To be quite honest, I was a bit indecisive about what to title this particular Summer House recap. What do you call the moment after a dinner party erupts into a red wine fight and broken glass everywhere? The calm after the storm but before the actual hurricane? That feels a little wordy, no? But either way, the damage has been done, with Ciara Miller erupting on Danielle Olivera and drenching the entire table in red wine in the process. Worst of all, Carl Radke‘s white pants are probably ruined now.
The fight is so intense that the two girls have to be physically separated by producers. And almost immediately, the regret starts kicking in. Ciara‘s left alone in a bedroom to think about what she just did. That is, until Mya Allen pokes her head in to deliver a possibly ill-timed pep talk about how Ciara’s so much better than stooping to the behavior she just displayed at the table. It’s a sentiment that probably sounded nice in the moment. But it’s not technically true, because Ciara was, in fact, the only one hurling wine and shattering glass at the table. So she’s not really above it, is she?
Outside, Danielle‘s rattled from getting pelted in the chest with a broken wine glass. And decides the best course of action is to leave the house and blow off some steam at the club with Lindsay Hubbard. Honestly, the roomies’ ability to go from fighting to partying without missing so much as a beat is almost admirable. Meanwhile, Andrea Denver and Luke Gulbranson missed the huge blow-up entirely. So they basically walk back into a crime scene. And Craig Conover makes several valid points laying the blame for all this drama at the feet of Austen Kroll. None of this would’ve happened if he hadn’t come into the house and turned all his attention on Lindsay. But at this point, everyone just really, really needs to go to bed.
The next morning, everyone’s still in shock. Also, a hurricane is still making its way right to the Hamptons. But Carl‘s determined to save the weekend by organizing a game of beach volleyball. Because of course Carlito happened to be a high school (and college) volleyball champ, in case you needed one more reason to love him. However, before any fun can be had, Ciara‘s determined to apologize to Danielle. For, you know, the wine-drenched crime scene that erupted the night before.
And the conversation goes…surprisingly well. The two are able to talk through the events of their clash calmly and respectfully, even setting the Lindsay of it all aside for the moment. Danielle promises that she can see the conflict from both sides — she’s not just her bestie’s yes man — and the roomies hug it out. Although in interviews since, Danielle has vowed to keep Ciara in the “acquaintance” category, so it’s clear they’ll never be BFFs.
For beach volleyball, the house is divided along generational lines. On one side, there’s Team Born in the ’80s. And on the other, there’s Team Born in the ’90s (plus Craig). Naturally, there are costumes involved. Because it wouldn’t be Summer House without an excuse to dress up. So Team ’80s pays homage to equal parts Top Gun and Baywatch, busting out their matching red tank tops, short shorts and a couple handlebar mustaches. Team ’90s, however, goes the extra mile and surprises their opponents by dressing up as their doppelgängers. We’ve got Paige DeSorbo as Luke. Amanda Batula and Mya as twin versions of Kyle Cooke — complete with the latter rocking a stye on her eye. Andrea as Lindsay. And Ciara as an unrecognizable version of Carl. But the moment is funny and finally (finally!) breaks the tension that’s been plaguing the house since the night before.
It turns out a little healthy competition is just what the Good Vibe Tribe needed to, well, bring back the good vibes. The weather may be stormy, but the mood on the volleyball court is light and dare I say a little bit cathartic? And despite most of the roommates’ general ineptness at the sport, Team ’90s manages to eke out a 5-4 win over their older counterparts. (Maybe it was Luke‘s insistence on wearing jeans for the game that cost Team ’80s the trophy?) Everyone gets medals though, even if the losers’ are inscribed with “Last Place.”
After the game, Kyle pulls Carl aside for an update on how things are going with his latest fling. And while Carl is enjoying dipping his toe back in the dating pool, his commitment to staying sober is his number one priority. So he’s not about to jeopardize that for a girl. Carl also gives Kyle some rational, measured advice about the whole prenup situation he’s been avoiding. Over on the other side of the beach, Amanda quizzes Craig about his intentions with Paige. And the Southern Charm-er admits he wouldn’t even be casually dating the fashionista if he didn’t see at least the possibility of someday watching her walk down the aisle towards him. So that’s just adorable.
However, all the relationship talk is interrupted when waves roll in to flood the beach. Because there’s still a hurricane coming, remember? The roommates scramble to grab all their belongings and hurry home to batten down the hatches. Which mostly involves getting all the patio furniture in the backyard to a safe place. Amid the chaos, Ciara takes the opportunity to avoid helping by finally pulling Lindsay aside to clear the air. And unlike HubbHouse’s refusal to talk for the past two weekends, the two actually manage to make some headway in their war over Austen.
Lindsay finally admits to having feelings for Austen. Which is the exact opposite of what she promised Ciara earlier this season in their first backyard heart-to-heard. But at least she’s being honest now. Though to be fair, she’s probably being less honest when she denies that she was being intentionally disrespectful to Ciara or trying to intentionally rub it in her face during her birthday party. Because, sorry, but pretty much every single one of her actions says otherwise. She does offer up her first apology in a long while, though. And ultimately it’s all water (or red wine?) under the bridge. Because if one thing came out of the past two weekends, it’s that Ciara is 100% over Austen Kroll. Have at him, Lindsay!
The weekend ends early due to hurricane prep. Though not before Danielle gets Craig and Paige‘s take on Charleston, since her boyfriend may be taking a job there. And we actually end the episode back in New York City. During the week, Ciara meets up for lunch with a local ER nurse to get advice about kickstarting her nursing career in the city. And Carl‘s absolute sweetheart of a mom and her new husband come to visit, mostly to hear about how Carl’s decided to pump the brakes on his budding romance. Sobriety first. We’re all proud of you, Carl!
We also get a peek inside one of Kyle and Amanda‘s couples therapy sessions. Which is probably a healthy habit considering their wedding is coming up in just a few weeks. With a mediator present, Kyle once again broaches the subject of a prenup. But Amanda admits she feels like even discussing one is like betting against their marriage before it even begins. She also has no intention of getting anything less than half of Loverboy if they ever split. But as of now, she hasn’t changed her mind: she’s not signing anything.
TELL US – WERE YOU TEAM CIARA OR DANIELLE? WERE YOU SURPRISED AT HOW QUICKLY CIARA MOVED FORWARD WITH BOTH DANIELLE AND LINDSAY? WHO HAD THE BEST COSTUME FOR BEACH VOLLEYBALL? SHOULD AMANDA SIGN A PRENUP?
[Photo Credit: Bravo]
