamsters.
• Kryssie really lit into him.
• Jason grouses about him. However, this Justin imploding might be one of the best things ever for Jason's own game. I think he knows that.
• While Morgan has spent an inordinate amount of time studying and preparing for the Veto Comp, Justin has been working out, napping and spreading insincere apologies. 

Listening (or not) to Kryssie

Playing for second ... or third place

He thought he'd be gone first week

BBOTT: A BB Thanksgiving - into Friday, November 25

Drumsticks are better eaten than worn

I hope everyone had a nice Thanksgiving with family, fun and food! I didn't write up a report yesterday because I was busy having a mellow day myself. But I'm here now and here's what's been going on!

• As I mentioned in my last post, Jason easily won the last HoH of the season. He will nominate two people for eviction and save one. Those two will have the opportunity to play for the Power of Veto.
• After the comp, secrets came bursting out of nowhere -- Morgan told them that Alex is her sister and their whole story (not getting along well over the years, Alex was the superfan, didn't know each other would be in the house, etc.)
• Jason told them that he didn't just reenter the house this season -- America voted him in over Jozea. 
• Of course, if they knew Jozea, they should figure nobody wanted to endure Jozea in there again!
• In between getting told by BB to stop talking about production, they all talked how they got on the show this season.
• Justin admitted he was a recruit and had tried for a cooking show.
• Jason indicated to Justin that he would be taking Kryssie with him to the final three, leaving Justin and Morgan to battle it out in Veto.
• Oh my.
• There is a side of Justin which certainly isn't entertaining! Not AT ALL!
• Justin started saying how he played the game this year the best of all. After all, he didn't know the game at all and has sailed right through to the end!
• He played better than Jason or any of the others! 
• Give me a break!
• Jason ranted (not in front of Justin) with Kryssie about Justin not doing much all season, yet thinking he was entitled to be chosen rather than Kryssie.
• Now, I totally understand the Kryssie choice, as does Kryssie herself. She knows she has no chance to win against Jason. But she has been WITH Jason since the get-go.
• On the other hand, Morgan is mixing and mingling with Jason and Kryssie quite nicely.
• Obviously, she wasn't expecting Jason to save her in this scenario.
• But things get worse with Justin.
• In the daytime, BB gave them letters from home, expecting them to read them together as a group.
• Justin just up and left the other three and his unopened letter.
• As they said, if he didn't want to read it aloud, fine. But stay with them and listen to theirs as BB did it for them.
• Instead, Justin stayed in bed almost all day.
• BB also gave them all the ingredients and recipes for a holiday feast. The recipes were ones from their families and some from previous houseguests.
• Morgan, Kryssie and Jason worked preparing and cooking.
• Justin slept.
• Remember, Justin is the one with the "chef" background.
• Justin woke up in time to eat, then went to read his letter and return to sleeping.
• Morgan, Kryssie and Jason cleaned up the kitchen.
• In this 24-hour period, Justin has managed to totally alienate the other three in the house.
• Both Jason and Kryssie want Morgan to be with them in the final three.
• They think Justin has been acting entitled to the win, disrespecting BB and the show itself.
• Y'know, I kind of agree with them.
• All along I've said he's not really playing the game; he's just being himself. And, while he can be entertaining, he's not playing BB.
• He wasn't even entertaining yesterday. 

In the spirit of the day

Look who decided to show up

BBOTT: Final HoH Competition - November 23

Morgan reads the rules

The final HoH comp of BBOTT has begun. It's called Uphill Battle. Morgan can play even though she's outgoing HoH -- since it's the last one of the season.

Each plays on own game board. Each board has same question. Maneuver ball into answer pocket using a bar and rope to lift one color-coded answer ball at a time up the board. If wrong, they use the stick to push the ball out from behind playing board. 

WHOA! It barely started and we have a winner!

Uphill Battle

Quad Cam view

Jason is the final HoH!

 

BBOTT: Weekly Episode, Live Eviction - November 23

Since the weekly (online) BBOTT show now starts at 8pm ET until the season ends, I'm putting up this post so anyone who wishes to do so can comment on the weekly show. I'm not going to live blog the show itself as we've already discussed all that happens.  Plus, the early time here for the show has it at the same time as Survivor -- which I live blog and more people are into than this CBS All Access only version of Big Brother.

This week Survivor is two hours, so I won't be watching (although it will be kind of sort of on) BBOTT's live eviction. It's not like there will be much suspense to it anyway. Jason saved himself with the veto. Morgan had to put Shelby on the block because Justin had already saved himself with the care package. So, it's only Justin and Jason voting with Kryssie and Shelby on the block. Guess who will go home? I'll return to post the news when it goes down anyway.

Guess what? The live eviction went down and both Jason and Justin voted to evict SHELBY! 

BBOTT: Change of Game Direction Again - into Tuesday, November 22

Justin makes ice cream sandwiches for all

My gosh, this has been one topsy-turvy season of BB! I'm not sure if we've ever seen the change of power in the game rotating so evenly between sides of the house!

