The 90 Day Fiance franchise is home to some fan-favorite couples, but these pairs are practically royalty.
Fans love how David and Annie engage with fans. They’ve loved watching Loren and Alexei’s family grow.
Both couples are just a little too, …
One of the seven new couples joining 90 Day Fiance: Before The 90 Days is meeting up in Turkey.
Despite some overlapping plans and a familiar name, Caleb Greenwood and Alina Kasha will be nothing like those other two.
Caleb and Alina are childhood friends who recently reconnected, and between Alina’s disability and some questions of trust, we’re excited to see their storyline.
Ahead of this weekend’s season premiere, we’re already being treated to a sneak peek clip.
Caleb and Alina are both 27 years old, and were first friends as teenagers before losing touch.
Thirteen years later, they have found each other again through a coincidental match on a dating app ahead of Caleb’s planned trip to Russia.
Though that trip fell through, sparks have been flying between these adults … but will they have the same chemistry in person?
As this sneak peek begins, that is exactly what Caleb is wondering.
The emotional bond that he shares with Alina cannot be overstated.
We can even see hints of that in their messaging history.
But he is clearly getting impatient to see if they remain as close in person, which is why they are taking the trip to Turkey.
Russia’s borders are closed — so they have the same reason for holding back as Steven and (the other) Alina did.
As we noted, this story will be very different from those two.
In the trailer, we see Alina modeling in a glamorous burlesque look.
She looks amazing, and it’s wonderful to see that her friends are there to support her.
Asya and Elijah are ooh-ing and ahh-ing as their friend’s photoshoot continues.
Alina explains that her interest in burlesque is recent, and is in part rooted in burlesques embrace of different types of bodies.
She was born, she explains, with diastrophic dysplasia.
This is a rare form of dwarfism, and can lead to numerous medical complications that more common forms generally do not.
Alina is unable to walk or to stand for long periods of time.
She relies primarily upon a wheelchair for mobility.
“I don’t think disability is a problem,” Alina remarks. “In many areas of my life, I try to do everything, really.”
Alina is also in a band, BFF Band, with two of her besties.
Her friend Elijah is also part of that band, and the two are currently roommates.
In fact, we already know from previous trailers that Elijah will be accompanying her on her trip to Turkey.
The plan is that Caleb and Alina will meet up in Turkey and spend two weeks with one another.
During that time, they will figure out if their emotional connection remains intact in person.
There is some subtext here that is familiar to many in the disabled community who try to navigate the dating world.
Sometimes, ableism is a force stronger than love, and a combination of beauty standards and lifestyle habits keeps two people apart.
It is very natural for someone with a visible disability to worry about two things: rejection and chasers.
There are no indications that Caleb rejects Alina upon seeing her in person or that he is fetishizing (or “chasing”) her for her disability, so that is good.
Considering the kind of appalling portrayal of Ella from the trailer, we’d probably know by now if that’s where there storyline is headed.
Meanwhile, it looks like their actual story is going to include real questions of trust.
We’re excited to see it unfold … and we hope that audiences are kinder to Alina than they have been to so many other women from the show.
Season 5 premieres on Sunday, December 12 on TLC and on Discovery Plus.
Caleb and Alina are just one out of seven brand new couples, meaning that we’re being introduced to 13 new stars … and reintroduced to Usman Umar.
It’s time to get excited!
This week, 90 Day Fiance star Tarik Myers shared that Hazel Cagalitan left him after about a year and a half of marriage.
At the time, he asked his fans and followers to not harass Hazel as they have in the past, and clearly wanted her back.
Hazel has updated her own social media, appearing to accuse her husband of emotional abuse during their marriage.
Tarik is firing back while asking Hazel to please call him so that they can work this out.
“A real man won’t abuse his woman mentally and emotionally,” Hazel Cagalitan’s Instagram bio now reads.
“A real man won’t run his mouth on social media,” the updated description continues.
Hazel’s bio concludes by saying that “truth will prevail one day.”
In addition to upgrading her Instagram bio, Hazel posted a series of Instagram Stories.
They were spiritual and self-help messages that she clearly found relevant to her current feelings.
“Wrap yourself with positivity even in the darkest situation,” one post reads.
“Never feel guilty for doing what’s best for you,” another of Hazel’s shared posts advises.
That is actually very good advice, most of the time.
There are exceptions — bad parents, or taking a bribe — but it’s generally a good attitude to have.
“You can be a kind person with a good heart and still tell people to f–k off when needed,” another post asserts.
That is also true.
Does this mean that Hazel is telling Tarik to f–k off?
“Work at being calm about everything,” another post suggests, “it will allow your mind to find solutions.”
“Calmness is also a state of trust,” it adds.
“Instead of overthinking and overreacting,” the post explains, “you just surrender for that moment and allow yourself to receive guidance for what doesn’t make sense.”
“You can’t always be nice,” another story counsels. “That’s how people take advantage of you.”
The post continues: “Sometimes, you have to set boundaries.”
That is true though, like most of these sayings, is also a line that can be misused by bad people.
Another reads: “A wise man once said, ‘Bees don’t waste their time explaining to flies that honey is better than s–t.'”
This one is a little less literal, but the meaning is clear.
You don’t have to justify what you do to others or explain why your actions are not the ones that they would make, because you know your life and your choices.
Hazel also shared song lyrics to her Instagram Stories.
In general, it is clear that she is projecting an attitude of empowerment.
We are sure that she is feeling a lot of emotions right now, some of which may be very difficult and painful.
In a now-deleted post, Tarik shared a screenshot of Hazel’s bio and included his own lengthy caption.
“Lawyers told me that you would claim this,” he alleged. “They say it’s the go to claim to try to stay in the U.S.”
