We’ve finally made it to the end of season three of Temptation Island! There were definitely some surprises during this final bonfire, and more happy endings than expected. Erica Washington blew Kendal Kirkland’s mind with her decision, Chelsea Orcutt and Thomas Gipson faced off, and Julian Allen poured his heart out to Kristen Ramos. We also got a proposal at the end!
Last week’s episode ended in a cliff hanger with Kendal and Erica. Kendal had tried to make Erica feel ashamed for kissing Jesse Stephanos, while in turn he showed no remorse for consistently sleeping with Alexcys Homan and having a threesome. Erica professed her love for Kendal and then it cut to black. Did Erica go back to Kendal, leave the island alone, or leave with Jesse?
Erica firmly told Kendal she realized she needed to put herself first, and because of that she was leaving the island alone. Kendal looked like he was about to fall over in disbelief. Was this the first time in his life someone chose to dump him instead of the other way around? Erica hugged Kendal, and in one of the best moments of the episode, she dodged a kiss from him. Erica was not having any of that! Kendal tried one last time to manipulate her, and questioned if she was really sure in her decision making. Erica held her head high, stood her ground, and said goodbye to Kendal and host Mark L. Walberg.
In the car ride back, Erica was proud of herself for not falling for Kendal’s manipulation tactics. We are proud of you too, Erica! Kendal, still in shock, told Mark he guessed he would leave with Alexcys. I’m sure Alexcys can’t wait to hear how she was so blatantly second choice. Mark also put a dig in, and said let’s find out if Alexcys wants to leave with you first. It would have been absolute gold if Alexcys shut out Kendal as well, but she chose to leave with him. During their car ride back, Kendal mumbled something about a curve ball, and pushed himself as far away from Alexcys as he could. Good luck dating that sociopath Alexcys, you’re going to need it.
Next up was Chelsea and Thomas. Thomas was too flirty for Chelsea’s taste, and Chelsea was too clingy for Thomas. They had spent their entire time on the island doing tit for tats to one another. For instance, Chelsea made out with Blake Eyres, and then Thomas then made out with Sophia Perez. It seemed obvious their relationship would end at bonfire, but both Chelsea and Thomas admitted they were unsure of their final decision. However, a decision had to be made, and it was game time as they sat in front of Mark.
Thomas went first, and told Chelsea his original intentions were to be on his best behavior. But when he saw her make out with Blake, it crushed him because she had broken their rules. That’s what you get for bringing your girl to Temptation Island! And that was exactly what Chelsea hit him back with.
Chelsea did her fake cry with no tears, and told Thomas she did not want to come here in the first place. But then Chelsea realized she wasn’t going to spend her time worrying about Thomas cheating and was going to have fun instead. And that fun included an unexpected connection with Blake. Chelsea admitted to kissing Blake, and had no apologies for it. Especially after she watched Thomas smack Sophia’s bootie. Thomas retorted he was exploring his flirty side, and Chelsea countered, “You’ve never explored a butt before?” Comedy gold.
Thomas stood his ground though and told Chelsea she explored her relationship with Blake, so it went both ways. Chelsea admitted that was true, and did provide some comfort to Thomas when she said that she wasn’t in love with Blake. But that comfort was short lived, because now both Thomas and Chelsea had trust issues with one another. Oh, these two.
Mark then interjected, and asked Chelsea to make her decision. In a surprise twist, Chelsea said she wanted to go back with Thomas, and Thomas agreed that was what he wanted as well. Did anyone see that coming? Even Mark had a look like, are you guys sure? Still, they were both happy in their decision, and I hope they can make it work out between them. However, once Chelsea sees the clip of Thomas and Sophia entering the bedroom in their overnight date, she might have a change of heart…
And speaking of change of heart, was Kristen going to change her mind on whether she wanted to marry Julian or not? All season long we heard from Kristen that she had trust issues, and rightfully so, because Julian had cheated on her twice. Julian often told the story that even though they had been together for eleven years, Kristen told him not to propose because she would say no. But, both Julian and Kristen used their time on Temptation Island to self-reflect. Julian realized he was ready to be the man Kristen needed, and Kristen realized she was ready to be emotionally available to Julian. Now they just had to share that information face to face.
Kristen and Julian immediately hugged each other at bonfire. Right then, it was obvious they would stay together, but still uncertain if Kristen would say yes to the proposal. Julian went first, and told Kristen he thought his journey would be proving his loyalty to her. However, he realized there was more to it, and needed to understand why he made the mistakes he did. Kristen then took Mark’s advice from a previous bonfire, and asked Julian a tough question. She wondered how he could forget about her and her feelings when he cheated.
Julian admitted it had nothing to do with Kristen, but he had taken his insecurities out on her. He told Kristen he is not the same man she came to island with, but a better version of himself. Julian then wanted to make sure that Kristen had grown as well. Kristen thanked Julian for all he said, and for taking things seriously during his time there, unlike a certain someone who was having threesomes. Kristen said she was hurt by Julian’s actions and couldn’t understand why he behaved that way, so she shut herself down emotionally. But she realized that didn’t help their relationship, and now she is no longer scared to be open with him.
Mark then asked Julian and Kristen how they wanted to move forward. Is is proposal time yet? Julian did not propose, but he did prep for it when he told Kristen there was no one else in the entire world he wanted to leave the island with but her. Kristen sweetly responded that she loved him and wanted to leave with him as well. Mark then gave Julian and Kristen a big hug goodbye and sent them on their way. As they left bonfire, they came across a bed of rose petals, and Julian finally proposed. Kristen broke down into tears and said yes. Cheers to the happy couple!
