![\"Below](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/eab0ae86c4f0a6592f145c77de5e03c6c0-NUP-204396-01853.rsquare.w400.jpg\")
<\/p>\n <\/p>\n
\n Photo: Fred Jagueneau\/Bravo\n <\/p>\n
In a lyric, the great David Berman alluded to the myth of King Midas by imagining him in isolation, as a \u201csad king trapped in his golden room.\u201d That\u2019s, more or less, the state at which Sol\u00e8ne has arrived. Having manipulated everyone to her advantage only to systematically disappoint them, she\u2019s now isolated. Everyone is done with her, perhaps no one more than Jess, once her staunch defender. Imagine how validated Rainbeau must feel, like Chicken Little when the town wakes up to the fact that aliens are actually coming.<\/p>\n
Sol\u00e8ne can\u2019t defend herself effectively because not only is she lacking in actual defense ammunition (the complaints against her are indisputable), she also rejects the premise that she has something to defend herself against wholesale. I guess that\u2019s one way of living your life, just pretending like the problems you have caused are in other people\u2019s heads. When we pick up this week, Rainbeau and Sol\u00e8ne are in the midst of their fight, with Sol\u00e8ne whining about Rainbeau\u2019s long to-do list. She complains to Jess at the bar, who is quickly losing patience and empathy. As if on cue, Rainbeau walks in mid-complaint to ask Sol\u00e8ne to bring some drinks for the guests on the sundeck. Even though they are mostly just pours \u2014\u00a0ros\u00e9, Champagne, one tequila cocktail \u2014\u00a0it takes Sol\u00e8ne forever to make the drinks, which she then proceeds to spill.<\/p>\n
Earlier in the season, I was frustrated with Rainbeau\u2019s white-knuckle method of dealing with Sol\u00e8ne. I believed that if only she were to tell Fraser what was going on, the problem could be addressed and resolved. I was, of course, sorely mistaken. At this point, Rainbeau has voiced her frustrations to both Fraser and Sol\u00e8ne a maddening number of times. Tonight, she covers all bases, first by texting Fraser \u2014\u00a0\u201cI don\u2019t know what to do\u201d \u2014 then asking to clear the air with Sol\u00e8ne directly. For someone who self-describes as explosive, Rainbeau continues to demonstrate impressive amounts of game-ness. They agree to try harder to get along the following night, high-fiving to seal the deal.<\/p>\n
Sol\u00e8ne\u2019s main refrain is that she doesn\u2019t like the way people speak to her, alternately as a lowly servant and \u201ca baby child.\u201d Mostly, it\u2019s obvious that she doesn\u2019t like to take orders. Nothing inherently wrong with that, but it\u2019s sort of a major part of a job in the service industry. Even then, when people try to talk to her like an adult, as Rainbeau did, the message doesn\u2019t compute, either. Perhaps noticing this, Fraser tries a new approach. In the morning, he tells Hugo that he will send both Rainbeau and Sol\u00e8ne to the beach excursion, and asks him to tell his crew not to talk to Sol\u00e8ne. The idea is to eliminate the opportunity for distraction and to prevent her from causing it. Hugo agrees to the plan, relays the message to his crew, then wonders: \u201cHow difficult could it be?\u201d No such question has ever been asked of something easy.<\/p>\n
To Sol\u00e8ne herself, Fraser only says that Rainbeau is in charge and to do what she says. Wondering, at this point, if a more honest approach wouldn\u2019t be more effective \u2014 \u201cyou need to talk less and work more,\u201d for example \u2014\u00a0is pointless. After talking about Sol\u00e8ne\u2019s lackluster work ethic with an incensed Jess in the crew mess, B\u00e1rbara seems confused about why it\u2019s suddenly news that Sol\u00e8ne is bad at her job. She becomes convinced that Jess\u2019s disproportionate investment in Sol\u00e8ne\u2019s performance has to do with unresolved feelings. Later, she tells Fraser as much, and she\u2019s probably at least a little bit right.<\/p>\n
The beach team heads out to set up, and Kyle asks if Damo also \u201cgot the talk\u201d about not speaking with Sol\u00e8ne. They chuckle about it. Earlier, Kyle told B\u00e1rbara that though Sol\u00e8ne \u2014\u00a0 incapable of understanding anything that puts her in an unfavorable light \u2014\u00a0still doesn\u2019t see how what she did to him was like what Jess did to her, the fact that B\u00e1rbara and Jess are now together means he can pursue Sol\u00e8ne again. In fact, it seems like Sol\u00e8ne is the pursuer: she chases him around the entire episode, even going to his cabin to kiss him good night one evening (in the middle of service). \u201cSol\u00e8ne has come crawling back,\u201d Kyle tells Jess, semi-triumphantly. It makes me feel like I am going insane.<\/p>\n