• But first ... Justin made homemade ice cream sandwiches late in the evening after the hoopla of the veto comp was long over.
• I've never made them, but now he's given me ideas!
• BUT ... he was handling the ice cream in his bare hands and I saw him lick the ice cream off his fingers.
• Now, I would do that myself in my own kitchen if I were the only one eating them and not being filmed. However, that's not the case with him. Eww.
• The huge news of the day was the veto comp.
• Going into it Jason and Kryssie were on the block, Morgan HoH.
• They were each sequestered in separate rooms to wait as each hamster did the comp one by one.
• If I were Kryssie, I'd complain about always getting stuck in the storage room for these things -- it's the least comfortable although she could always snack.
• The Power of Veto Comp was a Maize Maze.
• They had to crawl through a big maze to retrieve three ears of corn.
• The finish times ranged from Jason at 1:30 minutes to Morgan at 11:00 minutes.
• You heard me.
• It took Morgan eleven minutes to finish! EEK! Horrible!
• Justin did his season best so far with the exception of completing the challenge in the care package for safety. His time was second fastest at 1:56 minutes.
• Kryssie didn't do shabby at all with 2:05 minutes.
• Then came Shelby. She sucked at the comp, but not anywhere near as badly as Morgan did. Shelby had a time of 4:24 minutes.
• So ... JASON won the Power of Veto.
• Before going into the comp, he knew it was do or die for him in the house. If he didn't get taken off the block, he would be the one going home this week.
• He couldn't risk his life on Justin winning.
• He was a bundle of nerves going into it and even went through so fast that he cut up his knees.
• He wanted the win just that bad.
• And, he got it.
• Of course, that puts the writing on the wall for Thursday.
• Jason will save himself.
• Morgan will have no choice but to put Shelby on the block.
• Justin and Jason will vote Shelby out.
• The Morgan/Shelby cry fest went on ... and on ... and on.
• Shelby ended up trying to pep talk Morgan.
• Morgan, meanwhile, feels she has the weight of the entire Ball Smashers on her shoulders fighting impossible odds.
• She can play in the next HoH comp even though she's outgoing HoH.
• She better do better than she did in the maze! 

Waiting and waiting some more

Retrieve your three ears of corn

Reading the comp instructions

Crawling through the Maize Maze

Really? Really? I won veto?

Realization and a fake Morgan hug for Jason

I actually DID IT!

The writing is on the wall

BBOTT: No Surprise Noms - into Monday, November 21

Ohhh! The HoH camera!

Well, it was yet another exciting fun-filled day in Happy Hamsterland! Er, well. Okay. Maybe not.

• Morgan got the HoH camera. 
• And fun was had by all.
• Or, by some.
• Um. Make that a few.
• Well ... make that Shelby and Morgan.
• Some of the day was spent with Morgan and Shelby desperately seeking a pineapple hidden by the Late Night Jamboree crew.
• Shelby and Morgan spent a lot of time going over the details of every comp, every day.
• I didn't bother to study at all.
• While they were doing that, the LNJ bunch was talking about Jon Lovitz and Alexis Arquette.
• But, Justin does have a song memorized to help him with the days.
• Of course, he doesn't have to worry this week -- he achieved safety by walking the slack line as per America's Care Package.
• The nominations were evident even before the Safety Ceremony.
• Justin is off the table.
• Shelby is Morgan's only ally.
• That leaves Jason and Kryssie.
• Duh.
• Yet, they went through with the ceremony.
• Instead of just saying they were her only options, Morgan went on about the division in the house in her nominations speech.
• Morgan and Shelby want Jason out.
• Jason is worried, but doesn't seem to really be working on studying for possible question comps.
• As a matter of fact, he's acting rather defeated.
• Justin claims that, with the numbers, they have his back.
• Hmm.
• One of them would have to win veto forcing Morgan to put Shelby on the block.
• Otherwise ... the LNJ will be down to two. 

Can you feel the love?

Studying? Nope!

The suspense is killing me!

BBOTT: Hamsters, Hamsters - into Sunday, November 20

Easy noms decision this week

Oh my gosh. I really have little for you today.

• Since Justin saved himself with the care package and Shelby is Morgan's best and only ally in the game, the nominations are obvious.
• Kryssie and Jason will be on the block.
• (Even though the safety ceremony is down to one and it will be later tonight.)
• There will be no America's nominee this week.
• Justin and Shelby will be the only hamsters voting. We (America) will vote.
• Although Morgan and Shelby want Jason out -- Kryssie to the final three would guarantee someone else a win at the end -- I would guess that America will more likely vote to evict Kryssie over Jason.
• So, that would leave Justin as the deciding vote.
• Even though Jason tried to get Justin out with a deal the week Danielle ended up gone, I think Justin will be loyal to Jason.
• I guess we'll see.
• Meanwhile, the day was uneventful.
• They laid about.
• They ate.
• They all got along together when together, but sniped about each other when apart.
• They are bored.
• They are boring. 

Playing a good game. Will she make it?

Who will win? Jason or Jason? Pool, I mean.

Works too hard at being a misfit

Missing his home