by David McAlpine

 

Last time on The Biggest Loser, the contestants endured a week at the circus. The night ended with a hocking double elimination, sending Daniel home immediately. It came down to Shay or Amanda in the elimination room, where Shay was eventually sent packing, too, eliminating the original Orange Team.

 

This week, we jump right into things with the traditional “you’re almost at the end” reward: a makeover! Their task is to give a personal speech to an auditorium full of people about their experiences and how their journey has been, but first they have to look awesome to do it, right? So, up comes Tim Gunn and Tabatha Coffey, two of our favorite Bravo staples, to help them do it.

 

It’s really touching how well Tabatha and Tim do with the contestants, because they make it about each individual person and making them feel better about themselves. They know these people have just lost a bunch of weight and they want to help them show it off! The only convincing that was needed was when Tabatha wanted to chop off Rudy’s beard and he was really hesitant about it. Let’s just say she won the battle—and I’m glad she did.

 

Some of the contestants really didn’t seem to change that much. Sure, their make up was a little better and they weren’t wearing the frumpy, muumuu like “Biggest Loser” shirts, but they just didn’t pop out to me as makeovers. Rebecca and Allen, however, looked like completely new people. It was pretty amazing to watch.

 

Surprise #2: their families are there, too! They all sit in the crowd as each contestant gives their inspirational speech. Some (erm, Amanda) seemed a little stiff, but others, like Allen and Liz, seemed really genuine and excited to share this experience with everyone in the audience.

 

But no one’s speech was as big as Rudy’s when he dropped the bombshell that his sister was diagnosed with cancer when he was 15. The look on Jillian’s face is kind of priceless, because she’s so shocked that he’s been on the ranch for three months and still managed to keep that secret.

 

Onto the reward challenge, where each contestant would have to rappel across a 700-foot long canyon—200 feet in the air. Even though it was scary, they were tempted with the prize of a 2-week trip to the new Biggest Loser resort with their entire family. Liz was not having it, but everyone else convinced her to go anyway. Though it looked like it was close, I have a feeling it wasn’t because Rudy won with the same huge lead he started with.

 

With only six contestants left, the last chance workouts are even more crucial than ever, because who knows who is safe once the yellow line is determined. Bob is really getting on Allen this week because Allen hasn’t won that many challenges since his winning streak a few weeks ago. Allen reveals that he’s laying low so people don’t think he’s a threat. At least he’s playing the game smart.

 

Cut to Jillian, who feels the need to discuss with Rudy about his sister. Of course, by discuss, I mean yell “didn’t know your sister died!” at the top of her lungs while he’s working out. Oh, Jillian. Then it was the weigh-in—results were as follows:

 

Rudy: -16 (-4.94%)

Amanda: -9 (-4.46%) – fell below 200 pounds

Danny: -12 (-3.80%)

Allen: -5 (-2.06%)

Liz: -3 (-1.46%)

Rebecca: -3 (-1.44%)

 

Liz is no stranger to this process, but Rebecca is really shocked and saddened that she’s here. Of course, she’s also been one of the most manipulative people in the game (remember last week when she voted to keep Amanda because she can control what she does?), so I’m guessing her days are numbered.

 

Liz’s speech was flat and didn’t really give much to anyone who would want to keep her. It was at this point that I realized the Pink Team is not the only team still here—Liz and Danny both made up the Brown Team. How that completely escaped me I have no idea.

 

Amanda’s plea is a little smarter—she asks to talk to only Allen and Rudy (since Amanda is obviously keeping Rebecca and Danny is keeping Liz). Filled with tears, her plea was more desperate than anything else, including saying that she doesn’t want to be Liz in 25 years. Her closing is a real zinger: “She (Liz) got her second and third chance. I’d like my second chance, please!”

 

In the elimination room, Ali established that, if the vote tied, Rebecca would be going home, because she had the least percentage of weight lost. That meant she needed both Rudy and Allen to keep her. So, after Amanda and Danny revealed their votes, it came down to Rudy. He makes a sideswiping comment about trust and playing both sides of the fence, then votes for Rebecca to go home.

 

Rebecca swings back, demanding to know what her meant. Cue an argument between the two where five or six weeks of drama boils over in a yelling match, which basically comes down to Rudy not liking how Rebecca played the game.

 

On her way out, she gives the ultimate pep talk to Amanda and gives Rudy an icy-cold glare.  Now that she’s off the ranch, she’s preparing to run a half marathon, something she never thought she would do. On The Jay Leno Show following the episode, Rebecca reported losing 49 pounds after leaving the ranch—not to mention she’s dating Daniel now!

 

It’s down to the final five on The Biggest Loser. Who will stay and who will fall below the yellow line? Tune in to NBC next Tuesday at 8/7c to see!

 

(Photo courtesy of NBC)

 

Follow David on Twitter: @DavidMcAlpine

 

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