New at BOP: Review: Matrix Resurrections Movie Review: Moonfall Movie Reviews: Scream The #1 Movie in America November Forecast The Many Saints of Newark October Forecast New Trivia Question All site updates Share & Save   Tweet Print this column

For the first time in Big Brother history, this season's winning HouseGuest, Dan, won the $500,000 grand prize by a unanimous Jury of Seven vote, 7-0. Am I surprised? A bit, considering earlier this week I correctly predicted Dan winning, but just barely, securing four votes to Memphis' three.

Libra being the deciding vote? Sheesh. She voted just like the rest of 'em. And rightfully so.

Dan played a heck of a game, which I was aware of and believed, but not to the extent that hit me following an extensive video recap at the top of the finale. During Big Brother's live, one-hour finish, a video aired that showed how Dan and Memphis escaped eviction week after week, eventually making it down to the final two. Here, with Dan's most courageous moments edited together, one got the idea that Memphis had nothing to do with the success of their alliance, the self-proclaimed Renegades. It was all Dan. Completely.

Memphis earned a cool $50,000 second-place prize by aligning himself with the right person at the right time (Dan, of course). Just a few weeks in, the boys decided that the only people they could truly trust in the house were themselves, and thus the Renegades alliance was born. They strayed far from the limelight, for the most part, but attempting to hide their alliance from the rest of the house by nominating each other for eviction when given the power to do so.

Whose idea was this? Why, Dan's of course.

You know what else Dan did? He repaired an old wound late in the game by inviting Michelle on a secret island getaway. There, Dan explained why it was necessary to backdoor Michelle for his game to continue. What did Michelle take away from the whole ordeal? She gained a respect for Dan that she never previously had (or at the very least, gained it back after swearing it off completely following her surprise eviction). She took this information back with her to the Jury House, and it undoubtedly helped influence the opinions of the other members of the Jury of Seven.

Dan also got a departed Keesha to remain on his side until the end by convincing her that it was solely Memphis who wanted her evicted when she sat on the Chopping Block alongside Jerry. At the time, the news stunned Keesha, who had done everything but donate a limb or two to ensure Memphis stayed in the game with her until the end (or at least closer than the final four). And in the Big Brother universe, a vote from Keesha also means a vote from Renny. (Although it certainly helped matters that Renny never really liked Memphis to begin with).

Those were the three Dan votes I was expecting. The other four votes would have been a surprise to me a few days ago - hence the close 4-3 vote I previous predicted. But by the time the votes were revealed at the end of the finale, it was pretty clear to me that the remainder of the Jury of Seven would be just as amazed at Dan's gameplay as I was.

Unlike Memphis, Dan PLAYED the game, in all senses of the word. He formed alliances where he saw fit, and ditched the dead wood when the time seemed right. He took some pretty incredible chances - that Ollie deal, anyone? – yet they all paid off big time in the end.

America loves Keesha

Big Brother crowned more than one winner on Tuesday. In fact, America was put in charge of selecting its favorite Jury of Seven member, with the winner pocketing a healthy $25,000.

I was right when I said Keesha would claim the prize, but was a bit disappointed with America when it was revealed she barely edged out Jerry for the money. Seriously, Jerry? I guess I'll never understand viewers' fascination with the old man. Sure, he's old. Sure, his wife has Parkinson's, which causes him to tear up in front of the other HouseGuests whenever he talks about her. Sure, he can hold his own (more or less) when entering into a verbal fighting match with another HouseGuest.

Yet there's something about him that still rubs me the wrong way. Maybe it's his scratchy voice, who knows.

Final thoughts

So it's a wrap on this season of CBS's Big Brother. For its 10th anniversary, the Big Brother folks made a good move by approving a "back to basics" season. Finally, a live audience accompanied host Julie Chen on eviction night. And even better, all 13 HouseGuests entered the house as complete strangers. None of them played the game with a secret partner. None of them found out weeks later that they are in fact related. None of them were forced to compete against an ex-boyfriend or girlfriend. (Yes, all of these gimmicks at one time or another played as a given season's "big twist").

Basically, it was a season where HouseGuests were asked to enter the house with a strategy, and then watch and see how it played out. And Dan did exactly that.

Thanks for reading, and perhaps we'll reunite again once Big Brother 11 hits the airwaves.

BOP is doing a link exchange with our good friends at Buddy TV this season. For more Big Brother info, visit their site.