Then they brought out Ron and Mike to see who America voted into the final 3…..both looked awesome but Mikey clearly lost more than Ron, at least to the naked eye. We’re all sick of their gameplay, but you have to hand it to them on doing a great job. And, drum roll please….America voted Mikey in! Many of us were pulling for Ron because we didn’t want to give him what he wanted, but I think in the end everyone saw a Mike-Helen-Tara final as more compelling.

Then a new twist as they brought out two potential contestants from next season, Erinn and Amanda, who looked like they could be twins. America would vote throughout the show on who they wanted on the show. Mrs. Mike said was everyone was thinking…just let them both on!

Then it was time to start bringing out each contestant in sets of four to weigh in. First, Estella and Jerry, the oldest two people ever on the show; and Damien and Nicole. Estella lost 83 pounds, or 34.3%, but Jerry shocked everyone by losing a whopping 177 pounds, or 47% of his original weight of 369. Wow. Dr. H was on hand and went on and on about how Jerry was as healthy as he’s ever been after battling many diseases and conditions early on. Good for him! Damien lost 136 pounds and Nicole 123, but neither was good enough to overtake Jerry. Nicole however is now fitting into a Size 8 wedding dress as she had hoped!

Then came Sione and Filipe, Carla and Joelle. Sione and Filipe were asked to do their hilarious “oonga boonga” Hawaiian dance, before weighing in. Both of them are inspiring the rest of their pork rind-eating family at home. Sione lost 146 pounds and Filipe 135, great numbers but not good enough to take the lead. Carla and Joelle appear to have made up, and both looked really good. Carla lost a stunning 128 pounds, and Joelle, the slacker of the two, lost 80 pounds but looked like she lost more.

Then came Blaine and Dane, as well as Mandi and Aubrey. Blaine lost 116 pounds and Dane 154 (he started at 412!), and both have been running marathons with regularity. Good for them. But they didn’t lose as much percentage as Jerry. Mandi lost 92 pounds and Aubrey only 55, but Aubrey went on about how tough it is being a mom and keeping herself on track, and gave a shout out to all the moms out there to keep on keeping on.

Seven left….next up, Cathy and Kristin, David and Dan. Cathy looked great but Kristin looked amazing, despite her platinum blonde, Pink-esque hair style. Yikes. Cathy lost 95 pounds and Kristin lost (wait for it…) 167 pounds! While Kristin has also become a great motivational speaker back home, and while she went from 360 pounds to 193, it wasn’t enough to pass Jerry. David lost 43 pounds, the lowest percentage among everyone last night, but hey, it’s something. Dan, the heaviest contestant ever at 454 pounds, lost 142 pounds, down to 312, and looks amazing. Let’s hope he keeps after it. But hey, still nobody has surpassed Jerry!

Next up, Laura, Shannon, and Ron. Laura looked awesome, but let’s face it…she was sent home after a bad hip injury so was at a bit of a disadvantage. Laura lost 86 pounds. Shannon, Helen’s daughter who everyone but Helen feels bad for about Helen sending her home too early, lost 92 pounds…not bad at all, but not good enough. So it was down to turkey man (thanks Chris) Ron…..he looked great but to me, not 50% great. Still, Ron lost 192 pounds, down from 430 to 238. Wow. But, Jerry took the $100K at-home challenge crown! Jerry, the 64-year-old man who collapsed at the start of the season, who battled through all that as well as leaving the show around Week 2. Wow wow wow, is all I have to say. What an amazing story.

Mrs. Mike pointed out that with Joan Rivers winning the “Celebrity Apprentice,” that old people were having the “Best Week Ever” (thanks VH-1). Then they showed the winner and runner-up from the Australian version of “The Biggest Loser.” Wow, this show has gone global? And they announced that Amanda won the spot on next season’s show.

