We are almost at the end, Temptation Island fans! The build up all season long has lead to these final two episodes. Who will stay together? Will anyone leave alone, or with one of the singles? In this episode we found out what happened to Corey Sobczyk and Erin Smith, and we got a peak at what’s to come for Kendal Kirkland and Erica Washington. Hint, Erica put Kendal in his place and I am here for it!
But first, we have to go back to the beginning when Mark L. Walberg showed up to the guys and girls villas to inform everyone it was time to say goodbye to their placeholders, ahem, singles. And it couldn’t have been more apparent over at the guys villa that Alexcys Homan and Sophia Perez were placeholders for Kendal and Thomas Gipson. Both girls had expressed their feelings numerous times, and both Kendal and Thomas essentially said thanks for the hookup but that’s all your going to get from me.
Corey took the opposite approach with Amanda Spain-Butts and thanked her for all of her support throughout his journey on the island. If Temptation Island were a movie, Amanda definitely played the part of the supporting lead whose sole purpose was to prop the lead up for success. True to her role, Amanda gave some sage words of advice to Corey on her way out. She said, “You better put your f*cking foot down, and don’t forget this man.” We’ll find out later if Corey remembered his training at final bonfire.
Julian Allen also thanked Tula Poindexter for all of her advice throughout his process. However, one cringe induced moment happened when Julian told Tula he would think of her every time he saw the engagement ring on Kristen Ramos’ finger. Oh no, Julian, just…no. I get he was trying to express his thankfulness at how much Tula supported him and helped pick out the ring, but that’s the last thing that Kristen needed to hear, especially with her trust issues. Still, I’m hopeful that Julian and Kristen can make it work out.
Thomas did not display any genuine thankfulness towards Sophia, but rather he half-heartedly said he would miss her. Sophia, showing her age difference, immediately retorted, “I’ll miss you more!” Thomas promised they would stay in touch, but if he truly wanted to get back together with Chelsea Orcutt like he claimed, staying in touch wouldn’t be in the cards. Also, he more than likely ruined any chance of reconciling with Chelsea once he hooked up with Sophia. Yes, Chelsea made out with Blake Eyres, but that wasn’t a green light for Thomas to pull a Kendal.
Speaking of, Kendal almost showed some emotion when Alexcys cried while saying their goodbyes. He consoled her by telling her to, “trust his judgement.” Yes, trust the man who cheated on his girlfriend multiple times and had a threesome. I couldn’t tell if Alexcys was upset about leaving Kendal, or the fact that she wouldn’t get anymore camera time. Perhaps both. All I know is, it was pretty telling that Kendal didn’t shed any tears over her.
At the girls villa, Erica was positively glowing as she said goodbye to Jesse Stephanos. See what happens without Kendal around? Erica thanked Jesse for helping her question herself, and not just focusing on her relationship. She said she was a new woman, and Jesse agreed she was completely different from her first day on the island. I’m not sure what will happen, but hopefully Erica continues to focus on herself, and not fall back into being manipulated by Kendal.
Erin thanked Juwan Haynes for standing by her even though she originally tried to push him away. I’m not sure if Erin has any actual friends since all she does is push people away. Erin gave Juwan a big hug goodbye and then began to mentally prepare herself for bonfire. Kristen also did the same. She was ready to see to see Julian and discuss next steps. Engagement, perhaps? Kristen also expressed her appreciation to Lex Lindquist for listening and asking the hard questions about her relationship.
And then came the over dramatic acting from Chelsea as she said her goodbyes to Blake the fake. Chelsea claimed she had it harder than the other girls because she was the only one who actually made a connection. Um, did she completely ignore Erica and Jesse? Probably, as Chelsea mostly spent her time on the island cornering anyone who would listen to her talk about her flip-flopping feelings for Blake and Thomas. Blake, as usual, looked bored and seemed like he couldn’t wait to turn to the camera and tell the audience to sign up for his dental practice today!
Next came a montage of Erin, Corey, Kendal, and Erica, why they came to the island (for more instagram followers), and bombshell moments. Basically, lots of scenes of Erin and Corey crying, and Kendal hooking up. We also got a flashback of Kendal prepping Erica for his behavior when told her he was going to experience the full essence the island had to offer. Gag.
Erin and Corey got to be the lucky ones to go first. On their way to bonfire, both were unsure if they were going to leave the island together. Erin secretly worried that Corey would leave her for Amanda, and was preparing her defense as to why she would leave alone if he did. And Corey repeated the following mantra over and over, “I’m good enough, I’m smart enough, and doggone it, people like me!”
Mark prepped Corey and made sure he knew now was the time to decide if Erin was the one, or if there was someone better for him. Corey said he was ready, and then Erin made her entrance. Would new Corey stick to his guns? Mark then laid down the ground rules, they would each have a turn to talk and then the other would listen until they were done.
Corey dropped the bomb that he felt unloved by Erin, and avoided arguments as not to upset her. He admitted his worst fears of Erin leaving him for another athletic type, like Griffin Libhart, had come true when she picked him for a date. However, Corey said he pulled himself together, improved his self-confidence, and found support from Amanda. In the end, Corey said he knows what he needs to do to be a better boyfriend and he hoped Erin would be open to them changing for the better.
Erin admitted she saw his gain in confidence, but was not thrilled he was so open with Amanda because he wasn’t open with her. Not pushing everyone away would be a start to get people to be open with you. Erin said even though she wasn’t happy with Corey because she had to make all the decisions in their relationship, she learned she needed to work on herself as well. Erin then dropped the bomb that her past relationships were toxic and included getting physical. This was the reason she had taken her anger out on him. Erin hoped that Corey would now understand her behavior towards him, and she apologized for pushing him away.
