Bowie Jane Takes Power, But Will She Play It Safe?

This is the first of anything for Bowie Jane, who hasn’t won or been nominated all season long. Instead, she’s been doing a killer impression of wallpaper, blending into the background so much that it’s been easy to forget she’s even a part of this season.

As it turns out, and as Felicia suspected, Bowie’s plan had been to continue being wallpaper through this week. That’s why her guess for how many minutes Jared was a BB Zombie was so painfully low … even after she added a digit in front. She didn’t anticipate Felicia going over and getting disqualified.

Adding to the surprise factor of the week, Bowie has basically been working with no one all season long. She’s been used here and there by players who have been playing to solidify a vote or to bounce ideas off of, but we’re not sure anyone respects her as a player.

Even this week, as we started learning that in the last week she’s basically been solidifying Final 3 deals with all the duos in the house, it’s pretty clear how little they think of her. Oh, a Final 3 with a duo, where does that leave me? Duh.

Bowie may be laying extremely low, but she’s not quite as stupid as everyone wants to believe she is. She’s been playing pretty stupid, leaning into her DJ side and definitely hiding her barrister (lawyer) side. We’re already seeing what happens with people who telegraph how smart they are.

While Bowie has been underestimated all season, it’s starting to look like Cory may be overestimating himself about as much as he’s trying to overgame this season. Here’s the thing. Jag is working just as hard as he is to manipulate the game, only no one seems to know that Jag is doing this.

Everyone sees Cory’s Machiavellian machinations, working behind the scenes to get everyone to do his bidding. He’s even been called out two meetings in a row, with Felicia during the Veto Meeting and Mecole during her dramatic exit on Thursday.

The remarkable thing, though, is that it’s working … at least for now. Comerica have become so cocky in this game, that America had the audacity to go up to Bowie Jane and tell her to target another pair in the house, saying, you know what to do with duos.

Uh, hello? The biggest duo in the house? Well, at this point, the most successful is Matt and Jag’s The Minutemen, but Comerica is the most well-known, well-established, and most-targeted. They are always in the crosshairs. How long can they, like Cameron, avoid eviction?

With a new Houseguest in power that no one has a long, working relationship with, Bowie did what Cameron likes to do. She sat back and let people unload all the intel and dirt in the house, exposing their allies and revealing their targets. It was an incredible information dum and intel gathering.

She quickly learned that a lot of people are gunning for Comerica, which is to be expected. She learned that Comerica are trying to pitch the idea that Cameron and Blue are becoming a thing, even though there is really no proof to that. This is even the “duo” America was pitching to Bowie to target.

She knows that Cameron and Cory are the two biggest threats in the house, per the house, and that they are gunning hard for one another.

She also knows that Felicia and Cirie are seen as a pair, and yet no one is all that worried about them. She admitted she’s a little surprised because Felicia has already won one HOH and she nearly won this latest one. And Cirie is the best social player this season, so she can never be underestimated.

Ultimately, it seems like she decided to put her eggs in the basket of the one real power duo running the house, Jag and Matt. And of the two of them, Jag is definitely doing the most talking and expressing his feelings. Matt chimes in a bit during one-on-ones, but this is largely Jag making decisions and everyone agreeing.

That said, Bowie wasn’t going to get mowed over by anyone. Jag continues to insist he doesn’t want to take out Cory because he sees Comerica as a shield duo protecting The Minutemen. He’d rather see Cameron and Blue on the Block, but Bowie doesn’t want to target Cameron because he always protected her.

Instead, she started floating the idea of targeting Felicia and Cirie, the pair considered the smallest threats in the house. She even started talking about targeting Felicia as the bigger threat, though it’s hard to say what the house might do with those two options.

In the end, she did go with the lesser of all threats and put up the two oldest Houseguests, and semi-allies, side by side. For Felicia, this is her fourth time on the block, while it marks a first for Cirie — a remarkable feat considering her Survivor legacy.

Of course, a lot could depend on who wins the Veto and what they’d want to do with it. There are plenty of people in the house who might be willing to defy Bowie if they win the POV and force her to name a replacement nominee.

If she’s got her heart set on these noms, though, any part of a power duo had better be careful. What would there be to stop her from putting up their duo partner on the block? Still, there is also a lot of game to play and this may be the flip-flopping-est house ever. We’d be surprised if today’s target is Thursday’s evicted Houseguest.

Especially with the extremely persuasive Felicia and Cirie both on the block and surely gearing up to start using their gifts of gab to change their fates.

