'Big Brother' Blowout: Taco Tuesday Turmoil Goes Down in 'BB' History ... Was it Epic or an Epic Fail?

There are moments in "Big Brother" history that stand the test of time and players who orchestrate some of the most brilliant moves to save their game. We may have just witnessed one of those moments and one of those players.

Coming into tonight's eviction episode, the writing appeared to be on the wall for Christie's game. A wild and volatile player from the beginning who's proven willing to lie and rile up ugly mobs to suit her own agenda, Michie (Jackson) finally had her in his crosshairs for his HOH reign and it looked like the house was ready to follow suit and get her out.

But then the campaigning began and Christie came up with one of the most unexpected strategies to try and save her game. While not quite as masterful as Dan Gheesling staging his own funeral and saying he was done fighting to be in the game, Christie ignored Sis (Analyse) -- who was also on the block -- completely in favor of blowing up someone else's game.

And that someone just happened to be playing one of the best and most subtle games in the house. What started as doubt and mistrust and a rewrite of reality (Christie convinced herself Nick had a deal with Michie and Holly) turned into a full-blown attack on Nick that turned Taco Tuesday into Taco Turmoil ... and Michie was eating it up.

Michie egged both Christie and Nick individually into going at it with one another. On the one hand, it was a little callous. On the other, Michie wants other big targets in the house because it makes his smaller. Christie is a huge target and if she can make Nick a big one as well, that's good for Michie and Holly's game.

And that's exactly what Christie did.

Michie and Holly stayed completely silent throughout (per what we saw on TV), neither confirming or denying Christie's conspiracy theory that Nick had deals with everyone in the house, except for the two of them. The funniest part is that Nick has been pretty transparent and everyone pretty much does know his game, including Michie and Holly knowing he was gunning for them.

And yet, in one of the most remarkable turnarounds in "Big Brother" history, it worked. Christie put Nick on everyone's radar for how shrewd and slick his game has been. And she convinced them that it was better to have a huge target in the house (her) than someone who is not a target at all (Analyse.

There is no one way to play this game. Some have seen value in floaters, while others want to play with people they feel deserve to be there. The drawback to keeping Analyse is that she was unabashedly in Nick's corner. So if Nick is a target and Sis is floating alongside him as a vote for him and someone who would protect him, her in the house further strengthens his game.

The misdirect skipped the part that Christie's game is strengthened by staying in the house with Tommy, and vice-versa. But that's the brilliance of Christie's move. The bottom line is that it worked.

The birdcall prank was actually pretty funny, as was setting up a fake competition for no reason other than to mess with sleepy HouseGuests. It was all to kick off Prank Week, which we learned gives America a huge say in how this week will play out. So the question is what America wants to do. Do they want to help the HOH or just sow seeds of chaos in the house?

It doesn't help that we're not sure where allegiances lie right now. Obviously, we know the established pairs but it's less clear where Nicole and Jessica and Cliff are in this game, or even Nick for that matter now. Jessica seems close to Christie these days, while Cliff and Nicole are closer to Michie and Holly. This week could reveal a lot.

Heading into this HOH Competition after Analyse's eviction left only Nicole having never won a comp in the house. And every other remaining HG has one exactly one HOH. So either Nicole scored her first win or we got our first repeat winner. Either is a big deal.

And it turned out to be a huge deal as Holly came out with a monumental statement going first and scoring 50 out of 50 with an incredible ball roll down an increasingly narrow platform. Tommy came closest, but no one could touch her.

Following behind Michie's win is huge for the couple and should solidify who their targets are and who they want to be working with. Will they take the shot at Nick now? Is Christie still a target? And how will America mess it up.

What no one knows is that America is going to vote for a Prankster who will get half of the duties of the HOH this week, which primarily means they will choose one of the nominees. This could absolutely change everything. If America chooses Michie, it would be fine for Holly's week. But they could also choose Christie or Nick to mess with her.

The possibilities are mind-boggling, and there's no way to predict what kind of mood America is in.

