James Gunn Appearing on, “Big Brother,” Was Oddly Fun

I have not blogged a ton about the current season of, "Big Brother," the 27th. Part of this is because there have been many other interesting things to write about, and also, last season, the 26th, was among my recent favorites. I was worried that the following season would feel like a bit of a letdown. This current season has been no means been bad but it has definitely been a bit flat. Outside of a handful of quite intriguing personalities like Keanu, Kelley, Ava, Will, and some other folks who were fun but went home early (Jimmy), it has been a dull season. One veteran returned, Rachel Reiley, but she was a big element of the show before I started watching in season 14, so I don’t have as many strong feelings about her as the longest-time fans of the show. There was some controversy about how she went home due to a competition that was difficult, but outside of that, it’s been a relatively tame and enjoyable but bland-ish season. 

This season is like a slice of cheese pizza without much seasoning. It’s pizza, so you’ll eat it, but you wouldn’t mind a little bit more flavoring or even some toppings, maybe. At least it’s not a rancid pizza which is something we’ve arguably had in some seasons! Possibly the strangest thing to come out of this season, however, has been the BB Unlocked show that has aired every other Friday (usually), featuring former winners Derrick and Taylor chatting--along with various other former contestants and celebrity guest stars. The celebrity guest stars have ranged from likeable people who are by no means huge (Bobby Moynihan, Jerry O’Connell) to interestingly notable (Matt Berry, Lance Bass). For the final episode, James Gunn of all people was revealed to be a huge Big Brother fan who co-hosted the Friday episode.

James Gunn is currently one of the most powerful people in Hollywood as the co-head of DC Studios, writer and Director of the recent, "Superman," flick, writer and Director of many episodes of, "Peacemaker," and so forth. The man also apparently just loves, "Big Brother," and was excited to appear on the show and get zinged by Zing Bot. His presence seemed to inject the sometimes lackluster pseudo-talk show with a bit of energy because I don’t think anyone would accuse Taylor or Derrick of being especially full of gumption (their laid-back personalities arguably are why they were able to win the show in the first place). 

Having James Gunn on was strange but fun and gave this episode of, "Big Brother/BB Unlocked," a lot more personality than a number of the contestants this season have had. I don’t know if, "BB Unlocked," will, in fact, return for a new season or if it was a one-off experiment that did not get enough viewership to continue. "Big Brother," will be back for a 28th season next summer, however, and as always, I’ll be pleased as long as it’s entertaining, regardless of whether it’s amazing or not. Still, I always enjoy a really good season as opposed to a perfectly fine one. At least, I can always hope we don’t get trainwrecks like season 15 or 19.