BB23: No Cast Information Release Today

 ... now they are saying tomorrow. CBS put up a tweet saying so. 

So it must be true.

Remember last season ...

BB23: Some More Information ...

 

Oh, we're getting close now. A week from tomorrow is the live Big Brother 23 season premiere! The cast reveal is set for tomorrow. Yes, of course I will be posting on that! Unfortunately (at least, in my opinion), Allison Grodner is still the executive producer. While CBS is pretty much demanding diversity in the form of around 50% people of color on reality shows, there is nothing said about age diversity -- something this show is woefully lacking. With her at the helm, I expect more hamsters will look great in bikinis than not.

I found an interesting interview with Grodner at this link. Here are some tidbits gleaned from it:

• The theme for the season is actually BB Beach Club. It's to be set up like a Vegas boutique hotel. Yeah, you know all those beaches in Vegas, right?
• Apparently gambling of some sort or other will be a thing this season. Hmm. That's not really my favorite thing.
• No, absolutely none, returning players! She said a few superfans, some fans and some who don't really know the show at all.
• In the live 90-minute season premiere, the hamsters will be split into teams, vying for team captain AND there will be an HoH comp.
• The team captains supposedly get a "snapshot" of the hamsters and decide who they want on their team. I'm not sure if they have to split it male/female, but I hope so. We don't need a pure alpha-male team of four!
• Yes, I said teams. There will be four teams of four (16 hamsters this season). At least that should reduce house votes! Grodner also points out that it will cut down the large alliances ruling the game. True dat.
• An excerpt from Allison Grodner in the linked article: This season, our theme is full of risk-versus-reward dilemmas. We're dialing up the risk, hoping and anticipating the houseguests are faced with decisions they've never really had to make in the Big Brother house before.  -- Okaaayy ...
• Julie Chen-Moonves will be making a "double or nothing offer" that cannot be refused (but surely will be by most) at the end of the live episode. I'm thinking it might be a bribe to quit. We don't expect an eviction the first night.
• Hmm ...

Long Time, No Blog -- BB23 Starts Soon!

 

So ... how have you been?

Before we get really into things BB23 -- I received notification that Feedburner will be eliminating email notifications to anyone subscribed in July. Oh noes! Offhand I don't really know of another service. I will have to research that. What I can suggest is using my social media notifications on either Facebook or Twitter. I always link my posts to those platforms as soon as they're published. Here's the info -- My Twitter and my Facebook Big Brother Page. (Click on the links.) You can always sign up for my personal FB page but I only post show night links there, not the live feeds and other links.

What's the latest news about the show?!?!

Unfortunately, the latest news is that there isn't much news. Hmm ... let's see ...

• Julie Chen-Moonves will be hosting as she has done every season.
• No house images have been released yet.
• CBS has new criteria for diversity on their reality shows. But I bet we still won't see a lot of diversity in ages! (Grr.)
• According to various sources, the casting has been finished and the new hamsters and alternates have started their pre-season sequesters which include a two-week quarantine due to Covid precautions and a third week of regular sequester. They will once again be tested for Covid prior to entering the house.
• The season premiere is set for Wednesday, July 7 at 8pm ET/PT and will be 90 minutes.
• The regular weekly shows are to be an hour and are scheduled for: Sunday, Wednesday, Thursdays all at 8pm ET/PT, followed by Love Island (gag).
• CBS All Access has changed to Paramount Plus. Same feeds venue, different name.
• RUMORS: All new cast, theme for the show and the house is BB Rebirth or New Beginnings. No one goes home the first night and an HOH will occur in the premier. These rumors I can't really verify other than they're coming from a fairly often reliable spoilers source.

More news as I get the news ...

TAR32: Season Finale Blog Pool and Party

 

Welp, here we are at the season finale. That went by quickly, didn't it? I a bit surprised that it's only an hour show tonight. But, if memory serves, they had more than the final three going into the longer finales. It's not like Survivor or Big Brother with a reunion show following the finale. There's no jury, no voting ... just whatever team makes it to the last welcome mat wins it all. 

I have not been keen on the alliance bit this season, not at all. To me, it ended up with the teams not in the alliance akin to the child chosen last in a schoolyard game pick. I understand teams occasionally helping out others or not. But, to me, the alliance dominated the game and knocked out other teams. I'm old school. I think every team needs to race on their own merits. Oh, well.

