So…Turns out it’s totally OK if you let a motor yacht hit a concrete dolphin in Captain Sandy Yawn‘s world. As long as you have the word “provisional” in front of your job title. Just like Raygan Tyler before him, Storm Smith manages to further destroy the captain’s spotless record of never having hit anything in the course of her career. Now it’s happened twice in the course of two charters. Could this deck crew be cursed?
But this time, it was Storm‘s inability to effectively use his walkie talkie that caused the collision. Rather than, you know, Raygan‘s more general, all-encompassing incompetence. So Sandy chalks the whole thing up to a learning opportunity and Storm doesn’t get anything more than a slight reprimand. Think we can make it the rest of the season without hitting anything?
The Tooth Hurts
Kyle Viljoen starts the episode bleeding from his mouth. And it pretty much goes downhill from there for the second stew. First, he’s in such a foul mood that he picks a completely unnecessary fight with Natalya Scudder over…doing laundry. (He’s miserable so he wants to stay in housekeeping all day. And, uh, doesn’t appreciate his co-workers attempt to help him with his job.) But what starts as friendly banter turns vicious. We saw the two going for the jugular in the supertease. So it seems there’s more drama to come between Kyle and Natalya.
However, by the time night falls, Kyle‘s in so much pain that he’s in tears. It’s so bad that Sandy sends him ashore to a local hospital. Where he’s consequently informed that he has a major tooth infection and has to stay overnight. This forces Courtney Veale to once again leave her new job as a deckhand and fill in as a stew for the night. But honestly, it’s a good thing she’s here. The next morning Kyle comes back to M/Y Home with two less teeth. So that’s…ouch.
“This Boat’s Gonna Roll”
The boat has only spent less than a day in the Blue Grotto before the wind picks up out of nowhere. Captain Sandy says the suddenly blustery day isn’t even on the weather report. Between the wind and the swells, it’s the perfect time for the ship’s stabilizers to once again go out. Like last time, things crash to the ground. The crew and guests are tossed back and forth. And it’s all because of the boat’s air conditioning. Ah, the price of luxury…
The windy weather facilitates Captain Sandy making the executive decision to once again head for the dock. So now it’s time for Storm‘s first official docking as provisional bosun. And it’s pitch black outside. You know, just for an added twist. But unlike his performance the prior morning, everything goes according to plan for Storm. He knows how to work the radio. The rest of the deck crew do their jobs. And they successfully dock the boat at night, much to Sandy’s delight.
Odd Man on Deck
Things on the deck crew are actually looking up. After the complete lack of leadership under Raygan, the team is finally finding some structure. And honestly, a lot of it has to do with Mzi Dempers stepping up and sharing creating structure. Storm is showing promise as a leader. And obviously, Courtney showing up made a huge difference. But the new dynamic on board has left Jason Gaskell feeling rather isolated and left out.
The junior deckhand isn’t exactly vibing with his co-workers. He doesn’t laugh at their jokes. They don’t understand his Indiana sense of humor. His lower energy doesn’t generally gel with everyone else. And he might be a bit put off by the pre-existing bond Mzi and Courtney already had from the moment the latter arrived to save the day. So the whole thing is just really leaving him as the sole deckhand not fitting in with the group. He did let slip on Watch What Happens Live that the one crew member he’d never want to work with again is Storm. And we haven’t even seen that play out yet.
Breaking Up Is Hard to Do
Natasha Webb spends the majority of this week’s episode getting back together with her ex-boyfriend via lovey-dovey text message. And trying to hide it all from Chef Dave White. Which bodes well considering they’re working in close quarters and she can’t keep her hands off her phone for more than three seconds at a time. And to make matters worse, the chief stew complains that she’s still feeling stifled by Dave. He can’t even ask how she is after the stabilizers go off without her finding a reason to feel smothered. But she’s more than happy to give him suggestions for his dinner menu. It’s a very confusing dynamic.
After the guests depart, Natasha decides it’s finally time to ‘fess up to Dave. But even for this conversation, she pulls him into a blind spot on the ship’s cameras. Sweetie, this isn’t how you’re supposed to do the whole reality TV thing. If you didn’t want to air your dirty laundry in front of Bravo’s cameras, you shouldn’t have come on the show. Dave is baffled by the news that she’s rekindling things with the guy she told him all sorts of terrible things about. And he claims she’s only hurting herself with all this terrible decision-making. But that’s not really true, is it? Because he’s the one left as discarded collateral damage once she was done using him.
Off to a Stormy Start…
Once the charter ends, it’s time for the crew to party. And Storm asks Natalya out to dinner, just the two of them. (According to the second stew, it’s totally not a date. But it is.) The pair are flirty and romantic over their seaside meal. Dare we say things are looking promising for the one functioning boatmance left of the season. Except, wait. There’s always time to mess things off before they even truly get started.
Somehow, after they re-join the group for a night of club, things between Storm and Natalya take a left turn. First, Natalya throws a fit that Storm’s talking about work with Mzi at the table. And when he doesn’t understand what he’s done wrong, she refuses to go “deep” with him. Natalya doesn’t do emotions. She doesn’t do overthinking. She accuses him of ruining the vibe. And they end the night going back to the boat in separate cars. And like Natasha before her, Natalya ends the episode by barricading herself in the guest cabin.
TELL US – DID CAPTAIN SANDY GO EASY ON STORM FOR HITTING THE DOLPHIN? DO YOU THINK NATASHA WAS JUST USING DAVE? CAN YOU MAKE SENSE OF WHY NATALYA IS ANGRY AT STORM?
[Photo Credit: Bravo]