Tommy came out the real winner here because Nick is still in the house and he got Christie still in the house. Holly and Michie aren't gunning for him and he's got way more cushions around him than Nick ever did. With all those other targets in the house, this is the guy poised to dance down the middle and straight to the end. Grade: A+

Holly has played a very strategic game and then won HOH with a commanding performance at a key point in the game. There are only eight people left and there are no clear alliances, so she's positioned perfectly to get the lay of the house and where everyone's head is at heading into the home stretch. Grade: A

Christie pulled off a masterful move this week and saved what certainly looked like a doomed game. She still has strong allies in the house and may have gained a few more in the short term. The big takeaway, though, is just how clever she is and how willing to do anything she is to stay in this game. And Kat thought Cliff taking a deal was harsh. Grade: B+

Michie comes off of HOH only to see Holly snag the next one. The showmance is riding high. It remains to be seen if saving Christie was a good move or not, but in the short term he's in a good position as she won't have the chance to immediately betray him (unless America gives her that via Prank Week). Grade: B

Cliff appears to be sitting on the sidelines of the major action this week, which is just where he needs to be. He's respected in the house and trusted, which is huge in a game where trust is very hard to come by. He's proven he can make the deals to keep himself afloat and he's defied the odds already by being a power player and an older player. Grade: B-

Jessica appears to be in good with Christie, which isn't a bad place to be. Both like to stir the pot and create chaos, but Jessica gets to do it with a huge shield and target right in front of her. She appears to have drawn a line in the sand between her and Cliff and Nicole after they voted to evict Kat, so she may ultimately prove on the wrong side of the numbers. Time will tell. Grade: C

Nicole is still seen as a silent threat because she is perhaps the least transparent in the house. She doesn't talk much and she almost never shares her thoughts about the game or strategy, making her an enigma. And that makes a lot of people nervous. She's managed to lay low for awhile, but now she's the biggest non-target in the house (after Analyse), so if they start gunning for those, it's goodbye Nicole. Grade: C-

Nick is a savvy player, but he had a lot of his game just blown up in his face. And now that Holly is in the house and she knows Christie would back a play to evict Nick, as would Tommy and several others at this point now, Nick is in a precarious position. He may need to find a Taco Tuesday move of his own, but considering he initiated that conversation and it still went in Christie's favor, he may not have it. Grade: C-

Analyse just didn't have a game. She was everyone's pawn and number, as needed, throughout the game and this time she was the pawn Christie needed to shove out the door to save her game. Analyse fell victim to everyone else being better at this game than her. Grade: F

"It is so frustrating that I am sitting on the block next to Sis. Nick is the one that manipulated and constructed this whole plan to get Michie out and yet he's skating by. It's just clear that Michie and him struck some sort of deal. I need to get the rest of the house to see that." --Christie (wouldn't be the first time you tried to get the whole house to believe a lie)

"It's clear that the odds are stacked against Christie. It's definitey better for my game if Christie's still in the house at the end of the week. I'm not really optimistic, but if there's anybody that coul pull off a miracle, it's Christie." --Tommy

"Honestly, f--k Nick. He's gonna stay in the middle and make Sis and Nicole sheet at each other. And you and Cliff shoot at each other. And Nick's gonna skip to the end. I'm not letting this happen." --Christie

"I don't have a campaign against Sis, but I do have a campaign against Nick. Nick is a swindler, and he promises people that they're cool with him but then literally comes to the other side of the house and tells them that their his targets. And I just wanted you to know my angle." --Christie"That's a good angle. I'm not gonna lie. That is a damned good angle." --Michie"Yeah, like I have to do this. I'm thinking about longevity and I see Nick going to the end."

"This is your last Taco Tuesday, so why not go out with a bang." --Michie (encouraging Christie to confront Nick in front of everyone)

"She feels like you're running the game." --Michie (to Nick about Christie)"Bro, I feel like I'm not doing anything. I've never told anyone who to put up. I've never told anyone who to vote for." --Nick (but that is a viable strategy)

"It's gonna be spicy." --Michie (looking forward to the fight)

"I'm sick of people dragging my name because they're not playing as good of a game. I can only bite my tongue so long. I'm about to go do it right now, actually. I'm done with it." --Nick (storming out of diary room to confront Christie)

"This is the thing. I'm honest about everything I've ever done and you're not. Manifest the truth, bro!" --Nick

"I never told Jackson or Holly that I was protecting them. I was honest with them about it." --Nick

"Nick, you have Cliff and Nicole on one side of you and you have Sis and Tommy on the other side." --Christie"Did any of you guys not know that?" --Nick

"This is me with my back against the wall and I have no other place to stand except to say that I do have a target going into next week. And I am the biggest target so if that is a reason to keep me-- You are my target because you're no one else's. And I am still the biggest target and that's why I'm valuable." --Christie

"Sis could and will easily just float through the next few weeks. And if she's gonna float, if she's not gonna have a target on her back, that just increases the likelihood of a target being on my back." --Holly (to Michie)

"Birds. Why does it have to be birds? It's torture. It literally is torture." --Nicole (apparently just to torture you and the other HGs as it was a pointless exercise)

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