“I said no way, not my wife. She’d never,” Tarik continued. “She’d go back willingly first.”
“Is this really who you are? I still will not bash you or air out our personal life,” Tarik’s caption continued.
“I will say that you know everything I ever said or did was to provide a wonderful life for you, my daughter, and YOUR SON,” he continued.
“No one is fighting harder for him than I am to this day,” Tarik claimed. “Not even you.”
“So don’t let IG haters and the ‘friends’ around you push you to make a bad decision because you’re upset,” Tarik asked his wife.
“Would they put their life on the line for you or your son?” he asked, answering: “NO they won’t.”
Tarik added: “I know one person who would.”
“And I only told social media you left,” Tarik insisted, “and asked that you be left alone and not harassed.”
He warned: “You’re gonna make yourself look much worse if you force me tell my side online.”
“Calm down and call me,” Tarik urged Hazel.
“Dwain is flying here tomorrow to stay with me for a while to help me try to talk to you and fix it,” Tarik shared.
He concluded: “I didn’t lie on you so don’t lie on me. #Tarzel”
This is a mess, and it’s more than a little sad … even if some xenophobic and biphobic “fans” in 90 Day Fiance spaces are celebrating, we find this whole thing heartbreaking.
We are just days away from Season 5 of 90 Day Fiance: Before The 90 Days and its seven new couples.
One of the most talked about new pairs is Ella and Johnny, but viewers have noticed some major red flags.
The Other Way alum Deavan Clegg has seen the trailer and agrees.
She has laid out a very thorough and informed breakdown of why this couple is a problem … but also why production fakery could be to blame.
29-year-old Ella is an American from Idaho.
The self-described country girl admits that she is fascinated by Asian cultures.
In fact, she used a dating app designed to connect white American women with Asian men.
That is how she met her “Asian prince” (her words, not ours), a 34-year-old Chinese man named Johnny.
In the past, Ella has faced cruel rejection that have had an indelible impact upon her relationships and self-esteem.
Johnny, she says, accepts her for who she is, though she cannot shake the fear that history will repeat itself.
There are some red flags in this relationship, despite it being very age-appropriate with no obvious signs of scamming.
Ella can be seen wearing an anime-inspired wig while chatting with Johnny in one of the trailers.
She is also seen practicing with a sword in her yard while a voiceover discusses her Asian fixation.
Appreciating the cultures, fashions, media, and histories of other groups of people is a wonderful experience.
Ella appears to be going above and beyond that, and the way that she seems to be speaking of Johnny and Asian cultures is alarming.
It sounds like she fetishizes Asian men and Asian cultures, which is detrimental and alarming to see.
Being interested in other cultures isn’t fetishization, but zeroing in on a specific dating pool sure is.
There is more to the cringe elements of Ella’s part of the Season 5 trailers than that.
And we’re sure that editors went above and beyond to make the trailer as inflammatory as possible. That’s their job.
There are other elements to the trailer, of course.
The first is that Johnny’s family, if not he himself, appears to be doing some body-shaming of Ella.
The world can be incredibly cruel, particularly to women. We hope that Johnny himself is not.
Additionally, the full trailer for Season 5 showed Ella in tears.
She appeared to have gotten some sort of bad news from Johnny.
We have yet to see a photo of them spending time together in person, so … does Johnny make the trip?
That, we don’t know. We’ve only seen the trailer and a bit of a blurb from TLC about Ella and Johnny.
But that alone was enough to make a first impression upon viewers, and upon 90 Day Fiance: The Other Way alum Deavan Clegg.
Taking to social media, Deavan is offering a very nuanced and informed take on Ella and the trailer … one that will be dismissed by 90% of those who read it.
“I don’t think its right to fetish someone for their race,” Deavan Clegg wrote in an Instagram comment.
“I don’t know if it’s producers trying to do that for the story line to make it interesting,” she admitted, “or if she’s really like that.”
Some have accused Deavan and Ella of being the same, but Deavan explains that she has a family connection to Korea.
“I have ties to Korea because my uncle is korean and I would watch my nieces often,” Deavan stated.
“That’s how I got introduced into the culture,” she added.
“It’s okay to love and appreciate a culture,” Deavan affirmed, “but to strictly go out of your way to find an Asian man or women is not okay and different.”
“I didn’t go out of my way to meet my ex,” Deavan said, referring to Jihoon Lee.
“He had his international turned on and we matched,” she explained.
“I’ve dated lots of men from different cultural background,” Deavan added. “I don’t have a preference.”
“As for dating Topher,” Deavan said of her current love, “we met on an airplane and connected.”
“I didn’t strictly go out of my way to meet another korean man,” she emphasized.
“As for keeping the culture in my household,” Deavan explained, “that’s because of my son and he should know both cultures.”
“I’m happy to be what I am and do my traditions as well,” Deavan stressed.
“I don’t eat noodles and rice just because I think its cool,” she said. “I eat everything | like.”
Deavan added, as has been noted before, that she has Korean ties “from my own roots. That’s the difference.”
“Did the show make me say | dated koreans in the past,” Deavan continued.
She confirmed: “Yes 100%,” while adding that this was prompted by producers and untrue.
“It’s all a show,” Deavan reminded people. “So | can’t sit here and judge because I don’t know if it’s the producers pulling the strings or if she’s really like that.”
“I think its cool she appreciates the culture,” Deavan observed, “but to strictly go out of her way to find someone asian is what bothers me.”
In case it needed to be explained, Deavan noted that she’s uncomfortable “because not everything ‘asian’ is the same.”
Deavan got specific: “I found the trailer distasteful because she was wearing Japanese attire but then found a Chinese man.”
Based upon the trailer, Deavan speculated: “She probably doesn’t know the difference and lumps them all in the same group which is wrong.”
