Big Brother recap: Racism in the house — again
Alright, before we get to all the intense, awful action on this episode of Big Brother that everyone has already been talking about online, we have to start with the aftermath of this week's nominations. In the last episode, Turner turned on his alliance The Leftovers and put Brittany and Taylor on the block. He mentioned that Joseph told him that they had all secured a final three, which is why Turner is putting them on the block.
Immediately after the nominations, Taylor is distraught. Joseph was her closest friend in the house, and she's really hurt to hear that at the end of his game he was throwing her under the bus. Taylor tries to clear the air with Turner for a bit, telling him that some final four deals were discussed and that they included Michael as well, but that nothing was ever solidified, but not much changes. No matter how you parse it though, Joseph kind of threw his alliance members under the bus, so Turner isn't exactly wrong in stating that, even if Kyle ruined The Leftovers first.
From there, things get really interesting. Kyle decides that it's time to come clean to Monte, as they are in The Pound alliance together, about what happened at Dyre Fest. He tells him everything, in the HOH room with Turner and Alyssa present, about how he felt trapped and on the outside and how when Terrance asked him about alliances he decided that he was done lying and told him everything about The Leftovers. Monte, of course, is not happy. He threw his allegiance in with Kyle without knowing the truth about what happened, and now he's questioning everything; just wait until he hears what else Kyle has been up to!
Needless to say, The Leftovers is done. They're in tatters, with two of them on the block. The game is changing. So now Michael is worried about himself this week. Sure, Brittany and Taylor are on the block, but after conversations with both Turner and Kyle he doesn't feel safe. He figures he's the backdoor target, and he's spot on. Turner and the rest of The Afterparty want Michael out of the house. And who could blame them, he's dominated challenges and could run the table at the end.
With his back against the wall, Michael decides it's time to consider a move he didn't want to consider. Two weeks ago, during Michael's HOH week, Kyle came to Michael and Brittany and talked to them about how he's worried about the likes of Monte, Taylor, Indy, Joseph, Jasmine and Terrance forming an alliance because it looks "really similar to The Cookout." If you've been keeping up with the live feeds or news you know that there's more to this statement (and more to come later in this and tomorrow's recap), but basically with no real evidence that those players were working together Kyle accused them of forming an alliance as players who are POC. Michael was willing to give him the benefit of the doubt earlier in the game, but now thinks "people should know" about some of Kyle's comments.
Now, Michael considering airing this stuff is obviously the right thing to do, but it's pretty clear that Michael and Brittany were okay with protecting Kyle while it benefited them. Things get even fishier when Michael ends up winning the veto. We know he's going to pull Brittany off the block, but that doesn't mean they know what Turner will do with a replacement nomination. Monte, their ally, could end up on the block. So, with "nothing to lose," Michael and Brittany decide to first tell Monte and Taylor about what Kyle's been saying to them this season, and take it from there. Again, very self serving, but ultimately the right thing to do.
And that, folks, brings us to yet another moment in Big Brother where the show has no choice but to confront racist behavior in the house. Clearly, no matter how much the show likes to talk about changing the culture and being more diverse, they'd rather avoid these conversations. Hence Kyle's initial conversation referencing "The Cookout" not being aired back when it happened, but rather just showing up now as the heat online and regarding the live feeds can't be ignored. [Editor's note: Portions of the referenced conversations between Kyle, Brittany, and Michael aired on the Aug. 18 episode. They can be viewed here and here.]
So, Michael and Brittany lay it all out for Taylor and Monte. Obviously, they're shocked and hurt, but maybe not surprised. Monte is almost emotionless the entire time. As he says, "this is America. This is the world we live in." As mortified as Brittany and Michael are, Taylor and Monte have lived this. As sad as it is, they're used to it.
So, after getting permission to do so, Michael and Brittany bring this information to Turner, and Turner agrees that he wants nothing to do with Kyle's line of thinking. While all of this is happening, Kyle is panicking. When Alyssa tells him what's going on, why he's being avoided and feeling on the outside, he starts to lose it. And I'm going to leave it there for now. I have a lot of thoughts, but I know a lot more is coming Thursday, so I'm going to save it for then. So, I'll see you all Thursday where once again we have to have a conversation of this nature about Big Brother because some things never change.
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