Then it was on to the big weigh in between Helen, Tara and Mikey. Mikey was brought out first because he was already introduced earlier. Then Helen, who looks amazing but whose saggy arm flab was almost touching the ground. Then Tara came out, and Mrs. Mike and I held our breath, because for whatever reason Tara didn’t look like a winner. Since Tara won an amazing 12 challenges and never fell below the yellow line, she was able to choose the order of the weigh-in…it would be Helen, Mikey and her. Helen lost 140 pounds, down from 257 to a stunning 117. Damn….117? I think I could pick her up with one hand by her arm flab. Anyway, that was good for 54.47%. Uh-oh. Who would top that? Mikey went next, losing 207 pounds, down from 388 to 181, but just short at 53.35%. Uh-oh. But hey, Godfather Turkey Man and Turkey Son didn’t win anything! Then Tara…..everyone held their collective breath….and she lost 155 pounds, down from 294 to and awesome 139…..but sadly, not good enough to beat Helen, or even Mike.

Helen was crowned the Biggest Loser. Mrs. Mike threw something at the TV, and I hoped that Helen would share her $250K with Shannon. But she probably won’t. So this season, your Biggest Loser is a 47-year-old mom from Michigan who was a somewhat quiet, tequila swilling gameplayer the whole time. Let’s see what kind of role model she is for America and the world.

So that’s it…read here tomorrow as I’m taking part in a conference call with Helen today and we’ll have a recap and see if anyone gives her a hard time about Shannon! Meanwhile, I’d love to hear what you all think of this outcome. Thanks for reading!

The final four went home for 30 days and then would return to the ranch to weigh in one final time, with America voting someone off, or rather, voting someone in to the live finale next Tuesday. Ron and Mike went home to Detroit, Tara to Long Island and Helen to Lansing (does anyone else notice how many contestants are from Michigan and Wisconsin every season?).

And here, I would like to give a shout out to our reader Chris, who pointed out that Ron looks like a turkey with his shirt off…..Mrs. Mike reminded me, and then every time Ron spoke we noticed he had a turkey neck thing going, and we snickered like a couple of 12 year olds.

Anyway, everyone was struggling with being home, and that shouldn’t really be a big surprise. That ranch is pure torture on these contestants, but they do indeed need their trainers and the structure of being on campus. But they were all welcomed by their families, and Helen’s daughter Shannon was there but you could clearly see how pissed she still is about Helen sending her home early in the competition. Argh. Then they didn’t show Shannon again, further proof that she is pissed and not faring well at home. They also showed Ron’s son Max, but there was a good story in this, which we’ll get to.

Then it came. Everyone received a Biggest Loser package on their doorstep, and it was a DVD of Alison Sweeney telling them they would all be running a marathon when they returned to Cali.
Yikes. First a half-marathon, and then this? These producers are psychotic….there is really no other way to say that. Mikey was pissed and really, all of them started freaking out, wondering if they could finish a 26 mile race. Bob and Jillian then surprised each of them with a visit to train and hang with them for a day or so……and both of them were pissed about the marathon too. Bob even told Ron he didn’t think he should do it, but Ron was determined to walk it.

Jillian had to calm down Mikey, Helen and Tara, who were all having issues with being home. But then when Bob showed up at Ron and Mikey’s house, he wound up paying more attention to younger brother Max….even training him and teaching him about nutrition. I was not looking forward to more footage on this kid, but it was really awesome to see Bob do that. I’d be really surprised if Max isn’t invited to the show next season. Oh, and producers….did we need to see Max puking so graphically? I mean, I could almost tell you what he ate before working out….ewww!

