At the start of Below Deck Mediterranean Season 10, the deck team downright sucked. But after a few recent tweaks, these yachties are now our favorite part of this series.
Nathan Gallagher is the bosun, but this is his first season working as a department head. Further complicating his obviously steep learning curve, Nathan got dealt one capable yachtie and two WTF-was-production-thinking-about deckhands. From safety issues to a lot of handholding on deck, this Temu team was a borderline chore to watch. So, kudos to Nathan for leading this team nonetheless, because many other first-time bosuns would have likely ripped up their contracts and shown themselves the exit.
But then, right as many of us were about to throw away our televisions, changes happened. And thankfully, these corrections have turned the tide. Now, we are living for the deck team on Below Deck Med.
The Below Deck Mediterranean Season 10 deck team got off to a rough start
At the start of Below Deck Med Season 10, Tessa Budd and Christian Trimino appeared as deckhands. To his face, Tessa was kind. But behind his back, she had nothing nice to say about Nathan, her daily scapegoat for her failings.
During her first departure, Tessa struggled with the ramp. Then, she floundered around with the yacht’s nautibuoys, followed by an aimless walk around the yacht. Later, Nathan softballed her a task. All she had to do was fill the jet skis with fuel, but she forgot, and Christian got stranded in the middle of the sea.
Meanwhile, during his first watch, Christian failed to even look at his checklist. So, when Max Salvador woke up, he did Christian’s tasks instead. Immediately after, Nathan asked Christian to blow up the water toys. But that would be too much, Christian dared to argue.
Christian also argued with Max, got someone stranded in the sea, and lacked an overall sense of urgency. But his biggest mistake came when he let a drunk guest convince him to change his mind. This guest wanted to stick his toes in the water at night, when the swells were as high as his blood alcohol level. This guest promptly fell into the ocean, but even still, Christian saw no problems with his behavior.
Nathan Gallagher was forced to make some changes
With all these incidents taking place in only the first handful of episodes, Captain Sandy Yawn had no choice but to lay down the law with Nathan. Either Christian or Tessa needed to go, she instructed. Her order left Nathan with a big, cliffhanger-like decision to make at the end of Episode 4. So, which yachtie did Nathan choose to fire?
Shocking many viewers, Nathan made the call to cut both of these deadweight deckhands. Thankfully, Christian understood this decision. He remained respectful in his exit meeting, and he left the boat without any further problems.
Tessa, however, remained professional in front of Captain Sandy and Nathan. But in her confessional, she cursed at Captain Sandy and then blamed her bosun for her failings, per usual.
As Christian and Tessa walked the pier, Captain Sandy reached out to yacht services, since she needed two new deckhands. She also texted several of her former crew members, but two were busy, and one failed to answer. But only a handful of beats later, this yachtie chimed in, letting Captain Sandy know that he was game to help her out. This returnee was none other than Joe Bradley from Season 9.
The refreshed deck team on Below Deck Med are now the best part of the show
Joe is back, but he only has two hands (that we know of), so Captain Sandy placed Victoria SanJuan on deck for a temporary fix. Sure, she’s a stew, but V has worked on deck before. Right out of the gate, V nailed every assignment. She performed so well that Captain Sandy just assigned her to the deck team in a full-time capacity, and will soon bring in a new steward to take over her interior gig.
However, V’s late boyfriend, Bon, drowned. This tragic incident made V shy away from exterior roles. Knowing this while watching V shine as she heals on deck has been heartwarming. Viewers don’t often get warm fuzzies from this series, so this storyline of resilience and growth is quickly making this deck team our favorite aspect of Below Deck Med Season 10.
The way Nathan, Max, and Joe are all embracing, encouraging, and supporting V is also worth noting. These four are truly presenting as a non-toxic, non-mysogisnistic family. And all of their personalities are such a vibe, especially when combined.
Meanwhile, Joe and Nathan shared such a fun bromance in Season 9. When these two gigglers embraced on the dock this season, it was like a ray of light finally shone down from the heavens onto the deck team. And from everything Joe recently teased to us, he and Max will also join chaotic forces, which further makes the deck team the one to watch this season.
Below Deck Mediterranean is streaming on Peacock.
TELL US – ARE YOU ALSO LOVING THE DECK TEAM NOW? IF SO, WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE ASPECT OF THIS SEMI-NEW CREW?
