90 Day Fiance; Season 10 Episode 2

Ashley & Manuel

Ashley’s panic attack from last week carried over as she safely managed to make it onto airport property without committing vehicular manslaughter. She finished her bout of excessive drama and met up in the parking lot with her sister, who came along for emotional support (Could she maybe have driven Ashley to the airport?? Sincerely, everyone else driving in Rochester).

The hyperventilating continued at the baggage claim as she freaked out over whether or not Manuel would make an appearance. Finally she spotted his dark, greasy locks, heading down the escalator and right into her previously panic-stricken arms.The two hugged and kissed with relief, even though the 90 Day countdown had just officially begun.   

As they rode on towards home, Manuel began recounting his thoughts and feelings of his very first airplane ride with a deadpan expression. He was surprised to see that the city of Rochester had a lot of trees, and was impressed with the casas grandes (That’s “Big Houses”, Kenny). Upon entering Ashley’s humble abode, Manuel was immediately greeted by the real star, Ashley’s yorkie named Rico Suave. He made sure to say hello to Mr. Suave, but was not as thrilled with Ashley’s cat (A black cat of course, because she’s a witch), as he felt like house cats were like fat, lazy roommates. They then took the house tour, where Manuel noticed all of Ashley’s authentic meditation crystals and Buddah statues from Ross Dress For Less. The tour ended in the bedroom, where Manuel was distraught to find the chiquito perrito (That’s little dog, Kenny), rolling around on the bed. He felt Rico Suave should be sleeping outside, though Ashley let him know she’s team Rico M*therF*ckin Suave (I’m confused….can she not cast a spell on Manuel to change his mind?! Are her witch powers broken?? Try wiggling your nose, Ashley…)

After a long day of anxiety and travel, the two ordered take out as Ashley began navigating Manuel’s path to understanding her witchcrafting ways. Being that he was from Ecuador and raised a strict Catholic, Manuel had lived a fairly witch-free existence, and had grown up under the belief that they eat children in gingerbread houses. It seems confusing that these two could have known each other for 10 years and not have once discussed her love of “The Craft”, but hopefully he’ll be a fan of 90’s teen witch movies and pachouli in no time.  

Nikki & Justin/Igor

Nikki was finishing up her last minute packing, making sure to bring her most attention-grabbing heels in preparation for her trip to the Moldy-O. Her mother came by to keep her company, as Nikki explained the two had not always had such a close relationship. Apparently when she was younger and came out to her mom, Mother Nikki wasn’t very accepting, admitting she wasn’t there for her, and it’s her biggest regret. She now worried about Nikki’s well-being in the Moldy Motherland, unsure of how Justin’s friends and family would react (Not only because she’s trans, but also because of the multi-colored leopard outfits and excessive plastic surgery). 

We finally got to meet JustIgor, the 36 year old man from the land of Mold. He explained his dedication to physical fitness, while lunging and thrusting in his opening video. Igor (to most) admitted he was concerned about Nikki being accepted, as the Moldies are a bit more judgemental than your average specimen. He then went to meet up with his friend Sergei at a park (Who Nikki renamed “Ricky Gervais”, since he looks exactly like him, and it was just easier. For just $5 a day, you yourself can rename everyone in Moldova) to have the obligatory “friend chat” prior to meeting one’s partner (This show reads like Ikea instructions at this point…) JustIgor revealed his hesitation with the relationship in the past, but had eventually come around and decided he wanted to give things a second chance. Sergei Gervais seemed shocked by Just-Igor’s unconventional situation, even stopping to ask some older park-going gentlemen their thoughts, showing them photos of Nikki. The elder-Molds felt she was a beautiful woman, which was a positive omen for Nikki’s upcoming trip. Though Igor is underwhelming, to say the very least, he does have great hair, and I’m just going to focus on that (Mold is known to grow fuzz. I think every recap may contain a fun-fact about Mold).

Rob The Knob & Sophie

It was finally time to retrieve Sophie from the airport. Rob the Knob picked up some flowers (ahem, Coltee), preparing himself for his big dance number. After landing, Sophie gave herself a Darcey bathroom refresh before heading out the big doors, looking around anxiously for “The Knob”. She finally spotted him in a corner of the baggage claim and rushed over to greet him, only to be stopped in her tracks. It was Rob’s time to shine, as he played a song on his phone in his pocket (muffled I’m sure so he was the only one who could hear it) and began his infamous dance routine he had been so nervous about. Though it looked more like he was trying to get a rock out of his shoe, he seemed pretty pleased with his 15 second shuffle performance, as he picked up the roses he had put on the filthy airport floor to run over and hug Sophie. 