Lifeguard SueGee has updated the blog pool for the last time --

The Final Three  

Hung / Chee -- Bizaro22. Glenn Allen. chrob61 

Riley / Maddison -- Dr_Celine, PDX Granny, Marthalight 

Will / James -- Petals, CherylNY, Nickelpeed 

 Philiminated: 

Nathan / Cody (everyone reassigned back into pool) 

Kellie / LaVonne -- David, ChicMc, Sharon N 

Jerry / Frank -- Donna NY, Monty924, Andi, Willie J 

Michelle / Victoria -- Mario L, Jackie, SueGee 

Alana / Leo -- Jennasmom, Sharon C, Donna in FL 

Kaylynn / Haley -- Jennifer, Indiana Jane, Ed in Ohio 

Aparna / Eswar -- Cheryl in NC, Kelsey NY, Skyriverblue 

Gary / DeAngelo -- JLaf, CherryPie, Judy Sweeney     

I will be updating this entry with the major happenings as they air here on the East Coast. 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 discussion! May the best team win!

We're getting a brief recap of the season. Yes, the alliance of three made it to the final leg together. We know that.

Teams are flying to New Orleans. Party on Bourbon Street, so they're heading to the French Quarter. They have more luxury on their flight than I've ever seen!

They're heading to Louis Armstrong Park. All teams flew there together. 

Route info cards gotten. They have to collect 50 red and 50 gold necklaces thrown on Bourbon Street to get their next clue. The necklaces have to match the ones the Grand Marshall is wearing. The Beard Bros are lost.

James and Will finish the beads first.

Who will be left holding the baby? Next up they have to find the baby in the cake for their next clue. That's a tradition in which a small (not real!) baby is baked in a large King Cake. This will be a needle in a haystack kind of Roadblock.

James/Will found the baby first and then had to sit and eat a ton (or six) of gooey pastry beignets.

They head to the New Orleans Convention Center next. Will/James remain in the lead. 

Roadblock. Climb under a bridge, then onto a beam, then jump out about 200 feet over the Mississippi River to grab a clue. Crescent City Convention Bridge.

Beard Brothers still in last.

Both team members must rappel back down from the bridge. Then they have to roll a ten foot ball back through town.

James/Will at the ball. Hung/Chee headed to the ball. Maddison/Riley just finished finding the baby.

Next they have to search a warehouse for puzzle pieces and make a globe out of their ball.

James/Will finish the globe and they're the first team heading to the finish line at the New Orleans Superdome.

JAMES/WILL WIN THE AMAZING RACE! And we have a down on one knee marriage proposal.

Hung and Chee come in second place.

We know who's on third.

And, there they are -- Riley and Maddison.

This season put the show over 1,000,000 miles raced.

TAR32: December 9 Episode Blog Party

 

Welcome, all! I hope you're well. My apologies for the health issue last week. I just couldn't blog the show while seeing double (and weird) from eye dilation!

And, tonight might be a bit weird. I saw a promo for it and it's not a normal leg with a Roadblock and a Detour. It's something about sprinting around a city. Hmm. I will do my best to update this entry with the happenings as they air here on the East Coast.

Lifeguard SueGee has updated the blog pool and the latest standings are at this here link.

The real party is in the comments area ... I hope to see you there!

Phil tells us tonight the final four will become the final three.

The teams have to fly to Manilla, the Philippines. I did not know that Manilla is the texting capital of the world. Hmm ... they have to take marked taxis to meet Phil. Weird, yep. They're all on the same flight.

Phil greets them in downtown Manilla. First time ever, a city sprint. Racing through Manilla (most densely populated city center). Phil advises them they shouldn't help out another team. They get their first clue from a Cartiki (sp?). 

They have a riddle to solve the clue. They have to find a personality-laden traffic control guy and grab the next clue from him. Off to the Mall of Asia next! Neither Will/James nor Hung/Chee were able to grab their clues from the traffic cop on the first try.

Heh. At the mall the teams have to run a footrace in high heels! Riley/Maddison were there first. Gary/DeAngelo next.

The next clue leads them to the Chinatown area of the city. Then they have to search for a clue in a costumed lion's mouth. Uh-oh ... Hung and Chee are lost.

Next they have to go to a post office, find a horse and carriage, find and mix ingredients to feed. Gary and DeAngelo have a slight lead over Will and James.

Will/James have taken the lead. They have to go to Mayhan (sp) Gardens for the next clue. It's listening to a band play a medley of songs they've heard on the race and identify four of them. They have to line up the maps of the country where they heard the song in chronological order as in the race.

Hung and Chee finally caught up and are now trying the task along with the other teams. The three teams work together shunning Gary and DeAngelo. So, they decide to take the penalty and give up.

The teams head to the Pit Stop where they started.

Pit Stop order --

1. Riley/Maddison

2. James/Will

3. Hung/Chee

Phil tells them they're going to New Orleans next.

DeAngelo and Gary were Philiminated. DeAngelo is bitter about it. Hmm.

Next week is the season finale.