The new season of Big Brother premiered on Wednesday, July 7, during which the 16 brand new houseguests were split up into teams of four. One of the team captains was Christian Birkenberger, who came close to winning the first Head of Household competition not once but three times. While Christian may have been initially upset by his first loss on the show, not becoming the first HOH may actually benefit his game in the long run.
Prior to the premiere earlier this week, CBS announced that the twist for the new season of Big Brother would consist of the 16 houseguests competing in teams. Upon moving into the Big Brother house, the contestants were immediately faced with not one but two competitions. As they moved in in groups of four, the houseguests competed for what was later revealed as the title of team captain. The four captains then chose their team members before performing their first competition together for the reign of Head of Household.
Amongst the four captains was Christian. Christian was named captain of the Kings Team which consists of Alyssa Lopez, Xavier Prather and Sarah Steagall. During their first competition together as a team, Christian came close to winning the first Head of Household reign not once but three times. Although he was able to quickly put together the puzzle, his team ultimately ended up dropping it before he could reach the buzzard. The next day on the live-feeds, the houseguests were heard discussing how great Christian did during this competition. One contestant even noted that he successfully put the puzzle together three different ways. Christian ultimately losing the first competition is actually better for his game because he can lay low under the radar throughout the first week without being viewed as a threat.
Throughout the duration of the live move-in premiere episode, All-Star winner Cody Calafiore took over the stories on the official Instagram account for Big Brother. After watching Christian win the first competition, which ultimately won him the title of team captain, Cody was impressed by his choice in technique. In fact, Cody stated that Christian actually had the most efficient way of completing the puzzle. He was highly impressed by Christian throughout the first episode. Cody believes he will succeed not only at physical competitions but mental competitions as well. He even noted that the other houseguests should watch out for him. This is a big deal considering how successful Cody's game play was during both of his seasons on the show.
There is no doubt Christian will be a competitive player throughout this season of the show. Had he won that first Head of Household competition earlier this week, a big target more than likely would have been put on his back. Because he did not win, the rest of the houseguests more likely will forget about how well he did, at least for now.
Big Brother 23 airs Sunday at 8pm EST on CBS.
Source: Big Brother/Instagram