![](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/10dc9ee72bb99e0dca2ce4ef7e43f13441-belowdeckmed-dpisode12.rsquare.w400.png\")
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\n The team finally gets a much-needed reset after previous crew members rejoin, but disorder still reigns over the Akira One.
\n Photo: Bravo\n <\/p>\n
Before we can get to the goings-on of this week\u2019s episode, I would be remiss not to mention the news<\/a> that has broken out<\/a> this week about Nathan\u2019s arrest on domestic violence charges. He was arrested in Sydney on December 27 last year and released on conditional bail. The victim\u2019s name is protected in the police memo, but Rolling Stone reported that a corresponding court case, with a hearing on September 1, shows that an apprehended violence order (the equivalent of a restraining order in the U.S.) was filed on behalf of Gael. No quippy thoughts to offer here \u2014 just a wish that Gael and Kayden are safe, wherever they are.<\/p>\n So far, season 11\u2019s workplace dynamic and charismatic crew have elevated it above the low standard set by consecutive middling seasons across the Below Deck franchise. But that doesn\u2019t mean the show is cured of its worst instincts, like turning people\u2019s very serious, consequential life problems into entertainment. These are the same instincts behind the distasteful editing of Max\u2019s father\u2019s situation into a cliffhanger and the encouragement of Nathan and Gael\u2019s crumbling domestic scenario; they are the same instincts that fueled the drama surrounding Hannah Ferrier\u2019s departure<\/a> six years ago.<\/p>\n Hannah, the original Mediterranean chief stew, returns for Aesha\u2019s bachelorette party this week. Sandy fired her in the middle of a dark season for having undeclared Valium and CBD on board; it was a huge<\/a> deal<\/a>. More surprising than seeing Hannah at all is the fact that her presence was requested by Sandy, who left things on a very sour note with her former chief stew. They tell us that they have since talked and hugged it out, and have been nurturing a budding friendship. Healing, folks \u2014 it\u2019s possible!<\/p>\n Since we last saw her, Hannah has gotten married, bought a house, and had a daughter. She seems very far indeed from her days sauntering in the south of France, where she once crossed paths with Max. Younger than Hannah, Max, who loves a \u201cboobie queen,\u201d had a bit of a crush on her \u2014 for her part, Hannah speaks to him in the lovingly admonishing tone a teacher might use with a rowdy but beloved pupil. Hannah arrives in Croatia accompanied by former stew Anastasia Surmava, who made Below Deck history when she stepped up to replace a chef for a few charters in season four. Like Hannah, Anastasia has since then left yachting, taken a job in finance, gotten married, and had a kid.<\/p>\n But all of this joyful reuniting can only happen after the charter is over. Thankfully, dinner on the second evening is much better than the previous night\u2019s disaster: Joy works hard to meet every guest\u2019s demand, Aesha stays up to help handle the service, Kayley knocks it out of the park, and the guests are finally happy with their meal. \u201cHell has frozen over,\u201d Joy jokes. To put the cherry on top of these much-improved vibes, Joy makes Bunny a cake that spells out \u201cEcon Club\u201d in celebration of their financial literacy business.<\/p>\n As the charter winds down, having to consider Nathan\u2019s bribe nearly destroys Max\u2019s \u201ccortex prefrontal.\u201d Oblivious Gen continues to flirt with Coop. \u201cYou smell so good,\u201d she swoons, which reminded me that it hasn\u2019t been that long since she was in high school \u2014 what\u2019s next, stealing his hat? Despite his poor judgment about the secret-romance thing with Kat, I\u2019m still on Coop\u2019s side, and I\u2019m glad he\u2019s ignoring Gen\u2019s advances. I worried when he said that rejecting Gen too openly might \u201cset off some red flags\u201d (meaning, expose his continuing involvement with Kat), but by the episode\u2019s end, I was reassured. \u201cI\u2019m not interested in Gen,\u201d he tells us. \u201cTo be honest, I\u2019m a little scared of her.\u201d At least, Coop and production finally stop pretending that Coop doesn\u2019t know that production knows about the secret arrangement. After Aesha\u2019s bachelorette party, Coop and Kat cuddle in bed and discuss post-season plans.<\/p>\n Sandy docks at a stunning new marina that takes them closer to the venue for Aesha\u2019s bachelorette, which she organizes with Gael\u2019s help. Aesha deserves the pampering \u2013\u2013 she\u2019s carrying this damn boat on her shoulders. When Nathan calls to let Sandy know that the doctor has cleared him to go back to work, she encourages him to find a sitter so he can come to the party, too. Sandy is still impressed enough with Joe\u2019s work as a bosun that she teaches him some bridge-related things before docking. The two of them are in agreement that he is ready to be a bosun, but they interpret that truth differently. To Sandy, it means that time will reward his efforts; to Joe, it means that he should get Nathan\u2019s job, ASAP.<\/p>\n At the tip meeting, Sandy announces Nathan\u2019s imminent return to deck and Aesha\u2019s prompt return to the interior. Each crew member pockets $1,616 from a $21,000 tip. Sandy tells Joe, in front of everyone, that he might have \u201csome things to show Nathan,\u201d which is plain irresponsible given the precarity of the relationship between the two men. After the meeting, Joe hangs back with Max and Coop to list all of the several ways in which he is better than Nathan. He worries that Nathan will undo his new organizational systems, in which case he will \u201cflip [his] lid.\u201d Meanwhile, Nathan texts Max: \u201cSee you tonight, lad! Lots to talk about.\u201d It\u2019s unbelievable that Nathan would be sucking up to Max like this when it\u2019s only been a few months since he was calling him a \u201clittle prick.\u201d<\/p>\n If the deck team\u2019s provisional arrangements have exacerbated their problems, in the interior, things are exactly as Aesha left them \u2013\u2013 however mighty, Gen\u2019s attitude is not enough to throw off the whole team, especially not when she\u2019s busy trying to seduce her friend\u2019s situationship. Kayley\u2019s response to her temporary leadership role couldn\u2019t be further from Joe\u2019s: She doesn\u2019t feel ready to be chief stew quite yet. Still, Aesha tells her she should feel proud of herself \u2014 things can\u2019t go perfectly every time, and she held her own.<\/p>\n Aesha instructs everyone to wear all-white to her bachelorette party, which was shocking to this recapper of American bridal experience. Sandy goes ahead to meet Nathan and Gael, who decorate the table with cardboard fans with Aesha\u2019s face (and Cup Noodles!) on them. Sandy shows Nathan pictures of the newly reorganized lazarette, the storage room in the stern. Amazingly, Nathan tells her that he had himself requested it to be organized in that manner. Honestly, it boggles the mind.<\/p>\n