“The weather started getting rough,the tiny ship was tossed. If not for the courage of the fearless crew, The Eros would be lost.” Speaking of horrific storms, I can’t begin my Below Deck recap without acknowledging the devastation faced by the people of South Carolina. While Charleston faced lots of flooding (a guy paddle boarded down my street at one point!), residents of the midlands suffered unimaginable losses. Several of my friends were evacuated from their homes, many assisted in rescues (navigating boats through their neighborhood streets), and countless folks lost their homes. Everyone jokes that South Carolina is such a small state–there is only one degree of separation between you and whoever you meet regardless of where they live in the state. Sadly, that means, that everyone knows someone affected by this tragedy. Please continue to lift them up in your thoughts as we pull together to help those who lost everything.
On last night’s episode, Emile Kotze is befuddled after receiving Raquel “Rocky” Dakota Bartlow’s middle school note, and he confronts Rocky about her immature means of communication. She retorts that she had to write him a letter because he hasn’t been picking up what she’s throwing down…which is massive amounts of teasing that she isn’t interested. Poor Emile retires to his cabin where he’s forced to listen to Dane’s late night phone conversation. Poor Emile just can’t catch a break! The crew is awaiting the charter guests as Captain Lee Rosbach calls Eddie Lucas, Leon Walker, and Kate Chastain to the bridge to discuss their next outing. The main guests are foodie siblings who own a business together. Leon is excited about getting to experiment with new dishes, but Lee is worried about the stormy forecast. In the galley, Rocky is distressed to learn from Connie Arias (via a frustrated and sleep-deprived Emile) that Dane has a girlfriend. Couldn’t he have shared that information with her before he massaged her feet? The guests arrive on board and are treated to a tour, who isn’t quite sure of the romantic dynamics of the newcomers.
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The guests converge on Leon to chat about menu ideas and wine tastings. He plasters on a smile, but it’s evident he doesn’t like anyone invading his kitchen. Meanwhile, Amy Johnson listens in horror as the guests recap their last yachting experience that lasted mere hours thanks to crashing into a reef. Foreshadowing? I hope not! A few of the guests head out with Connie to catch their own lobsters, while Dane and Eddie bring back the jet skis thanks to the impending bad weather. The sky is black, and everyone makes like flamingos and gets the flock back to the boat as a torrential downpour begins. The Eros crew is scrambling to get the guests to back on the dry ship as Lee warns Eddie about an anchor watch courtesy of the swell.
Leon and Kate are getting along as well as always (so, not at all), and the main guest requests a bell for when they want to summon more of Leon’s cauliflower soup. Dane is the first on anchor watch, and Eddie stresses the importance of staying awake throughout his time on-call. Kate is frustrated that Leon is yet again preparing beef cheeks, but perhaps he’s angling for a Bravo beef cheeks cookbook! The satisfied guests head to bed with full bellies as Dane sets up for his watch. As he attempts to flirt with Amy, she reminds him that he can’t watch the anchor from the kitchen…it’s anchor watch, not oven watch. The following morning, Emile is giving Rocky her space while creepily spying on her from a close distance. Leon requests some gourmet food from the mainland and crosses his fingers he can get it before it’s time to start cooking again. Tired from anchor watch, Dane tries to nap before being chastised by Eddie. It’s time to treat the guests to some jet skiing. It would be easier if one of the guys hadn’t sucked up the line into the machine’s propeller. Even worse? Dane crashes the second jet ski into the side of the Eros. He can’t get the lines and wench properly positioned for retrieval, and I’m going to guess that Dane is the crew member who earns the golden plane ticket home.
The crew has decided that the charter guests must be bad luck given their last attempt at yachting. Leon is in the midst of a meltdown given he doesn’t have the necessary provisions for his tasting menu. Everyone is waiting on pins and needles as Leon gets his fancy proteins. Most of his order from the mainland is frozen, and he refuses to tell Amy when he requested his provisions. Kate is worried about a domino effect. Leon slacking off on his menu means she can’t set the table and the other staff members are tasked with occupying the guests…unless that staff member is Rocky who has set her sights on Eddie now that the Dane train has derailed. As it inches toward 9 PM, the guests are getting restless about their dinner. The main guest hovers over Kate as she coordinates the wine pairings and types up the menu. Amy is peeved that the crew is forced to work overtime to make up for Kate who is behind on her tasks due to Leon’s incompetence. Amy is embarrassed, and the Captain joins his guests, hoping to diffuse the appearance of his crews’ unpreparedness.
Eddie unloads on Connie about his unraveling relationship as Kate and Leon struggle through the pairing menu. Emile and Connie laugh hysterically as they watch the awkwardness unfold on the closed circuit television. Connie cites them as having a sibling relationship. Amy, who never loses her cool, is over Leon’s unprofessional behavior, and he heads to the dining area just long enough to garner the guests’ praise for his cuisine. Kate can’t keep her feelings to herself for another second (and I can’t blame her one bit!), and she asks why he didn’t approach the guests wearing his chef’s jacket. She calmly explains that the crew can’t work together to present a successful tasting menu if he can’t be a team player. As usual, a defensive Leon blames everyone but himself for any issues with the meal before storming out of the galley, insulting Kate with every breath. As Kate keeps things professional, Leon antagonizes Kate, spewing how much he dislikes her in front of Amy.
The next day, Kate tiptoes around Leon, and Amy sympathizes with her boss’ very difficult job. While the rain has ceased, the wind is whipping for a very precarious docking. Rocky lets out a bit of her inner crazy (although I’m not quite sure in regard to what) as the guests compliment Lee on the charter. The crew is just glad this trip is over, and they are even happier to learn that they were generously tipped. Lee also reveals that the owners of the Eros are treating the crew to a day off at a local resort for a job well done. As the captain dismisses the crew, he pulls Dane aside to make sure he knows what is expected of him. Lee describes him as having the lights on, but no one is home. Accurate! Regardless, Rocky finds him to be adorable. The adorable Dane is getting wasted while counting his “hundos,” and Rocky is getting some suggestive texts from the bosun. After Eddie has banned Connie from wearing whipped cream bikinis while traipsing around the yacht, she’s opted for peanut butter. Geez. Rocky is intrigued by Eddie’s texts, and Connie is weirded out by a wasted, unintelligible Dane. Kate thinks Dane may have a problem. I’d venture he has several.
TELL US – WHAT DID YOU THINK OF LAST NIGHT’S EPISODE? DOES DANE NEED TO WALK THE PLANK?
[Photo Credit: Bravo]
