Sunday, August 23: This episode picks up right where we left off on Thursday: with the house guests dropping soda cans into tubes hoping to amass the necessary 24 cans to become the new HOH.  In the Diary Room, Jeff says that he opted not to backdoor Russell because then the numbers between the alliances would have been even.  However, Jeff cautioned us, that doesn't mean that Russell is not still a target.  Back at the HOH competition, Kevin and Jeff take the early lead.  Jordan reveals that the two house guests who have the least amount of cans will become the Have-Nots for the week.  For awhile, Kevin took the lead by five cans over Jeff who was in second place.  However, Russell then decides to use the dreaded "gold cans," which allow a house guest to drop another HG out of the competition for a full minute.  Russell successfully drops a gold can into his tube, and with that, Kevin is out of the game for the next 60 seconds.  During this time, Jeff begins to catch up and close Kevin's lead.  Once Kevin gets back in the game, he uses one of his own gold cans to take Russell out for a minute because revenge is a "biznatch."

This actually has the effect of helping Jeff, who had been next to Russell and had found his aim thrown off by all of Russell's stomping and running around during the game.  With Russell dormant, Jeff further closes the lead between him and Kevin until they are tied at 22 cans each.  Kevin unsuccessfully tries to use two gold cans to knock Jeff out of the game, but misses both.  They are soon tied at 23 cans each, and Jeff makes his final can and becomes the new HOH.  For their part, Russell and Michelle become the Have-Nots for the week because they landed the fewest cans in their tubes.  Jeff's power provokes feelings of paranoia among Kevin, Natalie, and Russell.

Later, in the Red Room, Natalie and Kevin once again go back to their strategizing and decide to go to Jeff and Jordan and make a final 4 deal with them by suggesting that Russell and Michelle are the much bigger threats.  We'll say one thing for these two: they can't win a competition for beans, but they sure are a sneaky pair.  That goes a long way in this game as we've learned in prior seasons.  We loved it when Natalie told Kevin that they would go to Jeff and ask him if he'd rather align himself with "sketchy" people who talk behind his back or Natalie and Kevin.  You know, the sketchy people who are always talking behind everyone's back.

In Jeff's HOH room, Russell and Michele go up to clear the air, and Jeff tells him what Kevin said about Russell wanting to get Jeff out, but Jeff doesn't mention Kevin specifically by name.  Russell denies this and tells Jeff that the other alliance would say anything to save themselves.  Later, while talking to Jordan, who foolishly trusts Kevin and Natalie over the others in her own alliance, Jeff decides to go out to the yard with Jordan to talk ot Russell and Michele once again and "call them out."  However, they make a tactical error in not also bringing out Kevin and Natalie.  At the end of it all, Jeff and Jordan only seem to become even more distrustful of Russell. 

Later, the house guests learn the extra dish to be served to the Have-Nots from the choices given on the August 16 episode will be Churros and Chitlins.  For those not in the know, "churros" are a fried pastry snack that is popular in many Spanish-speaking countries, among other places, while "chitlins" (more properly, "chitterlings") are essentially the small intestines of a pig.  Yummy!

In spite of yet another talk between Michele and Jeff in which Jeff reassures Michele that he is sticking to their final four pact, Russell is still paranoid, and given that Jeff confessed in the Diary Room that he just told Michele what she wanted to hear, he has reason to be.  Before the nomination ceremony, Kevin and Natalie put their plan into motion and suggest a final four deal to Jeff, who does seem to go along with what their saying.  Jeff has his own doubts about Russell apart from what Kevin and Natalie have been feeding him anyway, that he is definitely open-minded about another final four deal being thrown his way.  Jeff tells Kev and Nat that he will put them both up and whoever wins the veto will take someone off and put Russell up in his or her place.

At the nomination ceremony, the keys are pulled as follows: Russell, Michele, and Jordan.  This leaves Natalie and Kevin as nominees per Jeff's plan.  Kevin's non-nomination streak comes to an end, while Natalie surely achieves some sort of Big Brother record for the most nominations in the shortest amount of time: four times in about eight days.  Jeff says that he had Russell's key pulled first to make him feel safe, which Russell did, but Jeff still leaves open the possibility of backdooring Russell after the veto ceremony.

