'Big Brother' recap: Nicole Anthony wins Head of Household, nominates Jackson Michie and Holly Allen for eviction

Big Brother featured Nicole Anthony winning Head of Household and putting Holly Allen and Jackson Michie on the chopping block after footage showed Michie and Tommy Bracco's explosive falling out before Tommy's eviction during Sunday night's Season 21 episode on CBS.


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Big Brother 21 - Episode 36

The Big Brother broadcast began with footage from Day 86, when the houseguests -- except for Michie -- were competing in the endurance Head of Household competition.

Michie admitted he had said things he didn't want to say and did things he didn't want to do in order to protect Holly and keep her safe. He just hoped his mother wasn't disappointed in him.

Things apparently spiraled out of control about eight hours before the live eviction.


Nicole and Cliff Hogg apparently confronted Tommy Bracco about Michie's claims, and Tommy denied ever saying he wanted to take Michie to the end. Tommy insisted he wasn't a liar and he wanted to go to the end with Cliff and Nicole.

Tommy was "shocked" and "impressed" by what Michie had managed to pull off, but he was pissed.

Nicole then watched Tommy and Michie argue in attempt to figure out who was telling the truth and what was fiction.

Michie accused Tommy of playing both sides of the house. Michie alleged Tommy had said he'd throw the next HoH competition so Nicole couldn't vote and then he and Michie would work together to vote Cliff out.

Tommy said, "Jackson, I did not tell you that... That is a lie."


Michie tried to pile evidence one on top of the other to cloud Nicole and Cliff's judgement so they would believe him over Tommy. Michie wanted Nicole and Cliff to feel keeping Holly would be a safer bet than keeping Tommy.

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Michie said Tommy had set himself up for success and the jury loved him, but Tommy pointed out Michie was the biggest threat in the house and had won multiple HoH competitions.

"You've got this game won," Michie said.

"Jackson, if I get a chance to take you out, I will. I will not be taking you to second. I have never said I wanted to take you," Tommy insisted.


Michie also alleged Tommy had told him that he'd allow Nicole and Cliff to force him to use the Power of Veto in their favor.

Tommy denied everything, but Michie continued to push and yell louder. Michie said Tommy was only acting like he was on Nicole and Cliff's side because he had been caught and needed to make a decision once and for all.

"I'm not playing both sides. I never have," Tommy said. "I never said this plan to you, ever."

Tommy then called Holly out, saying she needed to stand up for herself and be her own person. Michie was grasping at straws, and Holly admitted in the Diary Room it shouldn't have come to this.

Tommy cried and Michie told him to "own" his behavior. But Nicole pointed out the Final 6 were all playing both sides.


Tommy said he wanted to fight on Nicole and Cliff's side, but Michie argued he had been coming after the pair for weeks.

"I am telling you, Jackson, I would rather go out in third place than take you with me to Final 2. I do not think you deserve this money... I think they deserve this money; I think [Nicole] deserves this money, and that is my truth," Tommy announced.

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After the big fight, Nicole said she saw through Michie because he's "so smart." Nicole said Michie was able to put two and two together and saw through everything.

Nicole believed in her gut Tommy was telling the truth and Michie was the person who was manipulating the situation. Cliff, however, wanted to believe Michie because that's where their loyalty lied.


"'Just own it' is a quote [Brett Robinson] said when he was fabricating a story and trying to pin somebody else down for it. That raises a big red flag, and I don't like it, because I don't want to see Tommy get Rockstarred," Nicole said, referring to how Brett had thrown Angie "Rockstar" Lantry under the bus during Big Brother's 20th season.

Cliff didn't want to keep Tommy around because he'd probably take Nicole to the Final 2 over himself, but Nicole pushed to keep Tommy and he decided to go along with it.

Cliff trusted Michie, who didn't feel bad about lying to his face. Michie knew he'd take Holly to the end over Cliff or Nicole no matter what if given the option.

Cliff thought the right choice was staying with Michie, but he didn't want to jeopardize his relationship with Nicole by pushing too hard.

Michie told Nicole that if she wanted to betray him and burn bridges, that'd be fine, but he was clearly furious. Michie yelled about how it didn't make sense for Cliff and Nicole to work against him when he and Holly had their back the entire time.

Tommy said he "never hard pitched Cliff," but Michie pointed out he had never even thought about targeting Cliff.


Holly pointed out Nicole would lose the $500,000 to Tommy because he had "the jury on lock," but Nicole announced that would be better than "taking third to a showmance."