For now, though, Sol\u00e8ne is at the beach, still in the dark about the embargo. An abridged list of questionable actions: she licks the Kewpie bottle being used to make food; attempts to wash a knife with sand, then sticks the knife in her pants, sharp-edge up, perfectly positioned to stab her in the armpits. (A clarifying text appears onscreen: \u201c53 days of yachting.\u201d) She tells Damo that she loves \u201cto escape,\u201d meaning to escape from work, and he tells her she\u2019s just like Anthony \u2014\u00a0all day, they complain about the work they have chosen to do. \u201cYou\u2019ve got a problem with me?\u201d Sol\u00e8ne replies.<\/p>\n
This will come to a head later that day, but for now, an interlude reminds us that these people are working on a boat, so there are boat-related tasks to attend to, such as mid-moor anchoring. \u201cThe biggest two things that all captains fear in the Caribbean,\u201d Kerry explains nervously, \u201care going through that bridge\u201d \u2014 we know the one \u2014\u00a0\u201cand tying up at St. Barths.\u201d The moment he mentioned the bridge, I knew things were going to be fine. You can\u2019t trick me, editors! The mid-moor anchoring involves moving the boat after the anchors have been dropped, though nobody explains why that\u2019s a requirement in St. Barths. One issue is evident: the dock is packed with boats, and the St. David is enormous. Kerry approaches the task like the scene in Oppenheimer<\/a> when they test the bomb. The deck team\u2019s reactions to Kerry\u2019s nervousness perfectly encapsulate each of their personalities. Jess: \u201cThis is what we\u2019ve been leading up to all season.\u201d Hugo: \u201cThere\u2019s a bit of a safety risk, and there\u2019s a lot more pressure on Kerry.\u201d Damo: \u201cI\u2019m just glad I\u2019m a deckhand in charge of an anchor and not a captain in charge of a ship.\u201d Kyle: \u201cI\u2019m fucking shitting myself.\u201d In the end, it all works out. Kerry is so happy about it that he shakes everyone\u2019s hands.<\/p>\n In the crew mess, Kyle, Damo, and Sol\u00e8ne have dinner together while Fraser eats at a separate table. Sol\u00e8ne tells Damo that she noticed a change in his attitude toward her that day on the beach. Damo deadpans: \u201cWe were told we\u2019re not allowed to talk to you.\u201d Fraser\u2019s eyes widen. \u201cBecause you don\u2019t do any work when we talk to you,\u201d Damo continues. Also on late shifts, Damo sees how much Rainbeau works to pick up Sol\u00e8ne\u2019s slack, and he seems annoyed that no one is being straight-up with Sol\u00e8ne. \u201cThey\u2019ve told you enough, so now they have to tell us instead,\u201d Damo concludes. Sol\u00e8ne looks surprised but not as rattled as she will seem to be later, when she uses the whole exchange as fuel for drama.<\/p>\n Fraser immediately tells Hugo what happened. They agree it was out of left field for Damo to have said something; it seemed obvious that the deck team wasn\u2019t supposed to tell Sol\u00e8ne about the embargo. But when Hugo talks to Damo about it, the deckhand isn\u2019t too sorry. He seems frustrated with the indirectness of the whole thing, with how much everyone has to continuously accommodate Sol\u00e8ne\u2019s feelings. \u201cSorry I put you in a bad place,\u201d he tells Hugo, \u201cbut this is not my fault.\u201d Fair enough, I think. However rogue of a move on his part it may have been, it must be super annoying to have to bear the responsibility of Sol\u00e8ne\u2019s ineffectiveness when she herself is barely putting in any work. For his part, Hugo is so over it that all he can muster up to say is: \u201cI don\u2019t know, just don\u2019t talk to her and don\u2019t tell her I told you not to.\u201d<\/p>\n Sol\u00e8ne complains to Fraser and Rainbeau about the rule, and Rainbeau points out that she did this to herself. In a confessional, Fraser tells us that he won\u2019t \u201cgive up\u201d on Sol\u00e8ne and is determined to \u201cfix this.