I'm surprised the cast hasn't just become at least 50% Youtubers and Instagram folk. There's got be enough unbusted egos on both those platforms to really set the fireworks off... it's not like many of the names they have now are more well-known to the target demographic.


It's not? :laugh:

"Fag" is often used as a synonym to a complete idiot, someone who acts so ridiculous it's incredibly annoying and aggravating... but in this context, he's certainly using it for homosexuality. The former definition was used really heavily in the 90s among the young. So it has a non-sexual connotation on the side... but it's certainly always an insult. So it's entirely possible he not only insulted her sexuality, but also her mentality.

Her mask really slipped, I think. Her comment in the diary room along the lines where she said "I think what you have to do in the Big Brother house is care for others" ... she's been there 1 day.

She handled it so well!

With all due respect, that’s a weak comment. The fact people are making out she was the bad person in this says more about those people. She isn’t villainising Mickey (and she absolutely could), but she has a right to be offended.

Like in Fairytale of New York - when she's calling him a faggot, she's obviously calling him an idiot instead of randomly deciding he's gay :laugh:

I didn't think she came out the bad person. I think that when people come into conflict, we see what turns their gears... while she is certainly in the right for calling him out on his words as she perceived it in connection to his behavior, but then she's gone further and made it about her views about how the house should be conducted and how other people should conduct themselves... I find her to be dictatorial and that's just an early impression of her, but that's completely separate from Mickey's behavior. I think he's shown himself to be an asshole and he has a condescending air when he is dealing with other people... that's not a good look, either.

I suspect both, especially being American, we tend to pick up on these little things that get under the skin more easily, especially as egos might be clashing a bit. He saw an opportunity to have a go and to say whatever is on his mind in the moment, which is more socially accepted here. She saw the opportunity to make a big statement about it, which is fine in a way, but it's not my cup of tea when others try to influence other people into how they should conduct themselves.

Mickey Rourke should've been immediately removed on Big Brother USA

I apologise. Calling it a weak comment was uncalled for. I should have asked for further clarification on your view before saying that.

It's actually my fault. :laugh: I took for granted we were all just in the Live thread. It's because of the context of the comment I responded which probably made it sound like it was different kind of commentary, so I figured that was why and didn't take offense..

One thing I will say about Mickey is he is doing the typically stereotypical thing that is done by extroverts in the US... where one says things that they know push buttons, but done to such a degree (shocking) that it's a socially accepted way to find out what the other person's tolerance level is. It's almost like you're not allowed to complain because "oh of course he's not a horrible heathen.... he didn't really mean it that waaay"...

It's a way to boundary check, but it's also a way to assert one's alpha demeanor and set the terms of communication... since it'll be very quickly found out who doesn't push back on having their buttons pressed like this...

Well at least the warning was understandable this time.

Unlike the stop the gloats comment last year.

I don't remember that

It was definitely an odd set of comments from him.

That was honestly ridiculous and they did Sarah over with that.

I forgot about that :joker:

Just watched the whole thing .l

He was just messing and being light hearted

In my opinion there was zero malice or nastiness

I agree.

He wasn’t serious though … I don’t see how anyone can believe he was trying to upset anyone


Sure the choice of wording comes from bygone days but he’s 72 - he said it was just his sense of humour

He said he was gonna tie up a young girl then called her a fag

It was tongue in cheek…

It was offensive

Sarah's joke that got her a warning in the last civilian series, even though there's nothing against the rules of BB or even in UK law against stop the gloats or stop the boats.

Ah yes. That was ridiculous

The production resented her presence after she got precious Dean evicted for being a knob.

No, fag is not used in a non-homophobic way in the US. It’s a big no-no, period. It doesn’t matter the intent. It’s homophobic, period and has a horrendous history in the US.

That's not true. It's still used in the other non-homophobic definition even today and it's an acceptable use of it as another type of insult. Kind of like how (the n-word) is used outside of being a direct racial slur, it has a friendly, fluid use-case. Re-appropriating language for amusing effect is very American. Though how appropriate a re-appropriated interpretation can be determined by the listener, I suppose.

