The best reality TV shows are filled with countless archetypes, though few are as heartwarming as the “dynamic duo.” These are the contestants who cling to each other in whatever televised setting they’re stuck in, fending off attacks from other players and looking out for one another — until they have to face off in the end, of course. Many series have great duos for fans to fall in love with, but few have ones as interesting as Big Brother.
Created by John de Mol, this CBS series has seen many iconic pairings over its years, with players forming tight-knit bonds beyond the mess of the cutthroat game and developing a “ride-or-die” relationship that will hopefully take them to the end. The series has known many iconic duos across its long history, but none are as astounding, as unique, and as utterly chaotic as the pair viewers just got. It’s undeniable that, through them, this season offered a partnership like audiences have never seen and that millions of watchers couldn’t help but root for. Not only for what great television each person was on their own, but for how shockingly heartening it was to watch these polar opposites create one of this installment’s most genuine relationships. Big Brother has known many dynamic duos, but few have ever reached the legendary heights of Season 26’s Angela Murray and Tucker Des Lauriers.
Angela Murray and Tucker Des Lauriers Have Carried ‘Big Brother 26’
Big Brother is filled with many amazing duos, and some of these pairs even leveraged their bond into a victory — well, for one half of them, at least. The contestants are remebered fondly, with alliances like Jun Song and Alison Irwin or Dick Donato and Daniele Briones entertaining them to no end and eventually securing one of them the ultimate win. But even the “unsuccessful” twosomes leave an impact on viewers, with watchers cherishing the chance to see these (sometimes) genuine relationships develop in a setting where everyone sees each other as a threat, even if neither clinches that $750,000 grand prize.
Viewers are always eager to see more duos like these, though early in Big Brother 26, nobody could have expected that they’d be getting another one with Angela and Tucker. Not only because of what different walks of life they come from — Tucker is a Boston-native NYC marketing executive and Angela is a real estate agent with grandkids from Salt Lake City — but because of how differently they approached the game, with Tucker being brash but determined whereas Angela lets her emotions out in some truly wild outbursts. The one thing that united them, though, was a passion for the game and an innate ability to make truly fantastic television. And sometimes, when it comes to Big Brother, that’s all you need.
Angela began making waves in the house early on, impressing the other contestants by winning the summer’s first HOH — before shocking them all as she used this pedestal to brazenly call out and criticize her enemy, Matt Hardeman. She followed this up with more emotional rants and open mocking of other contestants, though it was evident that she had an innate warmth to her that was being overshadowed by her stress in the game, one that Tucker recognized clearly. He was seen as a threat almost immediately; the man quickly gained the reputation of a “competition beast” and was never shy about who he wanted out of the house, other players catching on quickly that he had the physical and social skills necessary to win the game.
While initially annoyed with Angela’s hijinks, the two began to talk more and bond, Tucker bringing her into his alliance and viewers watching in heartfelt awe as each episode seemed to bring them closer together. A big part of this relationship was Tucker trying to ease the intense anxiety he knew led to Angela’s outbursts, an anxiety that led her to think he was plotting against her and, in the sixth week of the game, made her conspire with others to try and get her out. Shockingly, Tucker reacted to this not with anger, but with compassion; he said he understood where she was coming from and that he wanted her to know just how much he cared about her, and he wanted her in this house. Despite this, the damage had been done and, after being set up on the block against each other, Angela had to tearfully bid her bestie goodbye when Tucker was evicted in a 3-5 vote.
We’re Still Not Over Losing This ‘Big Brother’ Odd Couple
As enjoyable as it was to watch Angela and Tucker’s Big Brother friendship develop, it can’t be ignored how faulty their pairing was compared to the many of the other iconic ones this series has seen. Not only did one of them not even make it to the jury, but the fact that Angela was constantly debating getting Tucker out — and eventually succeeded — removes so much of the heartwarming trust that many of the best duos develop with each other. Despite this, it’s hard not to get emotional watching these two tearfully express their love for one another as they say goodbye or how vehemently Tucker reminds Angela that not only does she deserve her spot on this season, but how much he genuinely wanted her to stay in this house with him. Combine this with just how wild it is to see complete opposites attract and form a beautiful (if not extremely chaotic) bond, and it’s indisputable that Big Brother 26 just offered the franchise its best odd couple ever.
Big Brother is available to stream on Paramount+ in the U.S.
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