‘Big Brother: Over the Top’ cast spotlight: Meet ‘OTT’ contestant Michael ‘Cornbread’ Ligon
This morning CBS unveiled the entirety of the cast for “Big Brother: Over the Top,” and of course the immediate instinct is to dive in to discussing just how terrible the majority of these people are. Yet, at the same time, we really don’t think that we’re ultimately doomed. You gotta remember that we’re still in the early going here! There have been countless times over the course of many pre-seasons where we’ve felt as though we are in for a terrible season, and then the show turns it around. Even this past season wasn’t nearly as bad as it looked in the first half of it; much of our enjoyment comes down to seeing gameplay and havine underdogs who we really was to cheer on.
As for whether or not Michael ‘Cornbread’ Ligon is going to be one of those said people … well, we’re not that optimistic.
Bio – At 41, he’s the oldest member of the cast, and he’s a foreman at a tree-removal company living in Augusta, Georgia. He fills the whole “rural” archetype that we’ve seen so many times over the years, and is most previously occupied by Donny Thompson and James Huling.
Strengths – He’s probably the least-threatening person ever strategically. He’s not a physical beast on paper, even if he claims that he is in his CBS bio. He’s not a huge strategist, and given that he wants to play a fairly straight-up game, he’s not someone you have to worry about stabbing in your back. Maybe he can spin a yarn if he makes it far enough in the game that he could be considered a winner threat, though you have to take all of this with a grain of salt since we don’t quite understand the rules of this season. We’re writing this as if the players have a larger role in what happens than America does.
Weaknesses – It’s one thing to be funny, and it’s another thing to tell everyone that you’re funny. Unfortunately, Cornbread is more of the latter. He likes being loud and a big character, and he could try a little too hard at that and rub people the wrong way. He’s also got a little bit of a chip on his shoulder about wanting to play hard, so we can easily see him coming on strong.
Early prediction – It’s funny that he had an odd name, given that Chicken George upside is really the best thing that Cornbread can hope for within this game. He reminds us a bit of a Chef Joe type, as well, an older guy who can be a pawn for several weeks and won’t really present himself as a serious threat to anyone. Eventually someone will get rid of him just because there are no other big targets for him to hide behind anymore.
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