Season 20 of Big Brother got off to a quick start, but what's with what we didn't see?
Big Brother has returned and this 20th season has some definite drama in store. There is a big however though, exactly how much are they going to leave to the viewer's imaginations?
Are we on the Enterprise? How much teleporting is okay for a reality TV show?
There is always stuff that goes on behind the scenes in reality TV, but it is made clear in the final credits that nothing affects the outcome of the game. Sometimes their outfits are changed, they are suddenly clean, challenges can be edited for length for better TV...These kinds of changes make sense.
But, in the premiere episode of this season of Big Brother, the rules seemed to have changed and maybe not for the better.
This season began with a certain familiarity. The contestants magically receive Big Brother Houseguest keys and odd locations, in front of cameras. Yes, that happens every day, but it is part of the charm of the show.
We can suspend disbelief. We get short introductions on the people we are about to spend the next 99 days with.
Their introductions try to explain who they are rather than who they will appear to be in the game. This dichotomy typically fools no one. Some of these people kinda suck. Some are just young and shallow, which is part of the charm of the show and others do not hide that they are devious and will do anything to win. That can make for a great player.
Groups of eight are assembled outside at and four move into the house at a time, until finally, all sixteen Houseguests are inside.
That written, I am already a not-so-quiet fan of a few players, each for different reasons, but someone I really like so far is Sam, the seemingly sweet-natured welder.
However, I already dislike two people immensely only two hours in. I won't throw any personal shade this early in the game.
So, the cast comes on and introduce themselves, sometimes using "revised historical" narratives of their lives. It is a game after all, so why not? At least at first glance, the group seems to more or less like each other.
Steve, the former undercover cop may have outed his true vocation a bit because he is obviously checking out people for body language.
So, during the initial bonding, there was a bit of possible sexual harassment.
Scottie, the Houseguest who quickly admitted to never having been kissed, led some of the girls into a chase to remedy him of his "affliction."
While it seems like that was done in good fun and nothing happened, people would have been outraged if the genders were switched during that moment. #MeToo and #TimesUp goes both ways.
In fact, it looks like Julie Chen chimed in at the right moment to possibly stop a potentially bad situation from happening.
The teams are to go onto two platforms with four men and four women on each platform. Then with a bit of special effects magic, half of the contestants go to an underground lair where they need to find seven envelopes. As there are eight players, this isn't good for one. The person without an envelope is said to have a serious disadvantage.
Typically, people do not want to show all of their skills on day one, but no one wants to come in last.
Then the winner of the first eight is announced. And then the other eight on the platform are teleported to another game where they have to correctly spell the word "houseguest."
SPOILERS NOW, SO TURN AWAY IF YOU DO NOT WANT FURTHER DETAILS...
And through the magic of television, only one was left on this one to. Angela and Swaggy C. were the last two Houseguests standing.
After an air surfing competition that must have been hard on the lower bodies of these athletic people, Swaggy C. was triumphant. He was not humble about it, but he may have made promises that he didn't know he couldn't keep.
The condition of his winning this competition is that he had to nominate two full groups who moved into the house for eviction. So, he will be likely keeping himself safe and save his own team that also includes Rockstar, Rachel and Brett.
But wait, who will he choose for the second group?
The devastating disadvantages for Kaycee and Sam were revealed. Kaycee had to wear a rainbow unitard called the "Pinwheel of Doom" that she has to wear until the first eviction. The condition is that when her wheel spins, she is forced to stay in the room she is in until the spinning is complete that could prove devastating for her social game.
Sam was forced to spend time playing as a robot until the first eviction. When she hears the words "robot offline," she is to go into the Diary Room and she can return to the game as a human, but when the words "robot online" are spoken, she can only return as a robot. That could wreak some havoc on subtle gameplay.
I don't know how much that will impact their gameplay, but do want to know where Sam is forced to hang while her robot is roaming the house.
When someone speaks about themselves in the third person, I'm not sure how well that does for their overall game, however, Swaggy C. seems to have wanted to do the right thing by saving the group of the last competitor standing: Angela, but he didn't.
He took the rest of the team that arrived with him including Scottie, Haleigh, Kaycee and Faysal.
Interesting turn of events...
Big Brother is back. What will happen tomorrow?