“Everyone has there own culture and traditions,” she emphasized, “which are very different and beautiful.”
Deavan correctly noted: “And if she can’t tell a difference that’s ignorance and that’s what is not okay.”
“I don’t festishize asian men and never have,” Deavan affirmed.
“Do I find my boyfriend attractive?” she asked. “Of course.”
Deavan clarified: “Is it because he’s korean? No.”
We know that the vast majority of 90 Day Fiance fans probably do not want to hear this, but Deavan Clegg is right.
She is right about the racial fetishization, right about the cultural fetishization, and she’s also right about how dishonest the show’s portrayal can be.
We of course hope that Ella has a better experience than Deavan did, and that Ella’s storyline is much more nuanced and less ignorant than it appears in the trailers.
90 Day Fiance: Before The 90 Days‘ Season 5 trailer showed off seven new couples.
Among the sprawling cast was one, and only one, familiar face: that of Usman Umar.
The Nigerian rapper was previously on the exact same show while in a relationship with an older white American woman, Lisa Hamme.
Now, he’s with another older white American woman, Kimberly. Usman insists that it’s love, not a scam.
90 Day Fiance: Before The 90 Days viewers are familiar with Usman.
His story with “Baby Girl” Lisa Hamme was hard to miss, and it ended very badly.
Lisa was quietly fired by the franchise after a leaked but unaired portion of the Tell All revealed that she had called Usman the N-word.
Usman was clearly the victim in this scenario, and it was refreshing to see a rare moment of accountability for someone as bad as Lisa.
However, there are many lingering questions about Usman and his motives.
Many wonder if 50-year-old Kimberly is simply a new mark whom Usman is using — to boost his platform and rap career, if not to come to America.
“My type is someone who is going to give me peace,” Usman told Entertainment Tonight in an interview.
“I don’t actually choose older or younger,” he insisted.
“I just need peace in my life,” Usman emphasized, “and I think by looking at me right now, you know that I’m at peace.”
Usman said that he dated a very different woman, a Black 36-year-old woman named Zara, after things ended with Lisa.
That relationship ended, he claimed, due to the attention that he gets from fans (a familiar relationship problem).
Of course, Usman says that “millions” of fans slide into his DMs to get his attention.
That, Usman shared, is how Kimberly reached out to him — first as one of his many fans.
In the interview, he praised Kimberly for being “loyal.”
Usman gushed: “I love her with all my bones, my heart.”
“Right now, I am in love. I love Kimberley, I can say that any way in the world,” Usman continued.
“I love her. I’m not shy. I’m not ashamed,” he expressed.
“I am proud to say that I love her,” Usman announced. “I love her for real.”
“A lot of people on my page, a lot of people are saying that my ex and Angela are not representing white American lady well,” Usman noted.
It’s true that the thought that Angela or Lisa (or Big Ed Brown, or Colt Johnson, or others) “represent” America to international viewers sends chills down people’s spines.
“It shows, the way they act on TV. It shows that most white American ladies are trying to be controlling,” Usman observed.
“Oh my god, Kimberley is nothing like that,” Usman declared. “She is different person, I’m telling you.”
Even so, he confessed that their love story has numerous ups and downs.
In the end, Usman shared, he expects that viewers will find their journey: “Romantic, amazing, interesting.”
“I’m just saying. If I really want green card, it’s easy,” Usman said of the scammer accusations.
“Why I’m saying it’s easy is that, for anyone who knows me right now, they would say I’m doing well,” he boasted.
“You know, like, I’m doing very, very, very well,” Usman added. “I can tell you that not all American average person make the money I make in a month.”
“I am not actually doing anything to get to America … but if there’s a reason for me to go to America, so be it,” Usman announced.
“You know, I think it’s a good thing,” he shared. “I’m saying I’m primarily not doing this to get to America. People that are below my lifestyle can get to America.”
Of course, Usman’s rap career and six-figure Cameo profits might not be what they are without 90 Day Fiance, but … sure.
By the end of the latest season of 90 Day Fiance, Tarik Myers and Hazel Cagalitan were married.
There was just one problem: Tarik needed to block Minty and put Hazel first.
That is what viewers saw on their screens early this year, at least. Perhaps there were other problems.
Taking to social media, Tarik has revealed that Hazel is no longer living with him … but he is begging her to reconsider.
“Hazel does not live with me anymore,” Tarik Myers wrote on his Instagram Stories on Tuesday, December 7.
“She said she is [in] another state,” he accused, “with people I don’t know.”
Tarik then claimed: “She is going back to the Philippines. I do know that bc she has no choice.”
While that last line sounds particularly bitter, Tarik is not attempting to unleash his fans upon his wife.
“Please do not attack her or harass her,” he asked, “like you’ve been doing for the last 3 years.”
It is true that people have said vicious things about Hazel, particularly ever since she came out as bisexual.
In a separate Instagram Story posted about five hours later, Tarik sounded like he was asking Hazel to come back.
“Hazel,” he wrote to his wife. “Use your head.”
It is unclear when she moved away from him or what led to this, and Hazel has yet to offer a public comment.
Tarik Myers and Hazel Cagalitan are a well-known couple to 90 Day Fiance viewers.
The pair first appeared on Season 2 of 90 Day Fiance: Before The 90 Days back in 2018.
But many fans know and love Tarik for his time on Pillow Talk.
Tarik Myers and his brother, Dean Hashim, provided commentary on Pillow Talk.
They were widely loved and considered to be tremendously entertaining.
In fact, any time that Tarik and Dean were taken out of rotation on Pillow Talk, there was a clamor to get them back on.
Over time, the two had a falling out, though they expressed different versions of what caused the conflict.
They were no longer appearing on the spinoff.
