Below Deck Down Under Season 3, Episode 8 Recap

Below Deck Down Under Season 3, Episode 8 is here, which means another recap for fans who want to relive all of the latest BDDU installment’s drama! This week’s episode, called “Rumble in the Jungle,” promised to be a treat. We left things off with Tzarina panicking about the beach picnic, due to timings not being communicated efficiently. There’s also simmering tension between Lara and Wihan; will the heads of department be able to pull together, or is it time for somebody to be cut lose? Here’s what went down in Below Deck Down Under Season 3, Episode 8…

What happened in Below Deck Down Under Season 3, Episode 8?

During Below Deck Down Under Season 3, Episode 8, Lara and Tzarina sat down with Wihan to talk through their issues. They’re not the only ones angry at the bosun though; Harry also feels as though his department lead isn’t treating the staff with any respect. That’s not the way to get the job done. Captain Jason is forced to step in, and demands the heads of department talk it out. But will they be able to find a path forward?

Wihan’s head is in the clouds

Focused on his (questionable) love for Adair, Wihan’s head doesn’t seem to be in the game. While Tzarina and Lara stress about the beach picnic timings, due to a long bicycle ride to see some gorgeous tortoises, he’s flexing shirtless in the mirror inside his cabin. Which admittedly is a great sight for sore eyes, but that’s beside the point.

On the yacht, Captain Jason notices a huge swell and goes out to find a new anchorage. Staying in the current spot would likely cause seasickness when the guests return. The boat is tipping, but sous chef Alesia is more focused on making a good impression with her crewmates. She’s already offended Wihan by suggesting he’s “gone through half the crew.” Alesia admits she’s got “zero filter,” but she’s not above apologizing. Personally, I think she was spot on.

Finally arriving at their beach picnic, the guests seem impressed! “She’s really talented,” says one about Tzarina’s skills. Lara is more focused on keeping everything moving, and is baffled by Wihan’s decision not to attend. She thinks he’s being lazy, and at this point, when he’d rather be writing letters professing his feelings for a member of crew, it’s hard to deny.

Alesia texts Wihan to apologize, but he thinks she’s playing games. Harry tries to pull Wihan back from the ledge, but the bosun is too far gone. His attempts to explain away the apology dip slightly into misogyny. Let me be clear – I don’t think Wihan hates women – I just think that how he dismisses Alesia is unconsciously rooted in a societal construct of how a woman must be trying to fight for a man’s attention, rather than simply having a human moment. Not a good look. “Delusional,” as Harry says.

Wihan’s caught standing around rather than doing his job

With everybody back on the yacht, Jason wants to move – but there’s anchor issues. While Johnny struggles, Wihan is looking through photos of tortoises – and Jason can see him slacking on the job via the CCTV system. “Why are you standing around?” he radios. And as the anchor chain remains stuck, Johnny’s hand looks way too close to the metal. I don’t want to see his hand ripped off, so I can admit I closed my eyes. Thankfully, Johnny gets the job done, and Jason is thankful.

Wihan then pulls Adair for a chat, asking her if she’s kept his letter. Meanwhile, Alesia’s explaining to Tzarina why she made a shady comment to the bosun. Tzarina’s confused as to why he’s even asking for food for a date while they have guests on board. As is often the case, Tzarina makes a great point.

In confessional, Adair admits Wihan is growing on her “a little bit.” She usually goes for the country boys, but she likes the “calm and soft” side of her bosun. “Refreshing change, I guess.” It’s hard to know if she’s being serious; Adair also has such a sense of calm about her, it’s difficult to understand if she’s excited, nervous, scared, sad; any of the emotions.

Back in the crew mess, Tzarina admits to Jason the beach picnic organization was “a mess.” She feels she took charge, and throws Wihan under the bus. “He wasn’t even at the excursion,” she says. Jason’s confused as to why his bosun couldn’t follow even the most simple plan. “We’ll put it to bed, and then we’ll bring it up after the charter.”

Harry’s growing tired of the deck crew’s commitment to work

Later, Lara asks Harry and Wihan for help putting together the Fear Factor-style games requested by the guests. Harry’s up for it, and Wihan doesn’t complain. As the yacht anchors in a new location, the decorations are laid. Lara’s frustrated, because Wihan doesn’t seem to know what he’s doing despite Lara already explaining. He’s completely off his game. “I will get it under control,” Harry promises the chief stew.

As he heads to the kitchen, Bri speaks to Marina about their blossoming romance. She’s worried that Harry might think their relationship is just for the boat. I understand her concerns, but I personally think she’s got our boy all wrong. He’s just trying to take it slow and learn from his past mistakes.

What Harry won’t tolerate is being left to do all the work by himself. He tells Wihan and Adair he feels like a “one-man team” prepping the Fear Factor challenges. They spring into action, but the tension is simmering, much like Alesia’s cooking. Johnny’s attempting to woo her, and his magic might be working. She’s enjoying the flirting, despite rejecting his kiss a few nights before.

The guests are seated for their dining experience, and Jason’s joining them. Marina and Adair are cleaning the guest cabins, and while Johnny and Wihan promise to help, they spend much of their time watching turtles having sex. Harry’s pissed; he just wants to get the job done.

“Every single deckhand’s in the interior … pissing around,” Harry tells Lara. Meanwhile, Marina’s ready to “explode,” because she’s being distracted. “If I hear one more turtle sex noise, I promise to God, I’ll whoop your ass on down to the crew mess.”