One of the advantages of Survivor expanding to 90 minutes this season is that it’s allowed player moments to shine more than packed hour-long episodes. When Big Brother gets too bogged down with competitions, it loses some of that.

That’s why we appreciate these non-competition episodes. It’s always refreshing when a new Head of Household is actually crowned on Thursday, because it means Sunday’s episode can slow down and breathe, allowing us to have impactful moments with contestants.

This time around, we got to join in with the Houseguests as they got a tutorial from Jag about how he folds and ties his turban. It’s a fascinatingly complex process for those not in the know, with the turban material probably much larger than many antiicpated.

This is the kind of normalizing that people need to see. We are only as ignorant as what we are not exposed to, and so Jag opening up about his faith and even his turban are going a long way to knocking down some of those walls of prejudice to remind everyone that we’re all just people.

In an even more impactful segment, Felicia revealed what drew her to the Air Force, and it’s not for any of the reasons anyone might anticipate. This was back in 1982, and she admitted that she went into the military to get away from an extremely abusive man.

She only detailed two incidents, but those two incidents were enough. She said that at one point he tried to throw hot grease on her and her mother, and in another, he punched her in the face hard enough to knock her tooth out.

Domestic violence was not taken as seriously back in 1982 as it is today, with very few shelters or similar options available. And so, she made the decision to get away in the most permanent way she could. Today, she calls it the best decision she ever made, assuring her fellow Houseguests she never saw him again after enlisting.

These are the kinds of scenes that more fully humanize these personalities we’re watching on television. It also goes a long way toward strengthening relationships and bonds in the house, which can impact every aspect of their time in there.

If you or someone you know is a victim of domestic abuse or violence, get help. The National Domestic Violence Hotline (1-800-799-7233) provides 24/7, free, confidential support for people in need.

Matthew Klotz (27, deaflympics gold medalist) is in the middle of everything but still playing all of his cards close to his chest. He lets Jag lead their group conversations, and thus lets Jag do any dirty work that comes up, or anything that might blowback on him. He’s beloved by everyone and even those he’s burned (Cirie) still want so badly to trust him. [Grade: A-]

Jag Bains (25, truck company owner) is showing off an impressive level of control in the house and with almost everyone he talks with. The only place he seems to have no influence is with Comerica, because no one can be as smart as they are and no one games to the ridiculous degree that Cory does. Jag is playing the game Cory wishes he was playing. [Grade: B+]

Bowie Jane Ball (46, barrister/DJ) stumbled backwards into power and getting noticed after 65 days in camouflage. Now, she’s taken the safest route for her week. It remains to be seen if she’ll make a big move after the Power of Veto is played (and if it’s used). This move would probably allow her to fade right back into BB obscurity, so it would behoove her to be bolder if she wants a chance at winning. [Grade: B]

Blue Kim (25, brand strategist) continues to be in the middle of the house, not really making any strong alliances yet, save the personal connection she’s enjoying with Cirie. She’s not shy about expressing her feelings and targets, and she is seen as a competition threat. We just aren’t seeing her as someone worth targeting over several other players, and (except for Comerica), we don’t think the house does either. [Grade: C+]

America Lopez (27, medical receptionist) has a great shield in front of her right now in Cory, but if the house decides to target the showmance, she could find herself in the crosshairs should Cory make himself unavailable to target directly. After all, taking either out weakens the whole. She tries to insist she’s playing her own game, but we’re pretty sure her game has zero respect in the house, so him leaving would actually help her tremendously. [Grade: C+]

Cirie Fields (53, nurse) is on the block and there’s always an argument for taking out one of the most persuasive people in the house. But she’s also up against Felicia, who’s on her fourth trip to the block. Felicia is a bigger competition threat than Cirie, and many see her as even more persuasive, just because she’s been forced to show it. As such, we think Cirie’s lowkey game post-Izzy is working in her favor for now. [Grade: C]

Cory Wurtenberger (22, college student) is one of two people who should be targeted immediately, and the other isn’t on the block, either. They’re both great backdoor options, should the opportunity arise. Cory is playing a very good strategic game, but he’s also doing it very blatantly and publicly and a little bit messily. He’s navigating it so far, but he also has a lot of eyes on him as a target. We’d be stunned if he can navigate a path to the end. [Grade: C-]

