BB25: Season Premiere Blog Party!

 

Welcome one and all! Tonight is the season premiere of a milestone season! Who would have thought we'd be in the 25th season? I appreciate those who have been with me through the AOL Message Board and Chat days, the Weblogs.Inc, TVSquad and AOL TV days as well as the new folks who have joined in.

We have 90 minutes of show tonight, then the live feeds will start after the show airs on the West Coast. The live feeds will also be available on Pluto TV this year, but I don't know how that works. My first live feeds report won't be up until tomorrow. Oh ... and the season finale won't be until November! Eep.

CBS BB has announced a 17th mystery hamster will also be in the house. Whether a returning hamster, someone from another show, a D-List celeb, I don't know. They have been saying for more than a few months no returning players, all new cast. I'm thinking it might be Cirie from Survivor. She wanted to be on the show more than her son! We will see.

But first ... the blog pool is still open for the joining! We have no show tomorrow night, so no immediate eviction. The blog pool cut-off is Friday, so if you haven't joined in, there is still time! The sign-up post is at this link right here. Please sign up ONLY at that link!

I will be live blogging the events of tonight's show as best I can as the show airs here on the East Coast. Refresh the page to get the latest updates. And, please bear with me as I try to get their names down. If you need photos/names, please check out the previous posts I made about the cast. As always, the real party is in the comments -- I hope to see you there.

Here's Julie, all dressed in summer garb and looking well! We get a few minutes of BB ins and outs, etc. To the new stuff, please.

Julie tells us it's a 100 day seasons. She says there could be "more" houseguests. Into the hamsters getting their keys now. I won't be commenting on all of it. Blue is single. We didn't know that. Onto Red. Obviously he wants to be a character. Jared now. He talks about being Cirie's son. He isn't going to tell the others about her. Mecole says she was 16 when she graduated from high school. Big deal. I was in college at 16 and I'm no genius!

I need a new paragraph! Matt, the Deafolympics guy is now. He talks very well for never hearing! He's single and willing to showmance. Izzy. Ohh, her flute degree is from Yale! Jag is up next, our Sikh Punjabi dude. He's proud of who he is ... as he should be. Reilly the bartender from Tennessee. She can talk with her mouth closed, sort of. She's single and might showmance.

Okay, those eight are with Julie near the door. They don't enter the house and are told to "sit tight" while they stand.

The next eight are introduced. Luke is first. Ah, his artwork is the link I posted in my intro post about him! Felicia, the 63 year old! I really want to like her -- the oldest woman ever in the house and only Jerry beat her in age. Hisam, speaking of older ... he's more interesting than I thought. A geriatric doctor/burlesque gay Muslim. Oh my! Cory the one with the brother who was on Survivor 44 is next. He's into public speaking. Bowie Jane is a lawyer and a DJ originally from Australia. Athletic.

New paragraph time again! America is a first generation American. Eight in her family, struggles, immersed in education at Brown University. Cameron, space cowboy, likes horses and things that go boom. He named his hair Bertha. His daughter is cute. Kirsten is up, very intelligent. Athletic. Wants a female final two. Hmm. 

Now all 16 are on stage with Julie. She tells them it's 100 days. Twist? A break-in and the BB universe they think they know has changed.

She tells them Expect the Unexpected and we get the clip of Frankie, Britney and Danielle with the time machine. Julie tells the new hamsters that the BB Multiverse has cracked open, changed the house and game. Four universes. BB Comic Verse, Humili verse, Scaryverse, Scrambleverse.

Groups of four move in, peek around, go to back yard. Felicia, Red, America and Matt first in. Once in yard, they each have to pick a pink spot at one of the four multiverses. Next - Cory, Blue, Jared and Izzy green mats. Next Kirsten, Luke, Bowie Jane and Jag, yellow mats. Last four - Hisam, Mecole, Cameron and Reilly, blue mats. It's Reilly's birthday today.

The Scramble-verse globe is lighting up red -- Julie says it's about ready to scramble things up. Hmm.

First comp. She tells them the Scramble-verse has changed the game. They are not competing for HOH. Instead, nomination comp. The loser of the four comps will be nominated for eviction.

Scramble-verse - Puzzling Headlines. They have to unscramble the layout on the BB "magazine" covers and put them back in the box they came from. It's basically a big puzzle with about 12 pieces. Last will be first nominated for eviction. America first has it. Next Bowie Jane. Mecole is next. Jared is the first nominated for eviction.

The Humili-Verse is next. Kicking Butt. The lever and kicking them with a big boot, kick yourself 100 times. The guys are doing better than the girls. Blue seems to be struggling. Yikes! Matt is first done, Hisam next. Kirsten is doing poorly. Blue next. Kirsten is now nominated for eviction with Jared.

BB Comics-Verse is up. Goo-copalypse. Goo bombs. Looks messy to me! They have to connect wires to the goo box, only one way to do it. If it explodes, they are safe and have saved humanity. Jag first done, the Izzy, then Cameron. Felicia last and nominated for eviction.

Scary-verse is next. Hold on Fright. They are laying down with a huge monster hand trying to drag them away. First dragged away will be the 4th nominee and disappear into the Nether Region. When will they return? Only the Scary-verse knows. Cory loses!

So, the nominees are Cory, Jared, Kirsten and Felicia.

Julie tells them to prepare for anything. The Scramble-verse globe is still flashing red. Julie tells us the biggest surprise of the night is ahead.

Sunday is the HOH crowning show. What happened to Cory, Thursday is the eviction. No show tomorrow.

Julie tells them they had a wonderful premiere night and is that CIRIE from Survivor pouring champagne? Yes, it is! I was right!

Survivor 43: Season Premiere Blog Party

 

Good evening! Here we are, after more than twenty years (yikes) to Season 43. I'm glad that they're using season numbers now. I guess it's due to the more or less forever home in Fiji. But still ... the numbers are easier on me!

Jeff Probst has already let us know that it's once again a shortened season for the castaways themselves. I believe they are still making them quarantine ahead of the filming for Covid reasons. Thankfully, the rather failed twist of hourglass smashing will be gone. Only those castaways who used it liked it -- not the show fans, nor the other castaways.

Tonight's show will be two hours followed by the season premiere of The Amazing Race 34. I will be live-blogging both shows. So, once Survivor ends, head to the next post which should magically appear a few minutes before TAR starts. No BB24 tonight!

