KateHearts

No, she was referring to the rivalry between Darcey and Stacey. Trying to discern who might be trying to be dominant over the other.

The Caesar/Maria segment really annoyed me. He is playing his "poor pitiful me" role to the hilt. I just don't buy it. He just stares blankly when people say "dude, you were snookered." He MUST know. Yet he persists with the "I still lurve you; I just wanted you to know I loved you; I wanted to show everyone you are a good person." How valiant. He dragged this shit out to be on TV. And the others, mooning all over him like he's a wounded animal. Oh-so-worldly Avery saying "breathe, Caesar!" and Rebecca patting his knee with her twisty-faced look of sympathy just irked me. It's like they all know they are fame-seeking oddballs- so when they find someone stupider than themselves they puff themselves up, all full of sage advice about love and relationships. So now Caesar ambles off, head down and a tear in his eye, to "walk the world." I give very few shits for his sad sack act. Anyone who goes on an international "dating site" and pays for tokens to see a pretty girl knows the deal. Stop acting like you knew anything about her. At all. I don't see Maria doing anything wrong- she was riding a wave with a paying customer as long as she could.

I'm rewatching (yeah, I know; I'm insane) and I laughed at loud at Jesse's "where is he now?" segment. He's "shining his light" on others- and he is GOING to get his psychology degree (not even there yet)- and I have a kid with a psych degree and there's no counseling or therapy you can do with the bachelor's. Then we see him talking to the poor captured seniors, and as he talks about "enjoying the ability to talk on big stages" the camera pans to him standing in the nursing home activity room with a giant poster of himself, in the penultimate pose, on the wall. It was hilarious. I also rewatched the green room scene and honestly, Jesse gets cred for completely keeping his cool (but he lost points when he called Avery "sweetheart" and then, after patiently trying to explain himself asked "what's your name again?"). The one who lit up very quickly was Tim. He has a very, very bad habit of talking over anyone who tries to have a conversation with him (as he slips his vape pen around). Ben kind of tried to point that out, but Tim and Avery talked over him so that point was lost. Angela and her non-apologies. It's like if someone trash talks you and then says, "I'm sorry if that hurt your feelings." That is not an apology. So just like with Michael's friends (the goofballs) she used the same tactic: "I'm sorry how I acted but I'm not sorry for what I said." As a reminder, she said "you don't listen; you're a grown-ass woman and can defend yourself; you're not acting like a Muslim; shut the fuck up; sit down; kiss my ass." But hey, she's sorry for how she acted. She really showed how simple stupid she is when she didn't quite get that if her daughter's egg is used to make a baby with Michael's sperm, it would be her daughter's child. Duh. Lots of scenes of limos and people carrying their clothes. If I am going somewhere and plan to change, I tend to put my clothes in some sort of bag. Taking into account her body habitus- that of a Frigidaire- doesn't help.

Add to that her nicotine addiction- remember the scene in the car when she goes to light up, Michael gives her a look and she goes off on him? Something like "I'M GONNA SMOKE, MAHKUL!!" That's been the name used here often to refer to Akinyi.

I found it amusing that Jesse and Darcey both refer to "moving on" and love to wax on about how great their lives are and how they don't need each other- only to talk to a group of rando "clients" (paid actors?) at some Dutch restaurant about how "my ex is stalking me" (Jesse) or displaying how "my ex is stalking me in the middle of the night" complete with text messages (did you read closely? most of them were HER messages, saying "I miss you") on TV when your supposed "new British man Tom" is sitting next to her (Darcey). I don't deny for a moment that Jesse is the biggest tool ever. And any normal person, if invited to participate in a TV show about what a shitty couple you made with a supposedly in-the-past ex, would say no thanks. But he did try to keep his composure as Avery jumped all over him, standing on her high horse about how unsavory a human being he is without any provocation at all. She really could have been much less melodramatic. And now she and Darcey are best friends? "Darcey is such a good person!!!" Based on- your watching her on TV? I expect that kind of emotion from a 19 year old; still, it wasn't called for and Tim didn't need to get all into it too. He spent most of the show being judgy. He needs to open his eyes when he talks. That closed/half-mast thing drives me nuts. Oh, and while I'm talking about Avery's superior attitude about life and relationships? Caesar "deserves better"? Please.

