Jackie’s played the game hard from day one, which I’ve liked about her, but she seemed to be confused last week between playing hard and asking the dumbest of all reality show questions: do you swear on your family? Seriously, when has that ever worked out? As per usual, it didn’t work out for her when she was voted out, and as per usual, she got up on her high horse about it. I’m not of the belief this is a bad thing myself. On the contrary, I don’t think that question should ever be asked, and if someone’s willing to stoop to that level and ask it anyway, they should be prepared to be blindsided.
When they return from elimination, the black team is not happy to see what’s gone down. Dan’s making an effort to avoid his teammates. This isn’t the way you stay in this game, dude. Granted, this lame couples twist and Bob’s stacked deck don’t leave him a lot of room to ensure he’s not the next one gone. The black team asks Jillian to approach Dan and ask him to join their team, but she knows better than to get involved in that.
Bernie is The Biggest Loser of the week. He chooses gameplay. His card is 50% off at this week’s challenge, which is not readily apparent what it means.
Eventually, Dan realizes that moping and whining and going off on his own isn’t going to get him anywhere. So he pretends he’s forgotten what happened and is willing to patch things up with his team. Jay & Mark apologize for having lied to him.
They walk to the challenge and see water, which they know isn’t good since they’re already cold. Two pairs from each team will stand on balance beams. There’s a rope with the total weight they’ve lost during their time there. Bernie will only be carrying half of the weight he’s lost because of his reward. Whoever wins can give immunity to two people, one from their own team and one from the opposite team. Since it’s about balance (actually, it’s more about strength than balance), Trent obviously sits out. Despite his lack of balance, the 50% off convinces Bernie to stay in, so Kelly sits out. Mark and Dan must hold 130 pounds; Jay and Roger have 107. Maggie and Paul are holding 85 pounds, and Bernie and Brittany have 62. Roger and Jay are the first ones out, and Mark and Dan follow. Black team wins.
Trent tells Bob that, even though others around him may be playing the game, it’s not about gameplay for him, as he just wants to lose the weight so he can be there to watch his son grow up.
Jillian comes up with a plan. She’ll put the names in a hat, and whoever’s name comes out last gets immunity. Maggie wins immunity. The theory was that this wouldn’t cause hard feelings, but it’s pretty obvious that Maggie is the weakest link of her team, so this does not sit well with Paul.
Deciding some things are beyond her knowledge, Jillian brings in a professional. A therapist. Scary. She has her mom come in to meet with her team. Bob also asks his team if they want to meet with her, but they’re not interested. They want to walk it out, not talk it out, so they go for a hike. Despite his knee injury, Trent is able to make it to the top of the mountain.
Brittany says her weight stems from her parents getting divorced, which was followed by being told that her biological father actually died when she was 4. Kelly, likewise, had to deal with her parents’ divorce at a young age, and to top that off, her family led her to believe that she was responsible for her mom having a stroke following a fight they had. Paul doesn’t remember much about his childhood, except that he was abused by his father, which he’s never talked about before.
Before the weigh-in, the black team reveals who will be getting immunity: Jay. Hmm. Interesting. I’d have gone with Dan since it would have driven a wedge between the blue team and split up another couple. Of course, that’s assuming they think they can win the weigh-in, but after last week’s win, another black team win is unlikely.
Kelly: 225 pounds (-8)
Paul: 241 pounds (-10)
Bernie: 216 pounds (-7)
Brittany: 188 pounds (-1)
Maggie: 204 pounds (-2)
Total: -28 pounds, 2.54%
Dan: 237 pounds (-7)
Roger: 292 pounds (-9)
Trent: 349 pounds (-8)
Mark: 215 pounds (-6)
Jay: 244 pounds (-4)
Total: -34 pounds, 2.48%
By the slimmest of margins, black team wins the weigh-in. Paul is the player of the week. Unfortunately, Kelly let it be known during the weigh-in that she didn’t trust her team, so that may not bode well going forward. Jay has immunity, and so does Roger. Since Dan missed Roger’s mark by 0.1%, it’s pretty obvious who’s going home here. Instead of breaking up another pair, they can just make the easy decision. Bob’s not happy with his team’s loss and walks out of the room before Alison finishes talking.
But there’s a light on the horizon for Dan. Trent doesn’t feel he’s contributing enough because of his injury, so he volunteers to be voted out. Not to be outdone, Mark also volunteers to go home. If we’re going based on what’s best for the team, the solution here is really simple. Jay should quit, or at least ask to give up his immunity.
Votes
Jay: Trent
Mark: Trent
Trent: Mark
Roger: Trent
If not for the injury, Trent could have won this thing. I don’t think they were quite ready to let him go yet, but they honored his wish to do what he felt was best for them going forward. He returns home to see his family, and then goes to the local high school where he trains athletes and are holding a pep rally for him. From his starting weight of 436 pounds, Trent is now down to 324 pounds today, for a loss of 112 pounds. He’s also passing the lessons he’s learned on to his wife.
It’s not over yet, though. Alison calls everybody into the elimination room and tells them they’re going home. Just how much have they learned, and how much self control do they have? We’ll find out next week.
Stay tuned to dingoRUE for another recap of The Biggest Loser: Couples episode 8, which airs Tuesday at 8/7c on NBC.