HOLLYWOOD—Well, the wait is over! Yep, season 18, yes count it, season 18 of the CBS summer hit “Big Brother” premiered Wednesday night with 12 new contestants entering the compound, but host Julie Chen delivered a bevy of surprises for fans of the series. Last week we got to see the new faces of the season which include Paulie, Tiffany, Jozea, Glenn, Bronte, Michelle, Bridgette, Corey, Victor, Natalie, Paul and Zakiyah, but there were plenty of surprises galore Wednesday night as viewers learned more houseguest would be joining the game. Four competitions, 3 twists and like so many predicted an eviction during week 1, all of that was delivered in the first 2 minutes of the episode.

Oh, and those mystery surprise guests we’ve been teased about are secret stowaways hidden in the actual house. Must say based on first impressions, Bronte looks like she could be a fan favorite and a clever player to say the least. I must say this is one diverse cast, which should make for plenty of surprises. You can already see the sparks between Victor and Natalie. Gosh, Tiffany and Paulie are dead ringers for their siblings; I swear Bronte is going to be a character this season. So Victor likes Natalie, but Natalie likes Corey, and Corey might have a man crash on Victor. Complicated, huh? Michelle immediately pegged Vanessa, as Tiffany’s sister.

Now the moment, we’ve been waiting for, the reveal of those four mystery houseguests, who were none other than Nicole Franzel from BB16, James Huling from BB17, BB17 favorite Mama Da aka Da’Vonne and the last stowaway was Frank Eudy from BB14. Definitely a competitive threat that the other houseguests should be aware of, so it looks like newbies against vets, if the vets are smart they would team up together and recruit some newbies to ensure their safety.

An alliance has already manifested between Zakiyah, Jozea and Paul. Paulie, why would you drop that bombshell, you’ve made yourself a threat by revealing that Cody is your brother, but that might be smart because he could align with the vets. That prompted Tiffany to ponder rather to reveal things, but Da’Vonne already pegged Tiffany as Vanessa’s sister. Damn Mama Da, she’s quite perceptive, and smart to keep that information to herself.

Julie dropped twist number two by revealing that the contestants have to play the game in teams of 4. Oh great, we’re playing BB11 once again. The houseguests will get the opportunity to choose how to pick their teams. Wow, the former houseguests are being split up, seems like the coaches twist, but with a slight variation. So the teams are: Bridgette, Paulie, Michelle and Frank; Da’Vonne, Jozea, Paul and Zakiyah; Bronte, Victor, Natalie and James; Corey, Nicole, Glenn and Tiffany. The houseguests were stunned to learn that one of them is about to go home sooner than they expected. I think it’s best to head for ‘Safeville.’ I’ll be honest I’m not happy with the team twist, cause it impacts a player’s potential if you ask me. The person who should be concerned the most is Da’Vonne, she should have picked Paulie instead of Paul.

The first competition was one of endurance to see who could last the longest on a rocket, and it started to rain and rock back and forth. Tiffany was the first to take a tumble, followed by Glenn and Nicole. Damn, one team is nearly out in a matter of minutes, leaving Corey the last man standing on his team. Paulie is the last guy remaining on his rocket, but everyone is falling left and right. Da’Vonne’s crew is have nots for the week. Can you believe this, all the vets are out of the game! So it’s a battle between Victor and Corey, in the end Victor was the winner ensuring safety for him, Natalie, Bronte and James for the next two evictions.

The newbies planned to stick together to take out the veterans, but the vets are well aware they have to stick together, but it’s apparent Da’Vonne needs to watch her back, cause her team is not loyal a single bit. Thinking of alliance names are not as easy as one thinks. I mean Category 4, what the hell, Freakazoids, Big Sister and Team Unicorn. Those are the worst alliance names I have EVER heard. Michelle got confirmation that Tiffany is indeed Vanessa’s sister and planned to safeguard that information for a later time.

And the final bomb was dropped on the houseguests, when Julie revealed that Team Unicorn can’t compete in the next competition. However, the two teams who win rounds one and two will ensure their safety, and the losing team would have to compete against their teammates to remain in the game. The first person out is evicted, while the last person standing becomes the first Head of Household.

Round one saw the teams building a 15-piece sand castle that was tricky with balancing techniques, while switching partners along the way. Category 4 secured their safety, leaving Big Sister and Freakazoids to battle it out. Da’Vonne relax, already, otherwise you’re going to get evicted first this time around. Wow, Nicole and Corey is like a new showmance, how about the name ‘Nicorey.’ Competition two saw the remaining teams having to put together a puzzle, and the friction between some of the teammates was hotter than a skillet, but Big Sister edged out the win, leaving Freakazoids vulnerable.

So Nicole, Glenn, Tiffany or Corey is about to bid adieu, a new HOH is about to be crowned, and what’s with this new competition that is set to change the game as we know it. “Big Brother 18” airs Thursday at 9 p.m. with the first eviction. So whose going to make it to the end, it shall be interesting to see.