Shocker? Elissa's MVP Twist

So this week's MVP nominee was just revealed to the houseguests on the live feeds, and it's:

MVP!

So now America is all:

Could you repeat those instructions?

Congrats, Topaz - it's not just you anymore!

...Just kidding. The internet is starting to speculate that fans mistakenly voted their favorite for MVP, but I don't think that's the case at all (despite an earnest effort from some fans to ensure that it happened - *cough*, BBGossip, *cough*). On further reflection, I don't think it's a surprise that Elissa scored this week's MVP nomination from America, and I don't think America Topazed us, either. 

Think about it for a second. Elissa, to borrow a phrase from BBUK, is the Marmite houseguest. She's loved by a passionate brigade of Rachel fans, marching alongside people who flocked to her due to her early victimization in the house, but she's similarly loathed by Rachel haters and those who feel she's taking away from the show and the game by being a waste of space.

Did Elissa come in first in nomination voting? Of course she did not. Aaryn is the season's villain, heck, she's probably one of the most hated villains ever on the show, and the Elissa fans and others no doubt teamed up to vote their keyboards off for her. (I may have thrown a few votes her way myself, hoping for a Nerd Herd-style meltdown from Aaryn.) Kaitlin may have beaten Elissa, too - we'll never know, since Judd nominated the both of them, eliminating them from eligibility for America's vote. 

About that.

But not everyone voted for Kaitlin or Aaryn. It's quite possible that Elissa is the second or third most hated houseguest, in addition to being the most popular. BBUK fans have been dealing with this dynamic for years, with the constant tug-of-war between Vote-to-Save and Vote-to-Evict. A traditional BBUK Vote-to-Evict eliminates the controversial Marmite houseguests from contention, while the newer Channel 5 Vote-to-Save propels great characters to the end, like the Shannon twins, Spencer and Heidi, or Aaron. (They're back to a Vote-to-Evict this year, if you're counting.) 

What we're looking at here is a mid-game switcheroo, from a "Vote To Save" to a "Vote to Evict". It's very possible that Elissa scores highly in both without any fan interference. 

Her brother-in-law Brendon certainly did in season 13, where despite being widely despised by the audience, he still managed to win a vote to return to the house, when a dominant Dom-and-Cassi-loving voting audience split the vote and Brendon crept in from behind with the half-hearted support of Jeff/Jordan fans:

Brendon-39.5%

Dom-31%

Cassi-28.5%

Keith-1%

Marmite, folks. There's no production interference here, there's no manipulation, it's pure and simple voting theory. 

Elissa is loved and Elissa is hated, and with Aaryn and Kaitlin out of contention, the Elissa nomination makes perfect sense. 

So voting aside, the paranoia is already running amok in the house, and the game's about to get fun. The houseguests are scattering like mice (hamsters?) and whispering wildly about who could be the new MVP, and who to save, and how to strategize the veto competition.

I have to tip my hat to Production on this one, it's already far more fun than a fourth dreary week of Elissa as MVP. 

Vote Alec

 Now.

This is not a joke.

There are plenty of reasons why Alec Beall doesn't deserve to be voted back in to Big Brother Canada. 

I'll be the first to nod my head in vehement agreement that he's played a god-awful game, which has only gotten worse in his last few days. 

He gave Peter possibly the worst advice in the history of the Big Brother game. 

He was a douche to Topaz (he can plead insecurity all he wants, but at a certain point you gotta man up, Alec.)  

Also, with Topaz out and Peter up against a four person alliance, Alec will have a tough road digging himself out of the hole he churned up this week.

The Emperor of (His Own) Doom

Some of those are also among some of the best reasons to vote him back in, though. Let's run through a few of them:

1. It will make amazing TV.

Alec and Peter's downfall was gloriously horrible to watch, and their resurrection will be just as incredible. Alec's ego will be on full fire, fanning the flames of Peter's insane Diary Rooms, and they'll send the season out with a bang.

Will they play any better? Doubtful, but at least they'll have fun playing.

Say what you will about these guys - and there's plenty to criticize - but they love the game and they play hard, and that will never not be entertaining.

The Shield Sheyld (sic, RIP)

2. He still won't win, but it will make the end of the season a contest.

Right now, due to The Shield's pure stupidity, Peter's cheese stands alone against an alliance of four. He and Alec have no one to blame but themselves, yet we're the ones stuck with a boring-ass finale of Andrew and Jillian (that's what's happening, people.)

Dumping Alec back into the game will send Team Nova Scotia scrambling and upset the apple cart for the last couple of weeks. He'll stay a huge target, and probably be booted quickly, but at least we won't be stuck with a slow march to a boring finale.

And if by some remote, unlikely chance Alec does scrape out a win, maybe he deserves it for being entertaining enough to get back in.

Day Topaz, Night Topaz 

3. He's a goof. 

This is one of the reasons why I admittedly remain an Alec fan, even after he's completely screwed up his game and his showmance. This guy never forgets that he's on TV and, ergo, is supposed to dance for us.

He has no qualms about dressing like others for the live shows, and I read somewhere that he dressed as Survivor's Boston Rob for an entire day? (How'd I miss that?) 

His campaigning was probably one of the live feed highlights this year - as bad as it was, it was pure comedy at a point. 

His exit was a hoot as well - quoting Lost and Big Brother US Season 2, failing to hit on Arisa, and sadly identifying all of his mistakes, correctly. 

This has been a great season for comedy, and inching Alec into the finals would be one way to keep the laughter going. 

You know you're thinking about it

4.  He has a shot.

Now, Alec's popularity is not high. He's largely despised on some forums for his treatment of Topaz, and is viewed as a villain by many. 

But if America can vote Brendon back into the Big Brother 13 game over the hilariously fun Cassi and Dominic (who had the misfortune of splitting the votes of a shared fanbase), it's possible that Topaz and Gary's significantly larger fanbase will fall prey to the same problem. And we know AJ isn't exactly in the running, unless his friend Murtz can manage to - well, we know AJ isn't exactly in the running.

Alec will also have the benefit of a bounce from Peter's fanbase, as Brendon benefited from Jeff and Jordan's.

So I wouldn't count him out just yet.

5.  Wouldn't it be nice to see Jillian go from this:

Crushing bones

To this?:

Crushing fear

6. He asked for it!

Help a brother out, Chevy!

Who can say no to that face? (And what was he wearing?) C'mon Chevrolet, the ultimate punchline would be for Alec to actually get the ridiculous thing he asked for in his even more ridiculous eviction speech.

***

And why not Topaz? She did play a better game than Alec and had an outside chance of winning if she'd survived the Double Eviction.

Unfortunately, her failure to make a deal with Peter to get him to pull her off the block demonstrates that she doesn't have the alliance game to make it any further. (Yes, that one's on him too, but it's too late for either of them there.)

The Shield Is Broken

Right now, the only way to upset the apple cart is to get Peter a solid ally, and there's only one option for that: his bestie, his future roommate, his partner in the first alliance of Big Brother Canada: Alec Beall.

So: Canadians, Romans, countrymen, do your patriotic duty and vote Alec Beall back into the Big Brother Canada game! 

(Anyone interested in partnering on this as a "Vote for the Worst" thing, I'd enthusiastically endorse that, too - the ends justify the means, I think.)