MAFS; S12, EP 8

Briana and (don’t spill the champagne) Vinny are rehashing their fight from last week’s episode which sent Vinny spiraling. They agreed to try and talk through things in a more mature manner and not to run off when things get tough. Vinny met up with his friend with the dimple and glasses to talk about the status of his marriage.  He vented about he and Briana’s little tiff, explaining that he feels belittled and disrespected. Luckily his friend set him straight, laughing and telling him to chill out, since Briana is good for him. Later on in the episode, the couples were obligated to have their little house warming parties with friends and family. Vinny’s mom came over with his brother, meeting Briana and her family for the first time.They all seemed to be getting along, despite the language barrier, as they played cheesy “get to know the couple” games and ate some fajita looking items. Briana’s family kept checking in with Vinny to see how he’s handling life with his new boss, but he claimed things were going well. Briana tried to communicate with her new mother in law using her new Spanish word she claimed that Vinny had just taught her- “Gracias”. (Pretending your husband is teaching you something so he doesn’t feel disrespected and run away isn’t cute. De Nada.)

Virginia is heading off to her friend’s wedding, leaving Erik in charge of her dog, Rocky for the weekend. While walking both of the pups out for a walk he ran into Ryan, and the two new dog dads had a stop and chat about their new lives plus wives. Erik admits that at times, his constant contact annoys Virginia, while Ryan remains silent about his situation, only offering reassuring filler words like “no doubt” and “for sure” (He doesn’t have to say much, he’s adorable).
Erik met up with yet another person to discuss his concerns about his marriage to Tila Tequila (because the whole storyline of this show is meeting up with different people to discuss the same issues). Erik confessed that Virginia is still in her party phase of her life (or possibly always will be), and he worries that she lacks the maturity to be in a committed relationship. He admitted that he was possibly over the top with his constant communication when away from Virginia claiming it was coming from a good place. Erik’s friend, who definitely looked older than 34- the age that Erik claims to be, warned Erik that he shouldn’t try and act like her father, and should resist the urge to tell her “well back in my day…” life lessons. He really wants to make the marriage works but already sees the red flags. Virginia came home from her weekend away, wearing her Jansport backpack and hugging Erik, definitely giving off creepy uncle vibes. Erik was prepping for the couples’ silly house party, where he’d be meeting Virginia’s guy friends for the first time. Virginia took out her favorite China pattern (red solo cups) for the occasion, as she prepped limes for shots. Their friends seemed to get along well, with Erik warming up to the guys, feeling slightly more comfortable with his new party-bride hanging out with them alone.   Virginia heckled all of the party attendants into taking shots, all while wearing her signature purple eyeshadow.

