It's Day 21, and HoH Rachel has just nominated Adam and Dominic for eviction. Each of the nominees DRs that he made a deal with Brendon and Rachel and is actually just a pawn. But they can't both be right, can they? Jeff says Rachel holds a grudge, so he's glad it's not him and Jordan up this week. "You just never know," he understates. And Daniele DRs that the time is right to save Dominic and get Rachel to put up Jeff and Jordan instead. Well, if it's time...
In the Have-Not room, Dominic and Adam discuss what this means, and how, when they play the PoV competition, hopefully they'll be up against Lawon and Kalia instead of Jeff and Jordan. Like the producers would ever let that happen. Rachel's eavesdropping outside the door, until she comes in and says it's not a "Nomination Week" but a "Veto Week," whatever that is. She offers them both the chance to make a deal, and Dominic politely says he would prefer to wait until after the Power of Veto competition. And, as he says in the DR, he just found out what a deal with Rachel is worth anyway.
Dominic and Daniele are hanging out, and she agrees to do whatever she can to protect him. As far as that goes. Up in the HoH room, Rachel talks to Daniele and Brendon about Jeff and Jordan, and Daniele assures them that everyone in the house would be down with nominating Jeff and Jordan. Everyone, she insists. Including Jeff and Jordan, she seems so certain about it.
Later, Brendon joins Rachel in the bath so they can... talk about how Jeff and Jordan clearly don't care much about them. Hot! Brendon's concern right now is Jeff, and he thinks they need to reconsider their alliances. In other words, is it time to boot Jeff and/or Jordan?
Dominic visits Rachel in the HoH room, which means Porsche has to leave the room. She was probably done ass-kissing anyway. Dominic says he still wants to play with Rachel and Brendon, and claims to trust them the most. As for Adam, Rachel says she doesn't know what's up with him. Brendon joins the conversation, and Dominic even offers to throw the PoV for them. In the DR, he says, "All I need you to do is take me along until I shank you in the back three weeks from now!" Why wait? Brendon, in turn, claims to be giving more serious and rational thought to backdooring Jeff and Jordan. Which means it probably won't happen.
Daniele joins Adam and Dominic in the Have-Not room to draft Dominic into spotting her for her workout. They bicker, which fools Adam not at all. Daniele explains in the DR that they have a love-hate relationship: "He loves me and I hate him." Whatever, Moony. As their flirt-bickering moves out to the backyard, Jeff can't help noticing that his supposed ally is spending a lot of time with his target for the week. "Something's not right," he DRs. Something always is.
Porsche (whose "host" voice is, if possible, even more annoying than Rachel's) says go, and the players start running in, grabbing one hair at a time as soap suds start flying. Rachel nearly chokes on the flying bubbles, which can only mean one thing: more bubbles. Dominic is throwing the competition almost literally, tossing letters aside instead of keeping them. Everyone else is talking in the DR about the words and letters they're going for. Jeff hits his button, and Jordan does soon after. Adam is searching for the one letter he still needs to spell "procrastination," but he'd do well to stop putting off hitting his button. "Where is the 'P' in the pool?" he frets in the DR, at least refraining from laughing at his own joke. With less than a minute left, he decides he needs to come up with something else, and he and the rest of the players hit their buttons in the final seconds.
Jordan spelled "little," and she even spelled it correctly, so she's in the lead so far. She tells us it was between that or "farting," but she went with the cleaner option. "And I'm okay with that." Reason nine million why Jordan and I can never be together. Dominic spelled "standings," so again the guy throwing the PoV did better at it than Jordan. Brendon is still not impressed with Dominic's throwing skills. Maybe he was trying not to make it obvious, Brendon. By the way, "obvious" has seven letters. Rachel spelled "mouisturizing," but with that U in there, the brains of the operation blew it. Adam came up with "fractions," tying Dominic's letter count but still beating him because he buzzed in first. Jeff spelled "expresses," another nine-letter word, not only erasing the sting of "tectronics" but stealing the lead from Adam because he buzzed in before Adam did. Now it's down to Brendon, who correctly spelled "understanding," so he's won the PoV.
And the gloating begins. Dominic figures this means he can start making moves, while Adam is not feeling safe at all, like anyone cares about him one way or the other. And Brendon says it's all down to him and Rachel this week. Again.
America's Vote, Have-Not menu, blah blah who cares.
In the backyard, Rachel and Daniele have a whispered conversation. Rachel seems to be feeling Daniele out by suggesting getting rid of Lawon, which everyone knows is the lowest possible priority for everyone. Daniele wisely doesn't jump on that, instead pressing her idea to get rid of Jeff and Jordan rather than going for anything that saves Dominic. Speaking of whom, Daniele keeps pushing Rachel to trust Dominic. "He has done everything she has asked," Daniele DRs. When she puts it that way...