Since we are skipping the first boots, the Survivor and The Amazing Race blog pools are both still open for sign-up until Friday. But don't wait! The Survivor blog pool sign-up is this here link. The Amazing Race blog pool sign-up is this link.

I will be live-blogging tonight's show the best I can. I can't promise perfection, mind you. I am not all that familiar with the cast and won't really know them for a few weeks. But I should get all the major happenings down. Refresh the page to get the latest update. As always, the real party is in the comments area. I hope to see you there!

We get briefs on the castaways as they boat into the Fijian Islands. One woman is indeed there to make friends ... and win. Oh my gosh, it IS the COCO tribe, not KOKA (or however I was spelling it). At least one castaway hadn't even been born before the first season -- Borneo -- aired.

Jeff greets the three tribe groups - Coco, Baka, Vesi. We get more introduction to some of them as Jeff asks his Probsting questions. What exactly is Survivor? A game. An adventure. Red - Vesi, Blue - Coco, Yellow - Baka.

It's a Reward challenge to get the pot, machete and flint. The two losing teams do not get flint. Have to race to get two heavy wooden crates, bring them back. then retrieve one from the water, pull the boat with it back to the shore. Then bring those crates in. Puzzle with the crates to build cube to stand on and retrieve the flint from above.

VESI wins Reward!

The tribes are off to their respective campsites. No one on the Reward winning tribe knows how to build a shelter, nor even how to use a machete. They will learn!

On Baka, the oldest person -- Mike is a bit worried. Message from Jeff - Savvy or Sweat. To earn supplies. Four hours to complete either task. Flip over the timer, the challenge has started. Two members have to do the task. They choose Savvy. Move two bones to form the largest whole number. You can only move two bones at one time. Hmm. 

The Coco tribe chooses Sweat which has them digging for their supplies. Ryan ends up digging it up within a half-hour. We get his cerebral palsy background. On Baka, Sami solves the puzzle. He is telling people he is 22, not 19. 

On Vesi they are already trying to get alliances going. To me, just in observation, Cody is coming across as a snake oil salesman type. He might sell elevators in real life, but snake oil on the island. Jesse seems popular with two different groups.

On Baka they are trying to build a shelter. Owen thinks no one seems to be scheming, all are working hard and guarded. We get Elie's sad sister passing away background. Jeanine and Morriah hug her and the three form a bond.

On Coco, it appears the genders are also bonding into groups. Lindsay and Carla want to work with James.

Over on Baka, Sami might be making a mistake and putting a target on his back for the merge -- he solved the puzzle and now has made fire. Mike, at 51, feels he is not doing well. Okay, Elie and Mike have a heavy metal music love.

On Coco LGBTQ folks Geo and Karla have a rather built-in bond. They already trust each other. They also have Ryan with them. Karla is also in another group and is surprised that she seems to be so in with the others.

On Vesi, we get the gang background on Jesse. He's telling the others about tattoos he has had removed. He tells us that he went to juvie, passed the GED with the highest score they had ever seen and is now a PHD student. Justine thinks she can build a fire, but nope.

A boat shows up on Vesi. A commercial shows up for us!

A boat arrives for each tribe, separate boats of course. They each get a note. One person must get on the boat, return in the afternoon.

Karla goes for Coco. Mike (Gabler) goes for Baka and Dwight for Vesi. A hike to a giant rock, get to know each other. We get Karla's educational background of firsts. Risk or not Risk, like in previous season. Choose secretly to risk or not risk vote. One has an advantage, the rest lose their vote. Karla did not risk, the other two did. Dwight and Gabler have to draw for the win. They can't open until back at their camps.

Vesi still hasn't made fire even with the flint they earned. Justine finally did it! Woot! Dwight tells them about the island trip. He told them he doesn't know what he got and won't know until later. Cody (snake oil!) tells Jesse he doesn't trust him.

Gabler tells his Baka people roughly the same thing. He opens his risk and WON. He lets his tribe know. He technically has an idol. Dwight opens his and now they know Gabler has an idol.

Time for the Immunity Challenge! Race squirming through mud, over obstacles collecting three balls, one person from each dig under log, climb up almost vertical wall to balance beam to finish. First tribe picks what table game, the others then choose. First two tribes safe. Last tribe loses flint and goes to Tribal.

Coco chooses the table maze first. Vesi chooses the straight shot game. Baka has the obstacle game.

COCO wins Immunity! VESI wins Immunity! Baka will lose their flint and someone will go home.

Gabler thinks because he (and Sami) did the game, he will be a target. He plans on taking his shot in the dark instead of playing his idol because he feels the loss was at least in part his fault. His tribemates tell him they have no thought of voting him out -- he gets along with everyone and he's a workhorse. The target attention turns to Morriah. Sami tells Morriah that she's safe with him. Morriah thinks that Dwight is a possible target. Elie wants to vote out the weakest. Jeanine doesn't want the women to then be picked off. Sheesh, they're all over the place. It only seems that neither Sami nor Gabler will go home.

Tribal Council time. Jeff asks his questions. Sami says it was all Kumbaya and they are the final six. They feel good about their efforts to win. Will they vote for strength or effort to get to know each other? Now Jeff feels the tension in the tribe.

Time to vote. Gabler does not play his idol.

The vote: Morriah, Owen, Morriah, Morriah, Morriah ... four is enough. The first person voted out is Morriah.

For The Amazing Race, move on to the next blog post!

Big Brother: BB24 Season Premiere Blog Party

 

Good evening! It's here ... our summer guilty pleasure. Just a few things before we get started:

• I'm still not in great health but hopefully will be able to stay out of the hospital. I'm swamped with medical bills. So, if you wish to donate, now would be a great time!
• I discussed -- with photos -- the new hamsters (no returning players) in posts here, here and here. The alternate hamster replacing one is here.
• We, the people (as opposed to them the hamsters) will have some kind of vote/input starting tonight.
• There is no eviction show tomorrow night. The next show is Sunday.
• The blog pool sign-up post is at this here link. That is the only place to sign up for it -- anywhere else might be missed. The cut off is Friday noon PT, 3PM ET.
• Apparently, the theme is some sort of BB Fest at a BB Motel. Um. Okay.
• The live feeds are supposed to come on after the show airs on the West Coast. My first report probably won't be until morning.
• Tonight's show is 90 minutes followed by a 90-minute season premiere of The Challenge. I will most likely watch the latter but won't be live-blogging it. Since it's mostly contestants from the shows we watch, I can set up a post and add a bit of commentary now and then if you want. Let me know.
• Forgive me as I stumble over names for a while until I get to know who's whom. The cast reveal yesterday hasn't given me much time to get used to them.

