On the Aug. 11th episode of One House to Live, Amanda questions where McCrae's loyalties truly lie

Big Brother S 15 E 20 type TV Show network CBS genre Reality Where to watch Close Streaming Options

Big Brother went full soap-opera on Sunday night, and it’s no surprise, given that the episode began with a flashback to Candice’s spectacular, clown-costumed flameout. After that tirade, GinaMarie was more convinced than ever that Candice was the “rat and big mouth” she believed her to be. (Also, it must be noted that GinaMarie is still wearing Nick’s baby-blue ball cap, obviously because their love was definitely warmer than an orange flame but didn’t quite have the time to get white-hot, so blue is ever so fitting — that’s the metaphor she was going for, right?) We get to see even more of the catty back-and-forth between the “ladies,” which includes accusations of infrequent showering (Gina to Candice) and the “so 10 years ago” practice of wearing color contacts and a tongue ring (Candice to Gina). Of course, GinaMarie finds an excuse to make it all about Nick yet again when she waves the blue hat at Candice and says, “This is why you’re going home.”

But things reach a real low point when GinaMarie tells the adopted Candice, “Even your mother didn’t want you.” Whoa. Way to bring a gun to a catfight.

At this point, Aaryn decides GinaMarie has gone too far (Aaryn is well-acquainted with what “too far” looks like, especially in dealing with Candice) and worries the tirade will put a big target on the two blondes. Helen, meanwhile, is a human being, so she actually talks about the comment in the context of real life and real emotions, instead of just wondering how it will affect her game.

But Aaryn’s worries are short-lived, as she promptly wins HoH in the all-important double-eviction episode. She’s not too pumped, though, realizing that this key Head of Household win will land her in “blood up to my shoulders.” Unsanitary, to say the least.

Surprisingly, Aaryn considers putting up her closest ally in the house, GinaMarie, because of her outburst. Does Aaryn seriously not see that the Lawn Guyland pageant queen is the only one truly on her side? Well, it turns out she does see that, because she ends up nominating Jessie and Spencer instead — and then fan-favorite good ol’ boy Judd goes up in a surprise backdoor move! Judd, we’re really going to miss that bear-snacking-on-a-fish long-sleeve.

NEXT: Ballin’ bananasThe house was united around getting rid of their likable roommate, but in a hilarious twist, they justify the move by saying he’s “playing dumb.” Yup, that’s it. I just wonder why apparent Judd allies like Andy and Jessie blindly go along with this plan instead of fighting it. Maybe the fast pace confused them, like Will Ferrell-as-George W. Bush playing with a ball of yarn. It’s heartbreaking to see Judd pleading with his housemates to let him stay, but he goes out on a sour note, calling Jessie a “snake” and refusing hugs from the people who betrayed him. Southern gentleman, no more!

In the aftermath, Aaryn labors over her decision and, rightly, worries that she could be spurned just as quickly as the house turned on Judd. And she’s not the only one doing some post-Judd soul-searching: Andy and McCrae are reduced to tears after his exit, Amanda is hastily offering up final-four deals to Aaryn, and Helen is giving Machiavellian pep talks, her specialty.

But the tears have to dry up eventually, and the crew heads out to the BB Diner for a seriously important HoH competition, especially considering the end of the MVP twist, in which the players guide balls down bananas (we seriously couldn’t make this stuff up, but the BB team clearly can). In the first head-to-head match, it’s house puppetmaster vs. house, well, puppet Jessie, and Jessie prevails (she’s a real girl after all!). Andy knocks off GinaMarie in what appears to be the first competition he’s ever taken seriously, followed up by block regular Spencer falling to power-hungry Amanda. The final first-round faceoff has goofy music and McCrae’s sound effects to match, and apparently his strategy (?) works against Elissa.

Andy’s winning streak continues in the second round against Jessie, and then it’s a showmantic rumble between McCrae and Amanda. She insists he better let her win, and we believe her. So when he sinks his ball instead, we’re immediately afraid for his physical safety in the house. As Amanda points out, Jeff let Jordan win, Brendan let Rachel (Elissa’s sis!) win, but McCrae went for the glory. Looks like more trouble for the mismatched pair.

In the final showdown, it’s not exactly a battle of good vs. evil, but more a battle of someone who might not listen to everything Amanda says (Andy) vs. someone who will be threatened physically, emotionally, and spiritually to do whatever Amanda tells him to (McCrae). It’s a breath of fresh air when wild card Andy is victorious. I seriously have no idea what this dude will do with his HoH, and I like it. He’ll have to “unfriend” two of the people who are under the impression they’re his BFF, and that should make for some good TV.

NEXT: For how many full days was Amanda really crying? His first order of business? Choosing Helen and Elissa to be Have-Nots, while GinaMarie and Aaryn volunteer (because, as Aaryn says, “being a good witch” has gotten her pretty far; at least she recognizes that the “witch” part still rings true).

As we feared, Amanda is not forgetting McCrae’s “selfish” act of not throwing a competition. Let’s get this straight: Kowtowing to Amanda, good. Integrity, bad. Seems like a solid checklist for a lifelong relationship. And the Amanda pity party isn’t limited to McCrae: Helen is roped in as well and, as usual, says all the right things. Did she script out a flow chart of pep talks before entering the house? The flow chart for this encounter: If… your hotheaded housemate is crying over her boyfriend not throwing a competition for her, deploy this brilliant speech: “You’re winning without having to win, and that’s the best game, because you have no blood on your hands.” Dude, that’s so true! And Amanda needs to remember those exact words if she (shudder) ends up in the final two and is pleading her case for the half-million. Side note: If you’re in need of some political consultation in Chicago, I have just the woman for the job.

At this point, Andy walks in the room and talks all sorts of sense to the wallowing Amanda. “Wouldn’t you rather win by your own merit than have someone give it to you?” Well, given her reaction, the answer is a hard “no.” This is a moment when I really wish Big Brother played out in real time (I know, I know, I should just watch the feeds!), because I am so curious about how long Amanda was actually crying. If this is the edited version, I’m guessing she cried for approximately two and a half days. Feed-watchers: Please confirm or deny this in the comments.

But back to people who don’t have mascara streaming down their face: Helen wants Andy to consider putting the two-headed beast known as McCranda up on the block, but he has a final-three deal with the couple. What’s a friendly floater to do? Well, in the end, he takes the easy way out, putting up perennial block-dwellers Spencer and Jessie and avoiding all conflict. Ugh, we had such high hopes for a shake-up! We’ll have to wait and see if Andy has any devious plans to backdoor some legit power players this week. But, you know, probably not.

What are your expectations for Andy’s reign as HoH? Do you have any? Or should we all just wait until the game picks back up again Thursday night? Surprise us, Andy, please! And, most importantly: What is the shelf life of McCranda? Will they even last until the finale at this rate? Share your thoughts below! (And thanks for letting me fill in for Survivor superstar Cochran. The wilderness and all its creatures are no match for Cochran, but Time Warner is a different story!)

Follow Katie on Twitter: @ktatkinson.