It's possible Mickey thought that playing around with Jojo would be more appropriate since she would know that we use fluid language. The language suddenly is less fluid in popular media in recent years, but common American English used among normal people is not treated that strictly... I've never seen anyone chewed out for using fag in the looser variant. It's usually a word that's tossed around in a joking manner among friends... though Mickey was using it in a way that was not casual like that and using the slur variant to press buttons...

…tbf, I’ve read many comments on other sites…(…comments from American people…)…and the overwhelming vibe seems to be that it’s a much outdated British expression for a cigarette and this was an American using the term to another American so it felt very intentional in its slur…

Yes, Mickey was playing on the slur. I thought he made that pretty clear based on the chat they were having.

Fag is known here to be a cigarette in the UK because the common joke when using the word "fag", just in case the wrong person happens to hear, we were actually talking about cigarettes... etc. It's a word people like to say and use in or out of context because it sounds funny for them in conversation. In fact the connection to British cigarettes makes it cooler to some...

…it’s interesting isn’t it, that it’s that word/slur that seems to be the main focus of that Mickey dialogue…not just as a contentious talking point but also for JoJo, it felt…?…when before that, he had said that she wouldn’t be a lesbian anymore, so basically inferring that he would have sex with her if they were there more than 4 days…and when she said that wouldn’t happen and laughed it off, he said he would tie her up….

Yeah, honestly that part is so creepy, worse imo

I'm hoping that he meant that Ella or Angelica had volunteered to have Fifty Shades Of Grey styled sex with Jojo, but he got tongue tied and made himself look like the creep.:sad:

In all seriousness, I do agree with you.

I thought that was going to be the warning initially because he was basically discussing converting someone potentially against their will, using ropes(!).

i still believe it all started as a joke, and when people said you can't say that he became more and more defensive which is why it ended up where it did

It was so obviously a joke, I don't think many are in doubt of that. The real trouble arose when he apologised or was attempting to, and she tried to further explain to him why she found it so offensive, which he then seemed to take as her twisting the knife further and lording it over him. That's when things went way off the rails for them both.

Jokes can still be bullying, jokes can still be homophobic, jokes can still be predatory. It was a joke to HIM. Other people smiled with discomfort and out of shock but zero of the others laughed with him. Age or fame doesn't give anyone a free pass for anything, people should only be respected if they respect others.

you have just defined a joke, not everyone finds it funny, thats the way it works

Tbf jokes are fine imo, it's the other persons problem if they're getting offended by a joke I personally feel.

I personally do doubt if Mickey was really joking though, I suspect that he was looking for a reaction from Jojo, but it escalated further than he was expecting.

I think that Mickey is trying to be the troll of the Season.:laugh:

…the thing with ‘jokes’ is that they have to be a two way thing…what’s intended and what’s taken…and JoJo was upset/in tears after the interaction because for her it wasn’t a joke…there are lots of layers/levels of it that wouldn’t have been a joke for many people, I think…and there was something said on the late show that was very thought provocative of it all…that from the LGBT community, lesbian’s can be targeted so much and are so vulnerable…JoJo had said that she would still be a lesbian and that she would still be in a relationship with her partner etc…so if we took away the fact that she was a lesbian…?…and Mickey had inferred that he would have sex with her and tie her up even for that to happen…?…would it be acceptable to say that to a female in an established relationship, would that be ok and just a jokey thing also…joking or not, he had a warning because his words were unacceptable, whatever level they came from…

…even if it was intended as a ‘joke’, he did let it slip that he didn’t like JoJo and JoJo was the one who he decided to lay that joke with…it feels that whether he intended to offend or not…?…he really had no care that he did because it was directed at someone that he didn’t like very much…

The whole reason he started it was because she said she liked girls so he wouldn't say it about a straight girl. You could see him seething the second she answered his question.