Erin then asked Corey what happened on his overnight date with Amanda. Corey let her know that Amanda did express feelings for him, but he had told her his heart was with Erin. Let’s all say it together now…aww! Corey then asked Erin if she was faithful to him and she said yes. Erin then shared an interesting tidbit that Juwan had told her she was intimidating. Mark immediately jumped on that and asked Corey if he agreed.
Corey quickly fell back into old Corey mode and denied that Erin was that way. Mark told Corey he didn’t believe him, and he was concerned that the minute they left the island, Corey was going to go right back to cowering before Erin so as not to upset her. He informed Corey he needed to create a safe space with Erin so he could tell her if she was going too far. Poor Corey! He looked like a scolded puppy.
Erin agreed with Mark and said that she wanted Corey to put her in her place. There’s one small issue, that is not who Corey is. Corey is a nice guy, who needs someone gentle and understanding, not confrontational and pushy. However, Corey puffed out his chest and told Erin he was not going to stand for her old behavior, and she needed to be scared of losing him. New Corey was back!
Satisfied with Corey’s response, Mark then asked Erin if she wanted to leave the island alone, with Corey, or with someone else. Erin grinned and said she wanted to leave with Corey, and Corey immediately agreed. Mark gave his blessing and wished the couple the best of luck. During their car ride back, Erin kept talking at Corey about how emotional she was, and Corey had the look of someone already checked out. Still, he gave her a sweet kiss at the end. Let’s hope that Corey can stick to his guns and stand up for himself, or Mark’s prediction of the couple falling right back into their old patterns will come true.
Next up was Erica and Kendal. Time for the popcorn! On their way to bonfire, Erica planned to tell Kendal about the progress she had made and then confront him on his actions. Kendal was already on the defensive, and was determined not to apologize because of their “no rules” rule. Kendal also had the nerve to say he needed to see real growth from Erica. What a class act.
As Kendal walked up to have a seat next to Erica, Mark did not give him the same warm welcome that was given to Corey. How Mark kept a straight face around Kendal this entire time was beyond me. Mark then laid out the ground rules and asked Kendal to go first. All the confidence Kendal displayed seem to go out the window now that he had to talk first. But he did his best to continue to spew BS.
Kendal told Erica they came here to work on themselves individually and then come back together stronger. I don’t know about you all, but a threesome definitely helps cement a troubled relationship! Kendal said that he realized he kept his guard up, and that made it difficult to love and be open with her. Kendal then admitted to his connection with Alexcys, and that he liked she asked deep questions. When I think of Alexcys, I definatley think of someone who asks deep questions, don’t you? Then Kendal rambled on about being a better version of himself who is free and not afraid.
Erica seemed annoyed with Kendal’s speech, but now was her time to speak. She told Kendal that when she first got to the island, her focus was on proving to him that she could be the woman he wanted her to be. Man, he messed with her head! But then Erica realized she needed to focus on herself. She firmly told him that he made her feel unworthy, and wasn’t deserving of unconditional love. Erica then said she wasn’t the same person who came with him to the island, and she hoped that everything he did was worth it.
Kendal stayed silent because he knew he was in the wrong, so Erica pressed him to share what he worked on to improve himself during his time on the island. Kendal said he needed to work on putting himself out there emotionally. Kind of impossible if you are a sociopath, but ok. Erica quickly asked how having a threesome helped him open up emotionally. When she got no response, Erica said she wanted to understand why he immediately slept with random women without even having a connection. Kendal didn’t have an excuse, but blamed it on poor decision making.
But then Kendal gave in and actually apologized. He told Erica his behavior was not acceptable, and had many sleepless nights worried about how he was going to explain this all to her. More believable, he had many sleepless nights because he was trying to get Alexcys and Nickole Ciszak to have more threesomes with him.
Kendal then flipped it back onto Erica and asked if she had been faithful to him. Erica admitted to kissing her date because that had made her happy. Obviously she and Jesse could have kept their overnight date innocent, but that wasn’t the message sent to the audience when we saw shots of clothing tossed onto the floor. Regardless, that was all the ammo Kendal needed to try and make Erica feel less than. He gave her a snotty comment if that was where she wanted to put her energy into then that was on her.
Erica didn’t fall for it though, and confronted Kendal about his conversations with Alexcys about having kids. Kendal got mad and told her not to make it seem like he was talking about future decisions with the whole world. To which Erica retorted, well you were sleeping with the whole world! Boom! As Mark asked the couple what choices they had made, Kendal had his head down from being scolded by Erica. Erica kept the momentum going and ordered Kendal to put his head up to face Mark. She was not backing down one bit.
When Mark asked for their decisions, Erica turned to Kendal and said that she loved him. And then we got left with a cliff hanger! All will be revealed next week for our last three couples, and I for one cannot wait!
TELL US – DO YOU THINK ERIN AND COREY MADE THE RIGHT DECISION TO LEAVE TOGETHER? DO YOU THINK COREY WILL STAND UP TO ERIN, OR WILL THEY FALL BACK INTO THEIR OLD WAYS? WILL ERICA LEAVE THE ISLAND WITH KENDAL, JESSE, OR ALONE? DO YOU THINK KENDAL WILL CHOOSE ERICA OR ALEXCYS?
[Photo Credit: USA Network]
