This site isn't about who should win, who will win, who I'd be friends with, or who is cute. It's about watching hamsters: which ones are doing what and why. Which are fun and which are dull. If they aren't entertaining, get rid of 'em! More to come, bookmark & come back! .. that dingo

I loved watching Diane.. she's a walking definition of drama queen, and that always makes for good tv, and good feeds.. I missed a lot of convos and events along the way cuz I'd usually select the Diane channel for guaranteed 'never a dull moment'
     

Game-wise, Diane did most of the driving, along with Karen.. Karen was about defense and setting up a well-constructed set of final moves, and while she was very aware of Diane's own solid defensive skills, she didn't pay enough attention to Diane's brilliance for offensive maneuvers until it was too late
   
I didn't either.. I thought early on that Diane was largely responsible for ousting Holly and Scott simply because they were in her limelight, and maybe that's true.. and when the pivotal Jase eviction came along, with Diane convincing her crush to betray his friend and brother, I thought she was only controlling Drew by his blue balls, cuz she could, to further her own career in the game.. soon afterward it started becoming clear to me that she was doing it all to further his.. everything she did in the game after that was for him

It would have been cool to watch Diane fall in love so deeply, so easily.. if it hadn't been so obvious that it wasn't mutual, that Diane was playing for keeps while Drew was just on a date.. even in bed it was always about his wants and his limits, and she was ok with that too.. most of the times we saw pure joy in Diane, it was inspired in her by Drew.. and the few times we saw her succumb to real pain it was due to him, too
     
It doesn't matter that she was too naive or too dazzled by the stars in her eyes to see what was going on.. even towards the end she was clearly (if subconsciously) testing his feelings for her.. all that matters is that she wanted it so desperately she refused to see that the tests all came back negative

I've said many times that I think Diane has some deep emotional damage, the kind of damage that doesn't happen by itself - it's put there - and it's a testament to her intelligence, resiliency, and finely-tuned survival skills that she was able to take Drew all the way.. and in the end, to the surprise of many, it was the ever-self-centered girl's unselfishness that pushed him to the top: she was certain she could only take 2nd place to him, and she was ok with that.. and then he took it away from her, in a public humiliation most of us won't soon forget
     
Diane fits the glamour role better than she realizes, but it's when she was just being the 22-year-old Kentucky girl that I liked her best.. she was always a sore loser and usually a first class bitch, saying things many of us might think but would never say out loud.. she had no filters whatsoever for her mouth - but she acknowledged that from day one - and she openly admits more of her faults than most of us will ever be brave enough to do

Diane's volatility was what made her the star of the season, along with her impressive strategic abilities - whatever drove them - but her emotional instability was clear as soon as we met her, so there's no doubt the producers were well aware of that from the in-depth pre-show screening process.. but they cast her anyway, in yet another inhumane ploy to get ratings at someone's personal expense.. they also knew what was coming at the end, and they just let it happen.. but the queen of hissy fits trumped them in the end, going out with dignity instead of hysterics, and she touched us all when she did

In spite of everything that came before, I think we felt for her like we did cuz we've all been young and in love.. we know how it hurts when it ends however unrealistic it might have been to believe in it.. but we didn't have to do it in public, on tv.. it's just inconceivable.. her 22-year-old summer fling won't just fade away like summer flings should.. but I think, I hope, that she'll come out of it with something far more valuable than dollars.. and I hope she can turn it around after her tears dry and learn to be more comfortable with who she is - damn skippy, she is a good person at heart

Be well, Diane - you'll be missed more than you know