Big Brother Blowout: Cracks Forming in Power Alliance After Double Eviction Chaos, HOH Comp

In the aftermath of Thursday's Big Brother Double Eviction (Baby!), the final five scramble for (tiny) power as alliances are tested and trust erodes, leaving a brand new Head of Household with a huge decision that could determine the game.

It turns out Double Eviction (Baby!) was the only want to get rid of Angela, who'd managed to escape the Block six times before she was finally evicted at the end of Thursday's live bloodbath. With her and Leah both gone, there were only two factions left in the House.

Kimo and Rubina have been pawns most of the season, doing what they could behind the scenes, but almost completely unable to control their own destinies overtly with competition wins (Kimo got his second during the double, while Rubina still has only one).

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For the record, Cam only has one, too, meaning that it's been Chelsie and mostly Makensy doing all the heavy lifting to carry their power trio this deep into the game. Cam just attached his floating balloon to the right people early on.

This latest episode featured a massive blunder by Chelsie during the Double Eviction, where she held all the power, but one that ultimately didn't matter.

If it looked like Angela appeared more resigned to her fate during the second eviction of the night, that's because Chelsie basically exposed her plan right to Angela's face. Hey, things are moving pretty quickly.

When Angela came to talk to her after Chelsie's Veto and Head of Household wins, the HOH told her, "Well, that didn't go as planned, but I gotta put a replacement up. I'm asking who would want to freakin' go up."

That's right, she basically told Angela she's open to anyone as a pawn next to her because Angela is her target. In the Diary Room, she reflected on her screw-up, noting, "Hopefully she leaves in just a minute so this won't really matter."

That hopefully turned into reality, and based on her exit interview with Julie Chen, it seems Angela won't hold a grudge against Chelsie for it, either. After all, game respects game and Angela was confident she'd have won this game if she'd made it to the end (and she did have a compelling argument).

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Tiny Power

With the double behind them, the Final Five started celebrating even before the door slammed on Angela Thursday night. But it was to be short-lived, as they almost immediately shifted into game mode and fight mode.

The iconic tiny competition was for Head of Household this season, and had the extra twist of it being a vertical puzzle as well as a tiny stack with giant tweezers. Having to arrange 30 tiny blocks in the right order standing upright might seem easy when the puzzle is assembled on the ground right there, but once you're stacking and it falls, it's chaos.

"Oh, it's tiny!" said outgoing HOH Chelsie, who was thus ineligible to play. "Shut up, Imma go get my chicken wings!"

She then settled in to watch one of the most stressful competitions for her side of the House because if either Kimo or Rubina pulled out this win, they'd surely target Chelsie's side with Makensy and Cam. This one was for all the pieces!

It was definitely a nail-biter, though clever editing makes it so we can't really know if it was as tight as it would look at certain times. What we do know is that everyone struggled. And we know that in the end, Makensy continued her competition dominance with her seventh overall win. That puts her one ahead of Tucker's early dominance!

Girl Power?

At this point, it looks like Makensy and Chelsie could just trade off wins through the end of this game, though Makensy is definitely the biggest comp threat in the house. Does that mean the House would take a shot at her if given the opportunity?

Honestly, with the way Vetoes have been used this season (as in every single time), we wouldn't be surprised. These players have been backdooring one threat after the other for as long as the game's been going on, even when they had to fight through the A.I. Arena to do it!

A telling conversation between Makensy and Chelsie seemed to set the stage for the two of them to ride-or-die to the end, despite Chelsie's early alliance with Cam. But watching him hem and haw and pause during the HOH comp didn't win him any favor with Chelsie, who was counting on him or Makensy to keep her safe.

"Cam, what are you--? Are you praying? Are you meditating?" Chelsie mused while watching him turn and look away mid-competition. Cam has come close to winning multiple times, but he's really not come through for his team at all. That's not going to win him any favor at the end.

At the same time, that's the big question the Houseguests are facing at the endgame. Do you want to ride to the end with someone who hasn't had much agency in their own game? Or do you want to ride with someone who fought and clawed beside you all summer -- and thus might have a stronger case with the Jury?

Puppetmaster Power

Rubina is considered the most expendable of the players, but she's been pushing for girl power at the end all season. And after Makensy's latest win, she dropped an earworm in the project manager's ear that Chelsie had suggested that if Rubina won during the double, she should go after "big targets."