Then in training for the marathon, Mikey hurt his hip and was told by doctors that he could not run, but that he could walk the race. Mikey was pissed. Then it came time, and Alison told each of them that they would get $10,000 for charity if they finished. As they went along, members of their families were placed at the mile markers to run/walk with them and be encouraging, as well as former contestants like Ali, Michelle, Bernie and Heba. Tara, who kept saying she was having recurring nightmares about not finishing the race, finished first….of course she did. Then Helen finished, and later Mikey did, walking the whole thing. Bernie told Mikey he should be proud of accomplishing that, even if he had to walk it all. Then Ron, who was really struggling and dealing with a bad knee and high blood pressure, almost had to stop. But something inside Ron made him keep going, and as much as I can’t stand the Turkey Man, it was kind of cool to see him finish.

Then it was weigh-in time. Ron and Mike went first and each lost 10 pounds. That’s a pretty big accomplishment, even after all this time and after 30 days at home, but these are two hefty men, so who knows. Helen had to lose 6 or more pounds to make the finale, and she lost 7. Tara had to lose 7 or more, and she lost 10, putting her in the finals too. So then guess what? Mike and Ron fell below the yellow line together. This is exactly what many of us wanted, the chance to spoil the gameplay of the Godfather Turkey Man. Naturally, Ron pleaded with us to vote Mikey in, and not him. But like last season when Heba and Ed did the same thing and America was sick of Heba’s gameplay and voted Ed in, I see that happening this time with everyone voting in Ron. Either way, one of them will have a shot at the $250K. So do we vote Ron in for spite, or do we allow Mikey to have a shot against Tara and Helen? I can’t imagine Tara is not going to win it all at this point, and I’d much rather her win than Helen or the Turkey family. So let’s vote Ron in (1-866-613-0002…..or for Mikey, dial 1-866-613-0001) and let Tara squash him like a bug. Then, hopefully, Sione or Kristin or Filipe or Cathy or Nicole will win the $100K. Really, anyone but a turkey.

Are you with me? Let the discussion begin!

Then they had a game show type challenge with the editor of Good Housekeeping, in which the contestants had to answer nutrition related questions. It came down to Mike and Kristin, and the tiebreaker was having to guess the number of calories in a fast food fish sandwich without going over. Kristin guessed like 400 and Mikey guessed 635, and the actual amount was 640. Wow! So Mikey won, but then the fact that some of the competitors didn’t do so well angered Bob Harper to the point of him wanting his team to videotape a day of their eating habits.

They showed Mikey doing a product placement with plastic bags, and he said that when he goes to college, he’ll be able to cook chicken breasts in these plastic bags in his dorm. Which made me think of something–what exactly is going to happen to Mikey when he discovers beer? I’m just sayin’!

Then came the big challenge, which was another terrifying game in which each contestant would be lifted 45 feed in the air in a cage, by a crane. Are you kidding me? They had to hold on to a single rope, giving those with upper body strength the advantage. Well, unless you’re Tara, who we all know is going to win every challenge. Tara made some comment about not having the upper body strength of everyone else, and that there was no way she was winning this one. Yeah, right. Of course, I was right, Tara was wrong and she won again. All I have to say about that is “ANNOYING!” I really wanted Tara to be below the line this week so everyone would vote her off once and for all.

Then they showed Bob reviewing the video of Ron, Kristin and Filipe eating their daily meals….and Bob was pissed because his team was not eating enough calories. That’s a good lesson for those of you doing this at home…if you are working out intensely, you need fuel in the form of lean protein, good carbs and good fat. Lettuce and carrot sticks won’t do it.

Then they showed Mikey getting upset with Jillian, but his frustration had been buidling up. Mikey admitted that he needed to talk to Ron about why Ron ballooned up to over 400 pounds and never did anything about it, and why he let both his sons do the same. Ron took it like a man, and admitted he shouldn’t have let it come to this.

Then came the weigh in and Tara shocked everyone by choosing the prize of $10,000 instead of a one-pound advantage at this weigh-in. Host Allison Sweeney played with Tara’s mind, and asked Tara again if she wanted the money before stepping on the scale. Tara said yes, and she weighed in, losing 5 pounds. She breathed a sigh of relief, knowing she made the right call. And I have to watch her another week on the show, which means she is going to do two things–start crying and whining that everyone is gunning for her, and win another stupid challenge. Ugh.

