Welcome back for our Vanderpump Rules Season 11, Episode 5 recap. Last time, Lisa reunited James with the dog, Graham Cracker, which he shared with Rachel Leviss. This week’s episode, “Lake It or Break It,” features most of the cast heading to Lake Tahoe, where Sandoval and James continue to clash. Here’s everything that you need to know about Pump Rules, Season 11, Episode 5!
More permits, more problems
Katie and Ariana were dealing with a sh*t storm, literally. There was poop on their patio at Something About Her, and the patio itself was creating permit issues. There were also other violations in the building, blocking their path to open their sandwich shop.
Katie and Ariana were happily skipping the Lake Tahoe trip. Katie wondered if the group would return as best friends again. “I’m not going to be loyal to people who don’t reciprocate that,” Ariana stated. Pick a side, everyone! It’s Lala vibes.
Ally meets Graham Cracker
James triumphantly told Graham that his dad bought a house. Graham will be living the dream from now on. But James neglected to fill Ally in on this new development. After all, Ally will now be dealing with Rachel’s former dog.
Ally was stunned when James brought Graham in. While Ally was trying to understand the situation, her cat Mr. Banks entered. Since he has never met a dog before, this could be a recipe for disaster. Isn’t “disaster” James’ middle name?
Ally felt bad for Rachel, losing Graham after she had lost so much. After Graham barked at Mr. Banks, James tried to calm Ally’s fears. He claimed that his dog just “nips.” Well, if Graham acts nippy, Ally said he was headed back to Lisa.
Schwartz and Sandy go shopping
While the besties were shopping for Tahoe, Schwartz received an alert for an article about Rachel. She is going back to her birth name. Sandoval admitted that he knew about the name change. Then Schwartz got another alert that Rachel had left the mental health facility.
Sandoval, once again, knew that she had left. He texted her and could tell that her cell phone was on. But Rachel didn’t respond. Sandoval suspected that once Rachel didn’t contact him on his birthday, something was afoot. Duh!
He complained that Rachel’s publicist wasn’t taking his calls, and Rachel “doesn’t want to face the world.” Or, maybe, she just doesn’t want to face Sandoval.
Schwartz was feeling positive about the trip, and Sandoval wanted to have fun. Maybe Schwartz would feel more at ease if Sandoval wasn’t kidding around by pretending to throw him an axe.
Brock wants a new nanny
The newlyweds went bikini shopping. Scheana was worried about leaving her daughter, Summer Moon, to go to Lake Tahoe. She was also anxious about seeing Sandoval, and whether or not Ariana would be upset with her. Plus, their nanny, Tori Keeth, works for another family and was unable to help with Summer.
Brock was frustrated. He wants to find a professional, outside of Scheana’s mom and her friends, to take care of Summer. Brock was tired of having his mother-in-law invading their space all the time.
When they go out of town, Scheana will only let Summer stay with her mother. Then, Brock accused Scheana’s mom of making Scheana feel like she wasn’t a good mother. What? Since this argument was taking place in a store, Scheana stormed out. Brock needs to be more supportive of Scheana’s post-partum mental health struggles.
Sandoval gets some grace
Meanwhile, Sandoval was shocked when Scheana called him over to sit with the group at the airport. Discussing it with Schwartz moved Sandoval to tears. In Tahoe, everyone loved the lake house, and no one was fighting. Schwartz hurt his arm patting himself on the back for restoring some sense of peace among the crew.
Later on, Brock and Sandoval were in the kitchen. Brock told Sandoval how he put all his friends in a tough spot. Sandoval admitted that what he and Rachel did was terrible, but it wasn’t malicious. But others had done things “towards us with very specific malicious intent.” Brock reminded Sandoval that he has a group of “very hurt friends” there. AWKWARD!
Sandoval wasn’t going to beg for their forgiveness. These people chatted on podcasts about him, spoke out on social media, and sold merch about Scandoval. “This isn’t just about them forgiving me. This is something we need to mutually move on from together.” Good luck with that, dude.
Sandoval scheduled someone to come the next day for yoga and guided meditation. He admitted that he drank daily for two years, but is sober right now. And guided meditation has helped him.
Graham makes a grand entrance
Lisa arrived with Graham Cracker, who flew on a private jet with Lisa and Ken. James planned to rename him Hippie, which was a shout-out to George Michael, his late godfather. George’s dog was named Hippie, and James grew up with that dog. When Graham came down the stairs, you could feel the vibe change for a single moment, as cast members wondered if Rachel was going to follow. Of course, this didn’t happen.
James made a dig at Rachel, saying, “This is just what happens when you can’t handle it and go away for a certain period of time.” Yikes!
According to Sandoval, what James is saying about Rachel and Graham isn’t true. But he wasn’t ready to stir up any drama. Ally asked Sandoval if he knew anything about what happened with Graham. He said that Graham attacked some people and that Rachel (or her family) tried to find him a new home.
Sledgehammer therapy
The group went to Lisa’s new restaurant, which was under construction. They took turns hitting the wall with sledgehammers and yelling something that upset them. James screamed about no one taking care of Graham, while Scheana called out Rachel’s infamous restraining order.
Sandoval hit the wall, yelling, “Worm with a mustache,” “Lala,” and “James Kennedy.” He ended with “Motherf*cking Scandoval!” Once again, he refused to take accountability for his actions.
Lisa put James on the spot, asking him to state something that he liked about Sandoval. James claimed that he was too hungry and needed to eat first. He added that he and Sandoval were sitting at the table together, so there’s that. And Sandoval shared that he offered to buy Ariana out of their house, and he hasn’t spoken to her since the Season 10 reunion.
Sandoval makes amends with James
Then the group headed out to a bar. Sandoval asked James to go for a walk. He knew that he hurt James, and he wanted to settle it.
Sandoval claimed that he was “overwhelmed” and “scared” to talk to James. But James noted that was no excuse for the betrayal. He made the point that Rachel and Sandoval “knew it would” hurt people, even if that wasn’t their intent. Good point!
James slammed Sandoval for not being a man and ending his relationship with Ariana. If he had, would things have worked out with Rachel? James asked, “Was it all worth it, to where you are now?” Sandoval wasn’t sure. James confided that Sandoval was almost like a brother to him, and now he doubted that they were ever friends. Sandoval repeatedly apologized, and James thanked him. But this matter is far from settled.
This episode was a bit boring. I expected more fireworks when Sandoval joined the group.
You can catch Season 11 of Vanderpump Rules on Tuesdays at 8/7c on Bravo.
TELL US – WHAT DID YOU THINK ABOUT PUMP RULES SEASON 11, EPISODE 5? IS BROCK PUSHING SCHEANA TOO HARD ABOUT GETTING A NANNY? WILL JAMES BE ABLE TO FORGIVE SANDOVAL?