It was a clear hint that Makensy should be targeted, but when Makensy asked Chelsie directly about it, Chelsie worked her mojo on her ally and smoothed the waters. As Chelsie herself noted, she's almost had more power out of power than when she's had it.

Last time Makensy had power, Chelsie convinced her to take out Leah, who was a longtime ally for Makensy. That could still spell Makensy's doom in this game, as we've no doubt Chelsie would take her out if she felt it would benefit her game.

Right now, it looks like the ladies are at least somewhat locked until the end. We could see them continuing to take out big threats (i.e., Kimo and Cam), but then reconsidering if it's down to the two of them and Rubina.

If Rubina fails to win power at that point, we could see them looking at the easier path to victory. Then it would be up to Rubina to argue how being ineffective and disposable all season and making it to the end is reason to win. It's a tough sell, but it is there.

But first, she has to survive the Block. For now, Makensy took the obvious road and put Kimo and Rubina up. Depending on who wins Veto, that could change and make it 12 for 12 Veto uses. If Kimo or Rubina wins, Makensy would have to throw up one of her own, and it would likely be Cam.

At the same time, if Chelsie or Makensy wins, you know they would at least consider taking the shot at Cam, anyway. We're not sure if he'd consider taking one at Chelsie, but she's a stronger mastermind than him, so that's by design. The ladies have all the power!

Houseguest Report Cards

Chelsie Baham (27, nonprofit dir) doesn't need power to take power. Once again, we saw how well she's manipulating her younger partner in crime to facilitate her own game. Makensy is currently committed to bringing Chelsie to the end, while we're not sure Chelsie would do the same. Chelsie is so well-positioned to win this game, it's crazy. [Grade: A-]

Makensy Manbeck (22, construction pm) has a strong chance at second place, even if Chelsie takes her to the end, or first place if she or someone can take Chelsie out at any point before finale night. That's a long shot, though, and requires either bravery on Makensy's part (we're not sure she's strong enough to face it), or a win by Kimo or Rubina forcing the issue. [Grade: B-]

Rubina Bernabe (35, event bartender) might just be in the best spot of her season, and could get a second place finish out of it if either of the ladies above her in this game decide to take the easiest path to the end. After all, they're frustrated with Cam, and as he's never been in power, they can't be certain he might take out his strongest competition at the end if he were to actually win something. If Rubina were to win, it would mess up everything, but we suspect they're betting on her not winning anything else. [Grade: C]

Cam Sullivan-Brown (25, physical therapist) is starting to frustrate his own alliance with his lack of performance. It's hard to carry someone who should be a comp beast all season and then watch them seemingly not giving it their all in every competition. He would be easy to beat at the end, but would they take the chance of him doing something crazy in power? Without his allies, he'd have been gone ages ago, so do they still owe him anything? [Grade: C-]

Kimo Apaka (35, mattress sales) is probably the biggest threat right now because the House knows he has a good social game, can make a strong pitch based on things outside the game (he's survived the Block once already with that tactic). That means he's an easier target to get up and out now, because he could also win something and really disrupt things by targeting the women running the show. [Grade: D+]

House Chatter

(asides and comments -- not necessarily strategic, but entertaining and sometimes revealing)

• "Right now, I want to go to the end with Chelsie and Cam." --Makensy
• "Kimo, I love you, kid. And I would have taken him to the end. Just so you know! Just so you know!" --Angela (heading out the door)
• "First and foremost, I don't tweeze." --Cam (about HOH comp)
• "Thank god I'm not doing this comp, 'cause my nails aren't done." --Chelsie (watching HOH comp)
• "Finish it out! This is what girls do this season!" --Chelsie (cheering Makensy on during HOH comp)
• "I can't win anything. It just starts beating down on you." --Rubian (after HOH comp)
• "If he is there, you're not taking his ass, and I'm not." --Makensy (to Chelsie about Cam after HOH comp)
• "I want two girls sitting at the end of this and I want it to be me and you because we're working our asses off." --Chelsie (to Makensy)

Big Brother wraps its season with the following new episodes:

• Thursday, 10/3 at 8 p.m. ET (two hours)
• Sunday, 10/6 at 10 p.m. ET
• Thursday, 10/10 at 8 p.m. ET
• Friday, 10/11 at 8 p.m. ET
• Sunday, 10/13 at 9 p.m. ET (two hour finale)