Then Ron weighed in, and lost 4 pounds, putting him below 300 for the first time since he was like 12. Good for him, but maybe not….and more on that in a minute. Helen lost just one pound, putting her in danger of falling below the yellow line. Mike lost 8, Filipe 3 and then it was Kristin’s turn. Kristin, who was lucky to have stuck around another week, GAINED a pound. That put her at the bottom along with Helen.

Before everyone voted, Kristin was shown talking to Ron, and Ron re-iterated that he would never write Kristin’s name on a card, that he promised Kristin’s mom Cathy he would “protect” Kristin. However, this vote was going to come down to Ron’s son Mikey. If Mikey voted for Helen, Kristin would have three votes, because Filipe would surely vote for Helen and Ron would too. But if Mikey chose Kristin, the tiebreaker would send Kristin home because she gained weight this week. Ron then went to talk to his son, and told him he should vote Kristin off because she was a bigger threat…but he made it worse by saying that he should make sure Tara is on the same page. Wow. Ron was true to his own word, but he basically stabbed Kristin in the back. Not surprisingly, Tara voted for Kristin, Filipe voted for Helen, Ron voted for Helena and Mikey voted for Kristin. Alison asked Ron if he knew how Mikey was voting and Ron said “no.” Liar!!!!! This pisses me off for two reasons–one, because Ron was not protecting Kristin as he said he was…and two, because Ron made such a big deal about Filipe and Sione lying to his face a few weeks back. Well, Ron, the pot just called the kettle black. What a hypocrite, and what a douchebag.

I have lost all respect for Ron, and I’m losing respect for Mikey by the day. Mikey now is practically declaring himself as the Biggest Loser, and Ron is trying to do everything possible to make that happen. Poor Kristin, because she trusted those guys. Now, I am pulling for either Filipe, or, by default, even Tara. At least we know they are both good, honest people. Ron and Mike are backstabbers, and Helen sent her own daughter home.

They showed Kristin at home and she was giving a speech inspiring others about her own journey on the show. How awesome. And so far she has lost 132 pounds, and I hope Kristin wins the $100K prize. As for Ron, I hope he woke up this morning with a horse head in his bed. I know Kristin probably watched at home last night and found out the real truth about Ron and Mike.

So now we’re down to five–Ron, Mike, Tara, Helen and Filipe. I feel like the good people who I want to win continually fall below the yellow line, and it’s pissing me off. But I’m changing my tune on Tara, and fast. Either way, we are barreling toward the finale…just a few more episodes!

This week’s episode began on Tuesday night with a challenge that would determine new teams with new trainers. It would be from here on out blue vs. black, but some contestants would have to switch trainers. The challenge was to do 100 up-downs, football training camp-style, but in mud. The first to 100 would get to choose their trainer, and the rest would deal with a flip of Alison Sweeney’s coin. As it turned out, Tara won the challenge (of course) and they were able to stay with Jillian. Filipe and Sione had to switch to Jillian and Mandi and Aubrey had to switch to Bob. In all, I think 6 or 7 of them had a different trainer. But I didn’t expect them to act like it was the end of the world, and they did. What’s worse, Bob Harper started crying. I mean, come on!

For the main challenge, the two teams had to face off on stationery bikes, and pedal, taking turns, for 24 straight hours. They could eat and sleep when they weren’t on the bike, but they had to finish and the team with the most miles won. This was a struggle for them all, and some of them wanted to quit with like 10 hours left. But they decided to tough it out and they all felt good about that. In the end, the blue team rode for 264 miles and the black team 301, including Tara’s leading 58.8 miles (of course).

The show last night began with a Prevention Magazine pop quiz, and the black team won that and a spa vacation for all of the team members. Then came the last chance workout, and then the weigh in. But now that it was blue vs. black, things would be different. They would weigh in as a team, and the losing team would vote to send someone home…just like in “Biggest Loser” seasons past.