And now it’s on to the reunion! Three out of the four couples chose to stay together at the end of Temptation Island. Did those decisions still stand today? Mark touched base with Kendal and Erica first. Everyone then took a deep breath to prepare themselves if Erica had gotten back together with Kendal or not.
We found out right away that Kendal and Alexcys were no more. Apparently, after she and Kendal had left the island, they only spoke one time and then Alexcys ghosted him. Alexcys was not happy with how she was second choice and admitted she should have asked Kendal about his decision making, because that would have changed hers. What a finale that would have been if both Erica and Alexcys had rejected him.
Nickole Ciszak also got her time in the sun, and shared she was disappointed she didn’t get to spend more time with Kendal because she felt they had a connection. How Nickole still couldn’t see he just used her for a threesome is beyond me. Kendal denied any sort of feelings on his end, no surprise, and said he should not have moved so fast with the ladies on the island. He added that he is going to appreciate the next woman he is with. Advice to single women everywhere who come across Kendal’s path, run!
Kendal then accused Jesse of taking advantage of Erica while she was vulnerable. Jesse denied it, and he and Erica both agreed that his only message was for her to focus on herself and not Kendal. Mark then tried to push Kendal to open up emotionally and asked how Erica’s connection with Jesse made him feel. Kendal bluntly said he “felt nothing.” Mark didn’t give up though and got Kendal to admit he had a hard time opening up because he was constantly let down by past relationships. Seems like Kendal was still blaming everyone but himself, but it was a start. Erica then reassured fans she that she and Kendal were not together, and the world let out a collective sigh of relief.
Next up was Erin Smith and Corey Sobczyk, whose relationship status update was, “it’s complicated.” True to Mark’s prediction, Corey and Erin had fallen back into their old ways as soon as they left the island. Corey was still not communicating with Erin, and Erin was still pushing Corey to be an alpha male. Did anyone not see that coming?
Shaquille Urie and Amanda Spain-Butts then joined the panel, and both Erin and Corey apologized to them. Erin wished she hadn’t sent Shaquille home because she had wanted to get to know him better. Corey apologized to Amanda for ghosting her after he left the island. And then came an interesting twist. Corey said he lied to Erin about his overnight date with Amanda. It wasn’t clear if they just kissed or hooked up, but Amanda confirmed they slept in the same bed but didn’t do anything. But then Shaquille jumped in and said Amanda told him they did hook up. Erin was losing her mind over it and then Corey reasoned this was why he didn’t want to tell her what happened because he knew she would be upset.
Mark interjected all the bickering and asked Corey and Erin if they wanted to stay together. Corey didn’t want to give up on their relationship, however Erin said she wanted to walk away. Mark put in his two cents and said they were incompatible because Erin was trying to make Corey be someone he wasn’t, and Corey wasn’t stepping up to the plate. Erin and Corey then agreed they just wanted each other to be happy. And I think we can all agree, they are most likely happier apart.
Chelsea and Thomas went next, and gave off the same vibes as when they were at final bonfire. At first they seemed upset, but then everything was fine. The back and forth of their relationship seems exhausting! Chelsea shared she wasn’t happy when she saw all the footage of Sophia and Thomas kissing, but interestingly didn’t mention the possibility of them hooking up during their overnight date. Sophia chimed in and said she thought Thomas stayed true to his plan of being faithful, until he had seen the footage of Chelsea and Blake making out.
Mark then played a clip of Blake the fake sharing his opinion that he was disappointed in Chelsea for not sticking with her plan to leave the island alone. Sounds a lot like something Kendal would say! However, Tom Triola was supportive of Chelsea’s decision as long as she and Thomas were happy together. Mark figured now was a good time to find out and asked the couple how they were doing.
Thomas said it was a rollercoaster of being in love and fighting with one another. Chelsea then got on the defensive and said all relationships took work. True, but their relationship seems particularly tumultuous. But hey, if they like all that drama then good for them. Mark then wished the couple the best of luck, because they are going to need it!
And just like at final bonfire, we ended the reunion on Julian and Kristen. Kristen and Julian both reiterated their thankfulness for this experience and how it brought them closer together. Kristen realized that she needed to figure out the root cause as to why she did not want to move forward in their relationship. Julian shared that Maya Morsi was a big part in helping him realize he couldn’t move forward by carrying the burden of his cheating forever. Mark asked if Kristen and Julian had talked about the details of Julian’s unfaithfulness, but Kristen said she didn’t need to know the details but rather the reasoning.
The show ended on a happy note that both Julian and Kristen are still together and have plans to get married next year on their original anniversary date. Aw! We also finally got a close up shot of that ring. Great job Julian and Tula Poindexter on picking it out. And with that, Mark thanked all the couples and singles for another amazing season. I can’t wait to see what craziness we have in store for next time!
TELL US – DO YOU THINK ERICA WILL STAY SINGLE OR GO BACK TO KENDAL? ARE YOU SURPRISED THAT THOMAS AND CHELSEA GOT BACK TOGETHER? DO YOU THINK ERIN AND COREY WILL SEPARATE OR STAY TOGETHER? DO YOU THINK KRISTEN AND JULIAN WILL STILL GET MARRIED? DID YOU ENJOY THE REUNION?
[Photo Credit: USA Network]
