Watch What Crappens Ep. 2987 Recap

Below Deck S12E14 Part 1: Don’t Speak
Hosts: Ben Mandelker & Ronnie Karam
Release Date: September 2, 2025

Episode Overview

Ben and Ronnie recap and vigorously roast the first half of Below Deck Season 12, Episode 14 ("Don’t Speak"), focusing on the continuing management (and mismanagement) drama among the St. David crew – especially centering on Chief Stew Fraser, the ever-languishing Solène, and the ongoing bickering between the deck and interior teams. The guys combine biting commentary, Bravo franchise deep-dives, and personal comedic tangents, all while poking fun at crew incompetence and the overblown dangers of med mooring.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Bravo's Current Landscape & Below Deck's Place

• (02:46-04:12) Ben and Ronnie reflect on the light Bravo schedule, the end of Love Island, Potomac’s upcoming return, and what it means for their podcasting lives. They joke about a lighter Bravo workload:
  • “It has been kind of weird having a little lighter schedule... But we need to have our Bravo, though.” – Ben (04:12)
• Both hosts suggest “Below Deck” is winding down, making room for new drama as other franchises ramp up.

2. Fraser’s Perpetual Management Crisis

• (04:12-12:37) The duo analyze Chief Stew Fraser’s continuing inability to manage his staff, particularly Solène ("So So"). Ben doubts Fraser's managerial chops, noting:
  • “I just don’t know if he’s up for it... I don’t think he’s a manager.” – Ben (05:14)
• Ronnie observes Fraser pays too much attention to audience criticism and tries to rebrand himself each season, making him “too affected by the audience.”
• Both agree he avoids direct confrontation and prefers to complain behind people’s backs or make passive changes rather than proper discipline.
  • “He’s got the balls to go to the captain and complain... but he doesn’t really have the nuts to do it right to their face.” – Ronnie (11:05)

3. Solène: Problem Child or Scapegoat?

• (10:05-16:08) They debate how “bad” Solène really is compared to past “Below Deck” crew disasters. Ronnie points out she at least tries and works hard sometimes, but admits she regularly slacks and has been caught skipping duties.
  • “Selene has an attitude... But I think we’ve seen way worse.” – Ronnie (10:05)
• A running comparison is made to a parent negotiating poorly with a bratty child:
  • “Why are you negotiating with little terrorist? ...That’s how Fraser is with Solene.” – Ben (09:01)
• Rainbow, another stew, is criticized equally for waffling between confrontation and a desire to be liked.

4. Rainbow’s and Jess’s Motives & Tactics

• (14:35-18:47) Rainbow, who has been picking up Solène’s slack, tries yet again for a “clear the air” moment, only to backtrack with vague pleas for everyone to simply “try to work better together.” Ben mocks Rainbow’s lack of follow-through.
• Ronnie notes that Rainbow wants to be liked too much to be genuinely tough with Solène.
• Jess gets called out for only caring about Solène’s work ethic after a personal conflict, undermining her own credibility as a manager.

5. Guest Drama: The Booby Cake

• (18:59-19:59) The hosts skewer the guests’ request for a “booby cake” for a friend about to undergo a mastectomy, questioning the tastefulness of such a cake for the occasion.
  • “Why would you do that? …Don’t make me that.” – Ronnie (19:10)

6. Kyle, Crew Gossip & Relationship Cycles

• (20:16-21:24) Kyle’s endless romantic entanglements persist, to Ben’s exasperation:
  • “We also need to stop having these storylines about Kyle and the woman he falls for... It’s never been compelling for me.” – Ben (20:57)

7. Delegation, Leadership, and “Don’t Speak to So So”

• (25:12-32:34) Fraser instructs Hugo to tell the deck crew not to talk to Solène during beach service. Both hosts lambaste Fraser for outsourcing conflict and Hugo for not taking ownership, instead “tattling” and undercutting his own authority.
  • “This is bad parenting, where you expect everyone else to make modifications for your devil child.” – Ben (26:39)
  • “He’s like, ‘Fraser told me to tell you’...People don’t take it seriously. …Not a good leadership quality from Hugo either.” – Ben (31:28)
• They mock the ridiculousness of making the whole crew change their behavior rather than simply confronting Solène.

