S11.E01: He Comes From A Land Down Under

[aqusdealer]

Well, this corner of the franchise seems to have potential. I barely made it through BDM last season. I didn't watch WWHN tonight, but I did see Fraser allude to the fact that Capt. Kerry will have some "trouble" this year. Could be a scratched boat bum. We'll have to see. You know Bravo....could be somethin'...could be nuthin'. Looks like Barbie will be a brat,  Scottish Kyle may get bounced for drinking (saw preview of upcoming episode) and Jared will  be the possible incompetant bosun/captain. Seems to be ticking off Kerry already. Time will tell.  Let's get this party started 🤩

Edited February 6 by aqusdealer

[65mickey]

So far in the first episode we see Captain Kerry checking how the ends of the toilet paper are folded in the cabins and making sure that the drain stoppers are all in the up or down position. Then one of the stews is in tears  5 hours into the first charter. Fascinating. But better than the hookups with are sure to happen soon. UGH!

[oakville]

I am looking forward to this season. Captain Kerry is a refreshing change from Captain Lee & Captain Sandy. He won't put up with nonsense.

[snarts]

After hate watching my way through BDM, I was shocked at how much I enjoyed this episode. Yes the cast will be a hot mess but I like Kerry & Fraser and I actually found some of the crew background stories a bit interesting.

The guests on the other hand were tasteless and obnoxious. I'm all for be vocal about your sexuality and be a crass as any sailor in the right situation. However, screaming about sucking dick at dinner isn't that situation.

Early bets: Jared & Barbie are definite short timers.

[Baltimore Betty]

The bosun reminds me of Jeremy Piven, like a lot.  Do we think he will last the season?

Give me Frenchie's food all day long but have a deckie to wash pots and pans, his lunch was something, can't imagine what dinners will be like! More lobster?

The fifth Beatle is that crazy globe that shows up in a lot of shots, like all of the sudden it got it's SAG AFTRA card!

It seems all stews have anxiety, perhaps their doctor or therapist should suggest a less stressful career choice because anxiety, pressure and the really stupid hooking up with people they aught not to hook up with is not good for anxiety.

Kaptain Kerry took a page out of Capt. Sandy's book and persnickety about drain stoppers, toilet paper and then trying to get something started with asking the guests how service was going. I am not sure if I will like Kerry on this show, I liked him on the Adventure show when he was unspoiled by the ghosts of Sandy and possibly Lee.

 

[BusyOctober]

Jared is in over his head.  Seems to lack confidence and/or skill set to be in that lead position.  I feel like Ben is more trained capable.

Looks like Barbie is the female demon of the season.  Don’t like her snotty attitude.  Cat is not her personal assistant FFS!

Speaking of Cat,  how are you exhausted to the point of tears on Day 1?  
 

I swear Bravo looks for the lowest class of gross guests.

[iMonrey]

First off, didn’t miss Captain Lee at all. Nor Rachel, for that matter. Captain Kerry is a welcome change, although I didn’t remember his accent being this thick. Sure enough, Bravo reran Episode 1 of "Adventure" after this and his accent didn't seem nearly as strong.

Clearly casting is up to the same shenanigans hiring stews that will undoubtably cause drama. Barbie in particular is going to be trouble, I can already tell. On deck, I already don’t see Jared lasting long as bosun. I suspect Ben will be promoted before the season is over. 

There appeared to be a bit of an editing mistake: while Barbie was coming aboard we heard Fraser saying “I don’t trust girls with black hair.” But Barbie doesn’t have black hair - Xandi does.

The French chef looks promising, food wise anyway. He looks a bit like Alan Cummings, no? An hour and 22 minutes between courses though, that’s bad.

Funny how EVERY crew member who comes back from a former season’s boatmance says they got cheated on. Always, every time. 

I was watching some of the early seasons with Ben and Kate during the marathon, and the show used to focus more on the meals, which made sense since the gourmet food porn is half the show, or should be. Lately I’ve noticed they never show lunches anymore so I was glad to see one again here. More food, less crew drama please.

[Baltimore Betty]

46 minutes ago, iMonrey said:

Funny how EVERY crew member who comes back from a former season’s boatmance says they got cheated on. Always, every time. 

Every time!!!

In this most recent case I think that blonde girl needed some instagram pics and Ben was willing to show up.

