Welcome back to Below Deck Season 11, Episode 8. In this week’s episode, titled “Murder on the High Seas,” Ben nearly strands the guests on the beach as a storm moves in, but Captain Kerry saves the day. A murder mystery is solved, and a deckhand comes on board (RIP, Jared), causing the female half of the crew to drool. Here are some highlights from Below Deck Season 11, Episode 8.
A dangerous situation
Since Cat went home last week, Fraser has to plan a beach sunset drinks party and an after-dinner murder mystery with only two stews, in addition to serving dinner.
When Ben drops the guests off at the beach, the water is deep right up to the shore, where it suddenly gets shallow. He has to be careful not to run the tender aground, which is tough since there’s a current pushing him that way. He accidentally sucks some sand into the impeller.
“It’s the sound that you never want to hear,” he says. “It’s like a grinding, crunching sound. It means you’re in trouble.”
The captain comes out in the ski boat and tells Ben, “I think the engine got too hot, mate. Now we’ve got f*cking no battery.” And in addition to the tide changing, there’s a storm coming!
“We’ve gotta get them back on the boat,” Ben says. Thanks, Captain Obvious.
“If this tide continues to drop, I can’t even get to the beach,” Kerry says. “[And] if I beach the ski boat, we’re stuck here for the night. Time to do some captain sh*t.” It’s a race against time to get everyone off the beach before the tide recedes.
Maneuvering the boat, Kerry says, “Stand back. I’ll tell you when.”
When a guest tries to climb in, he yells, “No one moves toward the boat until I say so! Understood?”
“That captain’s getting very aggro,” another guest comments.
“Nothing trumps safety,” Kerry says. “I will do everything I can to keep a guest safe … There’s a lot of moving parts here. This is a very dangerous situation.”
But with teamwork and a little cooperation, Kerry gets everyone safely off the beach.
Who killed poor Fraser?
Back on the boat, the interior crew not only has to serve dinner but also present a murder mystery. Fraser asks for Ben’s help in staging the murder mystery, so he and his crew can focus on service. He knows how to delegate.
Before retiring for the night, the Captain greets the guests at the dinner table. “I got a little firm today, but I was worried about your safety,” he says. “I apologize.” Everyone thanks him for keeping them safe, except for the woman he actually yelled at. Lesley still looks miffed and avoids eye contact.
As the guests enjoy their dessert, Barbie suddenly runs into the room screaming, falls on the floor, and shrieks, “There’s been a murder!”
After following the clues around the boat, they discover Fraser’s “dead body” lying on the floor in the master cabin, and the “killer” is revealed. Everyone laughs and has a wonderful time.
“Considering how we threw it together,” Kyle tells Ben, “I think we did pretty well, to be honest with you, lad. Eh?” Notice that Kyle gets subtitles since he has such a thick Scottish accent, but I think Kerry could use them sometimes as well. Often I have to rewind and replay a few times to figure out what he’s saying. He does have a thick Aussie accent.
“The guests were happy, right?” Kyle adds.
“No, they’re drunk,” Ben laughs.
New kid in town
The Captain gets a call from Yacht Services. The new deckhand will arrive in about 30 minutes. Dylan is 23 and hails from Cape Town. He’s been in yachting four years, and he’s really pretty.
Sunny greets the newcomer with a giggle, “Hi! I’m Sunny! Nice to meet you.”
“Wow!” she interviews. “Who is this model-looking man coming on board? My jaw’s on the floor.” Ben who?
Kerry welcomes Dylan to the boat during the tip meeting. “We kicked off this charter a crew member down,” he says. “Then, unexpectedly, Cat had to depart. I saw you guys get together and help each other out. You guys … and did an amazing job.”
“The total tip …” he teases, with a long pause and a twinkle in his eye, “$30,000! … $2,727 apiece.” Yowza.
“Dylan, you just joined us,” Kerry continues. “I took $50 off of everyone else’s tip to give you $550.” He did work a whole day, after all.
“We got the biggest tip of the season,” Kerry interviews, “and everyone did an absolutely amazing job … [I’m] extremely impressed.”
Even though Dylan is gorgeous on the outside, when he opens his mouth, it’s a different story. “When Dylan talks, honestly…” Sunny says, cringing.
“If I was dating him,” Barbie adds, “I’d be, like, ‘Just be quiet the whole dinner.’”
“I think he’d be a great one-night stand,” Sunny says.
“I think so, too,” Barbie agrees. He just needs to “shut the f*ck up. Shhhh!”
Sunny in the shade
After dinner, they all go out dancing. Ben and Xandi are dancing cheek-to-cheek. Sunny sees them, and her mouth drops open in shock. She thinks she and Ben are a couple. She’s in for a rude awakening.
“Ben is pissing me the f*ck off,” she interviews. “He’s touchy/feely with Xandi. Ben is disrespecting what we have.” You’re not engaged, Sunny. You’re just having sex.
“That just makes me want to set his bunkbed on fire,” she says. Hide the bunnies, people. Sunny’s on the boil.
“[Ben’s] all over Xi,” Sunny tells Barbie.
Barbie advises her to “concentrate on Sunny. You’re not here for a f*cking love story.”
Back on the boat, Ben asks Sunny. “How’s your night?” He has no clue she’s pissed at him.
“Good,” she says. “I think I just need a minute to myself.”
“Okay,” he responds. “I’ll leave you to it.”
“I can’t deal with Sunny,” he tells Fraser. “I can’t read her.” See? No clue. “I’m just sick of the bullsh*t back and forth … One minute she’s kissing me, the next minute she’s giving me the cold shoulder. I don’t know what to do.”
Barbie urges Xandi to go talk to Sunny. But Xandi thinks it’s ridiculous. Ben’s like her brother.
Meanwhile, Ben and Sunny are talking (in bed). “When Xandi’s drunk,” Sunny tells him, “she’s f*cking all about you. And that triggers me so much.”
“I’m not flirting with Xandi,” Ben says. “I’m dancing with her, yeah … But it’s not [sexual].”
“I’m having a hard time accepting that,” Sunny says.
Below Deck continues Mondays at 9/8c on Bravo.
TELL US – WHAT DID YOU THINK OF BELOW DECK SEASON 11, EPISODE 8? HOW DO YOU LIKE THE NEW GUY, DYLAN? DO YOU THINK HE’S GOING TO FIT IN?
