Entertainment

It's Basically Over for the Other Houseguests

by Laura Rosenfeld

We're getting down to the wire here, everybody. There's only a few weeks until the Big Brother finale in September, and one of the remaining eight houseguests is going to win this thing. But let's be real. Frankie is the clear-cut winner of this season of Big Brother, so if any of the other houseguests even want to think about taking home the top prize, they've got to evict him the second they get the chance.

I know these are fighting words among the Big Brother community. I like Frankie as much as the next Big Brother fan. This is just my bit of totally unsolicited advice for the remaining houseguests. Forget about Christine, the supposed mastermind of the house. Forget about Donny, who everyone thinks is hiding a deep, dark secret. And forget about Victoria, who is the most non-threatening floater that ever did walk through those Big Brother doors. Frankie is the one you want gone.

At the beginning of this season, I had my doubts about Frankie. He seemed loud, obnoxious, and just cast because of his famous family member and well-known YouTube videos. However, time and time again, Frankie has proven that he has the skills and the know-how to go down in history as one of the most powerful Big Brother players ever. Here's what makes Frankie basically unbeatable at the end of the game.

He dominates at the challenges

Though Caleb may have the nickname "Beast Mode Cowboy" this season, Frankie is the real "Beast" of the Big Brother house. He has won four HoH competitions, more than any other houseguest this season. Even when the other houseguests want to evict Frankie, they can't. If watching him succeed at last week's Battle of the Block competition all by himself when his co-nominee Caleb literally sat out doesn't convince you of Frankie's supremacy, I don't know what will.

Losing also works for him

Of the times Frankie has been HoH this season, his nominees stayed on the block just half of the time. Although that meant Frankie wouldn't be safe for that week, it also meant that the people he nominated could cool off and not be faced with a real threat of going home. Ultimately, this worked to Frankie's advantage during the season because he didn't face being backdoored since his co-HoH was usually an alliance member, and the houseguests he nominated didn't resent him since they soon got off the block. Frankie may be the most successful loser in Big Brother history.

His Grande secret has actually helped him

Usually when Big Brother contestants reveal juicy secrets of their real lives to their fellow houseguests, it does not bode well for them. When Frankie finally told the houseguests the secret he has been keeping from them this entire season, that his sister is mega-pop star Ariana Grande, I would have thought that was it for Frankie. But no. It seems like the houseguests have either brushed off his news or they love him more for it. (Cough cough, Victoria, cough cough.) How Frankie was able to pull that one off, I just don't know. Time will tell if the situation remains the same, but for now that was a once-in-a-Big-Brother miracle.

He's playing for charity

When Frankie revealed his famous sister, he also told the houseguests that he's playing for charity, and if he wins, he's going to donate the money to buildOn, the charity he works with. Zach, rather dramatically, said what we were all thinking in the Diary Room, that the jury won't be able to help but vote for Frankie and his altruistic intentions. No one wants to seem like the bad guy for not helping to build schools in Africa. This game is as good as Frankie's.

Aligning himself with loose cannons actually works for him

In general in the Big Brother house, you want to stay as far away from houseguests whose behavior is unpredictable. No one wants to be associated with someone who can seemingly go crazy at the bat of an eye because they blow up people's games and they're just downright unlikable. However, two of Frankie's closest allies this season have been Zach, who is never one to shy away from launching a "Zach Attack" on the house, and Caleb, who isn't afraid to stir the pot by constantly volunteering to go on the block or throw competitions. Frankie's allegiance to these players has actually helped his game by deflecting attention away from him, keeping him off the block, and even earning some cash on the side by helping him complete a Team America challenge. You go, Frankie. Befriend those crazy houseguests.

No one stays mad at him

A week ago, everyone hated Frankie. They were sick of his lying, backstabbing, and scheming, and he was as good as gone. However, once Frankie took himself off the block and came clean about his secret past, it was like everyone respected him again. His Battle of the Block win was undoubtedly impressive and he did seem like he genuinely wanted to make peace with everyone when he came clean about the truth. But that shouldn't have erased all of Frankie's manipulating. Plus, did you see how Zach, who a hot second ago felt betrayed by Frankie, embraced him after he won the Power of Veto? It was like Zankie never skipped a beat. Whether it's the hair, his sense of humor, or the houseguests are just really, really stupid this season (Honestly, it could be any one of these.), Frankie just has a way of getting back into people's hearts.

With all of this working in his favor, Big Brother is Frankie's game to lose.

Images: Lisette M. Azar/CBS