The blue team went first. Dane lost 13, Aubrey 5, Mandi 7, Ron 5, Kristen 10, and Cathy 14! Dane has lost 100 pounds in just 8 weeks, which is mind-boggling. Then the black team weighed in…Helen lost 7 pounds, Laura 8, Tara 11 (of course) and she has lost 83 pounds to date, Mike lost 10 and has lost 91 so far, Filipe 8, and Sione 10 and he’s lost 86 pounds. Wow. So the black team won the weigh in and the blue team had to vote someone off their squad.

In the deliberation room, Ron preached that he wanted to stay and that he was voting for Dane because he thought Dane could succeed at home. Well, yeah, but Dane gets rewarded that way for losing 100 pounds? Ron, meanwhile, has a bad knee and can’t exercise like the others. Aubrey couldn’t decide, so she voted for Kristin. Dane and Mandi voted for Ron, but then Ron, Cathy and Kristin all voted for Dane, sending him home. There was no gameplay involved in this at all, though Dane suspected Ron wanted to kick Dane off because he was a bigger threat to his son Mike. But I don’t think so. These contestants are all too nice.

Dane went home and ran a freaking marathon with his wife….wow! They didn’t say how much weight he’s lost but we already knew he lost 100 pounds, and the marathon had to help aid that cause even more.

So that’s it…..it’s now blue vs. black. I’m going to go out on a limb, I have a weird feeling about young Mikey that he could win it all. We’ll see, but it’s sure getting interesting. See you guys next week.

Look, if you watch this show, you know that Carla was giving 150% while Joelle was giving something like 70%. And even now, as media members questioned Joelle about her drive, she gave a mountain of excuses just very strange reasoning as to why she acted the way she did at the ranch, and why her fellow contestants turned on her. Also, apparently Joelle didn’t like the way trainer Bob Harper had yelled at her in Week 2, but she knew she couldn’t say anything and as a result is still bitter about it.

Here is an excerpt of Joelle’s warped reasoning..

“I was at an all-point, filled up to the brim. My strategy was trying to be quiet and block things out. Man, after Bob did that tyrant when he, in my eyes, lost control but in everyone else’s eyes it was love, it was received like that for me. I think it kind of opened the door for everyone to very much heckle me and belittle me. Carla wasn’t there to see all of that. And I had to be quiet, you know, to stay on the – in an effort to stay on the show.”

Um, what is an “all-point?”

She also admitted that she and Carla were never “best friends” as the show lableled them….

“Yeah, Carla and I were actually more acquaintances; we have known each other for two years. She did suggest for the marketing purposes that we put best friends. But we are still interacting in the same way that we did before and we’re still working on achieving our goals. We’re just doing it separately.”

As for Carla, she still is in this for the right reasons, and while Joelle is also making progress at home, Carla just seems a bit more grounded…

“….And since I have been home for 30 days nothing for me. And just so that you know, before I even tried out for the show I had already started working out and, you know, losing weight. So I was already in that mode that I needed to lose weight. But it wasn’t hard at all, you know, just changing a few things that you have in your pantry and your refrigerator and just burning more calories; counting more calories out than you put in.”

Being that it’s actually been a few months since the duo was sent back to Detroit, at the end of Tuesday’s episode they showed Joelle and Carla having lost 57 and 87 pounds, respectively. Granted, Carla had much more to lose at the start, but she seems to be making a bit more progress.

And really, here’s the bottom line….Joelle does not set a good example for fellow Americans, especially when she is given an opportunity like this and could not confirm that she wanted to stay, and more than once made reference to money being more important than losing weight.
Carla, meanwhile, at least in my eyes, has an excellent chance of winning the $100K challenge for eliminated contestants. And if she did, wouldn’t that be ironic?

Quotes from this conference call courtesy of NBC Publicity Department