Tarik, however, returned with Hazel — this time, to 90 Day Fiance as their journey brought them together in the United States.
Only in 2020 did they film Hazel’s K-1 visa trip to be with Tarik in America.
Their reunion was amazing and heartwarming.
Though ill-timed, given the COVID-19 pandemic hitting just weeks after Hazel arrived, it was huge progress in their relationship.
Part of their new season involved Hazel coming out to viewers (though she had been already out on Instagram for some time).
Hazel is bisexual, but had been afraid to come out to her family back home because one of her sisters, also bi, was rejected.
This kind of vicious bigotry had kept her in the closet for too long, but Tarik was very supportive.
Coming out is something that bi and pan people can do even when they are married or in monogamous relationships.
After all, sexual orientation is part of who someone is.
In Hazel’s case, this was also relevant because she and Tarik had plans to seek out a girlfriend together.
Their goal of what is sometimes known perjoratively as “unicorn hunting” was noticed by Tarik’s friend, Angela.
Angela was supportive of Hazel, and went above and beyond to be certain that this was what Hazel wanted.
Some men try to pressure women into threesomes, but Hazel made it clear that this was not the case here.
With that settled, Angela set about giving Hazel a perfect bachelorette party.
Well, as perfect as a party for a woman who is new in the country can be during a global pandemic.
Hazel really, truly liked the stripper who was hired. Thank you, Angela!
Tarik and Hazel were married in a small but beautiful outdoor ceremony.
This was out of necessity, again because of this deadly pandemic, but it was heartfelt and moving.
They clearly had a lot of love for each other … but that did not mean that they were without problems.
While much of Tarik and Hazel’s storyline was sabotaged by the pandemic (awful timing), there was one name that kept cropping up.
Minty was an ex of Tarik’s and, for one day, she and Tarik and Hazel were in a relationship together.
No sex happened with the three of them, as Hazel explained that Tarik and Minty’s shared history (without her) and shared language made her feel insecure.
Tarik seemingly was unable to stop contacting Minty.
Maybe it was production meddling to give them a storyline, any storyline, or maybe he struggled to respect his wife’s boundaries.
It is unclear what may have changed over the past year or so to end this marriage, but we hope that Tarik and Hazel will share more.
Despite only two new couples on the latest season of 90 Day Fiance: The Other Way, the show did have some real highlights.
One was the debut of breakout 90 Day Fiance villain Steven Johnston, whose horniness could make Colt Johnson blush.
There has been a lot of focus on how his selfish behavior has hurt his wife, Alina.
But fans were shocked when Steven’s unsettling comment towards castmate Evelin Villegas made their skin crawl.
Steven Johnston arrived at the Season 3 Tell All fully expecting to be roasted and, frankly, hated.
His expectations were met. Possibly even exceeded.
What did not help his case was the weird things that he said, insulting castmates like Corey and Ariela … and negging Evelin.
Evelin wore a dazzling purple (lilac, specifically) top while tuning in to the Tell All from Ecuador.
There are many wonderful compliments that can be paid to a person’s appearance without causing offense.
Steven veered sharply into being not only offensive, but unnervingly creepy.
“Evelin, I think this is the most modest I’ve ever seen you dressed,” Steven blurted out.
“Oh my God,” Ellie Rose exclaimed, stunned by his behavior.
“Oh my God,” Evelin echoed, perhaps too stunned to even know how to respond except to try to laugh it off.
Armando’s mouth opened in shock. A “wow, Steven” echoed through the room.
Steven replied with “no, it’s just a fact.”
Meanwhile, Shaun Robin’s look really said it all.
Perhaps, in Steven’s mind, this was a normal thing for one human being to say to another.
If so, he’s wrong.
And viewers are just weirded out.
Obviously, this was a line uttered very early during the same Tell All where Steven made some startling admissions.
He had been trading pics — theirs nude, his tongue-wagglingly suggestive — with nine other women just one week before they filmed.
Additionally, he confessed that he wanted to have a threesome “for some reason.”
Now, there’s nothing wrong with threesomes or with wanting to have one, just as there’s nothing wrong with sex.
What is wrong is betraying, lying to, and hurting your girlfriend, fiancee, and now wife.
Steven’s antics hurt Alina’s feelings in ways that he does not seem to fully appreciate.
But Steven’s cheating and hypocrisy tends to involve his wife, not his castmates.
It’s when he made that super weird comment at Evelin that people realized that, basically, no one is safe.
What was Steven thinking when he paid Evelin that non-compliment?
In normal society, “modesty” is brought up in terms of understating one’s achievements, for better or for worse.
Within toxic purity culture, the term almost exclusively refers to how women dress and present themselves.
Clearly, Steven has noticed that Evelin often (gasp) wears beach-appropriate clothing while living at the beach.
People living by the standards of toxic purity culture think that a woman’s value is inherently tied to her body and how much of it is covered.
A woman’s body is then reduced to an object of sexual desire, perceived by men.
Obviously, this is a vile way of viewing the world, and inflicts lifelong damage upon the mental health of those raised with this kind of twisted thinking.
While this would be just as bad if it were equal opportunity shaming, most purity culture teachings do not devalue men in the same way.
That is why Steven can go totally shirtless on social media and on television and not think anything of it.
Meanwhile, he either thinks that Evelin should wear more clothing, or at the very least thinks that it’s a “compliment” to say that she’s covering up.
In a normal environment, someone calling a woman’s dress “modest” like that makes them sound like a cultist or at least a little freak.
Saying this can do more than cause offense.
(I personally know of an incident where one of those preachers who go to college campuses praised a woman for wearing a “modest” skirt, so she removed it and kept walking)
To be clear, Steven did not specifically tell Evelin how she should or should not dress.
