Angela Loses the Blockbuster — and Dee’s Allies Vote Her Off Instead

The three-headed beast of “Big Brother 28” has, at least partially, been slain. This season’s trio of reality TV icons — Angela, Dee, and Devens — had no choice but to split up this week after Barrett’s nominations, and Yash’s subsequent veto win, resulted in all three icons sitting on the block on Eviction Night. Heading into Thursday’s live broadcast, it seemed that the best case scenario would be for Angela to win the Blockbuster, thus ensuring that “Survivor” buddies Dee and Devens would be separated. And hey, Angela’s track record with the Blockbuster this season has been good!

But even if she lost the Blockbuster and remained up for eviction, surely her fellow houseguests would still opt to evict whichever “Survivor” alum was sitting next to her, right? Because Dee and Devens are obviously bigger threats than Angela, right?

Well, maybe not.

The Campaign Against Angela

In the wake of the veto meeting, Dee got to work campaigning for Melody’s, Yash’s, and Taylor’s votes — and she may have actually convinced them that she ought to stay over Angela. Dee told all three of those players, in no uncertain terms, that she plans to target only Barrett and Drew if she stays in the house (“I am down to go to war,” she told Yash), plus she wants to break up the Devens/Drew/Barrett boys’ club that has emerged in recent weeks.

Melody seemed intrigued by the idea of Drew and Barrett getting separated, seeing as they could very well cut her at the Final 3 stage, as many bro-on-bro duos have done to their third-wheel female allies over the years. Yash and Taylor, meanwhile, felt that Dee could be a shield for them in future weeks: If they’re sitting next to Dee on Eviction Night, Dee will almost certainly get the boot over them; the same wouldn’t hold true if they were next to Angela, though, a thought that didn’t sit well with Taylor or Yash.

The Blockbuster Puzzle

When Thursday’s Blockbuster first got underway, it seemed like Dee had it in the bag, rendering her campaigning needless. The players had to correctly piece together a circular, three-dimensional, double-sided puzzle, and Dee used the wise strategy of constructing the puzzle flat on the floor first before she started mounting the pieces on their poles. In fact, it looked like she had the entire thing figured out while Devens and Angela were still fumbling with their pieces.

But not so! A minute later, Dee started to sneak a peek at Devens, who was suddenly stacking his pieces and moving quickly; she then appeared a little lost, as though Devens’ puzzle was revealing to Dee that she didn’t have her pieces in the right spots, after all. Moments later, Devens hit his buzzer and won the Blockbuster, leaving Dee and Angela eligible for eviction — and Dee became one of the only nominees ever to actually utilize those few minutes in between the Blockbuster winner being revealed and voting getting underway, promising the throng that she’ll go after Drew, Barrett, and even Melody if she stays in the house.

The Votes That Sent Angela Out

And stay she did. Although the first two votes cast on Thursday — Drew’s and Melody’s — fell in favor of Angela staying, Devens, Taylor, and Yash all voted to evict Angela, sending her out the door and making her Juror No. 2. A couple of thoughts here:

1. I suspect the houseguests will look back on this eviction as the fork in the road that ultimately empowered Dee to win the entire game.
2. I’m flabbergasted that the “Big Brother” producers didn’t leave Devens to vote last, when his vote would have served as a tiebreaker. Imagine the tension, especially since Devens began his vote with, “I reluctantly vote to evict my partner-in-crime…. Angela.”

Angela made her way out of the house after a long and winding farewell to her fellow players, and she reaffirmed that Taylor and Yash — who she correctly assumed voted to evict her — made the right move to do so, because she believes Dee really will protect them while she’s out for vengeance on Barrett and Drew.

The Vote Split

The vote count was decisive. Drew and Melody voted for Angela to stay, while Devens, Taylor, and Yash voted to evict her. The final tally sent Angela out the door as Juror No. 2.

The reasoning behind the votes broke down like this:

• Melody: Wanted Dee gone, but voted for Angela to keep her bros intact.
• Drew: Wanted Dee gone, but voted for Angela to keep his bros intact.
• Devens: Reluctantly voted to evict Angela, calling her his partner-in-crime.
• Taylor: Wanted Dee gone, but voted for Angela to avoid being targeted.
• Yash: Wanted Dee gone, but voted for Angela to avoid being targeted.

The result is a house where Dee is still surrounded by the other two “Survivor” alums, with Devens and Barrett as her primary targets. The boys’ club that had formed around Drew, Barrett, and Devens has been cracked open, and Dee has positioned herself as the player willing to take them on.

The Irony of the Blockbuster

Dee’s approach to the Blockbuster was strategic: she built the puzzle flat on the floor first, a smart way to visualize the pieces before mounting them on their poles. She seemed to have the whole thing figured out while Devens and Angela were still struggling. Then came the moment of truth.

Dee started sneaking a peek at Devens, who was suddenly stacking his pieces and moving quickly. That glance changed everything. Dee appeared lost, as though Devens’ puzzle was revealing that her pieces weren’t in the right spots after all. Moments later, Devens hit his buzzer and won the Blockbuster.

The irony is that Dee became one of the only nominees ever to actually utilize those few minutes in between the Blockbuster winner being revealed and voting getting underway. She promised the throng that she’d go after Drew, Barrett, and even Melody if she stayed in the house. But winning the Blockbuster didn’t save her from the chopping block.

The Producers’ Missed Opportunity

The producers’ decision to let Devens vote first rather than last was baffling. His vote would have served as a tiebreaker, and the tension would have been immense. Instead, the vote order meant that the outcome was settled before Devens even spoke.

Devens began his vote with, “I reluctantly vote to evict my partner-in-crime…. Angela.” The studio audience gasped, clearly thinking he was about to boot Dee. That moment of confusion shows just how much the room leaned into the idea that Dee was the bigger threat.

The Aftermath

The vote split was telling: Drew and Melody wanted Dee gone, but voted for Angela to keep their bros intact. Devens, Taylor, and Yash wanted Dee gone, but voted for Angela to avoid being targeted themselves. The result is a house where Dee is still surrounded by the other two “Survivor” alums, with Devens and Barrett as her primary targets.

The irony is that Dee’s campaign worked in the short term. She convinced her fellow houseguests that she was the safer option, even as she promised to go after them. The vote split suggests that the house believes Dee can protect them better than Angela could.

That’s a wrap on Week 9, “Big Brother” fans! How do you feel about Angela getting evicted? And are you excited for next week’s two-hour double eviction? Tell us below.

Source: tvline.com

Big Brother · Eviction · reality TV · Survivor Alum · television