 

[howiveaddict]

LOL at the bosun running around looking for his pants. And the poor guy just wants to watch some tv.  I think he looks like Ron Howard's brother, Clint.

[aghst]

On 2/6/2024 at 6:47 AM, Baltimore Betty said:

Kaptain Kerry took a page out of Capt. Sandy's book and persnickety about drain stoppers, toilet paper and then trying to get something started with asking the guests how service was going. I am not sure if I will like Kerry on this show, I liked him on the Adventure show when he was unspoiled by the ghosts of Sandy and possibly Lee.

I don't recall him being like that in BD Adventure.  In fact he was hands off until something blew up and he seemed highly annoyed that he had to deal with it.

Checking toilet paper corners after saying he knew what the deck crew should be doing?

He must have gotten a bump in pay and promise of a higher profile.  But I bet they offered it first to Jason.😊

Yeah looks like he's about to pull the plug on the new chef, who complains about having to stock all the provisions himself, up and down the ship.  You see other chefs busy cleaning up before and after they cook.

He talks up the art and everything but these guests at least, they don't care about plating.  They're too busy making uncreative lewd comments about being moist.

Ben's already scoping things out, like a predator.  He had his heart broken by Camille but he's ready to jump back on something.  Lead deckhand so he can get with the female deckie, whom he would be supervising, no problem there in the BD world.

 

[TV Glotzer]

The charter guests described themselves as “used to luxury.”  Then we get these foul unappealing people in Walmart wardrobes talking about sucking dick at the dinner table. The mustachioed guy seemed uncomfortable using a knife and fork. 

Edited February 8 by TV Glotzer

[iMonrey]

2 hours ago, aghst said:

He must have gotten a bump in pay and promise of a higher profile.  But I bet they offered it first to Jason.😊

I don't know, I think they want to keep Australia going, whereas Adventure was a bust.

[Jst2Wld]

On 2/6/2024 at 6:47 AM, Baltimore Betty said:

Kaptain Kerry took a page out of Capt. Sandy's book and persnickety about drain stoppers, toilet paper and then trying to get something started with asking the guests how service was going. I am not sure if I will like Kerry on this show, I liked him on the Adventure show when he was unspoiled by the ghosts of Sandy and possibly Lee.

More like PRODUCTION took a page out of their Capt. Sandy book. 

Is Kerry still going to be Captain on BDA? Is Sandy officially gone to take on her new adventure as a "motivational" guru? I think she's gone to spend more time with her hot new girlfriend. Can't say I blame her!

[SemiCharmedLife]

I wasn't happy to see Ben back (hated his self-styled moniker, Stew Slayer- ugh) and I'm already upset to see him blame Jared for "throwing him under the bus" when it was Ben who didn't pass on the info about the anchor length. Jared is definitely nervous about his role as bosun, but he doesn't need Ben to sabotage him.  

[65mickey]

9 hours ago, Jst2Wld said:

Is Kerry still going to be Captain on BDA? Is Sandy officially gone to take on her new adventure as a "motivational" guru? I

I have a feeling that Below Deck Adventure is not coming back. I really liked that show minus the obnoxious chief stew with her overblown ego. I enjoyed the beautiful scenery of Norway, and the guests having something planned to do other than drinking non stop.  And I don't remember any trashy guests.  Sandy is on BDM and I have a feeling that is going to stay around for awhile. 

[Baltimore Betty]

9 hours ago, Jst2Wld said:

More like PRODUCTION took a page out of their Capt. Sandy book. 

Is Kerry still going to be Captain on BDA? Is Sandy officially gone to take on her new adventure as a "motivational" guru? I think she's gone to spend more time with her hot new girlfriend. Can't say I blame her!

I hope we do not see her any time soon, she enrages me...the way she talks to her crew is appalling.  She told Fraser that he was a cancer she should cut out, he was the fish that stinks, she yelled at him (in front of one of his stews)saying, "Don't talk to me," when clearly there was an issue with his department...not to mention how she treated (the unlikable but still it was just plain rude), Hannah. How anybody gets to the end of charter season and says they learned anything from Sandy is beyond me.  She creates a toxic work environment. Yeah, I don't like her.

Ben shot himself in the foot with that failure to pass on all the info about the anchoring, he shouldn't blame (He went to), Jared for throwing him under the bus, he threw himself under it by withholding that info.