\u201d Through what method, it\u2019s impossible to say, unless he can find a way to manually rewire her brain. The rest of the night goes by without a hitch; Kerry enjoys dinner with the guests, and Emily loves her boob-shaped cake, which Anthony half-stressed about when requested but ultimately made him feel like Michelangelo carving a sculpture. Before going to bed, Damo and Sol\u00e8ne clear the air. Sol\u00e8ne, \u201cfeeling persecuted,\u201d says she is determined to find out who created the rule.<\/p>\n Then again, she is always doing stuff like theatrically falling over the guests\u2019 luggage. After drop-off, the crew gathers to receive their $1,615 share of the total $21,000 tip, which raises everyone\u2019s spirits \u2014\u00a0only for them to plummet over lunch in the crew mess. In front of everyone, Sol\u00e8ne asks Kerry, who is eating with them, if he was the one who told the deck team not to speak to her. Kerry explains that he knows Fraser asked the deck team to stop \u201charassing\u201d her so she could complete her work, a distorted and generous presentation of the facts: She is the distractor! He asks her if she understands, and she says no. After Kerry leaves, she asks Jess and B\u00e1rbara if they think the captain was upset about her questioning him. \u201cYou shouldn\u2019t have asked, babe,\u201d B\u00e1rbara replies.<\/p>\n The rage and resentment that had been building in Jess throughout the charter find an outlet. No doubt piqued by Kerry\u2019s view of the situation, she tells Sol\u00e8ne that her poor work ethic is tarnishing the team\u2019s reputation and that she must take responsibility for her own actions. Sol\u00e8ne tries to argue that \u201cit\u2019s not like that,\u201d but everyone agrees: it is exactly like that. Sol\u00e8ne tries to say that she \u201cdoesn\u2019t know.\u201d What she doesn\u2019t know is unclear. How to respect the boat\u2019s hierarchy? That there is one in the first place? But Jess is not taking it \u2014 she says Sol\u00e8ne knows better than to ask the captain questions like that. It can\u2019t feel good to be in a room full of people telling you, basically, that you suck; then again, it\u2019s not like Sol\u00e8ne ever had much regard for other people\u2019s feelings. At first, Jess apologizes for raising her voice, but when Sol\u00e8ne tells her it\u2019s too late, she doubles down and says she\u2019s not even sorry, actually. Later, Damo says that this outburst has a lot more to do with Jess than it does with Sol\u00e8ne, echoing B\u00e1rbara\u2019s suspicions.<\/p>\n Taken aback, Kerry asks Fraser to explain to Sol\u00e8ne that her question was inappropriate. Fraser tells Kerry it\u2019s been a struggle with Sol\u00e8ne since day one, though he is \u201cvery proud\u201d of how far she has come since the beginning of the charter. Sure, she has gotten better at the basic requirements of the job \u2014\u00a0like making cabin beds, for example \u2014\u00a0but at least from where I\u2019m standing, it seems integral to know how to be a part of a team in a job like this, and in that sense, she has a long way to go. Fraser tries to explain all of this to her in a one-on-one. Sol\u00e8ne counters that no one has said she hasn\u2019t been doing a good job until now, and we cut to a succession of instances when Fraser told her not to take random breaks or be late for guest pick-up. Unwittingly, she exposes the whole problem with Fraser\u2019s approach when she states, \u201cStop telling people I\u2019m doing a bad job. If I\u2019d been doing a bad job, I\u2019d have left earlier.\u201d<\/p>\n Fraser doesn\u2019t want to fire Sol\u00e8ne because it\u2019s the \u201ceasy\u201d route; we see a clip of last season<\/a>, when, in the throes of his worst fights with Barbie (a difficult person to deal with, but excellent at her job), Kerry told him that leadership is also about knowing how to strengthen the team. The fact that Sol\u00e8ne seems surprised that her work has been less-than-sufficient only demonstrates that building a team has to do as much with critical feedback as it does with praise. That\u2019s assuming that Sol\u00e8ne would have taken the critical feedback to heart, but still. There was a third option there, at one point. Now, with one charter to go, it might be too late.<\/p>\n VULTURE NEWSLETTER<\/p>\n Keep up with all the drama of your favorite shows!<\/p>\n Vox Media, LLC Terms and Privacy Notice<\/p>\n