FAVORITE REALITY SHOW #1...

THE CONCEPT:

A group of people move into a house for three months. They will have no contact with the outside world (no TV, no radio, no newspaper, no phone), but every move they make is caught by the hundreds of microphones and cameras hidden around the house. They compete and vote each other out each week until one person is awarded the prize of $500,000.

Feeds from the house are broadcast live 24/7 on the internet and nightly on Showtime2. And the hour-long "regular" show airs 3 days/week, each week containing the HOH competition, nominations, veto competition, veto ceremony, food compeition, and eviction.

BB VOCAB:

HOH - Head of Household - each week, there is a HOH competition and the winner gets their own room and bathroom for the week - as well as the privilege of nominating 2 houseguests for eviction.

POV - Power of Veto - After nominations, a competition is held that gives one player the opportunity to veto one of the HOH's nominations. If a nominee is vetoed, the HOH must pick a replacement nominee.

Showmance - A romance that blooms in the house while taping the show.

FAVORITE SEASON:

(aside from All-Stars, of course)

Season 6

The house was divided down the middle - The Sovereign 6 (yay!) vs. The Friendship (boo!). And this nasty rivalry made for a lot of great moments. Every Head of Household competition and Veto competition was SO important. It was a truly exciting season!

TOP 10 FAVORITE PLAYERS MINI-COUNTDOWN:

10. Ryan (season 9) He got robbed, definitely should have won BB9. He won lots of competitions, made some great game moves, and wasn't afraid to call people out.

9. Drew (season 5) He's kind of boring, but he played a great game. He won lots of competitions and actually remained a nice guy from beginning to end - even when he evicted his "showmance" Diane to take his "best friend" to the finals.

8. Jack (season 4) He was a former FBI agent - what a great background! He did well, but I wish he would've made it further. It was nice to get his point of view - being older, more mature, and an FBI agent!

7. Nakomis (season 5 and All-Stars) Nakomis was a great strategist in BB5. I was actually rooting against her alliance, but I did appreciate her gameplay. Too bad she didn't get a chance to do something great during All-Stars.

6.Danielle (season 3 and All-Stars) Danielle is a hardcore gamer. She doesn't win tons of competitions - that's not really her game. She's all about observing and making awesome alliances.

5. Hardy (season 2) Hardy was my favorite of BB2 at the time. He won almost every HOH competition he was eligible for. Had POV existed then, he probably would've made it to the finals.

4. Dick (season 8) Probably the biggest personality EVER in BB history. His strategy of yelling at people to shake them up before a competition was brilliant. Because it worked beautifully. No one else will ever be able to pull that off quite like him. He didn't do too badly in competitions, either.

3. Daniele (season 8) Daniele was a fighter. She kicked butt at competitions. While she might have whined a lot, she pulled herself together and did what needed to be done to stay in the game. I was definitely rooting for her (and Dick) the whole season.

2. Will (season 2 and All-Stars) He's been called the best player in BB history. Smart, funny, charismatic, and manipulative - all the ingredients for success in the BB house. He threw every competition, told everyone he was lying to their faces, and still won BB2 and made final 4 of All-Stars.

1. Janelle (season 6 and All-Stars) In my opinion, the best competitor in BB history. She was a constant target in both seasons and had to fight to win every HOH and veto she could. It was pretty impressive. Despite having everyone against her, she made it to 3rd place both times.

FAVORITE MOMENTS:

Chess Veto (season 6)

So much background for this one...too much to go into detail. As I mentioned, the house was divided in S6. This competition was what started it all. It's when the Sov 6 united as an alliance and made a major move in shaking up the game. I remember watching the entire thing play out on the live feeds and it was SO great. The competition itself was great, but what happens after the competition is the best part - the conversation between Kaysar and Maggie...

"Busto" (season 6)

As I have mentioned, season 6 was totally divided between 2 alliances. 'The Friendship' was like a cult. It was lame...and weird. 'The Sov 6' was great - they were funny, smart, competitive, and outspoken. So, when Friendship alliance member April crossed the Sov 6, "Hurricane Howie" emerged and really let April have it. If you didn't watch the season are aren't familiar with the extreme conditions of being secluded in the BB house, this video might seem very mean. You might even have pity for April. But you shouldn't. As childish as it may be, it's Big Brother. Things are different there. And Howie was justified in going off on April.

The Donatos vs. Jen (season 8)

Jen was an idiot. She was shallow, petty, self-absorbed, and a bit dim. When housemate Nick started hanging out with Daniele instead of falling all over her, Jen got jealous and started bad-mouthing Daniele to other houseguests. This infuriated Daniele's dad (whom she hadn't spoken to in 2 years but was placed in the BB house with in an unexpected twist) - and a great BB moment ensued. As bad as it may be, I LOVED Dick for doing this...

Janelle's First HOH Win (season 6)

Janelle was part of the Sov 6 alliance along with Kaysar, Howie, Rachel, James (kind of), and Sarah. After Kaysar was evicted and then brought back by America's Vote, he ended up making it to the end of an all night HOH competition. He could have easily won, but instead made a deal with Friendship alliance member Jennifer, saying he would let her win if she promised not to nominate him for eviction. She promised - swore on her life in fact - but then nominated him anyway. He was voted out, giving The Friendship an advantage numbers-wise in the house. So, the next HOH competition was CRUCIAL to the Sov 6...Watch big baby Jennifer hand over the HOH key to Janelle...

And then Janelle must immediately make nominations, which is great. I love her delivery when naming the nominees. But the best part happens in the last 20 seconds. On live TV...

Will/Boogie Diary Room Phone Calls (season 7)

This was during Big Brother All-Stars. Will and Boogie were in an alliance back in season 2, so naturally they teamed up again during All-Stars. And, in their eyes, they were running the house...

My BB parody (season 8)