Episode Rating: ***(3 out of 5 stars)

Episode Overview: With Diane and Nakomis on the chopping block, the all-important Power of Veto competition is conducted.

Episode Highlights:

• Six players compete in the Power of Veto competition.
• Kaysar's nominations are scrutinized by his own alliance members.
• On his birthday, Mike Boogie eats sushi and gets drunk.

Recap:

We flashback to the nomination ceremony from Sunday's episode, where Diane and Nakomis got sent to the chopping block. Marcellas, among others, isn't all too happy with Kaysar's nominations and I can understand why. He really should have nominated a member of Chill Town (Boogie and Will), but opted instead for the path of least resistance. Soon after the nominations, Kaysar apologizes to Diane and Nakomis, and neither of them are outwardly angry towards Kaysar. They both seem to like and respect him, but Diane begins crying in front of him, devastated. You see, Diane and Nakomis, both from Season 5, are the only friends each other have on BIG BROTHER 7: ALL-STARS, so it sucks for them that one has to go, barring a veto. Boogie assures Diane that he didn't make a deal with Kaysar or anything. This is a blatant lie.

Will and Boogie continue their arrogant ways, displaying faux dismay over their lack of nominations. They claim that soon they'll be running the house and it was a HUGE mistake by Kaysar not to nominate them.

Jase and James have a conversation about turning thirty, and how much Jase has matured. This is the only thing the Big Brother producers will show about Jase; how he's become a reformed man and how he has a baby at home. We get it. You've told us every episode. Also, the conversation is accompanied by this super-sappy guitar music that real ratchets up the emotions. Anything will sound deep and profound if it's joined by the soundtrack to a Hallmark After-School Special.

Will continues to stir up controversy, determined to plant seeds of hate towards the Season Sixers. Erika is torn over her loyalties. She likes the Sixers, but knows that, eventually, she'd be forced into the periphery by them. Chicken George, as always, has a hard time forming sentences and the words that are supposed to make up those sentences.

We get a supremely unnecessary sequence of Howie forgetting his towel after taking a shower in the Head of Household room. After futilely yelling for Kaysar to fetch said towel, Howie debates to himself for a couple minutes about what to do. Finally, he cups his twig and berries, then scampers out of the shower, retrieves his towel, and scampers back in. Can you say “filler”?

Diane opens up a portal into her soul, and I want a refund. It turns out her life hasn't been going as planned lately and that she agreed to do BIG BROTHER 7: ALL-STARS as “an outlet to change [her] life.” If she doesn't make it far into the game and doesn't make some money, she's going to have to leave L.A. Diane's been living day-to-day, she is broke, and, overall, she seems fairly distraught over her whole situation. She cries some more. I've decided that I like Diane. I hope she doesn't get evicted.

Nakomis changes her hair, again, to flame red, which is not pleasing to the eye. She laments in the Diary Room about not fitting in and being so much different than everyone else in the house. No one seems to really like her that much, but they all respect her intelligence, which is why I think she'll be the one voted out on Thursday.

While Kaysar is away, Janelle, James and Howie discuss Kaysar's nominations and how much they dislike them. They think that it was the wimpy move, and that he's just scared to go after ChillTown. Everyone seems to be in agreement on this.

(Personally, I think Kaysar knows exactly what he's doing. For the Season Six alliance to get far in this game, they have to keep winning Head of Household challenges, and the best way to do this is to rid the house of great competitors. Nakomis is one of them. Dr. Will and Boogie have never been ones to win challenges, and their threat amounts to a lot of bark and, up till now, very little bite. Also, Kaysar is allowing Boogie and Will more time to piss off everyone in the BIG BROTHER house with their unwarranted arrogance. He's giving them more rope to hang themselves with.)

The Veto Competition is set to begin, with Kaysar, Diane, Nakomis, Will, Erika, and James competing. They enter the backyard, which has been turned into the BIG BROTHER Country Club. The challenge: Each contestant has to hit over sized golf balls with over sized clubs as close to the green as possible. The green area has been set up into four quadrants; +3 balls, +2 balls, +1 ball, and Give 1 ball. If you get near the pin, you give one ball to an opponent. If you're far from the pin, you get three balls. Each player has their own small tube in front of them, and after every turn that tube is filled up with the amount of balls that their golf shot warranted. Once you acquire seven total balls, you're eliminated. Erika, a solid golfer in real life, wins easily.

There is much discussion over whether Erika will use her veto, but it seems unlikely. She is Kaysar's friend, and doesn't have much of a relationship with Diane or Nakomis. Regardless, the two nominees hold out hope that they'll be saved.

Boogie's birthday comes to pass, and to celebrate, BIG BROTHER has given him a bunch of sushi, a cake, and some alcohol. The half of the house that won the food challenge partake in B-Day festivities, while the losing half watches on, jealous. Will and Boogie hold court in the hot tub, boozed up, and talk some mad shit about the season Sixers. Eventually, they summon Kaysar, presumably to call him out, but it doesn't go as planned. Kaysar puts ChillTown in their place and confidently walks back in the house.

At the veto ceremony, Erika declines to use the Golden Power of Veto. Diane and Nakomis aren't surprised, but both still upset. Neither of them knows who will be leaving, but they do know that they won't be seeing each other for much longer. Thursday's eviction should be exciting.

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