Let's get this thing going!

Oh ... Julie is wearing a purple dress! Now, that's different. The house is a motel them. The prize remains the higher $750,000. Julie promises us a festival-themed summer called BB Fest.

The first four hamsters are revealed. Jasmine ran a farm but now has a nails business. Her father wanted her to be on the show but has passed away. Kyle makes dancing videos with his mother. He's unemployed and no longer Mormon. He lives with his parents. Paloma runs on the beach. She has her real estate license and is single. Monte has a degree in mechanical engineering but is a personal trainer. He thinks he is brawn and brains.

Julie tells them there are four stations with tickets to BB Fest. They are to grab one each. The stations each seem to have four tickets. Then they head to the backyard at Julie's direction. Three hot spots -- the PortaPotties - Paloma. Jasmine gets PortPotties, too. Monte, too. Kyle, too. 

Time for the next four. Alyssa writes poetry and is fun and outgoing. Big show fan. Danie is an Elvis tribute artist and loves his work. Fan of the show and even watched the live feeds. Taylor was Miss Michigan USA and is very competitive. Michael is a criminal defense attorney. He's a MENSA member. Has watched BB since he was eight years old.

They're sent in the house to grab their tickets to BB Fest. Julie calls them to the backyard to scan their tickets. Michael gets the Merch Stand. Alyssa gets Merch as well. Taylor gets the Piercing Tent. Daniel gets Merch Stand.

Next four. Nicole is a private chef and ex-police officer. She is a lesbian. Turner is an artist and owns his own thrift store. He did a van life thing, too. Joseph is a lawyer and personal trainer. He is really muscular. He's Syrian/Palestinian. Brittany is a hypnotherapist and belly-dancer. She is a big show fan but will play funny, goofy.

They gather their tickets.To the backyard. Nicole gets PortaPotties. Brittany gets Piercing Tent. Turner also gets Piercing Tent. Joseph also gets it.

Last four now ... finally. Terrance is a bus driver in Chicago. He DJs after work. His family watches BB, Indy is from Brazil, has been here for nine years. She came here for a better life. She was a big fan of BB Brazil. Pooch or Joe Pooch is a college football coach. He and his mother have bonded over BB for years. Ameerah works for Google, works from home. Her family had to struggle but she thinks it made her strong.

The last four go in the house to get their tickets. To the backyard. Terrance gets Piercing Tent. Indy to the Merch Stand. Pooch gets a Backstage Boss. He has to take the spiral staircase upstairs and take a seat. Ameerah gets Merch Stand.

Three competitions. Pooch will not compete in any of them tonight.

The first competition is with the PortaPotties peeps. Potty Talk. They are all sitting in individual PortaPotties. They overhear comments and lock in answers for four rounds until one remains. Uh-oh they have to put on goggles. Which word was said the most times? All answered right except Paloma who got blasted with blue. Second round - All right but Jasmine answered last, so she is eliminated. Nicole out on the third round. Last round Both got it right but Monte was faster. Monte will compete in HOH comp.

Piercing Tent comp. Piercing Panic. Ten pieces of jewelry must correctly attach them to their faces. Oh my. Turner wins.

Merch Stand comp. Hanging Tough. Hang on to t-shirt above them, they will be lifted. Last one still hanging on wins after the rest fall. Daniel wins.

So, it's Monte, Turner and Daniel for HOH comp. But the Backstage Boss might change everything (teaser before commercial).

HOH Drumming For Power. The three have to assemble drum sets. Daniel wins the first HOH!

Julie tells them that Pooch will be backstage all week long, won't compete in any comps and won't vote. He cannot be evicted. Expect the unexpected. How Backstage Boss affects the others. He can send three others backstage. The three have the same perks he has, but they are not safe like he is. 

Pooch chooses the ones out first in the comps. Paloma, Alyssa and Brittany. Huh. The three cannot be nominated but may still go home. The public will save one of them by voting on the CBS website.

Celebrity BB3: Season Premiere Blog Party

 

This is going to be a rather short but overly scheduled season. I posted the schedule over on this here linked post for your perusal. As with all BB seasons, I will be covering live feeds with regular reports. That said, I haven't seen any announcements about when the feeds will go live. They have a countdown link running on the live feeds window that seems to time up with the show itself.

As is typical with "celebrity" reality shows, these are not top-level celebrities and some (if not most) you will not know. I posted a cast list with photos on this page. One good thing, in my opinion anyway, is that the cast is skewing older than regular seasons. Older hamsters tend to have a totally different mindset than the kids they usually cast. It's just a shame they make them think they're celebrities.

Lifeguard SueGee is working double duty and put together the blog pool, randomly assigning each pool participant to a celebhamster:

Cynthia Bailey: Indiana Jane, Glenn Allen

Todd Bridges: Donna in Alabama, Jackie

Todrick Hall: Chrob61, Monty924

Chris Kattan: Skyriverblue, Rich in Buffalo

Chris Kirkpatrick: Judi Sweeney, CherryPie

Carson Kressley: Fred aka TwoBlackAces

Teddi Mellencamp: JonMD1267, Krysta

Shanna Moakley: SueGee, Caela

Mirai Nagasu: Clover, Dr_Celine

Lamar Odum: Jennasmom, Marthlight

Miesha Tate: David, Sharon N.

I will be live-blogging the show the best I can as it airs here on the East Coast. The best I can means that I might not get the names down right even though they are such HUGE celebrities. As always, the real party is in the comments area. Come join in on the fun!

Hamster watchers ready?

94 cameras. 104 microphones. Ack. There is a chessboard. I hate watching them play chess. Julie is in a deep red dress with floofy shoulders, sleeves and a ruffle of floof around the hem. They will move in the house one at a time due to Covid.

Carson Kressley moves in first. He claims he thinks he's a liked celebrity and not a villain ... yet. Cynthia Bailey (whom I do not know) arrives next. They know each other. Chris Kirkpatrick arrives, Cynthia does not know him until he mentions NSYNC. Shanna Moakley next. So far Carson knows all of them.