But using the word “modest” implies an insult, opinions about how she should garb her own body, and is frankly a red flag.
If a friend came back from a first date and said that her date had complimented her “modest” outfit, I’d strongly advise her to block his number.
Steven may struggle with his religion’s strict rules (well, the ones about sex and marriage), but he is a devout Mormon and was raised in that belief system.
It may be that, growing up, this was a normal thing for people to say in his community, and could even have been heard as a compliment.
But it’s not a compliment. And, even if it were, Steven’s specific comment would still be negging. Don’t be a creep, dude.
In recent months, 90 Day Fiance legend Larissa Lima has undergone some major changes.
One change was moving back to Las Vegas after a year in Colorado Springs.
Another change was yet another dramatic breast enlargement that had her fans and followers in shock.
Now, fans are falling over themselves to compliment photos of Larissa’s pregnant baby bump.
The way that fans are discussing Larissa marks a major deviation from business as usual.
A lot of people like to react with exaggerated “horror” at Larissa’s pics.
The reason is her ever-larger breast implants, which defy the imagination.
Larissa is a big subscriber to the idea of “go biggie or go home.”
Actually, that’s not quite right.
With her recent return to Vegas, Larissa both went biggie and went home.
But these events, though interesting, are not the current focus of some fans online.
Even people who are deeply critical of Larissa can’t help but say a few kind words here.
You see someone’s baby bump, and you’re bound to say something nice.
Recently, Redditors shared a series of throwback photos of Larissa from years ago.
One of them showwed Larissa and her kids, with the photos of her children redacted for their privacy.
She also had her baby bump on display.
People were quick to compliment Larissa’s throwback photos, particularly the pic of her pregnant.
Some compared her looks to fellow Brazilian Karine Martins. Others simply praised her photos from a more “natural” time.
Larissa did not post the throwbacks herself, so she has not offered any recent commentary or context, as much as fans might enjoy it.
Larissa’s children have been a tricky topic over the past few years of her fame.
It was not something that she immediately shared with viewers or even with her erstwhile mother-in-law, Debbie Johnson.
This of course led to backlash from fans of the show, who accused her of “abandoning” her kids, and from Debbie, who wished that she’d known sooner.
The reality is that Larissa did not have custody of her children, even before she moved to America to — she thought at the time — spend the rest of her life with Colt.
Both of her children are being raised by their family, because she was unable to care for them.
Larissa keeps in regular contact with her family, but has never wanted to advertise her children on TV.
Is there more to the story of Larissa and her kids? Probably.
But it has always been clear that Larissa loves her children very much.
Part of her dream is to secure her residency and her finances in the United States and secure her children’s future.
Larissa has become the butt of many jokes, some more malicious than others.
Shaming her for her depression, what she does with her own human body, or for her accent is always grim to see.
In contrast, seeing people praise photos of Larissa — even in a context of bashing her more recent looks — is kind of refreshing.
Larissa may be one of the 90 Day Fiance franchise’s most misunderstood stars.
For seasons, Colt Johnson was portrayed as a weird but long-suffering partner to her who was simply at a loss at her behavior.
After seeing Colt’s cheating scandals and hurtful behavior through more honest editing in later seasons, one wonders how many viewers might reconsider how they viewed Larissa in hindsight.
90 Day Fiance: The Other Way has officially concluded its third season.
The Tell All special aired on Sunday, December 5, oddly not premiering on Discovery Plus until the afternoon.
Ariela and Biniyam were there together, discussing a lot of family drama.
Sumit and Jenny had plans to reveal their marital status to Sumit’s parents for the first time.
Steven had some painful confessions, and Alina was begged on air to leave him before he repeats this behavior.
Victor and Ellie made up, in part, for a lackluster storyline by serving great face at the Tell All.
And then Hiromi came out and reminded everyone that Ellie has sensible people in her life.
Kenneth and Armando had a lot to discuss, and their entire extended family was brought into it.
Corey was on “thin ice” going into this, Evelin said. During the Tell All, that ice began to crack.
Take a look at this detailed recap below:
90 Day Fiance; The Other Way Season 3 viewers all know that Jenny Slatten and Sumit Singh are married.
This wedding has been a long time coming.
Jenny and Sumit made a bold choice at that time: to refuse to tell Sumit’s parents, for fear of interference.
Now that they are married, they’re bracing themselves to give the Singh family the news … on camera at the Tell All.
Before Anil and Sahna are brought up to speed on their son’s marriage, Kenneth Niedermeier has something to say.
“His mom and dad — and especially his mom — [have] thrown everything at the relationship to break it up,” he observes.
Kenneth continues: “And after 10 years, it has not done it.”
It is no surprise that Kenneth is passionate about this topic.
He dealt with some, much less difficult, family hurdles ahead of his wedding to Armando Rubio.
And Kenneth is a gay man — he has spent the vast majority of his life in a world telling him that he can’t get married.
“He’s even gotten married … to someone else,” Kenneth says during the Tell All.
He’s referring to Sumit’s arranged marriage, but clearly, some of his castmates worry that he’s going to spill the beans. It’s written on their faces.
“And it almost gets to the point of cruelty to them,” he adds.
Sumit’s sister-in-law, Sharee, who is there with Sumit’s brother, Amit, disagrees.
She says that there has been no cruelty from Sumit’s parents towards Jenny.
According to Sharee, the “generation gap” between Jenny and Sumit is to blame for the strain, not the parents.
Shaun Robinson (who cannot possibly be getting paid enough to put up with so much with so little control) poses a question to Sumit’s parents.
“What would happen if they just said, ‘OK, it’s too bad we don’t have your blessing, we’re just gonna get married anyway?’” she asks.
According to Anil, Sumit and Jenny should be perfectly happy as things are.
