Real World: Austin- Week 11

Thursday, September 01, 2005

As appeared on Blogcritics, for past week's recaps go here

This week's episode of the Real World in Austin continued with the prevailing theme of the hook-up. Minus a few episodes in which the focus was not on the hooking up of the roommates - with each other and others around them - this season has taken a look at the hook-up a great deal. Probably as much as the past season in Las Vegas did, if not more.

This episode began with a fight between Nehemiah and Rachel. These two have fought verbally before, but that previous encounter didn't even hold a candle on this one. Nehemiah got upset with Rachel for making out with one of the doormen at the bar they regularly attend. He didn't want her to ruin the in they all had at the bar by treating him bad.

Somehow this set Rachel off, and she had an extreme outburst of anger. It took Danny and Johanna pulling her away to finally calm her down. Nehemiah sat there laughing the whole time, and this only angered Rachel more. At first, I was shaking my head, upset with Nehemiah for laughing and egging her on. However, the longer the scene went on, the more I could see why he was laughing. She had gotten so angry over what really was a minor incident.

Later in the episode, Rachel even talks to Wes and Johanna about the fight with Nehemiah, and she was even shocked by her outburst. She blames it possibly on her Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, a result of her time in Iraq. I honestly feel bad for Rachel in this episode. It seems a lot has effected her in her life, and you have to hope she does resolve the issues she has.

A surprising development involving the hook-up did take place on this week's episode. For weeks, Wes has expressed interest in one of his fellow roommates. All the other roommates make mention of the high amount of sexual tension between these Wes and Johanna. Just a couple of episodes ago, these two were fighting, and out of nowhere on a night out with the boys, Johanna ends up kissing Wes, pulling him away from Nehemiah and Danny, only to go from club to club making out and dancing the night away.

They then return to the house, and Lacey can see the change between these two immediately. Nehemiah does as well when he and Danny return home. Danny is the last to catch on. Nehemiah expresses disgust at the situation, saying he has lost respect for the two because of their little hook-up. Even going so far to say he has lost more respect for Johanna. Of course we know this is all in part to Nehemiah's own minor crush on the roommate. A little jealousy maybe?

Once things settle down, Wes and Johanna come to an understanding about their making out. They decide to make it more like a friends-with-benefits situation than an actual relationship. each is able to do as they please and make out with the other as well. This development is quite surprising because in the beginning of the episode Wes met up with a girl and it seemed he was ready to change his ways and become a better man.

However, it does seem that as soon as Johanna shows she is now willing to be with him, in some manner, all that is out the window. Will these two be able to keep it light with no strings attached, or will they end up wanting more? We will have to see if that is what happens in future episodes.

The final segment of this episode showed a touching scene between Danny and Rachel. These two appear to be developing a brother and sister type relationship. These two are also having the roughest time adjusting to living in the house. Danny decides to reach out to his roommate, taking her out for a walk and asking her about her experience in Iraq. He is the only one to make an attempt to get to know her, and she decides to open up to him. I think this is good for the both of them. Maybe they can help each other out with their problems. Having someone to talk to always seems to help in most situations.

In my opinion, this episode was better than last week's. We're slowly getting to know more and more about each of the house-mates. Tensions are still running high between some, while with others something else is running high. It definitely makes for a volatile situation that makes you want to tune in each week. I know my curiosity is peaked. Is yours? What do you think will happen next with the seven strangers living their lives for the world to see on this season of the Real World?