Todd Bridges is next. Mirai comes in. If these celebhamsters are like regular hamsters, she's going to be eaten alive. Chris Kattan arrives. Most would probably know him as Mango from SNL. To commercial as we need four more to enter the house. Julie tells us there will be a Head of House comp.

Todrick arrives. I will say he's a bit of a cutie-patootie. But I wouldn't know who he is if not for Twitter and his allowing BB23 cast hamsters to stay at his house for weeks. Miesha Tate arrives. Chris Kirkpatrick is a fan of hers. I am not. I never heard of her before this. Teddi Mellencamp is next. Lamar Odum is the last one in. Shanna is worried because she may have called his fiancé a donkey on national television. He's 6'9" -- oh my!

It bugs me that there are two named Chris and they both have the same last initial.

Carson wants to start a Girls and Gays Alliance. 

Julie calls them to the living room. She explains the game to them. There will be two evictions a week. They have to change into their "formalwear" and head to the backyard as we head to commercial.

BB Winter Gala wearing designs from BB Desgner. Peacocks, unicorns and all sorts of bizarre. Needs a Master of Ceremonies to volunteer. That person cannot compete, will not be safe from eviction. Todd does it. 

They have to climb on swings and will be raised up into the air. Fall off and will be eliminated. Todd calls out paparazzi to the left, then right. They have to turn to look. Chris Kattan out first. Then Cynthia. Then it snows. Shanna out, Lamar out.

Ew. Golden caviar dumped on them. Chris Kirkpatrick out. Crackers dumped on them. Carson out.

Confetti now. Mirai out. Todrick tries to deal for safety with Miesha, she agrees, he drops. Teddi tries to deal and doesn't get the same deal. She did it for Todrick because she likes him. Teddi drops anyway.

MIESHA is the first HOH!

Into commercial after Julie tells us Miesha won't be the only one with power this week.

New power up for grabs this week. It's inside the gala gift. It will be a blessing for one, a curse for others.

Show tomorrow night at 9PM ET/PT. Nominees will be er ... nominated. New power exposed. Two hours on Friday -- eviction.

I'm thinking the live feeds will start tonight. Expect a morning report.

Survivor 41: Season Premiere Blog Party

 

Are y'all ready? Tonight's show is two hours (leading into Big Brother). Since it is so long and I will probably have a lot to write about, the blog pool match-ups as well as images/names of the new castaways are at THIS LINKED POST. That post can be used as a cheat sheet until we get used to the names!

I will try to keep updating the best I can through tonight's show as it airs here on the East Coast -- it's always hard until I get the names down and I won't really have the luxury of checking out my own cast cheat sheet while updating! Refresh this page to get the latest news. As always, the real party is in the comments area. Please feel free to join in on the fun!

It sounds like we're in for some changes according to Jeff. And, I'm not just talking the 26 instead of 39. They're running clips of the new castaways. Tiffany was an alternate. Except for her, all the others were in a holding pattern during the pandemic. The tribes are being boated to a barge already wearing the color buffs. Naseer learned English by watching Survivor from season 21 on.

Jeff asks them if calling them all "guys" is okay. No one objects. I don't object either. As long as he doesn't call them all "dudes." He tells them it's a shorter season, very meager supplies -- one machete, one flint, no rice. Gameplay has never been more dangerous.

They have to find their color-coded six paddles, get in tribe boat, go retrieve flint. Only one tribe gets the machete and flint. The others get nothing. Yase (yellow) can't even find their paddles! Ua (green) pulled out in front of Luvu (blue) who didn't release one of their anchors. Oops! Ua wins the machete and flint!

Ua is pulling together nicely. Jairus, one of the child castaways (born 2001) even made fire. Yase has to choose between two tasks. If they complete one they can earn supplies. The physical challenge has them filling barrels with ocean water, only two in there. David who wanted the savvy challenge (solving a triangle riddle) rather than sweat got drafted. He's not happy. On Luvu, they also go for the water hauling.

Genie has been married to her wife for 25 years. Ricard is married to his transgender pregnant husband and they have a daughter. On Luvu, Danny and Deshawn carry the water AND search for idols! Uh-oh ... Naseer sees them and tells the others! Nothing like putting targets on their backs on the first day!

Liana and Evvie are bonding. Yase's Abraham is already pointing out what he perceives as weaknesses on his tribe. Heck, they were ALL weak if they missed that paddle!

Jairus is called JD. He is working with Brad already. JD seems to be rubbing many the wrong way and Ricard and the women already have him on their radar.

Both tribes finished the water challenge. One of the women tell Danny and Deshawn that Naseer told them they were looking for idols so now they decide that Naseer needs to go first.

Luvu has a visitor which needs one of them to go with him. Danny volunteers. Xander goes for Yase. JD pulls rocks with his tribe and ends up getting the odd rock.

The three see a sign telling them to go to the summit and get to know each other. JD tells us he was picked on while growing up. His Survivor "heroes" like Ozzy and Woo gave him inspiration.

At the top of the summit, a sign directs them to separate and make a decision. They can protect their vote, risk their vote. If all choose the first all stays the same. Risk has them risk to get an extra vote. Danny wants Protect. It doesn't show what the other two decided.

Danny tells his tribe the truth. Xander risked it and told his tribe. He said he did it for the team. JD tells them he protected his vote. They all think he's lying.

First Immunity Challenge is at hand. The game must be afoot. Ricard brings up that he doesn't like "guys." Jeff is happy. He won't say it again. He tells them of a new twist at Tribal. Shot in the Dark. Don't vote, reach in for a 1 in 6 shot for safety in the voting booth.

Over and under obstacles to sled, load puzzle pieces, clear track, pull up track and two members solve puzzle. Two losing tribes go to Tribal, two going home. Both losing tribes lose their flint.

LUVU wins Immunity! Ua and Yase have to give Jeff their flints.

Tiffany and Liana want to target Abraham while Abraham wants David and Xander to target Tiffany. They bring in Evvie who acts like she agrees. Evvie works on David to switch the target to Abraham. Tiffany knows her name is out there. She goes looking for an idol. Jeff shows us where he hid it and she goes right by it.

Sara is crying on her tribe. Ricard is pushing for JD to go. He talks to the others and they all seem to be on board. Brad comes along and says JD is strong and the weak players are Shantel and Sara.