“You people have to live together, and you’re living together. That’s all,” Anil retorts.
“We are not stopping you [from living] together,” he says.
Anil then asks: “Why [are you] so anxious to [be] getting married?”
Jenny’s answer is the most obvious one imaginable.
She notes that she and Sumit wish to marry because they “love each other.”
Sensibly, Jenny then asks: “Why does anybody get married that loves each other? Because they want to.”
Interestingly, the question comes up of how Amit would have reacted if his parents had not approved of Sharee.
Amit’s response could not be more unnerving … because he says that he would not have married her without his parents’ blessing.
“I don’t know how to react because this question has never [come] across my mind,” Sharee then adds.
Shaun then quietly nudges Sumit to seize the opportunity to break the news to his parents.
“I would like to say that I know it’s hard for you guys,” Sumit begins.
“If somebody’s talking bad about us getting married,” he suggests, “it’s not gonna make a difference.”
“[The] only difference [it is] gonna make [is] only if you can accept us,” Sumit says.
However, he balks at actually coming clean, while Jenny is clearly also feeling emotional at this awkward moment.
The sneak peek clip cuts off there, but we’re sure that there’s more to it at the Tell All alongside plenty of other drama.
This season, 90 Day Fiance: The Other Way cast someone who’s weirder than Paul Staehle, hornier than Coltee and Big Ed combined, and kinda weirdly hot.
Steven Johnston has had viewers on edge from the beginning with his goofy on-camera antics.
His sexual history and impulsive flirtiness had fans and his new wife Alina worried … and it was with good reason.
Oversharing as always at the Tell All, Steven admits to responding to nine girls’ nudes with his own pics and wanting to “try out” a threesome.
The Tell All special for 90 Day Fiance: The Other Way begins on Sunday, December 5.
What we have already seen in sneak peeks is straight-up unhinged.
Steven’s willingness to flirt with others didn’t stop when he married Alina. And he was already a cheater before they ever met.
Steven and Alina married in Turkey earlier this year.
That marriage is off to an extremely rough start.
As evidence, we unfortunately have five sneak peek clips for you showing the couple’s issues. Well, Steven’s issues.
Steven himself confesses at the Tell All that he and Alina were arguing, so he began to respond to thirsty DMs.
Women who saw him on the show were sending him thirst traps and nude photos.
He began to respond to nine of these ladies, as he describes in this video clip:
Steven was fully clothed in his responses, he says, but would stick out his tongue.
He would brag about the length of his tongue but bashfully admit that he doesn’t know what to do with it.
The obvious implications and innuendo involved are simply not the behavior of a married man.
Alina knows all of this, she confirms at the Tell All.
(Because she is Russian and does not have a visa to come to the United States, Alina is tuning in via video chat, just like Armando Rubio is).
She explains that these women sent her screenshots of their conversations with Steven.
Steven opened up in this next clip about how he knows that he is sexually repressed.
One could write an entire book about Steven’s inner war between what he owes to his wife and his faith against what he desires.
While Steven knows that he needs an outlet for this, apparently he thinks that a threesome would “fix” this, as he explains in this video:
Now, threesomes are perfectly normal things to participate in, don’t get us wrong.
But Steven is married, and this is not something that he gets to do on his own or pressure his wife into if Alina doesn’t want this.
Steven is also a Mormon, and this is certainly against the strict rules of his very organized religion.
Not every revelation about Steven was blurted out of his own lips due to his own lack of filter.
His ex-girlfriend, Vanessa, was a guest at the Tell all.
Also raised as a Mormon, she dated Steven for several months, as she details here:
Vanessa doesn’t hate Steven and she’s not afraid of him, but she’s hurt.
When he went to Russia during their short relationship, she gave him permission to date other girls, asking only that he not go all the way.
Instead, Steven slept with three different women in Russia … which she knows because Steven then confessed all of this to her upon his return.
Kenneth Niedermeier shared that he and Armando Rubio chatted with Steven Johnston and Alina before the season aired.
At that time, Kenneth warned him that he would receive a lot of attention from viewers.
Kenneth, a married gay man, has received photos of breasts in his DMs.
Steven did not heed Kenneth’s warning, and look at the mess that has ensued.
Meanwhile, Vanessa told Alina that she’s there to support her, and suggested that Steven is even worse now than he was when they were together.
As you can see in this video, Alina said that she hopes that Steven loves her enough to change.
Ariela Weinberg used a very compassionate tone and language to call out Steven.
She assured him that he’s not a “freak,” but she didn’t condone his behavior either.
As you can see in this video, Steven snapped back that these were big words from a woman who “abandoned” her husband.
The reality was that Ariela took her son, Avi, for first-rate healthcare because he needed hernia surgery.
Biniyam was seated right next to her on the couch, clearly not “abandoned” now just as he was not then.
Steven’s attempt at deflection had no effect, and Ariela continued to call him out.
The thing about Steven is that he doesn’t know or understand himself well enough to explain his own behavior, let alone change it.
It may be that he is wholly incompatible with the Mormon faith, but that is a decision that only he can make.
Right now, the focus should be on either becoming a good husband to Alina — in whatever form that may take — or finding the least painful way to end things before they get worse.
With the exception of the Tell All special, Season 3 of 90 Day Fiance: The Other Way has come to an end.
Very soon, a new season will begin, with 90 Day Fiance: Before The 90 Days offering a look at seven brand new couples.
Even before that, however, Discovery Plus viewers will get to see another spinoff.
This one is both “new” and not-so-new at the same time, but could be welcome for fans who feel like they’re playing catchup.
This weekend, on December 5, Discovery Plus viewers can check out the premiere of 90 Day Journeys: The Other Way Couples.