 

[rur]

On 2/6/2024 at 9:47 AM, Baltimore Betty said:

 

Kaptain Kerry took a page out of Capt. Sandy's book and persnickety about drain stoppers, toilet paper

I think I'm sitting at a table for one regarding this, but I liked it. I liked the idea of the captain doing a walk-through with the chief stew before the first charter of the season, and I liked hearing Captain Kerry talking about the drain stoppers. I think those things showed what a luxury yacht experience should be like. We should have been seeing more little details like this every season.

However, I do suspect that Captain Kerry naively thinks this show is actually about the luxury experience and has yet to learn that its focus is on the lowest common denominator of behavior among both the staff and the guests. 

[Jobiska]

On 2/6/2024 at 11:46 AM, iMonrey said:

There appeared to be a bit of an editing mistake: while Barbie was coming aboard we heard Fraser saying “I don’t trust girls with black hair.” But Barbie doesn’t have black hair - Xandi does.

Well, she has dark brown hair--and just seeing her from afar, it could look black.  Only one blonde woman this time--I will have a much easier time differentiating!

[iMonrey]

11 hours ago, SemiCharmedLife said:

I wasn't happy to see Ben back (hated his self-styled moniker, Stew Slayer- ugh) and I'm already upset to see him blame Jared for "throwing him under the bus" when it was Ben who didn't pass on the info about the anchor length. Jared is definitely nervous about his role as bosun, but he doesn't need Ben to sabotage him.

In Ben's defense, since Jared took it upon himself to drop anchor it was his responsibility to communicate with the captain about how many shackles. Captain Kerry assumed Ben was doing the anchor since he's the one he sent off to do it. I'm sure Ben assumed he would do so. It wasn't his responsibility to relay that info (although he could have) - nobody in their right mind would just go drop anchor without asking the captain how much. Really dumb mistake for a bosun to make. And saying "I didn't receive that info" was a copout. You're supposed to ask first. It'd be like the captain saying "nobody told me we were only one meter away from the dock" if he wasn't even talking to the deck crew.

4 hours ago, 65mickey said:

I have a feeling that Below Deck Adventure is not coming back. I really liked that show minus the obnoxious chief stew with her overblown ego. I enjoyed the beautiful scenery of Norway, and the guests having something planned to do other than drinking non stop.  And I don't remember any trashy guests.

I think it's a one and done too. I agree the scenery was a refreshing change from what we see on all the other BD shows, but it was obvious none of the guests actually requested the "adventure" part of the charters, since some of them outright refused to even do it. And they were all very poorly planned and mostly disasters.

[SemiCharmedLife]

I kind of liked Captain Kerry taking a walk about the yacht to make sure things were to his approval.  But, it does strike me funny that he points out the smallest detail, like the  fold of the toilet paper and the stoppers in the sink needing to be in the same position.  From the adventures and dangers of Norway to this!  😉

[aghst]

14 minutes ago, SemiCharmedLife said:

I kind of liked Captain Kerry taking a walk about the yacht to make sure things were to his approval.  But, it does strike me funny that he points out the smallest detail, like the  fold of the toilet paper and the stoppers in the sink needing to be in the same position.  From the adventures and dangers of Norway to this!  😉

That suggests to me he doesn’t have a particular standard, just making things up, like who cares about sink stoppers?

[Baltimore Betty]

12 hours ago, aghst said:

That suggests to me he doesn’t have a particular standard, just making things up, like who cares about sink stoppers?

I am 100% sure he will never utter another word about drain stoppers the rest of the season.

Also, do we think the guests talked to each other about whether their drain stoppers were up or down and said something like, "Gee, that's funny, my stopper was down, hmm...let's leave a bad tip!" 

Edited February 10 by Baltimore Betty

[aghst]

I'm at a hotel now, not a 5-star.

But you rarely see the drain stopper down or closed so that if you run the water it pools up.

In decades of travel, I've maybe seen it a handful of times.

But most people won't care either way unless it's broken and you can't open or close it.  I rarely close and let water pool up on the sink.

Once I tried hand washing some clothes, didn't work out too well, so I'd rather go to a laundromat even if it takes time out of my vacation.

[rur]

12 hours ago, aghst said:

That suggests to me he doesn’t have a particular standard, just making things up, like who cares about sink stoppers?