Yase and Ua head off to Tribal Council to face Jeff's Probsting questions. First up is Yase. In answer Abraham talks about moving on with the strengths. Tiffany says he talks around in circles. Jeff starts asking and talking about the Shot in the Dark. Xander collects his extra vote at the booth. 

Jeff goes to tally the votes. Tiffany, Abraham, Abraham, Abraham, Abraham. That's four, enough. Abraham is the first out. He didn't see it coming at all but it's all his fault.

Ua goes in. Jeff congratulates them on the first win they had from the vote. JD again says he protected his vote. Hmm. Jeff brings up to Sara about the puzzle piece she accidentally left in the bag which cost them the challenge. Uh-oh ... whispering while JD is talking. Sara and Shan were the names out there. Whoa! Ricard just whispered to JD to vote Brad! They all bring their dice for Shot in the Dark. YES! JD was lying! He has the extra vote!

Jeff tallies the votes. Ricard, Sara, Brad, Sara, Sara. Sara is voted out.

   

BB23: Season Premiere Blog Party

 

A few things before we get started ...

--IF YOU HAVE NOT YET SIGNED UP FOR THE BLOG POOL, PLEASE GO TO THIS POST LINKED HERE TO JOIN IN ON THE FUN. IF YOU SIGNED UP ANYWHERE OTHER THAN THAT SIGN UP POST YOUR REQUEST WILL PROBABLY BE MISSED. SO, CHECK TO MAKE SURE YOUR REQUEST IS THERE! THE DEADLINE IS FRIDAY, BUT DO IT NOW!

--If you need refreshers on who is whom, you can find my meet the cast posts here and here.

--There are sixteen new hamsters and the commercials indicate that the prize money has increased. So ... are we up to a million now? I don't know, but it could be. We'll find out tonight.

--Tonight's show is a live move-in. That means they are meeting each other on live TV as we watch. It's a 90-minute show. From previously released information, they will be split into teams of four with team captains choosing their teams; only the team captains will compete for HOH if my understanding is correct. The HOH winner will get some kind of "offer they can't refuse" from Julie.

--The live feeds go live tonight after the West Coast live show ends. So, we're talking 12:30AM (or later) here on the East Coast. While I won't get a live feeds report up right then and there, I will be watching and compiling intel for an early morning (or late late late evening) report.

--Even though I have seen all the photos, it's still hard in the beginning of the season to get the names right. Please bear with me and forgive my name glitches and typos!

I'll be live blogging the show and constantly updating this post with the major happenings and some minor happenings, as well. Refresh the page to get the latest news! As always, the real party is in the comments! No face masks or even vaccinations needed for the party!

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Let the show begin! Julie, in a simple yet stylish red dress, welcomes us to the BB Beach Club. The narrator promises big risks, big rewards and the biggest prize ever. Julie tells us we'll find out how much the winner gets later.

Now we're into the hamsters finding their keys ... four men first. Travis, Derek F, Frenchie, Xavier. They are on stage with Julie. She promises great things. They go in and are directed to the backyard to compete in their first competition. They dawdle admiring their new digs.

The backyard has a casino set-up with The Kick-Off Comp. Whoever wins can immediately change the course of the game. The winner will be eligible to win HoH. They have to arrange travel posters to match a set travel poster. It's the Have Not Pool Poster. Five pieces of plexiglass to the puzzle. FRENCHIE WINS!

Next it's the first four women. Azah, Britini, Alyssa, Whitney (blog cheering please as one of us knows her). None them admit to being a gambler when Julie asks. She tells them that's important this season. They go in and head to the backyard. Slowly, just like the guys. Same comp, different puzzle. The four guys already in are watching from above. WHITNEY WINS!

Julie's back. Next group of four men. Kyland, Christian, Derek X, Brent. They are told to immediately head to the backyard. They don't dawdle AS MUCH. Same comp, different puzzle -- Blindside Beach. The previous eight hamsters above watching. CHRISTIAN WINS! Julie keeps promising the first twist of the season after the last group of four is in.

The final four women ... Sarah, Hannah, Claire, Tiffany. Tiffany is the only one really emphatic about being a risk-taker. They enter the house. They hug and ooh and ahh. They dawdle. They notice the No Risk No Reward decoration. Same comp, different puzzle -- Betray Showmance. CLAIRE WINS!

So, it's Frenchie, Whitney, Christian and Claire. Julie tells us that the hamsters don't know but they'll be playing in teams of four. They will be drafting the teams after commercial.

Those winners of the comps are now team captains. It's the BB Open Casino. They're all in the backyard. Julie tells them teams of four. The "losers" are on the balcony watching while the team captains are down on the lawn. They hit the button to start the slot machine. They get a bit of info about two hamsters and choose between them. Each team has two men/two women.

Names predetermined by BB -- Frenchie has the Jokers -- his choice is Hannah or Azah. He chooses Azah. Round two -- between Sarah Beth and Britini, chooses Britini. Travis or Derek F, Derek F.

Whitney has the Aces -- she chooses between Brent and Travis, chooses Brent. Round two -- between Derek X and Derek F, chooses Derek X. Hannah or Sarah Beth, Hannah.

Christian has the Kings -- he chooses between Alyssa and Tiffany, chooses Alyssa. second round -- Xavier or Derek F, chooses Xavier. Sarah Beth goes to the Kings as the last female.

Claire has the Queens -- chooses between Kyland and Xavier (who lies saying he's a bartender), chooses Kyland. Second round -- Sarah Beth or Tiffany, goes with Tiffany. Travis goes to the Queens as the last male.

The teams will be vying against each other for HOH and the team captain of the winning team will be HOH. 

Time for the HOH Comp. Captain is HOH, entire team is safe for the week. House of Cards. Each captain must build house of cards on platform while teammates hold the platform steady. Giant cards will fall down on them to mess them up. Last place team become Have Nots. 

FRENCHIE AND THE JOKERS WIN! The others keep playing to determine last team. The Queens, number two. Aces are in third. Kings and Christian are Have Nots.

Julie will announce the prize increase and offer Frenchie an offer which might be too good to refuse after commercial.

Julie addresses the hamsters, still in the backyard. Julie tells them the winner will get three-quarters of a million instead of a half-million. Another big reward could be handed out tonight. Offers Frenchie a double or nothing offer. Two weeks of safety, land the two oversize dice on the table. If he fails, he loses HOH. Claire would become the new HOH. Goes to commercial while Frenchie considers the risk to give his team two weeks of safety instead of one or keep the one for sure.