Wihan listens in on Harry’s conversation with Captain Jason

After reaffirming his adoration of Bri, Harry finally takes a minute to decompress. Speaking with Tzarina, he says there are some things that need to be improved. “There’s no schedule,” he says of Wihan’s techniques. “It’s just exhausting.”

Moments later, he’s proven correct. After Harry calls Wihan out, he snaps back. “We’re just finishing cabins … I had to dry showers and sh*t,” Wihan claims. Tzarina tells him he’s “f*cked up,” and Wihan goes back to playing on his phone in the crew mess. “What did I do wrong?” he asks Tzarina after service. She says it’s “a lot of communication stuff.”

Harry joins the conversation, and points out that they were calling for help over the radio. “Why is she angry at me? How am I putting pressure on the interior?” Wihan just cannot take responsibility. “This is actually gonna make me angry.” Harry then asks what he’s doing wrong, because Wihan says Johnny being on nights led to “zero complaints.”

“That doesn’t make sense at all,” Harry tells him. Somehow, Wihan is trying to flip the blame onto his team. Harry tells him he’s not “dumb,” and he wants a schedule mapped out for transparency. “It would solve all the communication issues.” Wihan stomps up to the whiteboard and, with an attitude, lays it all out.

Thankfully, the guests are still having a great time, oblivious to the drama. Jason finds Harry looking stressed, and pulls him into the bridge. He explains his issues with Wihan, with Wihan in earshot, listening from outside. “Loyalty is extremely important to me,” Wihan says in confessional. “I don’t really know if I can trust this guy anymore.”

Lara tells Wihan how she really feels

“I don’t know how many more times I need to sit down with this girl,” Wihan says in the crew mess to Johnny. He’s blaming Lara for the communication issues – all while Bri walks in and out. Her eyeroll in confessional says it all.

In her cabin, Marina questions why she’s not on service, as the guests wrap up their Fear Factor challenges. Adair tells her she’s being “too nice.” It would be nice to see the stewardesses switch roles each charter; that’s usually how things are kept fair. If she brought this up respectfully with Lara, I expect she’d take it well.

Speaking of Lara, Harry’s asking for her permission to set up a crew cabin for a “snuggle” with Bri once the guests have left. The blessing is given, and he’s over the moon. Still, it probably doesn’t make up for him working like a dog until the very early hours.

The next day arrives, and it’s Marina’s 26^th birthday! A perfect time to show her some love. As Harry rests, Wihan bitches that he’s making his job “harder.” The lack of self-awareness is truly astounding. Adair’s also got an attitude, which she unleashes on Jason when he asks why she’s making coffee for herself and Wihan when they should be up on deck. “You’re missing the point,” he says with a smile as she argues her case. She shouldn’t mistake Jason’s kindness for weakness. “It’s not a retreat. We’re here to work.”

Then, Wihan confronts Lara. He tells her of the conversation he had with Tzarina. “Sometimes I feel like there’s not really much structure in the deck crew,” she says, before pointing out Adair’s situation with Jason. “This is a superyacht, it needs to be perfect, and it’s not.”

Jason calls Wihan for a conversation in the bridge

“I really think Wihan prioritizes working, same as I do,” Johnny says in confessional. He’s got respect for his bosun, which paints a very different picture to the one we’re seeing. Still, Wihan must be doing something right, at least when it comes to Johnny.

In the bridge, Johnny asks for Jason’s permission to take Alesia out for a drink after drop off. Captain Jason gives the all clear, and Alesia seems thrilled when Johnny tells her he’s booked a restaurant reservation. I’m into this boatmance!

After the (very lovely) guests are dropped off, Jason calls Wihan to the bridge. “I need you to sharpen your team up,” he tells him, before relaying the coffee incident. “Not teaching your team the right way is not a leader. At the moment, I’m talking to you like a head of department. Now the next step is me actually going out there and being that hard guy, and you don’t want me to, ‘cause then I’m actually talking to you like a deckhand. So, don’t get me in that position.”

Jason then admits his surprise at Wihan not attending the beach trip. “I don’t wanna nitpick at everything, but it has come to my attention a little bit … there’s some negativity and moaning going on. It’s gotta stop. That infection will spread like a wildfire. If you just can’t sort it out, I’ll make changes.” The law has been laid out – but will Wihan listen? His immediate pushback suggests not entirely…

It’s time for an open dialogue between the department heads

As the tip meeting is called, the crew celebrate the end of the fourth charter. Jason points out that communication is a problem, and asks the head of department to stay behind so they can have an open dialogue.

Jason tells the department heads they need to have a chat. It’s one he’s going to leave them to, rather than inserting himself in.

Tzarina opens the discussion by asking for more “support.” She uses the picnic as an example, explaining how she needs more “information” to succeed. Lara adds that she needs Wihan to “take control” of tasks, and “please listen” during moments such as service. “I don’t wanna keep asking and feeling like I’m trying to tell everyone what to do.”

Wihan then says he has “confusion” about how much time he can allow his deck team to be in the interior. Tzarina thinks he needs “discipline,” and Lara admits she doesn’t think Wihan’s team respects him.

“I want you to go out there and work for an hour,” he says to Lara of the deck jobs. “You have an explanation for everything, you’ve not once gone, ‘Yeah I’ve f*cked up,’ not once,” Tzarina adds. And then, the episode ends! This is real drama, and juicy. Until next time…

Below Deck Down Under continues Mondays at 8/7c on Bravo.

TELL US – WHAT DID YOU THINK OF BELOW DECK DOWN UNDER SEASON 3, EPISODE 8? SHOULD WIHAN FOCUS MORE ON HIS JOB THAN ADAIR?