Cameron Hardin (34, stay-at-home dad) doesn’t have any allies in the house, despite that he wants to believe Jag and Matt are his allies. Everyone is ready to backdoor him, except for Bowie. They’ll be a lot of efforts to talk her into backdooring either him or Cory no matter who wins the Veto, and if it gets played, she might just do it. If it doesn’t happen here, though, it will happen as soon as it possibly can (of course, we’ve said that before).[Grade: D+]

Felicia Cannon (63, real estate agent) is on the block and currently Bowie’s target. But just like last week, there are much bigger fish to fry in the Big Brother house and Mama Fe has a very long time to tell you all about them. Yes, she’s a solid choice to take out, but no matter what happens, either Cory or Cameron could be backdoored and isn’t that better for everyone if at least one of them goes? [Grade: D+]

• “You are looking at the brand new HOH. I think I accidentally won that. I was trying to throw that tiebreaker. I wrote down something ridiculously low and I bloody won.” –Bowie (in DR)
• “Sure, I trust and like Bowie, but we’re not getting Felicia to do our dirty work.” –America (in DR about Mecole’s parting words)
• “I did not have that on my bigo card. But that’s awesome. This is going to be awesome.” –Cameron (about Bowie winning)
• “I’ve had her back on my HOH’s, so I would expect the same from her.” –Cameron (expect the unexpected?)
• “I’m not doing great. I’m really stressed out. I just get called out for the second meeting in a row and then I lose the HOH comp, which was a memory quiz, which should be my thing.” –Cory (in DR)
• “The truth is, I think Meme’s more likely to win a competition.” –Cory
• “Yes, Felicia is easier to beat competitive-wise. But, long game, I don’t want her in the jury.” –Cameron
• “What he doesn’t know is that voting out Meme is worse for his game and Felicia will also put him up.” –Jag (after Cory fails to sway Cameron)
• “We’re thinking the same s–t right now. We appease Cory.” –Cameron
• “Yeah that’s what I’m saying. And he thinks it’s his own mastermind plan. And he had to convince us and we said, ‘You know what, Cory, fine, we’re with you. Because you’re so smart.” — Jag
• “He has to be the smartest person in every room that he’s in.” –Cameron
• “Cory gets to be the fall guy for leading the charge if everything falls apart.” –Cameron (in DR deciding to flip vote)
• “Bowie is a great choice for Matt and I to take to the Final 3.” –Jag (in DR because he’s confident they can beat her)
• My number one ally is Cory and then, Bowie.” –America (in DR)
• “It is time for me to take on the challenge of playing my own game and showing these people actually how it’s done. Game on.” –Bowie Jane (in DR)
• “What we need to do is lock down Bowie. Make sure Matt and Jag don’t get suspicious. Blue’s a lost cause. Cam is very close to a lost cause.” –Cory (to America, trying to outgame the game)
• “So why does he tell me that Blue’s coming after me?” –Cory (to Matt about Cameron)
• “‘Cause he wants you to to go at each other instead of him.” –Matt
• “I think my goal for these noms is Blue and Cam.” –Cory (to Jag with America)
• “There are two people actively targeting me in this game: Cameron and Blue. I need Bowie to nominate both of them, make sure one of them goes home.” –Cory (making Mecole’s exit words sound pretty true)
• “We’re just talking about noms.” –Cory (when Cameron walks in)
• “Are one of you secretly HOH?” –Cameron (Bowie is not in the room)
• “She probably don’t know what to do because she wasn’t anticipating she would win.” –Felicia (to Blue and Cirie, accurately guessing Bowie tried to throw HOH)
• “This is the third time: Izzy, Jared, and now Meme. Why y’all doing Cory’s dirty work?” –Cirie (to Felicia about house)
• “I want to keep Cory around as a shield as long as possible so people don’t shift their focus on The Minutemen.” –Jag (in DR)
• “Cory doesn’t have any power without us.” –Jag (to Matt)
• “Cameron’s getting close to Blue. He leaves, she’s gotta come back to us.” –Matt
• “I think Cam should go this week.” –Jag
• “I don’t know why people in this house keep saying Felicia’s not a threat. She’s one Head of Household and she almost won this week!” –Bowie (in DR)
• “I’m not gonna put Cameron up. That’s not fair. He can win for us.” –Bowie (after Jag pitches Cameron and Blue)
• “You want me to put up a strong duo? If there’s one obvious ultimate duo in here it’s you and Cory. You guys are Comerica, you even have a name together, come on!” –Bowie (in DR after Cory and America pitch Cameron and Blue)
• “They’re a duo, what do you do with duos? At this point in the game, it’s not too early to make the move.” –America (to Bowie and talk about oblivious)

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