She politely pretended to appreciate the corny gesture, happy to finally be together. But little did Sophie know, Rob had something even more romantic than a swiffer-sock airport dance number up his sleeve…..
He got down on the dirty commercial tile, right in front of Delta terminal 5, to propose. Now, even though it is every little girl’s dream to get engaged at LAX, Sophie was not expecting it at the time, and was filled with amazement. She accepted, feeling emotional but also confused as to why he had picked the airport as the romantic backdrop. Simply put, Rob wanted to make sure that Sophie was pledging to spend her life with him before gaining all of the perks of living in LA. (without an indoor toilet). The two happily engaged yutzes trotted out into the parking lot to find the car, somehow managing to get stuck in an elevator in the parking garage. 

They argued back and forth over the fact that Rob pushed the button 12 times in a row like a 5 year old, causing it to jam. Eventually Sophie called an emergency phone number and the nice elevator service man released Tweedle dee and Tweedle dumber from their anxiety trap. 

Rob tried to redeem himself from the elevator fiasco by offering to chivalrously walk all the way up to the top floor of the garage to get the car, but was taking way too long for Sophie’s liking. She braved the elevator once again, getting it to work right away, and arrived at the car at roughly the same time that he did. Rob was annoyed that she was ruining his romantic evening that he thought was otherwise going perfectly, and turned into a moody grouch.

He drove off towards Englewood, trying to accentuate any and all of the “hood” aspects of the area, bragging about police sirens and bullet holes. They arrived at Rob’s place, mosquito netting and all, where Sophie was given her own high boy dresser to keep all of her belongings. She looked around the single room dwelling, ready to make the best of it and noting multiple times that it was just temporary. Rob did his best to shrug off the negative comments about his crappy apartment, as he whisked his dance-recipient onto the veranda, where Mexican takeout awaited. Sophie was impressed with the patio-dining experience, but voiced her ideas of moving somewhere else asap, as they dined on taquitos and with their serenade of sirens. I could not be any more underwhelmed by these two, who seem to have taken the torch from Jibri/Spakle/Miona and ran. 

Jasmine & Gino

This week started off with a “New country, new me” theme, as we watched Jasmine ditch her extensions for a shorter, natural hair look. She realized that the upkeep of her lengthy locks was going to be too expensive once stateside, so she went for a sleek, short style with long bangs. The new improved Jazzy-J had one last goodbye with her family, before gathering up Coco-pup and heading off to the airport to begin her journey towards her Gringo Bonito. 

Gino patiently awaited his Panamaniac’s arrival, as he rearranged all 1,000 Panamanian flags around the townhouse. He explained that he and Jasmine had gotten into a huge fight the previous night, with Jasmine blocking him on WhatsApp only hours before her impending arrival.

Gino shlumped into the airport, flowers in hand (Even Gino, Coltee…), unsure of whether he was excited or not for this long awaited moment. He did seem to forget everything when he saw  Jasmine arrive at the gate, as the two awkward lovebirds ran to greet each other. They agreed to put aside all of their previous fighting, as they made up, sucking each other’s faces off, while poor Coco looked on from his stroller and made sure to have his therapist on standby. 

As they drove off towards their new future together, Jasmine was already realizing the drastic change in her surroundings. She was not loving the bleak Michigan winter sky, and freezing temperatures, describing it “Like Hell, if it were freezing”. They eventually arrived at Casa de Gino, which was basically Panama part 2, but now with a surplus of Progresso soup. Jasmine could not believe the tacky decor, hoards of plastic bags, and unhealthy food stockpiles that were now a part of her new life. She commented on every aspect of the house, putting in her two cents, explaining how it was going to cost a lot more than 2 cents to fix things to her standards. In the upstairs bathroom, she found a little piece of Gino swirling around in the toilet that he conveniently forgot to flush before her arrival. She requested that he buy them a new mattress and bedframe, since the current furniture was making her uncomfortable somehow, as she had only been in the room for 5 minutes. Looks like these two will be hitting up Facebook marketplace for their furniture haul, as Gino hasn’t yet revealed he quit his job. That should go over well….