Frenchie decides NOT to do it. Julie has him do it for kicks. He just made it with like a second to spare. For fun, though.

Julie promises a new comp ahead -- the Wild Card Comp.

There is no show tomorrow night. Sunday is the next episode. 

An added plus for the diversity of this season -- I CAN TELL THE HAMSTERS APART AND I'M EVEN BETTER WITH THEIR NAMES! WOOT!

.

BB22 All-Stars Season Premiere Blog Party

With the pandemic crippling much of the television and film industries, things looked a bit dismal for Big Brother fans and our favorite summer voyeuristic pastime. But here we are, ready to not only start a new season of hamster-watching, but the second "all stars" version in 20 years. The argument might be made that some of the cast are just returning players, not "all stars" per se. So what ... we have a season ahead of us when things had been looking doubtful. 

The cast reveal and move-in will be live during tonight's two-hour show. Although some of the cast have been confirmed and others seem all but confirmed, I will post them as the show airs here on the East Coast. A separate post with our blog pool picks will be posted before the next episode airs on Sunday. I will update this blog post throughout the show with the major events. Please refresh the page to get the latest news! As always, the real party is in the comments area -- feel free to join in on the fun!

When commenting, please be respectful of others. If you don't care for a hamster, that's fine and dandy. But don't attack the fans of said hamster! No hate speech either! Please keep your comments at a PG-13 language level even if the hamsters may tend to potty-mouth. I have this blog set with Google as family friendly and want to keep it that way! Also, please do not come up with whacko nicknames for the hamsters -- we need to know about whom you're talking! If you see someone coming in and trolling, rest assured their comments will be deleted. I know people try to help control the trolls and I appreciate it. However, then I have to remove the comments made to the troll as they no longer make sense. I try to check in on comments during all the commercial breaks.

::: deep breath ::: Okay, let's get this show AWN!

16 will be returning. The FOH is really blue. Same announcer, same Julie.

The show is completely live (as it actually was in BBOTT) with the cast entering the house on camera. Who will be moving back? Nicole Franzel is introduced first. We get a bit of what she's been doing and what she's done in the game. Next we get Dani Donato-Briones and she also catches us up with her life. Da'vonne's intro is next up. And then (sigh) Christmas Abbott has her intro clip. She doesn't mention her domestic violence arrests.

The four are standing on the stage socially distanced from Julie. Julie talks of the testing, etc. due to the virus. They have masks on and Julie is 12 feet away. Julie chats with each one before they go into the BB "bubble." The second they enter the house they're in competition. Race into house where a question is in the backyard, race back in and enter answers, only the first two will get a chance to play the HoH comp. They are allotted four minutes.

They found the backyard and have to do a table/ball thing to get the question. Christmas runs back in first. Only she will be able to compete in the HoH comp. All four will be hidden away in the house for the arrival of the next four hamsters.

Onto the next four. Tyler comes up first with his intro clip. Then it's IAN! (I adore him) Kevin Campbell from BB11 is next up. Enzo, the Meow Meow from Bayonne NJ is up next. He takes credit for starting the Brigade alliance. Julie chats with them a bit. They were told of the rules for the comp ahead of time and it's a more abbreviated segment than with the first four. Ian finishes first. Then Kevin finishes. They will both compete in the HOH comp.

Julie teases us that a new twist could keep two people safe on eviction night.

The next group of four women. Janelle is up with her clip first. Then we get Bayleigh's intro. Nicole Anthony is introduced in clips next despite someone posting all kinds of stuff on Twitter to show she isn't in the house. Keesha Smith is next with the intro clips. As with the two previous groups, they chat on stage with Julie before heading into the house with the comp. Nicole gets it first. 

So far competing in the HOH comp will be Christmas, Ian, Kevin and Nicole A. We have the last group of four men to go. 

The last group -- Kaysar is up first with his clip! Next Cody Califiore (sp?) from BB16, the one who gave his game to Derrick. Memphis from BB10 next. Last we get David Alexander from BB21 -- the first out that season and never really got the chance to play. Then the chat time before they go in. Memphis, then Cody finish.

All hamsters are brought together in the living room four by four. I noticed that Bayleigh did hug Tyler. Janelle and Kaysar were thrilled. 

All must head to the backyard.

HOH Comp time. BB City. Six compete. Star Stepping. Race across star-studded field to lock in their time. Stars are solid and not solid. Fall, must go back. Three minutes and then you're eliminated. If eliminated, pick up an envelope -- some are good, some not so good. One at a time. The stars are on raised platforms, some with springs which make them fall. Memphis goes first. 1 minute 12 seconds. Cody next. 22.06 seconds. Memphis takes an envelope. Christmas up next. Doesn't beat Cody's time. Envelope.

After commercial, we're back. Kevin is up. Fell right when he couldn't beat Cody's time. Envelope. Nicole next -- timed out, envelope. Ian next -- timed out, envelope.

CODY is the first HOH.

Julie talks to Cody in the DR. He's most surprised to see Kaysar. We find out they will still have Have Nots.

The envelopes have a cash prize or punishment. Ian - Have Not. Christmas - 5000 cash. Memphis, Kevin, Ian and Nicole are Have Nots.  

They have to go through a hall and then crawl into the room. Oops! It's locked, first technical issue of the show.

Sunday will be nominations. The Safety Suite is the new twist -- inside it is something they all will want. 

Twist -- New rooms will be revealed each week. Each gets a VIP pass (first) to the Safety Suite. She leaves them (and us) with that info. Wait, she does let us know that two might be safe from the Safety Suite.

The live feeds start tonight after the West Coast airing of the premiere. I will have a report up in the morning as that means 2:00am here.

Survivor 40: Winners at War Season Premiere Blog Party

Okay, we have 20 previous first place winners playing this season. They know how to outwit, outplay and outlast. They've done it before. While I'm eager to see them compete against each other, before seeing how things are going to go down, I want to whine about twists. Isn't it enough to have this bunch competing against each other?

Noooo ... they're dragging in Island of Extinction, some odd fire token twist and, if memory serves from something I read, although there are two tribes, it's one camp. I might be wrong about the last. I hope so! 