I agree here. The issue is that she makes love take precedence over EVERYTHING else... self-worth, non-romantic love, self-respect, the respect of others. For all her cliche-filled talk ("no room for negativity! I deserve respect and love! I follow my heart!!") she is desperately floundering when it comes to navigating her relationships. She just can't see that not all men have to be sexual conquests or romance-novel Knights in Shining Armor. All women are not her competition for those men. And improving yourself doesn't only mean losing weight, getting fillers, or showing your cleavage. The more she spouts her self-help book sayings, the less sure of herself she appears. I'd love to hang out with her one on one, no makeup, in sweatpants, and just shoot the breeze (preferably with tea, not alcohol). Then I could see if she is truly superficial and/or stupid, or just massively insecure and broken.

I noticed that about Teri as well. She was very reticent at first about supporting the relationship; then once they were in Lebanon she was steering the ship. Let's face it; Avery is a recent high school grad with, from what I've read, a job at Marshalls or some such. Mom must have had to bankroll a good chunk of the trip and expenses. If my daughter had come to me at 19 insisting she was going to the Middle East to marry someone she had never met (and expected me to foot the bill) I'd have told her to slow her roll, take some time to make money and find a way to make it happen on her own.

Emma, while you are busy lecturing Darcey (whose self-esteem really can't handle much more) about learning Tom's favorite color, why don't you ask him why he didn't mention his two previous engagements? And his answering a question with a question: "well, did you ever ask?" sealed it for me: he's an asshole. He wants to be on TV, he plays a game with Darcey's emotions, he ghosts her after she and the camera crew leaves. Really despicable behavior, and I'm not a big Darcey fan. I think Angela's persona has been bloated up by her love of being "famous" and the production team. "Hey Ange, stuff your important things in your bra and pull them out backstage! Swear a lot!! Threaten people!" Because, you know, the brash, rude, tell-it-like-it-is Southern country girl persona is really so appealing. Tim gets on my nerves. "I'm not gay and I wasn't born a woman and that's not the first time I've heard it and it won't be the last." Again, it's like he's playing a role of the gender-vague, asexual dude who's okay with raising other people's children and letting others stomp on him and laugh as they emasculate him. So unappealing. Could Akinyi be more disinterested? Look at her face on the screen while Shawn talks to Ben. Barely disguised disgust. Everyone had an opportunity to call her out on her comment about Ben working harder on his physique and NO ONE TOOK IT. Again, I don't understand anyone who subjects themselves to such humiliation- on national TV, no less. Rebecca chose the t-shirt comments to make her get up and stomp away? How about showing the scenes of her talking about jumping Zied the second she landed - to her DAUGHTER? (Oh, but she's 21... all is forgiven). Or the fact that she lied about her ongoing divorce? (she got off easy on that). Tim may be annoying as hell, but yeah- wearing your girlfriend's extremely photoshopped face on your flabby belly is a little weird.

I won't go so far as to diagnose her, but she can step aside with her boob flashing, crocodile tears, baby voice and over the top theatrics. She has a reason for doing all this: either she is truly unstable/mentally ill; she thinks these TV antics will make her famous; or she's just so stupid that that ex-cons are the only marriage pool she can draw from. Listening to her talk for thirty seconds, I'm inclined to think so- she's incredibly vapid, superficial and selfish. So my vote is for a little bit of #2 and #3. If she is truly mentally ill, she needs someone to take over custody of her kids and a therapist to keep her medicated and accountable for her irresponsible behaviors. No matter what the etiology, she's insufferable.

Glorietta: "I didn't expect this PIT FIRE!!" Lizzie: "we're going to make great parents; you know we are." Cheryl: "we go out looking for an engagement ring and you want to buy a speaker." Lacey: "I'm SO PISSED OFF!!!!" TV gold, I tell ya.

