Big Brother's 1,000th (!) Episode Brings A Pivotal Eviction, Major Nostalgia, And A Never-Before-Done Twist

Back in July 2000, the executives at CBS made a risky decision about their summer programming — and 26 years later, it sure looks like that move paid off, as all the best "Big Brother" moves do.

If you can believe it, the network's reality staple has now aired a whopping 1,000 episodes, with the milestone installment arriving on Thursday night. And I have to admit: No matter how frustrating or silly or over-the-top — both literally and figuratively; we'll never forget you, "BBOTT"! — this series can be, I won't pretend I didn't get a few goosebumps at Thursday's supercut of the show's many alliances, blindsides, backstabs, romances, twists, and leotard-based punishments. What a weird and wonderful run it's been.

In fact, it's been so weird and wonderful that "Big Brother" opted to devote the entire first half of Thursday's super-sized broadcast to a look back at the past two-and-a-half decades of gameplay. Viewers at home have been voting for the winners of a few nostalgic BB awards, and here's how those accolades shook out:

Favorite Moment
Dan's funeral (Season 14)

Best to Never Win
Janelle Pierzina (Seasons 6, 7, 14, and 22)

Favorite Alliance
The Cookout (Season 23)

Favorite Quote
"Floaters, you better grab a life vest!" (Rachel Reilly, Season 12)

Favorite Winner
Dan Gheesling (Season 10)

Julie Chen Moonves was also presented with two certificates from Guinness World Records, officially making "Big Brother" the title holder for most episodes of a primetime TV show and most episodes of a competitive reality TV show. (In the studio audience, Jessie "Mr. Pec-tacular" Godderz was really excited about that. Maybe too excited.)

Anyway, let's get down to the real business. Following the veto ceremony and Mallory's subsequent crash-out in the Diary Room, Dee and Devens were left to break the news to Drew and Barrett that Mallory had become the week's main target, not Taylor. In perhaps the most stunning twist of the season to date, this move seemed to finally shake Barrett out of his icons-induced reverie; feeling frustrated that the Mosh Pit alliance was being dismantled so quickly, Barrett wondered if perhaps the icons should be on the receiving end of a blindside this time around, and tried to whip up the votes to get Drew evicted — his best friend! — if Drew remained on the block after the Blockbuster competition.

Unfortunately, the excitement over a potential Dee blindside was short-lived. Drew won the Blockbuster this time around, a competition that required players to compare a wall full of past "Big Brother" video clips to a series of clues about said clips; the winner would be the first person to correctly answer which segment of the video wall applied to all the given clues. (Poor Mallory and Taylor tried to ring in with the correct answer, too, but that button became unavailable to them once Drew had rung in first.)

Once Drew was announced as the Blockbuster victor, it seemed pretty obvious what would happen next, given how half of the remaining players started crying. Mallory clearly didn't have the votes to stay — and though her allies Melody and Barrett still fought the good fight and voted to evict Taylor, her alleged ally Drew was among the six to give her the boot. On the plus side, after an emotional week, Mallory got through her eviction and post-game Q&A without any major tears, and she got a standing ovation from the many former "Big Brother" players in the crowd. (She also confessed that she did throw this week's Head of Household competition — not necessarily because she thought she'd be safe in Dee's hands, it seems, but because she panicked at the last second about who she'd nominate if she came into power herself).

And hey, maybe there's a silver lining here for Mallory: She got out of the house before this week's never-before-done twist, which will welcome back four "Big Brother" veterans — Keanu Soto, Tiffany Mitchell, Cody Calafiore, and Britney Haynes, TVLine has confirmed — who will "challenge houseguests in a way no 'Big Brother' houseguests have been challenged before," according to the show's official announcement. 

The week ahead will feature no Head of Household competition, no Power of Veto competition, and no Blockbuster competition... but someone will be eliminated from the game before next week's live eviction takes place. That elimination will happen on Sunday's episode (9/8c, CBS), which means the live feeds are about to go down for the next three days. What will we do with our time?!

"Big Brother" fans, how did you like Episode 1,000 — and how do you feel about this upcoming twist? Drop all of your thoughts in a comment below.