Most fans are very familiar with the premise of Journeys.
Essentially, instead of seeing a season episode by episode, each viewing follows just one couple from the beginning to the end of their season.
This Journeys series of episodes will cover the now-familiar The Other Way couples.
Ariela Weinberg and Biniyam Shibre, Jenny Slatten and Sumit Singh, Corey Rathgeber and Evelin Villegas will be included.
So will Kenneth Niedermeier and Armando Rubio, Ellie Rose and Victor McLean, and Steven Johnston and Alina.
This could be an ideal way for many to relive the season, or fill in the blanks on what they missed.
One only needs to check social media in order to see that many viewers have lost track of where things started.
Little details from people’s journeys, like Ellie’s revelation of Victor’s domestic violence history, were forgotten by some fans as the series went on.
This has led to confusion and even conflict among fans discussing the show on social media.
Some are fixated on Ariela bringing her ex to visit, others moved past that to Biniyam’s cheating.
Similarly, some people are totally onboard with Steven and Alina … while others saw too many red flags from the start to ever root for them.
That’s not to say that every single viewer will be on the same page when everyone is either caught up or refreshed.
You could put the entire audience (of millions) into some colossal theater and play the episodes for them without seeing an accord.
Some would be rooting for Jenny and Sumit. Others would want them to split, blaming him. Others would want them to split, hating her.
Critics of the Journeys spinoff in all of its iterations say that, well, it’s not a “real” spinoff.
There are no new faces, no new couples, no new footage or new drama, not really.
It’s like watching one long recap, which they could just as easily do much faster by reading The Hollywood Gossip‘s weekly recaps.
But we have to remember that the 90 Day Fiance franchise isn’t like the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
You miss one show or film in the MCU and you’re suddenly left scrambling to watch it before the next big thing comes out.
In contrast, 90 Day Journeys: The Other Way Couples is just a convenience for the viewers who want it, now and in the future.
Right now, Season 3 is still pretty fresh in many of our minds.
But what about when Season 4 rolls around, some time in late 2022?
We’re sure that quite a few new and longtime fans alike might want a quick refresher on a couple or two.
With streaming, when something premieres only matters a little — because it’ll generally be around from then on.
That’s good, because 90 Day Fiance fans will have their hands full on December 5.
After all, this is when the Tell All special for 90 Day Fiance: The Other Way Season 3 will begin.
Conspicuously, Season 2 never actually aired a Tell All special.
One couple could not have participated anyway — that would have been Deavan Clegg and Jihoon Lee.
It’s good to see that the show is not discontinuing the Tell Alls, because they lead to answered questions, new drama, and updates on the couples.
Sometimes, seeing the castmates interact is a double-edged sword.
Cast members can show an “ugly side” that wasn’t apparent during their season, or someone you liked can be too friendly to someone you don’t.
The Tell Alls are always full of new drama and usually some big revelations, so this Sunday is going to be dominated by 90 Day Fiance.
We don’t often say this about celebrities, but … Aaron Carter has had a pitiable life in many ways.
Child stars often have a hard time, both when it comes to coping with adulthood and dealing with their families.
Aaron isn’t just no exception — he is a grim example of both of those struggles.
This time, he isn’t making headlines directly over his paranoia or mental health struggles.
Last week, Aaron and his fiancee Melanie Martin welcomed their child, Prince, via emergency C-section.
This week, in a lengthy Twitter threat, Aaron is declaring that things are over between him and Melanie.
His hurt feeliings are very real.
Describing why he feels betrayed by Melanie, Aaron had something else to add.
According to him, she’s leaving him and taking their son to Las Vegas, where she plans to move in with Larissa Lima’s ex-friend Carmen Nys.
This is not the 90 Day Fiance crossover that anyone asked for, but apparently, it’s what we’re getting.
Take a look at Aaron’s many heartbroken tweets … and check out Carmen’s response at the end. Oof.
On the Season 3 finale of 90 Day Fiance: The Other Way, Jenny Slatten and Sumit Singh were married.
This was a long time coming, after three seasons, countless delays, and many years of being together.
But … how many years, exactly?
One of Jenny’s followers confronted her, accusing her of having seduced her much younger husband when he was only 14.
Jenny Slatten and Sumit Singh were married at the Arya Samaj temple.
It was a plan that they had previously considered but had set aside in favor of a courthouse marriage, one that would take weeks for approval.
However, India’s government declined to renew Jenny’s visa, which effectively made the decision for them.
This milestone only came after many hurdles, but not everyone was in a purely celebratory mood.
“Congratulations,” a Facebook commenter wrote to Jenny.
That commenter then asked: “Did I hear that you met Sumit when he was 14 while staying with his parents???”
“Seriously,” Jenny replied with an exhasperated emoji.
What the person was accusing Jenny of would be a crime — in the United States or in India, where the age of consent is 18.
But we all do remember hearing that Jenny slept with Sumit many years ago, at his parents’ house.
Is that why Sumit’s parents, Sahna and Anil, dislike Jenny so much?
Sometimes, in many countries and cultures, parents grudgingly accept that their adult child is with an older partner who preyed upon and groomed them as a minor.
That doesn’t mean that they have to like them. And until very recently, Sumit’s parents were pulling out all of the stops to sabotage that relationship.
Here is what we know:
In 2013 or 2014 (possibly beginning one year and ending the next), Jenny flew to India to meet Sumit in person.
This was after he had catfished her — a deception that somehow led to a fruitful and more authentic relationship.
During that time, Jenny did overstay her welcome in the Singh household, but got along well with Sahna.
She also hooked up with Sumit.
In fact, Jenny later revealed to the camera that she deflowered Sumit during this visit.
It’s not clear if Sumit’s parents initially realized that Jenny and Sumit were in a romantic, sexual relationship.
