So Picturegate claimed a victim; although 'victim' is a funny word to use for someone who considers spitting a valid tool to use in discussions. Bye Dennis, we won't miss you. Oh, and Sylvia got evicted. Whatever.

It's interesting that tension in the house decreased sharply when Alex was removed, but that it didn't take much for the remaining housemates to start arguing and breaking into factions. In her absence, Dennis and Sylvia came out as the troublemakers they really were, resulting in Sylvia being evicted (which she clearly wasn't expecting), and Dennis revealing his true nastiness in the long argument about Rex smudging Jen's painting of Stuart. It's indicative of how threatened many in the house are by Rex that the spitter and spittee had nothing to do with the incident. Both Dennis and Mohamed were acting to protect the honour of Jen and Rex respectively, and the affair showed the factions that had developed within the house, with the unholy trinity of Sylvia, Jen and Dennis blowing the (admittedly silly) action of Rex out of all proportion, with Jen achieving a crying fit that would be impressive for any toddler. Naturally, alcohol played a part in this outpouring of neuroses and hate, and only Kat and Mikey came out of it with their dignity intact. I was shocked and dismayed by a few housemates who I'd come to like, so let's deal with them here;

Bex. I'm really disappointed that the fun and bouncy Bex has turned out to be rather too mouthy for her own good whilst drunk, and appeared to be upset about Dennis' removal, claiming that he was a loss to the house (or words to that effect). Eh? I suspect that her remarks were rather more influenced by her new alliance with Jen, who lost her two faithful allies in quick succession, and is now looking for any port in a storm to whine ON AND ON to. Silly Bex. She's absorbed Jen's sulking like a sponge, which has wrecked her budding relationship with Darnell. Damn you, you silly cow, which brings me onto;

Darnell. Sometimes, Darnell is fantastic, articulating all the frustrations of the audience, and has a good sense of right and wrong. Unfortunately, he has a tendency to get carried away with all of this, leading him to misinterpret people's actions or to accuse the person he's talking to of saying things they didn't. He has yet to learn that this destroys his credibility, which means offending housemates can ignore him. Oh, Darnell. I'm really very fond of you, but try and think before you speak, sweetheart.

Luke. I've always been very amused by Luke, who often acts as a commentator for the house, but I really don't like his tendency to gossip, especially when he's obviously a bit carried away from being accepted by the 'cool' housemates. I understand how that feels (it took me years after leaving school to figure out that attractive people talking to me weren't taking the piss), but it does you no favours, darling, and does tend to exacerbate tension in the house.

Lisa. Oh, PLEASE stop talking about yourself. I know Rachel is grateful for anyone who isn't accusing her of having a 'gameplan', but that's no excuse for your wittering on. You were very good during the wedding task, but you've failed to impress since.

Rex. Yeah, I know you're more intelligent and capable than most of the other housemates. There's really nothing to be gained by letting them know about it, love. Your jibe at Bex was clearly motivated by her dislike of you, but playing the fat card will not help. Come on, you're obviously better than this.

Sigh. It's a real shame about the arguing, especially when it reduces poor Kat to tears, because when the housemates aren't sulking and snapping, they produce some really lovely moments. Bex being pulled into the bathtub by Darnell and then having Luke flirting with her was great viewing. Just like Kat, I'd like a happy house, please. The arguments really aren't worth it.