Oh my lord, these people.... First of all, in what world does an inmate come out and is able to buy a diamond ring (at the "jewelers," aka pawn shop) that satisfies the most demanding woman? How does Cheryl complain about Josh "always talking about what HE wants" when she has been pushing HARD for a "proper proposal" and a $5k ring (with what money, I ask?) How does Lacey accept a proposal when she is already engaged to the guy who is coming to her house to ride out his parole the next day- then two seconds later blame guy #2 for upsetting her since his proposal wasn't as elaborate? How does Lizzy smugly skirt around Daniel's questions about the pregnancy test for ten minutes, say "I REALLY wasn't planning on getting pregnant right now..." (that's what protection is for, honey) and then suddenly get mad at Daniel for (reasonably, I might add) being relieved that there isn't a baby in their immediate future? Daniel plays video games all day, Lizzie knows he's sitting on his ass and not being proactive about his future- who will hire a guy with a 1980s razored haircut and teardrop tattoos?- but she is indignant that he is disappointed she isn't pregnant. We now have unlocked the mystery as to where Glorietta got her brains from. Mama Glorietta was a little over the top with her satin baseball jacket and simpering voice- "He TOUCHED ME! He needs to STOP TOUCHING ME!!!" I'm sorry, but putting his hand on your elbow doesn't warrant an order of protection. She was armed for bear walking into that place. And Glorietta is now backing down on another of her original Important Points: she will elope rather than fulfill all of the requirements she has laid out in her Dream Wedding Book. Did anyone notice that in the talking heads, Shane's eyebrow ring was on the right but in all the other footage it was on the left? Do they film some things in reverse? And I noticed he has a nose ring in some shots, doesn't in others. He is so pitifully naive (i.e.,he finds Lacey "beautiful")- he really needs some time to, oh, I don't know- mature a bit? I also laughed when he said he needed to take her somewhere "really nice" for their proposal dinner- Max and Erma's- a chain somewhat akin to Red Robin. Don't get me started on her attire, her voice, her over-the-top phony "ohhh, I'm so upset! I need to sort out my feelings!" and boo-hooing which quickly devolved to her calling Shane a piece of shit for who-knows-what and not only slapping him from her car window but then getting out, chasing after him only to slap him again. He must be totally perplexed. Vince is just now getting the hint that Amber just isn't interested. I had to chuckle at her line: "it's hard when you're in prison and someone on the outside is GIVING YOU SUCH GOOD ADVICE to turn them down." I think that should read "someone on the outside is SENDING YOU MONEY AND PROMISING TO SUPPORT YOU," don't you, Amber? And what's with the three of them all snuggling together on the park bench in Kathy's backyard?

I am pretty sure Glorietta does not have any children. Lacey and Cheryl each have three.

honestly, it almost seems like an odd arrangement that works for them both somehow. Look how giddy and happy he looks when she gives him a crumb of attention. He openly hears Raul saying he would jump in at the first opportunity. He (for reasons I cannot comprehend) accepts and almost relishes the role of the weak, helpless, trod-upon man who waits for a woman to validate how weak and helpless he is. Meanwhile, she is thrilled to be dictating to him what to do: learn Spanish, lose weight, buy me a bar, jump when I tell you to. Once in a great while she offers support (like when his Dad died). So he continues to accept that this is a good relationship and she takes what she can from him. It's to the point that it's so obvious that she is smiling as she grinds him under her heel. Yet he is smiling too. So, as they say- there's a lid for every pot. I don't see a fault on either side if they are both accepting of what they're doing.

It was such a time-filler that in every TH in Albania, Darcey would say "we are in Albania with my TWIN SISTER Stacie and her FIANCE Florian." Ok, ok. We know who they are.

where did we hear that Cheryl was a stripper?

She said that John could possibly be the father- John, who she is allegedly engaged to and who is getting paroled to her house in a few days. Her relationship with him - according to her- changes depending on the day, but I think they've known each other since high school. And Marlow could have been the result of a one-off "hookup," according to her.