As the show airs, I'll do my best to update this entry during the two-hour premiere as it airs here on the East Coast. Refresh the page to get the latest news. As always, the real party is in the comments area feel free to join in on the fun!

A blog pool message from the beloved Lifeguard Laurie -- Nobody goes home tonight. They go to a team with only one person.
Nobody has a bad pick this time!!

And, without further ado, here's the blog pool:

DAKAL (Red tribe)
Amber Mariano - Delee, Glenn Allen
Kim Spradlin-Wolfe - Dr_Celine
Nick Wilson - Barbara BW, Judi Sweeney
Sandra Diaz-Twine - tbe
Sarah Lacina - SueGee, Cheryl in NC
Sophie Clarke - ChicMc
Tony Vlachos - Karen in CA, Donna in Alabama
Tyson Apostol -Janice
Wendell Holland - Nickelpeed, PDX Granny
Yul Kwon - Ed in Ohio

SELE (Blue tribe)
Adam Klein - Lifeguard Laurie, Petals
Ben Driebergen - Rbennie, Shannon
Danni Boatwright - Jennasmom
Denise Stapley - Becky, Jennifer
Ethan Zohn - Rochelle, Jackie
Jeremy Collins - Sharon N
Michele Fitzgerald -Terry is a Texan
Natalie Anderson - Nana in the NW
Parvati Shallow - Donna in FL
Rob Mariano - Auntie Leigh

Survivor fans ready?

Of course, starting off we're getting snippets from all the castaways.. They're cruising in to meet Jeff. The men arrive first, then the women. Jeff is making it sound like it's going to be men against women. Now we're getting snippets of each talking to Jeff.

They get an actual champagne toast to celebrate -- "A drink before war is always a good idea." Into the tribe reveal. (You can see the tribes in the pool listing above.)

Jeff tells them they each start with a fire token. If they're voted out they need to will their tokens to someone and then they're sent to Extinction Island. He gets cheers when he announces the prize is two million dollars. (Like they didn't know.)

They are already in a challenge. It's Reward (flint) and Immunity. Racing out in teams of two through water retrieving a ring and having to put hand on pole. The teams race and wrassle for control of the ring.

DAKAL wins Immunity!

Jeff tells Seles that Tribal Council will be the next night, not this night.

The fire tokens can be used as a bit of currency for food and more.

Uh-oh -- Denise and Adam put targets on their backs by wandering off together.

Tony plans on a more mellow approach and gaining trust. Amber feels she needs to find an idol. Rob and Parvati want to work together? Oh my. Ben spills the beans to Rob that Danni was throwing his name out. Rob goes to Danni and she does confirm it. Now will there be an Old School Alliance? Rob, Parvati, Ethan, Danni?

Ben warned Adam that his walk with Denise looked bad and now his name is out there. Adam thinks that Natalie and Jeremy should be split up because they're so close. So now it might be Adam, Denise, Jeremy or Natalie voted out. Rob and Parvati are shocked that they're not looking like the latest targets.

Tribal Council time is here! Jeff asks Ethan about the culture shock. Ethan says his season was glacier speed. Denise tells Jeff that she and Adam got lost looking for water and it looked bad. There were whispers with subtitles but I didn't catch them. Wah. Time to vote.

The tally after commercial.

Denise, Adam, Denise, Natalie, Natalie, Natalie, Natalie. Natalie

Like her sister, Nadiya, now Natalie is voted out first. She heads to Extinction Island. I'm sure she'll leave her fire token to Jeremy. Once there she reads that she can earn fire tokens to help her get back into the game. She also reads that she can quit and go home.

Sandra is so ticked that Rob lied to her saying he would never come back. She's willing to take revenge on Amber because Rob is on the other tribe.

Back on Seles it looks like the New Schoolers are going to challenge the Old Schoolers. And, yes, Natalie did leave Jeremy her fire token. 

On Extinction Natalike reads a list of what can be bought with tokens from idols to advantages. She finds a bottle with gives her directions to start looking for a token. She finds an immunity idol, no value on beach, but can trade for a token from someone coming to Extinction. If the idol does make it back into the game, it's good for three tribals.

Second immunity challenge time. Paddle out, retrieve bag of number tiles, back over obstacles, combination lock to retrieve rings to throw on paddles. Three wins. 

SELE wins immunity!

Yul thinks people should be civilized. Amber, Nick, Sandra, Tyson are some of the names mentioned. Wait, throw Tony in there, too. Whoa ... Sandra finds the Extinction idol and buys it with her fire token! Tony is trying to orchestrate a Tyson ouster. Yul tells Tyson that Amber or Kim are possibilities. It dawns on Tyson that his poker playing with buddies Rob and Amber might put a target on his own back. Kim was also part of that poker bunch. Uh-oh!

To the second Tribal Council of the night. The Jeff questions are similar to the last one -- asking about how fast the game is moving compared to more recent seasons. The Poker Player Alliance is brought up. 

Time to vote ... we only have seven minutes of show left. Hmm.

The tally ... Sandra does not play the idol.

Nick, Kim, Kim, Kim, Amber, Amber, Amber, Amber, Amber.

Amber is gonzo. 

Survivor 39: Island of the Idols Season Premiere Blog Party

It's here! After a rather troubling season of Big Brother, this should be a relief! The show seeks out those who WANT to be on it, not merely showmance types 
Remember -- although Sandra and Rob are there, they are mentoring, not competing.

Lifeguard Laurie has so kindly made the random matches for the blog pool once again. YAY! Remember -- nobody in the pool goes home tonight!
Lairo
Aaron Meredith - Auntie Leigh
Chelsea Walker  - Big winner Brian, Margo
Dean Kowalski  - CherryPie, Merrilee
Elaine Stott  - Cheryl in NC
Elizabeth Beise   - CherylNY, monty 924
Karishma Patel  - Ed in Ohio, SueGee
Missy Byrd   - Janice, TS14Fan
Ronnie Bardah   - jennifer
Tom Laidlaw   - Judi Sweeney, Laurie
Vince Moua   - Kelsey NY, MikesGirl

Vokai
Dan Spilo   - Bizaro22, marthalight
Jack Nichting   - David
Jamal Shipman   - Donna in Alabama, Petals
Janet Carbin   - Donna NY, Sharon C
Jason Linden   - Dr_Celine, Nickelpeed
Kellee Kim   - Glenn Allen
Lauren Beck   - Jackie, Sharon N
Molly Byman   - Jenna G, tbc
Noura Salman   - Jennasmom

Tommy Sheehan  - Karen in CA, Terry is a Texan

My blogging coverage might be a bit spotty tonight since A. I don't know who is whom yet and 2. I'm still having tendonitis issues with my right wrist making typing a bit hard. Please bear with me. It is improving!