He didn't appear to care whether they were up or down. He just wanted things to be consistent from room to room. We've often seen more experienced stews telling new stews how to fold sheets under, or how to fold toilet paper. Neither of those things really matter either, but when things appear consistent, it creates an impression of attention to detail, something people would expect for a "luxury" yacht  experience. I think plugs up or down is just one more item  to put on the checklist to make a room ready. 

[SemiCharmedLife]

9 hours ago, rur said:

He didn't appear to care whether they were up or down. He just wanted things to be consistent from room to room. We've often seen more experienced stews telling new stews how to fold sheets under, or how to fold toilet paper. Neither of those things really matter either, but when things appear consistent, it creates an impression of attention to detail, something people would expect for a "luxury" yacht  experience. I think plugs up or down is just one more item  to put on the checklist to make a room ready. 

Yes, it definitely shows an attention to detail. The irony is that there will be so many bigger issues popping up each charter that the fold of a toilet paper edge is the least of the worries. How about a dinner with a 90 minute wait between courses? (Loved the look of the dishes, BTW).

[Chatty Cake]

I miss old Below Deck with Captain Lee and Kate but it’s probably best they got off the ship when they did. 
I like Fraser but wish he wouldn’t call himself mummy. 
The new bosuns a mess and I think Ben will end up bosun. 
Why would Xandi take a job on a yacht if she hates people and wants to be a vampire?

[Baltimore Betty]

Bosun scratches his beard when he is caught doing something wrong and then tries to explain himself, that is is his tell. Also very telling, he admits to being diagnosed with ADD or ADHD but never gave any meds the time to work...his not being medicated and being on board a large boat and not being able to concentrate on docking, etc... is a safety issue and as Sandy would say, "Maritime law," it's like if her were drunk and trying to do his job.  I think he is on the short timers list.

Cat has been given the eating edit, the producers did that someone else who was a short timer on board, didn't they? Fraser lets her bitch, moan and complain while he tries to frantically set up the beach picnic, he should have told her save it for later and get busy!

Along with Vampire Stew all of the deck team look like they got too close to the sun, like fried...sunscreen people, sunscreen!

Sex on camera and in the community hot tub, ugh. I wonder if their kids are embarrassed. 

Chef, (be still my beating heart), his food looks amazing but dear lord he moves like molasses going up hill in the winter.  That will bite him in the ass, nobody wants to sit for an hour between each course, he better figure out some stunning dishes that take less time. 

I think Capt. Kerry is a nice guy trying to do his job, sure he may be a powder keg and I think the fuse is the bosun.

I will say this next statement, it is something I always say at the start of every season of BD and beyond, Chief Stew...MAKE LISTS FOR EVERYTHING!!!

 

Edited February 13 by Baltimore Betty

[sugarbaker design]

50 minutes ago, Baltimore Betty said:

Chef, (be still my beating heart), his food looks amazing but dear lord he moves like molasses going up hill in the winter.  That will bite him in the ass, nobody wants to sit for an hour between each course, he better figure out some stunning dishes that take less time. 

That would turn me off in a big way.

[Shrek]

3 hours ago, Baltimore Betty said:

 

Chef, (be still my beating heart), his food looks amazing but dear lord he moves like molasses going up hill in the winter.  That will bite him in the ass, nobody wants to sit for an hour between each course, he better figure out some stunning dishes that take less time. 

 

Isn't this the same boat as Rachel struggled on as well because everything is so far away & the chef really needs a helper to do the running around & help prepping.

[Baltimore Betty]

44 minutes ago, Shrek said:

Isn't this the same boat as Rachel struggled on as well because everything is so far away & the chef really needs a helper to do the running around & help prepping.

Yes, I think this was the boat, why doesn't Bravo boat show people throw in a sous chef? I know, they like a shit show in the kitchen.

[Pugnurse]

⁹Why do we have to be exposed to annoying gulping sounds?? Misophonia is real

[Chalby]

On 2/9/2024 at 5:57 PM, aghst said:

That suggests to me he doesn’t have a particular standard, just making things up, like who cares about sink stoppers?

This reminded my of a friend (in my teens) whose mother would do a bedroom check, after my friend did a big clean.

Rather than compliment her daughter on doing a great job, she'd find something obscure to bitch about.

After one inspection, her mom turned to leave, stopped and ran her finger along the top of the bedroom door, saying "You missed a spot". I couldn't contain myself, and blurted out, "You've got to be joking? This room looks amazing!"

She wasn't joking, just a miserable bitch, and I was told it was time for me to leave.