Spoiler alert! The following contains spoilers from the Oct. 6 episode of "The Masked Singer," including the identity of the unmasked celebrity.
"The Masked Singer" is throwing a house party, and it's getting spicy.
One wildcard is hoping to smoke the competition, and has a pretty good chance. Wednesday we met Pepper, a talented singer who moved panelist Nicole Scherzinger to tears (more on that later). Ready to put up a fight to stay at the party, she battled the remaining Group A challengers: Baby, Bull, Hamster and Skunk.
Playing off the evening's "house party" theme, the show's sleuths – Ken Jeong, Jenny McCarthy, Robin Thicke and Scherzinger – received an extra tip to the contestants' identities in the form of a "party favor."
Here's how the party played out.
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Clues: Bull revealed he is quite the party animal in his clue package, adding that he's "notorious" for his shindigs. But he also has a serious side, announcing that he wanted to express his support for Britney Spears (amid her conservatorship battle) with this week's song choice: Spears' "Circus." During his performance, Bull declared: "Free Britney" and wowed with the splits.
Party favor: A gift-wrapped box. "Usually, I'm the type of bull that focuses on what's on the inside," Bull said. "But today, it's the wrapping that I'm showing off."
Guesses: McCarthy thought of rappers Trey Songz and Donald Glover, while Thicke thought of "Hamilton" actor Anthony Ramos. Thinking along similar lines, Scherzinger suspected Tony-winner Leslie Odom Jr.
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Clues: Hamster recalled finding fame with his friends. "There's nothing like not being famous and the next day being famous, and that's what happened to all of us," he said. "And the fact that we're all still friends all these years later is phenomenal."
Party favor: Following Hamster's rendition of Queen's "Crazy Little Thing Called Love," Hamster addressed his party favor: a guzzler drinking helmet. "I like to stay hydrated with my friends at the party," Hamster said.
Guesses: Jeong guessed former "SNL" cast members like Will Ferrell, David Spade, or Jim Breuer might be under the costume. Similarly, McCarthy predicted Hamster might be Rob Schneider, speculation that Thicke felt good about. Scherzinger went with the actor with an eternal baby face Paul Rudd.
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Clues: Skunk said she has shrunken the size of her social circle. "I actually used to be the hostess with the most-est, but these days I limit the people that I allow into my personal space," she said. Her package also featured the head of Pufferfish (revealed to be "Un-Break My Heart" artist Toni Braxton during the season premiere.)
Party favor: Following Skunk's rendition of Gladys Knight & the Pips "Midnight Train To Georgia," the star explained her boom box party favor. "Some say, 'turn down for what?' I say turn it up so the whole empire can hear you."
Guesses: Jeong, picking up on the clues, bet on former "Empire" star Taraji P. Henson. McCarthy put her money on "The Equalizer" star Queen Latifah. Scherzinger, trying to make the Pufferfish connection, guessed Toni's sister and former bandmate, Tamar Braxton.
'Giant Baby, the nightmare musical!'
Clues: Baby raved about "the best house party" he has ever experienced. "It was a trip… it was a house party o eight wheels," he said. "I got to bring my whole family along for the ride."
Easily the most bizarre character to grace the "Masked Singer" stage, Baby continued his odd stretch by singing the theme song for "The Flintstones." "Giant Baby, the nightmare musical!" Scherzinger said at the performance's end. "We officially have gone off our rockers."
Party favors: Baby showed out with a grill and a cooler. "I may just be a baby, but I'm still the star of the tailgate," he said. "Even if there is a little grease on that grill."
Guesses: McCarthy's instincts pointed her to actors John Travolta or Bruce Willis. Thicke thought of musicians Rod Stewart and Keith Richards. Jeong had celebrity chef Gordon Ramsay on the brain.
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Clues: This season's newest wildcard revealed she blew up within the last year. "Something I did went viral basically overnight," Pepper said. "It spread like fire. I never expected any of it, but the coolest part is seeing people take what I did and add their own flavor to it."
Is it Pepper's singing that put her on the social media map? Her rendition of Labrinth's "Jealous" caused Scherzinger to cry. "That was absolutely drop-dead gorgeous and stunning," the singer raved.
Party favor: Roller skates. "You bring roller skates to a party because you don't need a driver's license," Pepper advised.
Guesses: Jeong predicted singer Kesha was inside the Pepper costume, while Scherzinger's gut pointed her to "Dickinson" star Hailee Steinfeld. McCarthy envisioned huge talents like Lady Gaga, Pink or Miley Cyrus.
Bye-bye, Baby!
And just like that, the curtains have closed on "Baby, the nightmare musical." The quirky character was eliminated Wednesday and the panel's first impression guesses and final hunches were revealed.
Thicke doubled down on his original instinct, "Walker, Texas Ranger" star Chuck Norris. Scherzinger swapped her first thought of actor Michael Caine for "Late Late Show" host James Corden. Jeong abandoned his first thought of "The Wolverine" Hugh Jackman for Ramsay. McCarthy traded actor Kurt Russell for Willis.
But when Baby removed his mask, he revealed himself to be comedic legend Larry the Cable Guy.
"Are you not entertained?" Larry the Cable Guy exclaimed as Cannon unmasked him.
"We said his so many times and now he finally showed up in a baby costume," Cannon joked. "Probably the first season that you guys didn't say Larry the Cable Guy."
During the big reveal, McCarthy beat herself up over not guessing correctly. "We did a film together," she said. "And I know that you raised your family on a tour bus and it still didn't click in there."
Episodes of "The Masked Singer" can be viewed on Fox's website.
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