Is Jackson Michie's Game Genius, or Has He Gone Too Far?

From Oprah Magazine

At the end of a long day, sometimes the best way to feel like you're living your best life is with some comfy PJ's, a glass of wine, and gratuitous reality television. In our series "Not-So-Guilty Pleasures," we remove the "guilt" and break down the latest happenings in your favorite TV indulgences.

• On Sunday, September 15th's episode of Big Brother 21, fans saw the blowout house meeting that resulted from Jackson Michie's strategic lie about Tommy.

• The move has fans questioning the merit of Jackson's game: Is he a great BB player or did he go too far?

During Sunday night's HOH and nomination episode of Big Brother 21, we were finally shown the much-hyped house meeting that we bet will be cemented in BB history books.

At the root of it all is Jackson Michie, the 23-year-old Nashville server that's been a dominant player since he was named "Camp Counselor" on day one. Basically, after eavesdropping on a conversation between Nicole, Cliff, and Tommy—in which Tommy promised he'd throw the next HOH competition if Nicole and Cliff voted for him to stay—Jackson concocted a plan to prevent his showmance partner, Holly, from going home.

Using what he overheard, Jackson later told Cliff and Nicole that Tommy had told him he'd lie to them about throwing HOH in order to secretly align with himself and Holly. He said Tommy's endgame would be to target Cliff and bring Nicole to the end because it would be easiest to triumph over her. The actual truth? Jackson made everything up in an effort to keep his wine safari guide girlfriend from being evicted.

The plan worked because Jackson, Holly, Cliff, and Nicole are the final four together, as they initially vowed they'd be. But the move had fans zeroing in on Michie's game play. The big question: did he got too far, or will this be heralded as a legendary BB move?

Now, the name of the game when it comes to Big Brother is manipulation, and viewers love a great villain (Evel Dick anyone?), or when players take the opportunity to outsmart and twist situations into their favor as a last-minute Hail Mary. After all, this is the fandom that views "Dan's Funeral" as the most epic moment in the show's history. But what rubbed some the wrong way about Jackson's actions was the apparent callousness as he yelled at Tommy while the Broadway performer, through tears, denied lying to Cliff and Nicole. To be fair, Jackson did show some remorse—but whether he's to be believed is up to you.

When it comes down to it, this instance was a pretty solid strategic move. Even Tommy acknowledged this in his interview. Jackson did what he had to to successfully keep himself and Holly there for another week, after it looked like the duo he had promised to keep safe were turning on him. Where things become murky is when you look at Jackson's long history of missteps this season.

Despite being a competition beast with Camp Counselor, three HOHs, and four Veto wins, many superfans have taken issue with his disregard for Have-Not rules, bullying, and what they perceive as "gaslighting" Holly during the couples' arguments.

For those who haven't been watching live feeds, some of the more prominent events were:

1. Have-Nots: When Jackson was a Have-Not in the early weeks of the game, instead of eating slop, he repeatedly disregarded the rules and ate regular food. And in contrast to when cast members have done the same in previous seasons, production seemed to allow the 23-year-old to get away with it.

2. Perceived bullying and racism: On live feeds Jackson participated in Gr8tful's shunning of Camp Comeback members; said he wanted to "mule kick" David Alexander in the teeth; referred to the house's supply of eggs as "a Jessica-sized portion;" and was a part of the group that had three people of color evicted at once.

3. Accusations of "gaslighting:" Holly and Jackson have fought, as any average couple does. But fans have accused him of belittling her during their arguments.

All this is to say that despite Jackson's strong game play, some are figuring out if they can separate his more problematic actions from his strategy so that they can truly root for him on finale night.

As is with everything BB, it's up for you to decide if you're on the Michie train, acknowledging it from a distance, or straight up skipping out for a ticket on the Nicole/Cliff/Holly express.

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