8. Language Tangents & New Letters

• (33:24-35:42) A signature Ben & Ronnie tangent: they muse about inventing a new letter to express the “zh” sound (as in “as usual”). This evolves into laughter about increasing illiteracy and why Americans are doomed if new letters or numbers are introduced.
  • “Why can’t we invent a new letter in our language that does the sound?... Why can’t we do this?” – Ben (33:24)

9. Personal Drive & Toilet-Cleaning Ambitions

• (36:00-36:49) Rainbow, trying to defend her career ambition, declares herself a “heartless killer” and “ambitious” despite still cleaning toilets. Both hosts mock her “Succession-level” delusions but lend backhanded support.

10. Beach Setup & Knife Safety Horror Show

• (38:02-54:49) On the beach, Solène’s dangerous knife-washing and holstering technique has everyone on edge, including Ben and Ronnie.
  • “She’s washing with sand… with her bare fingers, like that’s a chef’s knife!” – Ben (53:57)
  • Ronnie considers Solène’s survival thus far “Darwinian luck.”

11. Med Mooring Mania

• (55:41-62:17) Captain Carrie and the hosts become hyperbolic about the perils of med mooring in St. Barths, joking about the notorious difficulty and potential for cast mutilation or Kraken attacks.
  • “There could be a tsunami… a rope down on top of a guest’s brain. We never know what could happen on a beach picnic.” – Ronnie as Captain Carrie (28:55)
  • “We used to be afraid of the Kraken, but then one day, Captain Glenn crashed into the Kraken and the Kraken actually died.” – Ben (56:53)
• They lampoon the constant danger-mongering in the show’s voiceovers and tease future crash montages.
• Ronnie’s Captain Sandy impression makes a cameo during a faux radio call about Med Mooring and Solène.

12. Crew Trauma Monologues & New York Slander

• (45:19-51:55) Hugo launches into a story about his tough New York upbringing, to which Ben and Ronnie react with increasing derision about “sirens and gunshots,” mocking his victim narrative and expressing skepticism about the actual trauma.
  • “I grew up upstairs from Cipriani’s. One horror after another.” – Ben (46:41)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• (05:14) Ben on Fraser:
  “I just don’t know if he’s up for it… I don’t think he’s a manager.”

• (11:05) Ronnie on Fraser:
  “He’s got the balls to go to the captain and complain... but he doesn’t really have the nuts to do it right to their face.”

• (19:10) Ronnie on booby cake:
  “Why the fuck would you do that? ...I don’t want that.”

• (26:39) Ben on managing Solène:
  “This is bad parenting, where you expect everyone else to make modifications for your devil child.”

• (31:28) Ben on Hugo:
  “People don’t take it seriously. …Not a good leadership quality from Hugo either.”

• (33:24) Ben’s language tangent:
  “Why can’t we invent a new letter in our language that does the sound?”

• (46:41) Ben on Hugo’s NYC upbringing:
  “I grew up upstairs from Cipriani’s. And let me tell you something: One horror after another.”

• (53:57) Ben on Solène’s knife-washing:
  “She’s washing with sand… with her bare fingers, like that’s a chef’s knife!”

• (55:41) Ronnie as Captain Carrie on med mooring:
  “There could be a tsunami… a rope down on top of a guest’s brain.”

• (62:56) Ronnie closes Part 1 with:
  “This is a two-part recap… Come back a little later for part two.”

Key Timestamps by Segment

• 2:29–4:12: Bravo scheduling shifts & podcasting lives
• 4:12–12:37: Fraser’s management woes dissected
• 10:05–16:08: Solène’s work habits & Rainbow confrontations
• 18:59–19:59: The “booby cake” debate
• 20:16–21:24: Kyle’s endless drama
• 25:12–32:34: The “don’t talk to Solène” crew directive
• 33:24–35:42: Language tangent & new alphabet proposals
• 36:00–36:49: Rainbow’s career ambitions lampooned
• 38:02–54:49: Beach setup, knife chaos, crew gossip
• 55:41–62:17: Med mooring danger montage, fake radio skit
• 45:19–51:55: Hugo’s hardship monologue deconstructed

Overall Tone & Takeaways

Ben and Ronnie’s tone is highly irreverent, sarcastic, and affectionate in their mockery. They scrutinize every crew flaw, dissect managerial cowardice, and turn small behavioral details into sprawling comedic riffs. The two expertly shift from pointed analysis to absurd humor, ensuring the recap is as entertaining as the episode itself (if not more so). Their signature banter and inventive tangents provide a detailed, hilarious snapshot of crew dysfunction on Below Deck and Bravo at large.

For listeners and non-watchers alike:
This episode offers a full, funny debrief of all key Below Deck crew dynamics and memorable comic detours—no actual viewing required.