Captain Sandy is left dealing with the ultimate sh*t show as this charter season kicks off for Below Deck Med. Her chief stew, Tumi, and second stew, Kyle, are stuck in immigration and her boson, Ruan, has some “paperwork” issues…aka he was busted for making photocopies of his documents. Plus, the guy on his license isn’t even him! Sandy is floundering but must keep her cool until the issues resolve themselves. Until then, how will the crew run a few people short and how will the crew run when the chief stew finally comes on board?
Doesn’t seem like much help is on the way for a bit and so that leaves the crew doing extra to make it a successful charter. The winds are whipping, causing chaos for the deck hands, making it difficult to launch the water toys that the guests so badly want to utilize. As quickly as jet skis go in the water, they get pulled right back up, much to the guests’ chagrin as they dine over some crummy eggs brought to them by Chef Jack.
One of the guests is experiencing vertigo, and so the primary charter guests suggests that they head to shore a bit since some of his buddies are “tossing their cookies” thanks to the rocky seas. We learn that Natalya, the temporary chief stew, has an open relationship with her boyfriend, a style that she is not really into. She is still not ok with it, but I guess that means she can flirt all she wants with Luka thanks to her relationship rules, or lack thereof…
Luka is stuck bringing the guests to shore and warns them if they must puke, they just have to barf overboard for “ten minutes of absolute torture before they get to shore.” After 8 minutes of vomiting (the Bravo producers and their shade), the guests arrive on land and get their sea legs back.
Since they have an empty boat, the crew is off to the races cleaning up and prepping. Natalya knows it is going to be hard to step down from chief stew when the time comes, but for now she just plans on crushing it to show off a bit for Captain Sandy. Jessika, the second stew, can sense that Natalya is stressed about the new chief stew coming.
After the wind dies down, the toys can finally go into the water, which is a nice treat for the guests when they are done sightseeing. When they return to the boat, it’s a whole new vibe: less puking, more fun. Captain Sandy is impressed with the deck crew and their work ethic and Jack is busy churning out meal after meal in the galley. We learn that Jack was in a Michelin Star kitchen by the age of 19, but he wasn’t quite ready for that. Could use a few subtitles to figure out what he is planning for the dinner menu, but based on Natalya’s reaction, it sounds like it’ll be a hit.
There is a snafu with the lines and Lara calls Haleigh to be her eyes while she goes under and attempts to untangle it from the prop. This is a dangerous problem, since a prop is necessary to maneuver the boat and Lara realizes that she must fix it now or never. Lara is able to untangle the ropes and pulls through the high-pressure situation without causing alarm to anyone on board.
A long dinner is on the horizon, and I think I counted five or six forks at each place setting. It’s a music festival theme and as the crew pushes to stay afloat, Captain Sandy finally hears from the 2 crew members stuck in immigration: they got their visas and will be to Italy soon! In the meantime, Sandy officially asks Luka to be the full-time bosun and although he is flattered, he is kinda shaking knowing that all the responsibility is falling on him throughout the charter season. “Daddy Bosun” lets the crew know the good news, but there isn’t much time to celebrate, as it’s time to bring on the 572 courses.
Haleigh shares that she has never decorated for a party and leaves the viewers wondering how she has survived this long without any knowledge of decorating. Brooke, the temp 3rd stew, is running late in the cabins and so the EDM party hardly looks like a celebration since she has not helped with the set up. Jessika is put in charge of service so Natalya can pick up the slack on the sun deck, and it is a sh*t show watching them muddle through the chaos. Luckily, the guests are in awe of Jack’s food creations, and they are unaware of Natalya’s “crack head energy” as she rushes around to prep for the party. At 1:15 am, the guests bound up to the EDM party and they continue raging until nearly 3 am.
The next morning, Natalya is struggling to wake up, Jack is whipping up a quiche, and the crew is counting down the minutes until these guests get off the deck so they can let loose themselves. As they pull up the anchor, they realize that there is a brick attached to the anchor, something that I can’t imagine happens often. Luka grabs a “brick knife” from Jack in the galley, hops into a tender, and saws the brick off the anchor, wowing Captain Sandy with his cool composure.
The docking is underway, and the Italian pilot comes on board to help guide the yacht. Luka may look calm on the outside, but inside he is a nervous wreck. The yacht is massive and there is a lot at stake, however, he nails it, thus solidifying his new position as bosun. After getting into their whites, the crew bids adieu to the guests and eye up the thick tip envelope.
The tip meeting is a pleasant experience and Captain Sandy applauds Luka and the female deck crew. Jack set the bar high, and Natalya stepped up as an awesome chief stew. Brooke will be leaving after this evening, as she was simply a temp stew, but they will all enjoy their $1,818 per person tip.
While getting ready for the night out, Lara talks about her conservative family and how she realized during quarantine that she likes women. She felt free and explains that when she is home, she needs to hide her true self a bit. They are all pumped up to drink and party with each other after that stressful charter and Luka and Natalya get a few minutes to flirt and talk relationships. Natalya explains that she has lust for Luka, but love for her boyfriend…especially after Luka promises that he will see more of Natalya one day…
In the morning, Natalya talks cabin arrangements with Captain Sandy and they pretend like they aren’t hung over messes. Tumi, the official chief stew, plans to board the yacht later in the afternoon, of course after all the hard work is already complete! Brooke says goodbye to Captain Sandy and the crew, but receives a warm farewell even after her short stint.
Natalya believes that she set up the yacht pretty well for the new chief stew. It turns out this is not Tumi’s first rodeo on Below Deck and she has earned this position as per the high recommendations from Captain Jason. Tumi peruses the CV’s and makes her way to the cabins where she meets the crew. Tumi explains that she knows she is the “new kid in town,” but she is ready to show them she can handle it. Tumi wants to be respected and is a bit worried about her relationship with Natalya. She does not like Natalya’s organization style, if you can call it that… and Natalya gets defensive when she feels like Tumi has offended her. When Natalya tells Tumi not to put her hands in her face, we can tell that things are off to a GREAT start…
TELL US — THOUGHTS ON THE LATEST BELOW DECK MED EPISODE?