Shane: "Me n Lacey had saix awl not lawng." Lacey: "Shane is the most level-headed person I know." (I shudder to think what kind of people you aquaint yourself with) Lacey: "well, my dad is Italian... so..." Shane: "Italian is mah favorite food." Lacey: blank stare Cheryl's profession is listed as "Intervention Counselor." Which means to me that she had a past history of drugs (I base this on watching Intervention; the counselors all have been through addiction/rehab). How terrifying to think of her in the role of Candy or Jeff on Intervention- yeah, no. That also leads me to believe that she could very likely be using now, given her erratic behavior. Way to get along with your mother in law- constantly talking about her "running her F&&*%king mouth"- on TV. Glorietta is fascinating, in a way- although she is going to end up crushed since she views her entire life as a fairy tale. She changed her mind pretty quickly about the Musim issue when that little ring went on! And yes, Alex has a "jeweler"- aka pawn shop. The male clerk behind the counter looked totally bored as Alex dropped to his knees. Every single one of these people describes the inmate as "the love of my life." What does that actually mean to them? And I have to laugh when they fight and bring up "finding someone else," or cheating. Like the prisoners are such great catches! The women are lined up to meet them!

Or a blank-faced "WOW." Followed by a commercial and absolutely no follow-up.

I'm surprised that anyone uses Bing to search for anything online!

Darcy says, "I *deserve* to be happy/fall in love/have my 'fairy tale'," but she says it with a question mark at the end. She doesn't seem to truly understand what happiness is- that most of us who consider ourselves happy are content with our lives, willing to accept our own shortcomings, and willing to work on our relationships (and that does not mean getting more plastic surgery, wearing sexy clothing, or pretending that every guy is Prince Charming and we are Cinderella). She does not have any insight at all. I still would just love to see her in a pair of sweats and a t-shirt, no makeup, no heels, just hanging out and doing something like grocery shopping. That would make my day. (The scene of her sitting on a bench outside a hotel, hung over and crying while Jesse lectures her, does not count.)

Tim, come on, PLEASE-- are you just playing a role for TLC? If so, you are totally emasculating yourself for the sake of a check. If not, you need some help. He's always nervous, scared, worried... and the ultimatums! "I have to decide TODAY." Why? Who needs to make a life-changing decision in two weeks? And what person- especially a male in a new, supposedly exciting relationship- gets "so tired" from a picnic lunch that they fall asleep when they know the plan is to hook up later for the first time? And Jeniffer's probing about him being gay didn't bring the most definitive of responses. He kind of tilted his head like, "wellll...." and then weakly insisted "it's not that; it's just that..." Rebecca's mouth was a-twistin' and a-turnin' in that tent. And despite Zayed's warnings that he is "jealous," he handled it the way any reasonable person would. He's mad. He was lied to (a big lie of omission). Her insistence that "we signed the papers" is just not good enough. She knows this. But despite her total despair at the thought of losing him, I still don't get what she sees in this guy as far as marriage material, how she's falling in love with him (moreso than any other man in her life) or what he brings to the table. He only has a few English sentences he can say, most having the word "bee-you-tiful" and "loovvve" in them. She's an idiot. I kind of thought Michael was going to stand up to Angela but he's too afraid of losing his Golden Ticket to do it much. And her sorry/not-sorry was ridiculous. "I'm sorry about my behavior but NO WAY am I sorry about what I said." And stop calling the friends "The Goofballs." In my mind, it's a really backhanded shitty disrespectful way to dismiss people that mean something to her future husband. She is all about demanding respect, but gives zilch out in return. Dear Darcy, your drunk face is so obvious from a mile away. The mouth starts to work, the eyes fill and start to droop, and you get so sappy. The guy is dancing, for crying out loud. I have to say that his moves looked good, but were kind of incongruous with the face and body. And his sister asking if Darcy was jealous when he danced with her? Umm-no! Eww! I'm not sure what Tom's endgame is, except to continue his 15 minutes of fame by stretching this thing out. Because, you know, as sister says- he's been with hundreds of women, is successful and blah blah blah. I think Sister is a little abnormally attached. Avery is a snot-nosed brat who acts her age- which is 19, which is only a couple of years past belligerent, irritating teenagerhood. She thrives on the self-created drama ("I must be with my husband!!! I don't care if it's in a war-torn hellhole!)- and I'm sure fancies her whole life to be romantic. When she sat in the car and blatantly stated to her worried mother "You know that if I want to do something I'm gonna do it!" with her jaw set, I wanted to reach into the screen and slap that smug look off of her face. She's playing a role, in which she is the star, the scriptwriter and the director. And she is loving all the attention.