As always, the real party is in the comments area -- please feel free to join in on the fun!

Survivor School is now in session!
Jeff does not escort the new castaways to the island, instead he's in a helicopter overhead. Without Jeff, they set about setting up their shelters and getting to know one another after finding camp flags and buffs.

Elaine, Tom and Vince already bonded … and their fellow castaways noticed it. In the other camp it's noticed that Jason has already gone off alone looking for idols.

So many of them already have their eyes on Jason. 

On Vokai, Tommy is schmoozing. But Noura gives Jason a heads up. On Lairo, they're already thinking of a girls alliance.

On Vokai, it turns out that Dan isn't respecting personal space, especially with the women -- he's touchy-feely. Janet warns him about it nicely but thinks it might hurt him in the game. On Lairo, Elaine and Ronnie already mistrust each other.

They finally meet Jeff and his dimples. It's the first immunity challenge. Reward is in the form of flint for fire. Climb a net, down a slide, on mat, grappling hooks move logs, climb to top of a hard incline, to puzzles -- building a village one hut at a time in order. This is a hard one!

VOKAI wins Immunity and Reward!

Jeff tells Lairo that one person will go to Island of the Idol and Elizabeth's name is drawn out of a bag. Jeff tells them she will return by Tribal time.

She lands on the island, sees giant busts of Rob and Sandra, then Rob and Sandra come to meet her. They will mentor her and then test her on what she's learned. Rob teaches her how to make fire. Sandra also works with her on fire.

Now if she takes a challenge to make fire against Rob, she could win an idol good for the next two tribal councils or lose a vote.

Back at camp, Ronnie seems to be targeted as does Elaine's. Some are not on the target Elaine bend, though. 

Elizabeth goes for the challenge and … loses. She loses her vote, but now knows how to make fire and to go with her gut. She gets to pick the name from the other tribe to go to Idols next.

Back at camp Elaine is trying to make deals to stay. Now it looks like Vince is in trouble. Elizabeth is back and lies, doesn't tell them anything about Rob or Sandra or fire making. She makes up a story about breaking urns and not winning anything.

They all want her nonexistent vote, she doesn't tell them she lost her vote.

Tribal Council time! 
Sandra and Rob are spying on them.
Elaine tries to defend herself knowing she's the main target.

The tally --
Vince, Ronnie, Vince, Ronnie, Ronnie, Ronnie, Ronnie

Bye-bye Ronnie ...

BB21: Season Premiere Part Two Blog Party

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It sounds like it's going to be a pretty jammed with action hour for us tonight. We'll have the Camp Director banished hamsters comp and, since this is a taped show followed by the two-hour season finale of The Amazing Race, it looks like we'll have an edited or really shortly endured endurance HoH comp. Either that or they'll leave things hanging to air on the next show. If that's the case, although rumor are out and about, we'll know the HoH for sure after the live feeds come on at midnight ET.

Just a TAR note -- the blog party post for that show is waiting in the wings and will appear as BB ends tonight. Come cheer on hamsters Victor and Nicole!

BB21 blog pool match-ups are on THIS HERE LINKED POST in case you missed it.

BB21 schedule is on THIS POST. And, last but not least, what to expect from this blog is on THIS POST.

I'll be live blogging and constantly updating this post as the show airs here on the East Coast. Refresh this page to get the latest update! As always. the rea; party is in the comments area. Please stop in and visit us! Bring adult beverages and snacks.

Previously on and blah-blah-blah …

Julie has on a summery dress. We get clips of begging and pleading. Jessica is worried about being banished. Jackson, not happy that he has to make the decision to banish four and cost one his/her game, listens to each of them. Kemi doesn't think she herself needs to go talk to him. Bella falls into favor with Jack and Jackson because she voted for him. Jack mentions that David probably wouldn't hold it against Jackson and is sure to come back.

Jackson talks to David and lets him know he wants to put him as a pawn in the comp against people he's sure to beat. David tells him he'd rather not.

Julie has them gather in the living room. A camp mascot helps the banished be removed. Jackson goes away from the rest and makes his first selection. The mascot is a creepy squirrel. The squirrel puts a wrap over Cliff's head and leads him out. Second banished is Kemi. Then Jessica. Then David.

The four are in the dark in the wilderness. First three back to Camp BB stay in the game. Other camps are put there as decoys. The decoy camps are all booby-trapped. Gooey honey, balls chucked at them, etc. 

CLIFF makes it back first!

Kemi experiences scary clowns, but makes in back second to Camp BB 

Jessica and David are struggling but Jessica makes it back first.

DAVID is last and out of the game. Julie interrupts his search and tells him he's out of the Big Brother house … for now. Hmm.

Christie wants to make sure that Tommy is okay with her. They both want to keep things under the radar about knowing each other.

Jack says they're calling Jackson "Mickey" as it's his last name -- Michie I believe. They're trying to get a six person alliance together. Holly, Christie, Bella, Nick, Jack and Jackson … er, Mickey.

Julie tells us an epic battle of endurance BEGUNS next. Now, this show was taped and that comp is NOT live. So, I won't be covering it. I will confirm the winner once the live feeds verify it later tonight.

Jackson has one last duty to perform. He won't be competing. Played in pairs. Climb onto a log, last person on log is HoH. Jackson chooses who gets paired with whom. The logs are vertical and swaying a bit. 

Whoa! Jessica is out first! 

They get sprayed with various colors of paint (or paint-like substance). 

Jack down, Kathryn, Nick down. More stuff coming at them and the logs are spinning a bit. Ovi out -- he threw it. Sam down. Kemi down. Cliff down. Bella down. Maybe this will end with the show end. Nicole down. 

Christie wants to win for her new alliance. Analyse is down, then Holly. It's only Tommy and Christie still in it. She tells us he would be safe from a DR bit. Tommy down.

CHRISTIE IS THE FIRST HOH!

I was definitely right about Sam being Most Likely to Shout In the DR, 

A new power will be revealed next week. And, Julie tells us David might be back. The live eviction next week is on Wednesday night.