When the cast of Big Brother 17 was revealed, everyone took one look at Steve and said he was Ian Terry 2.0. Even the other HGs made the comparison between Sneaky Steve and the winner of season 14. But little could we have known how the two seasons would line up almost perfectly, with Steve following the exact same pattern as Ian to the end.
And Steve isn’t the only HG this year who lines up with a counterpart from season 14. Vanessa has turned into the spitting image of Dan Gheesling, complete with the dirty betrayals and hands soaked in blood.
Here’s just five examples of how seasons 14 and 17 are the same and how Vanessa and Steve are the new Dan and Ian.
Quack Pack vs. Scamper Squad
Both alliances featured a showmance (Shane and Danielle vs. Austin and Liz), a manipulative mastermind (Dan and Vanessa), a nerdy misfit (Ian and Steve) and a sassy blonde who wasn’t good at competitions (Britney and Julia).
The Quack Pack and Scamper Squad started out with four people, but then added a fifth. The Quack Pack began as a showmance with their coaches, but then added Ian as the misfit. The Scamper Squad was originally Austin’s Angels, but added Steve as the misfit. For both alliances, the sassy blond was evicted first, followed by the male half of the showmance.
Socially Awkward Nerds
Do I even need to explain how similar Steve and Ian are? They’re both very young college students (Ian was 21, Steve is 22). They’re both socially awkward, supremely nerdy superfans who do strange things, but who have grown and matured and endeared themselves to the other HGs over the course of the season. Even if they didn’t kind of look alike, their personalities line up perfectly.
Dan and Vanessa Betrayed a Showmance
Dan and Vanessa both got their fair share of blood on their hands during their seasons. Dan pulled off his own funeral while Vanessa came back from the dead after Becky backdoored her.
But perhaps the greatest comparison is that, at the Final 4, Dan blindsided the season 14 showmance by evicting Shane and keeping Ian, then doing major damage control with Danielle, who was left in tears. In season 17, Vanessa did the exact same thing to Austin at the Final 5, blindsiding him as he sat next to Steve and then working on Liz afterwards.
Ian and Steve Wanted Hot Blonde Showmances
On the feeds, Steve definitely seemed to have the hots Liz’s twin sister Julia, playfully flirting with her. She kind of flirted back, but made it very clear she had no interest in someone like him. In season 14, Ian had a similar flirtation with the bubbly Ashley.
In an even bigger coincidence, Ian was the HoH who ended up evicting Ashley because his target, Frank, won the Power of Veto. That’s the same as when Steve was the HoH who evicted Julia because his target, Austin, won the PoV.
The Same Final 3
The two seasons have identical Final 3s. Liz is Danielle, the easily-manipulated half of a showmance who seems to do whatever Vanessa tells her to do. Steve is, of course, the Ian. And Vanessa is playing the Dan role, working on deals with both of them.
The first part of the final HoH competition of season 17 was even identical to the one from season 14, with the same result of Steve/Ian falling off first and then Vanessa/Dan convincing Liz/Danielle to throw it to them.
It’s astounding when you stack up all of the comparisons between these two seasons. There are even other similarities, with James playing the role of Frank Eudy, the likable competition beast who constantly thwarted attempts to evict him. And that makes Johnny Mac a combination of Jenn City and Chef Joe, the person who never wins HoH and gets dragged to the end because of it. Vanessa even started working with John before taking him out, just like Dan worked with Jenn when he convinced her to use the Power of Veto to save him.
However, will history repeat itself? In season 14, Ian won the final HoH and took Dan to the end, beating him because the bitter jury was so angry at Dan’s dirty game play.
Find out if the endgame plays out the same way on Wednesday, September 23 at 9:30pm for the finale of Big Brother 17.
(Image courtesy of CBS)
Senior Writer, BuddyTV
John watches nearly every show on TV, but he specializes in sci-fi/fantasy like The Vampire Diaries, Supernatural and True Blood. However, he can also be found writing about everything from Survivor and Glee to One Tree Hill and Smallville.