Dominic has a quiet conversation with Shelly in which the newbies have been downgraded to "stragglers," but he says she's the only one he trusts. Which is awesome, considering she was one of the two people who flipped on the newbie alliance in Week One and handed the whole game to the veterans in the first place. He thinks it's a good idea to shore up his numbers for the eventual vote, so he lays out a whole scenario for Shelly in which the newbies can take control of the house from the veterans by getting rid of Jeff and Brendon. Of course, Dominic doesn't realize that Shelly trusts Jeff and Jordan. If only Shelly's loyalty could have been signaled to Dominic at some point, like say for example by how Jordan invited her to the luxury party this week.
Sure enough, Shelly goes right to Jordan the morning to tell her all about Dominic's conversation with her. Jordan somehow realizes there's a whole other alliance being built, with Daniele as the leader. So now, things Jordan knows include the fact that Dominic wants them out and is working with Daniele. "And I go right upstairs to the HoH room to tell Brendon and Rachel," she DRs.
Jordan brings Shelly up with her, and Brendon (his eye in a patch, just to see how bad the vision in one of his eyes is, because that's what the level of boredom in this house does to people). Jordan starts by mentioning the Veto. Brendon and Rachel are noncommittal about whether they're using it, and Jordan gives the floor to Shelly, who tells them all about what Dominic said to her the night -- namely Dominic trying to draft Shelly to join him and Daniele. Rachel is shocked at his "audacity," because the only people allowed to play the game in this house are her and Brendon, and sometimes not Brendon. They kick Shelly out so no one suspects she's ratted anyone out, and so Brendon, Rachel, and Jordan can talk about what this means. Which is, obviously, nothing good for Dominic and Daniele. For now, they agree to just pretend they don't know any of this. Jordan leaves the room, and Brendon and Rachel talk about Daniele turning on them... though with a notable lack of shock.
Jeff visits Brendon in the HoH room, and Brendon updates him on what's been going on with Daniele, including her push to backdoor Jeff and Jordan. Jeff DRs that as soon as he gets rid of Dominic, Daniele's . He remarks to Brendon that Daniele thought she had it all figured out, but "she fucked up." Actually Dominic did, by letting Shelly in on the plan, but whatever. The blame is also Daniele's for putting all her eggs in one 25-year-old virgin basket. Brendon and Jeff make a pact on the spot to boot Daniele as soon as possible and go for the final four together. Okay, so maybe I was wrong about the endgame featuring five veterans and zero newbies, but that's Dominic and Daniele's fault, not mine.
Veto meeting day. Obviously, Brendon is thinking about Dominic and Daniele. Daniele DRs that she expects the nominations to stay the same, which she claims will be Rachel's worst possible move. Dominic DRs that he held up his end of the deal, so he's hoping Brendon and Rachel will do the same. Not his fault if Brendon and Rachel didn't specify that his end of the deal included refraining from actively plotting against them. Jeff says Daniele has anther thing coming if she thinks she can backdoor him and Jordan. Brendon calls everyone in for the Veto meeting and offers Dominic and Adam the chance to make their case. Dominic says they've both fought hard, and want and deserve to be there. Like anything he could say could change Brendon's mind anyway, even if Brendon didn't know what we know (and Dominic doesn't know) he knows. Brendon says he's not using the Veto. "This might come as a surprise to you guys: I'm in an alliance with Rachel." He babbles on a bit more before adjourning the meeting without saying anything more interesting than that.
Dominic still thinks he's in a deal, which "better hold up... or I'm out the door, an I'm pissed." And I'm sure Brendon and Rachel will be terrified. Adam says he hates to break up the PB&J team, but he has to do what he has to do. "Hope you have fun talking to Julie on Thursday." As if the outcome of the vote has anything to do with him. If he weren't Dominic's partner, we'd be seeing about as much of him as we've seen of Kalia and Lawon. Rachel DRs that Daniele showed her cards too early (actually she gave them to Dominic, and Dominic showed them, but again, whatever), and now Daniele's closest ally will be going out the door. Whereas Daniele threatens, "If Rachel thinks that she can screw me over like that, she has another thing coming." How many other things does this house have room for? She adds, "I am done looking out for you and your boyfriend. I am done." Which, amen, but on the other hand... when did she start?
M. Giant is a Minneapolis-based writer with a wife, a son, and a number of cats that seems to have settled at around two. Learn waaaay too much about him at Velcrometer, follow him on Twitter, or just e-mail him at m.giant[at]gmail.com.