Tuesday, August 25: Following nominations, Jeff says that his next move, including whether or not he will backdoor Russell, will depend upon who wins the veto.  For his part, Russell realizes that there is a possibility he could be backdoored and realizes that the upcoming veto competition is very important for his safety.  In the backyard, Russell promises not to put Jeff on the block or ever vote against him.  However, Jeff says that he doesn't trust Russell, and reveals that it's really not based on the lie that Kevin and Natalie told him about Russell's final 4 deal with Michele.  Jeff is upset at Russell because, when Jeff used his Coup d'Etat power to remove Russell from the block with the purpose of evicting Jessie, Russell turned right around and voted to evict Natalie.  In the kitchen, Kevin and Natalie present their final four idea to Jordan, who once again assures them that they are just pawns in this week's eviction.

With only 6 house guests left, everyone has to play in the veto competition.  This contest was a variant on the tiki competition from prior seasons.  This time, Otev the Ape (voiced by evicted house guest, Casey) gave the HGs clues in a rap-rhyme format and the contestants had to slide down a greasy ramp and find a banana, from among the many strewn about the backyard, with the name of the house guest on it that answered the clue.  In each round, the last house guest to find the correct banana would be eliminated unless one of the other HGs got the answer wrong.

Question 1 asked which house guest dressed up like a "Princess from Space."  The answer was Ronnie who dressed up like Princess Leia in the veto competition on Day 13.  Natalie found the banana first, followed by Jeff, Kevin, Russell, Michelle, and Jordan.  Every contestant got it right, but Jordan was the last to find the banana with Ronnie's name on it, so she was eliminated.

Question 2 asked which house guest couldn't spell "continuously."  The answer was Jessie in the veto competition played on Day 5.  Bananas were found by Jeff, Michele, Russell, Kevin, and Natalie.  Since everyone got the answer correctly, Natalie was dropped from the competition.

Question 3 asked which contestant was evicted by and 8 to 1 vote.  The answer was Laura on Day 19.  Jeff, Michele, Kevin, and Russell found their bananas in that order.  Once again, everyone got it right, so Russell was eliminated.

Question 4 asked which was the "first-ever house guest to leave as a fruit."  The answer was Casey on Day 26, although the on-screen graphic says that it was "Day 21," which, unless they taped the eviction very early the graphic was in error because Day 21 was only 2 days after Laura's eviction.  Kevin quickly realizes that since he hasn't left the house yet, the house guest who left as a fruit must have been Casey.  Jeff finds his banana first, followed by Michele and Kevin.  Since Jeff and Michele got the answer correct, Kevin is out.

Question 5 asked which house guest was evicted by a tie-breaker vote.  The answer was Braden on Day 12.  Jeff comes back with his banana with Braden's name on it first and wins the power of veto.  As HOH and POV winner, Jeff holds all the power in the house at this point.

Russell, still as paranoid as ever (but is it paranoia since Jeff is really out to get him?) promises that if "something happens" and he goes up on the block, "there will be hell in this house."  Later, in the HOH room, Jordan and Jeff feel that they have to break up Russell and Michele, whom they think are working together.  Still later, in the backyard, Natalie and Kevin take another opportunity to ingratiate themselves to Jeff.  When Jeff asks what his assurances are from them, Natalie says that not only isn't he a target if she wins HOH next week, she wouldn't even put him on the block.  Kevin agrees to this.  However, when alone in the kitchen later, Natalie says that if one of them wins HOH next week, they have to put up Jeff or else one of them would go home.

At the veto meeting, Jeff, who has enjoyed the times where he's been able to make "big moves" in the house, runs true to form and uses the veto to remove Kevin from the block.  In his place, Jeff puts up Russell, confirming the Love Muscle's worst fears.  Jeff tells Russell that he couldn't get past "the Jessie vote," and the fact that he and Michele seemed to be getting too close to each other to the point where he felt he couldn't trust them. 

It does seem as though Jeff made a grave mistake in putting too much trust in Natalie and Kevin, but because Jeff was the strongest player in the house, he was likely to be a target no matter who won HOH next week with the exception of Jordan.  With Russell gone, it won't be that easy to get rid of Jeff, however.  After the veto ceremony, Michele has already said she needs to distance herself from Russell.  Potentially, this puts her in a good floater position, if she plays the next few days correctly.  She can make deals with both Jeff & Jordan and Natalie & Kevin and use herself as a swing vote to whomever is in power.  Since Jeff can't play HOH on Thursday, he really does need Jordan to win HOH in order to guarantee his safety.  Anyone else who wins would likely put up Jeff and Jordan on the block.

Thursday, August 27 (Day  54):