TV Review: Big Brother Canada 4 (Round #6)

Big Brother Canada is heading down under. The house has shifted yet again and the game is taking a new turn with how things are being run. The format is still the same, but one of the houseguests is having a little fun this week to change the pace. It’s a “game within a game” as one of the houseguests puts it. But will one different week affect the game going forward?

Much like the American house, the Canadian edition is run by competition, backstabbing and the duplicitous moves the houseguests make to pull ahead of the pack. While around the world – similar to Nikki’s house in the U.K. or Tim’s house in Australia – the game is a popularity contest. While the relationships determine who gets nominated, the public votes for their least favorites to leave. The former creates the drama while the latter is more of a social experiment. Both have their positives and their negatives.

With a dash of international flair added to the game’s events this week, the Canadian houseguests didn’t know how to react. And it created some much needed tension that was definitely new for the viewers as well.

Here’s a look of what went down in the Big Brother Canada 4 house during Round Six:

Round 6

• Maddy is feeling amazing after backdooring Loveita from the house – it was a personal move to get out someone she didn’t like. However, the house has lost their trust in her. Joel is upset over losing a close friend and Dallas is upset with Maddy; he’s lost all trust in her and doesn’t feel like he can work with her anymore. She “justifies” her reasoning for targeting Loveita, but Dallas can spot her personal lies – he’s done with her.
• A time capsule from Big Brother Canada 1916 appears in the living room filled with trinkets, newspapers and footage from the “original” season. Each of the houseguests are given new identities and they watch as the original houseguests interact in the game. This footage and documents are clues to the upcoming Head of Household (HOH) competition.
• The game, an “A or B” style challenge, has the houseguests answering questions based on the time capsule. The player with the most points at the end wins HOH. After a few close rounds, it’s a four way tie that must be decided by a tie-breaker. By the closest number yet, Tim pulls ahead and wins the HOH.
• To relieve some of the tension in the house, the houseguests play a game of “Big Brother Says” and if the houseguests complete all five challenges, they’ll win a pizza party. No one is a Have-Not for a week. Tasks included houseguests exchanging clothing (Mitch & Maddy), Phil eating a ghost pepper, Phil licking Nick’s armpit, Cassandra doing a body shot off Dallas’ belly and Raul giving Joel a lap dance. The group successfully completes the game and wins the party!
• Tim is already tired of being HOH and dreading having to hear the campaigning. He takes a page from the Big Brother Australia book and lets the houseguests do the nominating. Each player gets five points which they can divide amongst two nominees of their choice. The two players with the most votes go up on the block.
• The houseguests are worried and feeling very unsafe. Dallas tries to squash it early on but nobody wants to take the risk. Tim is upfront and says it will come down to a coin flip if no one participates. Everyone reluctantly agrees to play.
• One at a time the houseguests go into the HOH room and nominate two people for eviction; they must also give a reason for their nomination. A few surprises pop up from the votes: people are targeting the Dallas side of the house this week, Ramsey and Maddy turned against by nominating him, Jared is still a popular vote as a nominee, and people don’t trust Maddy.
• Dallas flat out refuses to nominate. He originally plans to place four votes on himself but Tim explains that it’s not part of the rules – he must nominate two people OR choose to not nominate and have all five of his votes placed against himself. He refuses to nominate and has his votes placed on him.
• After the votes, Mitch and Joel are getting wise to Tim’s game. They don’t trust him and see him as a bigger threat now. Even Jared and Dallas – who HATE each other – find common ground over determining that Tim as a threat. Cassandra is safe with Tim but even his unpredictable gameplay is leaving her worried, even with all her failing manipulation on him.
• Dallas is nominated with 30 points (including his five) while Ramsey is the second nominee with 9. Tim is happy to see Dallas up on the block as he is Tim’s threat. Ramsey, on the other hand, is devastated knowing he’s up there because of the house. He finds comfort with Maddy and tries to stay positive.
• Tim, Dallas, Ramsey, Cassandra, Jared and Mitch are chosen to compete in the Power of Veto (POV) competition, “End of the Rainbow.” The houseguests must roll a ball on a curved path 300 times in a row to win the POV. If they drop the ball, they restart at 0. After a few consecutive drops from Jared, Mitch and Dallas, Ramsey pulls ahead to win the POV. He’s safe and can pull himself off the block.
• Tim is a little unsure of what to do with the replacement. He said he would put the third highest vote-getter, which is Maddy, but he might do something different. Maddy is worried about the replacement and she gets closer to Tim. She asks to use his bedroom for the night, but Nikki is livid hearing this as she hates Maddy. She tells Cassandra about Maddy taking the room and they plot to maybe get Maddy on the block so they can vote her out
• Tim names Maddy as the replacement nominee. She hates being on the block and knows that Dallas will be tough competition to campaign against.
• The house is split between siding with Maddy or Dallas (with Ramsey vs. Joel by extension). Many of the players know they can’t trust Maddy and would rather see her leave on a personal level. However, Dallas is a threat and he could spin the game to his side. The guys find it more favorable to see him go.
• Emmett from Big Brother Canada season 1 arrives in the secret suite to chat with Loveita and Kelsey, giving them some game advice. He brings them back into the house (while the others are outside) to hide coloured poker chips for a luxury competition.
• The houseguests are split into two teams and they must find their team’s poker chips around the house. The team with the most chips at the end wins a special prize. The players tear up the house, throwing everything around to find the chips. In the end, the White team (Joel, Raul, Cassandra, Nick/Phil and Ramsey) wins with 46 chips found. They win a VIP cocktail party with Emmett while the other team must clean up the entire house.
• Cassandra wants to keep Dallas around instead of Maddy. She’s campaigning hard to everyone, showing them why Maddy needs to go. But Jared, on the other hand, sees it in his best interest for Dallas to go. The two – Cassandra and Jared – team up to chat it out and figure out who should go.
• At the eviction ceremony, Dallas is evicted by a vote of 5-3.
• Meanwhile outside the house, Arisa brings Kelsey and Loveita back to reveal the twist to the houseguests. Since their eviction, the women have buried their hatchet and became friends, sharing tips and helping each other figure out how to win the game. The houseguests in the game are surprised to see the evictees.
• Arisa reveals that Kelsey or Loveita will be entering the game again only by unanimous vote. The remaining houseguests must all agree on which evicted player will return. If they don’t agree…that will be determined at a later date.

Dallas’ game is a prime example of the shift of power. His alliance was strong, he had two good allies in Maddy and Ramsey and he had the house on his side to take out the bigger threats. However, after weakening the enemy and a thoughtless move by his ally, the game turned against him. He became the new house enemy and an easy target.

Whereas his enemies were stronger socially, Dallas let his emotions cripple his game so much so that he turned against Maddy, who by extension took away Ramsey. He got cocky and let the game shift to the point that he easily became the most desirable person to go. Future Big Brother players can follow this as an example: Keep your relationships strong and never think you’re above the game. If Dallas had simply played along and kept the pieces moving after Maddy’s reckless move or Tim’s Australian nomination strategy, the week could’ve played out much differently.

What do you think will happen next in Big Brother? Share your thoughts below.

Episode Ratings:

HOH/Nominations – 9/10
Power of Veto– 6/10
Eviction – 9/10