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Michie said he and Holly played "individual games," but Nicole said there was absolutely no way Michie would ever choose her over Holly or Cliff.

Michie kept bringing up the Final 4 deal and how Nicole had sworn loyalty to him before. Michie was suggesting Nicole and Cliff wouldn't be good on their word if they chose to send Holly packing.

"We have never gone against y'all!" Michie screamed with tears in his eyes.

Nicole said her brain was going to explode because she didn't know who was blowing smoke and who was telling the truth.


Nicole ended up being on the fence about what to do, so Cliff nudged her in the direction he wanted.  Holly promised Cliff and Nicole her loyalty was "unwavering" and she would even throw the next HoH competition to prove that.

"I just want to stay in this game. I just want to be here," Holly cried.

Michie then flat out told Cliff and Nicole that he'd go to Final 3 with them if he won the Power of Veto. Michie said he had been trying to hint at that for days because he didn't want to announce he'd let Holly go on national television and look like a jerk.

"I want to go to the Final 3 with y'all," Michie told the pair repeatedly. "That's not wavering, nor has it ever."

Cliff thought he and Nicole had an agreement with Michie, who asked the pair to have faith in him.

Cliff said he believed Michie would hold to that, and if he doesn't, he'd pay the price. Nicole didn't know whether to go with the best odds or reply on the deal Cliff had just made.


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Holly then promised Cliff and Nicole she would throw the next HoH competition as well as the next Veto competition.

"I think there is more going on with Tommy than he has let on," Cliff told Nicole.

Nicole vented about how she was "depressed" and "done." And 12 minutes before the eviction, Nicole bawled her eyes out crying, with Michie there to support her.

And with all that being said and done, Cliff put his game first and Tommy was voted out at the live eviction.

Cliff was willing to do anything to make it as far as possible in the game, but Nicole trusted him completely because he had never burned her before.


Footage then picked up with the Head of Household competition again. Nicole hoped and prayed Michie and Holly would hold up their deals going forward.

Michie said he needed Holly to throw the competition or else he'd be going home with the golden power of veto around his neck.

Holly was supposed to throw the competition, but she had a hard time doing so. She knew she could win it, but in the end, she decided to drop after Cliff.

Nicole therefore became the new Head of Household, and she couldn't believe Holly had actually honored her word.

"I am the HoH! I am going to Final 3 -- guaranteed!" Nicole cried in the Diary Room.

Holly couldn't believe she had handed Nicole a spot in the Final 3 on a silver platter when the foursome initially had a solid Final 4 deal. Holly was shocked Nicole and Cliff had manipulated the situation as such.


Cliff later told Michie that he didn't regret anything he and Nicole had done.

"Take care of me and I'll take care of you. I would hope if we made Final 3 and it came down to a decision on your part, I love Nicole, but I would love to see you and I there in the end," Cliff told Michie.

"If I don't walk out with the confetti, I want to be hit by it because you're walking out there with it," Michie said in reply.

Michie, however, was still secretly holding out hope it would be Holly and himself as the Final 2.

After a while, Michie broke down and cried because he felt simply awful about what he had done to Tommy. Michie felt bad about hurting Tommy, but he told Holly, "I couldn't lose you."

Michie went 86 days without crying in the house but finally broke. Michie feared it was all for nothing, and he said breaking Tommy's heart really hurt him because that's not the kind of guy he is.


"But I am loyal to a fault, and I'm not turning my back on Holly," Michie said in the Diary Room.

Cliff then shared with Nicole that Michie had promised to take him to Final 3, which means Cliff would have to take Michie to the end over Holly. Nicole, however, was not onboard with taking the biggest threat in the game to the end.

Nicole said they could make a decision after the Veto competition, but Cliff told Nicole that he wasn't going to back out of his agreement with Michie.

"If Cliff and Michie have this agreement to take each other to Final 3 and they're talking a lot, there must be more to it. It's like, 'What are you playing here?' There must be a Final 2 deal there, I see it," Nicole said in the Diary Room.

At the Nomination Ceremony, Nicole announced she had decided to nominate Michie and Holly for eviction.

Nicole said they had made the Final 4 together despite road bumps along the way.


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The winner of the veto would determine who casts the sole vote to evict, so it was going to come down to that.

Holly was shocked Nicole would nominate her after she had thrown the HoH competition, so Holly was ready to take her gloves off, and she said she had no choice other than to win the veto.






About The Author: Elizabeth Kwiatkowski