This series can be split into two distinct parts: before the '4 In 4 Out' twist and after. What used to be a show about the housemates trying to get along and having some fun along the way has turned into one filled with rage, hatred and aggressive confrontations.
It's interesting. The drama does generate more talking points, but at the same time, seeing housemates verbally abused like that also makes for uncomfortable viewing.
Earlier this week, on Day 43, Brian Belo made his shocking exit - climbing over the wall in the Sky Room, no less - after being called a "rapist slash murderer" by Helen Wood. It was a moment that will undoubtedly be remembered years from now.
But Big Brother made no attempt to intervene. In fact, it was partly to blame by making the housemates play an antagonising game. And Helen only received a formal warning hours later.
We argued that Day 42 was the best episode of the series so far. With almost non-stop drama since Marc O'Neill and company came in, this was a reminder that a fun house can be equally entertaining - arguably more so, with the amount of times we laughed out loud. From Sam's not-so-secret task to all of the rule-breaking and that brilliant food fight - ending with a rousing rendition of 'Rule, Britannia!' among the housemates - this felt like classic Big Brother. They had fun, and we had fun watching them.
We'd love to see more days like these, but they've become the exception. The focus on creating drama has been evident since the very first day, when Big Brother forced five housemates to open their Timebombs - leading to Simon Gross's abrupt eviction.
Jade Lynch won the Luxury Timebomb, a subtle way of causing tension when the house had to cope with basic rations. And Nick Henderson had to nominate face to face. Cue tears and the like. But while Nick's Timebomb seemed unfortunate at first, it's quite telling that he's no longer disadvantaged given that face to face has become the standard.
Even the tasks early on encouraged arguments. Although friction did happen, the original housemates more often than not settled their differences quickly afterwards. "Everyone shut up! Look what it's doing to us all!" Harriet Jackson shouted during one particularly heated task. They tried their best to rise above. They genuinely got on. And that wasn't a bad thing at all - we were enjoying the slow burn of the early episodes. But it clearly wasn't what was expected of them.
On Day 18, Big Brother booted out four of the quieter housemates (they reversed the nominations that week for a reason) and brought in louder, bigger personalities to spice up the house. Aside from Sam Kay, who has been a disappointing housemate, the other three have managed to cause controversies and stirred things up. And then by introducing the 'legendary' housemates, a divide split the house.
The majority of the decisions taken by the higher-ups appear to be with drama in mind. The immunity Marc received this week was pretty blatant. And we're huge fans of Aisleyne Horgan-Wallace, but a large part of her entering the compound was the inevitable showdown with Helen.
There's no denying the direction Big Brother has taken - not just this series, but also Celebrity Big Brother earlier this year (Katie Hopkins vs Perez Hilton) and last year's civilian run (Helen vs Ashleigh Coyle). So the question becomes, is the show better as it is right now compared to when Timebomb started? TV viewing figures are up, and Big Brother is trending regularly. So in that regard, it has been a success. But there's one unfortunate after-effect.
The last two days of highlights, pretty much every scene shown was dominated by either the 'legends' or Marc. The only time any of the main housemates (aside from Marc) had any airtime was either by being involved in a conversation with one of the Time Warp housemates or by talking about them behind their backs.
It's slightly concerning. None of the 'legends' are eligible to win. And at this stage, beyond the halfway stage of the series, there has been no-one who has stepped up and looked like they could be a potential winner. It's nobody's fault. It's simply because this group of housemates have been completely overshadowed by the likes of Helen.
The main housemates have become almost background characters in the past couple of weeks, when Big Brother should be primarily about them. They're the ones being put up for eviction. They're the ones the public is supposed to be voting for.
Hopefully, with Nikki Grahame and Helen leaving tonight, this particular problem will be rectified. We expect Big Brother will find new ways to rile up the housemates, and that's fair enough. But we'd like to remind the show that creating drama and controversy isn't the only way to provide must-watch television.
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