This week Chris sat down with his Pastor and friend to bring them up to speed about the current state of his marriage, i.e. asking Paige for a divorce. 
He summed up his experience so far by explaining that he was not initially attracted to Paige at the altar, so he decided to have sex with her to see if the connection could grow. When they got to Vegas, he found out the news that his ex fiance, Mercedes, was pregnant and decided to try and make things work with her instead. 
Pastor Dwight responded by saying that Chris needs to work on commitment, emphasizing that he and Paige made vows before God, and that he could still be an involved father to his child even if he was not with the mother. His other friend chimed in saying that Paige has so many attributes (besides the aZZ) that make her a great wife and partner, and that he shouldn’t discount that. They tried to encourage Chris to give the relationship a chance and see where it goes, though Chris had already checked out and started playing Candy Crush on his phone before announcing that he was done with the conversation. His pastor hit him with the fact that he was being extremely selfish and that he needs to consider everyone’s feelings…. So, he left. Surely he felt the whole conversation was “disrespectful”, his favorite word. Next we saw Paige get a phone call from Chris, who was supposed to be long gone by now, but instead asked her if she would have a sit down conversation with him and his baby mama (the hyped up moment we had all been waiting for). Though Paige said she would have to “pray on that”, her prayers must have been answered with a big YES, because she later sat down with the prospective parents for a meet and greet. Paige sat down first, dressed like she was going on a date to the mall. Mercedes and Chris, on the other hand, were dressed like they were going clubbing. Paige opened the conversation by saying the couple looked “jazzy”, and then asked how far along Mercedes is, which she paused and then answered that she was 7 weeks along. Mercedes claimed she had no ill feelings towards Paige, while Chris mostly looked at the ground as they talked about him and the situation like he wasn’t even sitting there. Paige was very mature, mediating the entire sit down, as she explained to Mercedes that she had feared she could also have been pregnant, since the couple hadn’t used any form of contraception. This caused Mercedes to whip around towards Chris, who clearly had not shared the fun fact that he and Paige had slept together, especially without protection. Mercedes then asked Paige the ridiculous question; “Pregnant by who??”  Mercedes questioned if Chris had known there was a possibility that Paige could be pregnant.. (which if he had attended health class, the answer should be yes). Mercedes claimed that she has no intentions to work things out with Chris, which seemed to be news to him. Paige announced that her relationship with Chris “no longer served her”, the highlight of the evening. The girls were very cordial and calm, especially under the bizarre circumstances, while Chris acted like a pouty kid, squirming in his seat. Chris tried to express that he was honest and upfront with Paige the entire time (which, to some extent was true), and claims the divorce was for Paige’s benefit since he feels mentally checked out. Towards the end of the chat he went into full on jerk mode, talking over everyone. He claimed Paige was being rude, before getting up and leaving. Mercedes seemed to just shake her head, unphased by his behavior, as the two women wrapped up their “Ladies of Chris” seminar” and hugged goodbye.
It seemed as though Paige was done last week (ya know, when she said she was done), until Chris seemed to pull her back in by saying his “spirit totally had a crush on hers”. Then after this meet and greet you’d think she was REALLY done. However, next week shows the couple together YET AGAIN, leaving me to believe that Paige is in on it.( No one says “jazzy” anymore, that was my tip off). I’m sure Paige is becoming a midwife in case she has to deliver the baby for them…

Haley, Clara and Briana sat down for a girls day, missing Paige and Virginia. Clara told them about her first tiff with Ryan, which was based off of refusing a jello shot (causing Virginia to magically appear out of thin air from hearing there were jello shots). Eventually the couple got over Ryan being a party pooper, and things were back to the sameness they seem to be maintaining. She also complained that the couple hasn’t consummated their marriage yet, leaving her feeling frustrated and questioning if Ryan will ever let down his guard. Briana explained how much she liked Vinny, despite their little communication issue, while Haley sipped her drink quietly, trying to stay positive, telling the girls that Jake is very “nice”. 

Erik, Vinny, Ryan and Jake got together for some Guy Time and discussed their female troubles. Jake expressed that his relationship will end up being one sided and end in heartbreak (though it may be safe to say Haley seems like she’s ready to get in the Delorean and ride off to the future….she would also not get that reference). Erik explained for the 700th time that Virginia is a wild child, and he’s ready to settle down. Vinny gushed about how awesome Briana is, while Ryan admitted that he controls how much he lets people in, and he can see this is already a probably for carefree Clara.

Haley met up with her girlfriend, explaining that after the excitement of the wedding and newness wore off, she started to freak out and pull away. She listed all of the turn offs about Jake (his 80s obsession topping the list), and mentioned the big fight that they had due to their communication issues. Her friend pushed Haley to keep going and give it her all, instead of clamming up and hating on Jake’s outfits and outdated references. Taking advice from her friend, Haley decided to make an effort with Jake by making small talk over a beer. She had asked Jake about his past endeavors, listening to his stories about the olden days when he flipped a house and became a bodybuilder. Later on at their house party, Jake was killin’ it with Haley’s friends who all seemed to really like him. He pulled them aside at the taco party to get inside info. Her friends explained that Haley is very reserved and hard to read, as if he needed anyone to tell him. Jake’s friend was also in attendance and gave Haley a bit of insight into Jake’s communication style. He explained Jake as direct and unable to take subtle cues. (He should have really given her some cliff notes to 80s movies so they can have an enjoyable conversation). 

Ryan and Clara also had a house party, but it was pretty uneventful other than Clara mentioned she had yet to see her new husband topless. I think there are a few people frustrated by this. 

Looking forward to the next episode!