They thought that the two had simply struck up an unlikely friendship despite the age gap.
Nonetheless, Jenny and Sumit embarked on a relationship journey that would last to this day (and beyond).
Much of that relationship was long distance, as Jenny did end up having to return to America.
Sumit’s parents eventually put it together that he was sleeping with the much older woman.
In an effort to put a stop to this, they forced him into an arranged marriage with a woman he neither knew nor loved.
Sumit did not tell Jenny or production about this marriage.
Jenny and producers alike only learned what had happened after Sumit’s in-laws showed up to where he was living with Jenny.
From Jenny’s description, they all but kidnapped him. It was a traumatic event.
Eventually, Sumit was able to persuade his parents to allow him to get a divorce — which was no easy feat.
This bad experience left Sumit with the impression that marriage was itself harmful, and that it changed people.
He and Jenny had been living as a married couple in all but name for some time, but he repeatedly pumped the brakes at the topic of having a wedding.
But is Jenny a sexual predator who groomed a younger man until she could get away with marrying him?
Like … of course not, to the point where such an absurd challenge wasn’t worth her time to debunk.
Sumit is now in his thirties. He was a grown man in his twenties when Jenny first boinked him.
Yes, they have an eyebrow-raising age gap, and Jenny is about twice his age.
Age gaps can be hugely problematic when one party is barely an adult, or when the older partner makes a habit of only dating very young adults.
But mischaracterizing Sumit’s age by more than a full decade just to make Jenny seem creepy is weird. How could anyone believe that?
90 Day Fiance alum and American Idol contestant Evelyn Cormier has split from David Vazquez Zermeno.
Four years of marriage is nothing to scoff at, especially when the bride is so young that most of her peers have never been married.
There was im…
We are now a few episodes into 90 Day: The Single Life Season 2.
From Natalie’s patented weirdness to Big Ed’s relentless creepiness to Debbie dating again at 70, it doesn’t lack for drama.
There’s just one thing that a growing number of viewers feel is missing from the new season of the spinoff:
Authenticity. Has the spinoff tried to do too much and gone too far?
Let’s look at 90 Day: The Single Life‘s Season 2 cast to get where people are coming from.
First up is Syngin Colchester. Some people like him, some like Tania, some like or dislike both.
Along the same lines, a lot of people are genuinely interested in Debbie Johnson’s return to the dating scene.
But then there is series villain Big Ed Brown, who was on last season.
He is a man so widely disliked and creepy that he has a nickname among viewers: Big Pred.
Meanwhile, another longtime villain Jesse Meester is back, and dating a fellow franchise alum. Ew.
That alum is Jeniffer Tarazona, who is beautiful but not widely liked by fans.
Then there’s Stephanie Matto, who struck out after one season, driving away her then-girlfriend Erika and all of the fandom.
Stephanie is hot and she does have good qualities, but she’s a franchise villain and fans have not forgotten her on-screen behavior.
And, of course, there is Natalie Mordovtseva.
Some people see her as a victim, others as the toxic party in her former marriage to Mike Youngquist.
Watching her try to find the Florida Man of her dreams is fascinating in a morbid sense, like watching a video of a deranged parrot, you know?
Another thing to note, before we get into what critical viewers are saying, is the platform.
The Single Life‘s original run is always on Discovery Plus, and streaming does not play by the same rules as airing on TLC.
Certainly, the gratuitous shots of Jesse’s butt from Season 2 will need to undergo a lot of censorship before anything like this season can air on TLC.
All of this and more comes up in the critiques voiced by some unsatisfied viewers in a recent Reddit post.
“The new season of single life is so fake and sexualized,” one post began.
“This s–t is so hard to watch,” the viewer wrote. “First off, they picked the most random people for this season.”
“Secondly, why is everything about sex?!?!” the same Reddit user demanded.
“These people are on the FIRST date and their whole mindset is on sex and not love,” the post complained.
“I get sex is normal but the whole series is revolved around it,” the redditor continued. “What the actual f is happening?”
“Also, Jesse and Jennifer are obviously just doing it for the clout,” the post concluded. “The lack of connection there is so obvious.”
“I honestly cannot stand Steph,” a commenter added in a similar vein.
“Her entire personality is fake,” the comment continued. “She’s obnoxious as hell.”
“That ‘date’ was one of the most cringey things I’ve ever watched,” the second redditor accused.
“Jesse & Jennifer are those two ‘popular’ kids in high school who peaked and are still chasing that,” the commenter characterized.
“Debbie…. well she just wants to f–k,” the user said accurately. “Good for her.”
“Although she absolutely does talk too much,” the redditor admitted. “But she hasn’t dated in such a long time that she deserves a pass.”
The commenter added: “Syngin is a weird one to me. I used to sort of root for him, but now he’s just as toxic as Tania.”
“We all know PrEd is a disgusting vile piece of human toilet paper. Not really much to say on him that hasn’t been said already”
We don’t necessarily agree with all of what these two are saying, but … they’re making some points.
We will say that the “sex” part may have more to do with demographics and platforms than anything else.
There are a few hotties on 90 Day Fiance, and streaming gives them more options to showcase that.
Streaming also aims at younger audiences, who are less likely to have cable.
Younger audiences are, demographically, less likely to find sexual content offputting even if there are major exceptions.
Then there is the “fake” issue, referring not to production meddling (for once) but to the cast.
A lot of reality stars are cast for their poor decision making and their lack of conflict-resolution skills and their generally baffling behavior.
There may be something to how “pros” on a show like The Single Life, all of whom have been on the show and are now returning, might be too seasoned to be authentic.
It’s nice to see that we’re all rooting for Debbie to get railed, though. We do wish her the best.