The kid has been raised without a dad, and now his insta-Dad is soon to be dropping out of his life as fast as he entered it. Tiffany heavily peddled the Dad persona and after a few months of (in Daniel's eyes) a perfect kid/dad relationship with fishing and ball-throwing, she yanks the rug out. He's only eight. I wouldn't expect well-mannered restraint in a kid his age in this situation.

I agree with this. We met with an Indian couple who were spending time in the States while he did some specialized job training. We had a long conversation about marriage (theirs was arranged) and their perspective, culturally, was so different than ours as Americans. To them, marriage was primarily a business arrangement: her family vetted prospective "candidates," and determined that he was the best one to assure a good living and to provide for her. They did not meet until shortly before their wedding. We asked about incompatibility and they said it really isn't an issue. And extended family is most definitely involved. And if there is marital strife, they told us, either they would have to fix it or the parents would get involved and "make it work". On another note, I really can't stand the weak cracky voice that Cory has and how indecisive he sounds so much of the time. This series loves to have at least one guy like that in each season. He is the new Russ. Lets the woman steamroll over him at every turn; worries and fusses over every decision. Maybe it's me, but that's massively unappealing.

Rebecca is one of those people who creates her own view of her reality and will never waver from it. "YOU THOUGHT I HAD PICTURES OF MY EX ON MY PHONE??? YOU THOUGHT I HAD PICTURES OF MY EX ON MY PHONE???" Ummm... no, he didn't think; they were ON YOUR PHONE, Rebecca! Same with the "technically married" stuff. If you filed for divorce basically yesterday, you are married. Not "technically," and that word doesn't make it any less real. Add to that she is a detective yet, after a supposedly horrific relationship with another Muslim man, refuses to do a background check on Zied, as she is sexting him and giving him money for "whatever he needs." Her reasonable daughter reminds her (gently and lovingly) of her past failures with men, yet Beck is sure this is real. Because, you know- he uses so many emojis! And yeah, he has a job, doing something with, like, TV shows and audiences. She never sees him go to work, but "I know he works hard!" And here she is, out in the desert, questioning HIS honesty and loyalty. And as soon as he is the littlest bit displeased with something she's acting questionably about, she becomes indignant. Do we wonder why Rebecca is looking at 3 failed marriages and another oncoming train wreck?

Tim is such a massive wet blanket at this point I'd have sent him packing. How many times does he express that he's "nervous, worried, scared"? Such a huge turnoff to me. And this episode, when he says, "I just want to relax and have a good time and I'll do anything to make her happy." His attitude is more of someone who is facing a prison sentence than spending time with someone whom he supposedly loves- and, by his own admission, he MUST MAKE IT WORK WITH or, you know, his life will end. I have to give Darcy credit for keeping her nipples from near fallout with the dinner outfit with Sister. She kind of looked normal. Reminded me, though, of why fake boobs are not on my list. They are so disproportionate to her small frame and just blend into her waistline. The hair reminds me of a horse's tail. I can't fault Tom for wanting to test things out further and that he's on the fence about the relationship- but I can fault him for dangling the "if we'd gone to Gran Canaria maybe I'd have proposed"carrot. Her constant moony-eyes and looks that are on the brink of tears would be maddening to me. I have a hunch he is not in this for the long run- although he is a master at stringing her along. And boy, did he look weird in that suit jacket. Like his gut was a lot wider than his shoulders.