On 90 Day Fiance: The Other Way, some couples prepared for weddings — whether they were ready or not.
Others have a long road ahead of them before they can hope to reach the altar.
Sumit came clean to Jenny about how he betrayed her, and she took it surprisingly well … but that doesn’t change what she needs to do next.
Ariela told Biniyam about their own important next step, and Bini’s showing a huge and positive change in attitude.
Corey had to beg his family to come to his wedding, and still to no avail. He wants at least one guest from his side.
Ellie and Victor’s heated argument turned even nastier.
Kenneth had to tell Armando about his own family’s reservations, but Armando’s family’s issues are much more immediate the day of the wedding.
Steven and Alina have put off their wedding for ages, so now they have to rush about every last detail. Is it worth it?
Jenny Slatten and Sumit Singh
On the heels of Sumit’s betrayal last week, this episode actually begins with some good news. Sumit’s brother, Amit, and his wife, Shree, have had their first child. Sumit is now an uncle! Of course, this means that he is going to a small family celebration.
Sumit is going alone, however
Jenny is welcome to gatherings as a “friend” of Sumit, but his family has made it very clear that family gatherings should not include her, despite the duration of this relationship. Jenny reminds Sumit that they’re just a few weeks away from being able to marry, so she hopes that they will start including her in things after that milestone is crossed.
Yeah, about that . . .
With palpable nervousness, Sumit tells Jenny that he called up their attorney after applying for the marriage license and told him to hold off on that, meaning that the process has not begun and can’t begin until 30 minutes after Sumit changes his mind.
Jenny is devastated
We have a feeling that she at least suspected that something was up, because Jenny’s response was strangely calm for someone whose boyfriend just told her that he essentially FAKED a meeting with a marriage attorney and is only bothering to tell her now.
He is CONVINCED that marriage will ruin what they have
Sumit had his own trauma from being married before. As Jenny points out to him, that was not a real marriage — it was arranged by his parents against his will. He and his wife did not love each other. Also, Sumit was already in love with and in a relationship with Jenny during that marriage (he just didn’t tell her about it). The marriage was painful and the divorce was difficult, but Sumit also says that he’s seen and heard of other couples where marriage makes the relationship worse. Jenny counters that a couple who don’t live together until they marry will have a very different experience than their story.
Choosing a far-off wedding date is not a luxury that they can afford
Jenny is still ravaged by monthly anxiety every time that she files to extend her visa, and Sumit knows it — he just prioritized his own cold feet. He’s so afraid of changing the status quo that he could ruin everything for both of them.
Sumit doesn’t want to feel pressured
If a relationship that lasts seven years already isn’t low-pressure, it’s hard to say what is. Jenny isn’t the one giving their relationship a deadline — the government of India might at any time force them to go long-distance. But to Sumit, it’s like Jenny is being impatient.
Sumit says that it’ll happen when it happens
Well that’s ridiculous and not a reasonable thing to tell your partner about your wedding — not in this context — so Jenny storms off, furious and frankly humiliated.
Sumit tries to calm her
The odd thing is that, all things considered, Jenny is extremely calm. But she also fears that she will just have to leave Sumit — either by her own choice, now, or when the government of India stops renewing her visa as she files for an extension. Either way, it looks like Sumit has decided that they can’t be together, even if he doesn’t see it that way.
Later, Jenny turns to a friendly face
She visits the ISKCON temple — the Hare Krishnas (as they are colloquially known in much of the world) with whom she previously spent time. Speaking to Shaktimata, a familiar devotee, Jenny tells everything, giving an abbreviated update on this whole dang season … including Sumit’s recent betrayal and his motives.
Shaktimata has good advice
She says that Jenny needs to stop letting Sumit use her. He’s getting everything that he would out of marriage without stepping out of his comfort zone. He needs to marry her or Jenny might have to leave him — either for herself, or to show him how serious this is. Jenny seems to listen, though it’s not clear what action she will take.
Ariela Weinberg and Biniyam Shibre
It’s been weeks since Janice left Kenya to return to Princeton, New Jersey. We do see a flashback of her speaking about how Biniyam’s abandonment issues were probably behind his wild behavior while Ariela wasn’t there. Janice could be right — it’s not an excuse, of course, but it could be an explanation.
Meanwhile …
Ariela and Biniyam celebrate baby Avi’s birthday, including a camel ride. One-year-olds don’t generally have a grasp of what a birthday is (they’ve never had one before), but it looks like this is an important moment for their family as they slowly heal.
Biniyam is showing HUGE growth
Viewers watched as, time after time, Biniyam acted as if any desire, concern, or feeling that Ariela had was ridiculous and something to ignore. He made a habit of lying to her. And all of that was before things got worse when she took Avi for his surgery. Now, he’s acknowledging that he caused major problems in their relationship that could tear them apart.
Ariela has a solution
In a heart-to-heart with her fiance, Ariela expresses that she can’t return to Ethiopia now — she’s afraid that going back will make their relationship fall apart again, but she is also reluctant to face the friends and family who watched Bini humiliate her like that. Kenya has been nice, but this is a therapeutic vacation — not a permanent solution. With all of that (and more) in mind, their best bet seems to be moving to the United States together as a family.
That’s not ideal for Biniyam
On the one hand, it’s extremely reasonable that he wants to spend time around friends and family in Ethiopia. It’s been his home for all of his life. On the other, it’s a little weird that he has impregnated two different American women but doesn’t want to live in the U.S. We’re not slut-shaming him and we’re also not saying that everyone “should” want to live in America, but it (once again) feels like Biniyam’s goals and his actions are totally out of sync with one another.
Biniyam agrees
Even if he wants to return to Ethiopia, he knows that this is a necessary step for their family and, in a welcome contrast with his past behavior, is willing to take the steps necessary to make things right and be a good partner. That’s so encouraging to see!
Later …
Clearly, some time has passed, though Ariela and Biniyam are still in Kenya. Ariela had already filed for the K-1 visa a long time ago, but she and Bini weren’t sure at that time if they’d use it. They saved themselves a lot of time and grief by doing so, because they now have a huge head start.
Their immigration lawyer calls
Jessica is very upbeat and positive during the interview and calls with good news — they can schedule their upcoming interview very soon.
They’re going through with it
Despite Bini’s hesitations, they’re going to take this step for the betterment of their family, and to give Avi his best chance.
Is there a Most Improved 90 Day Fiance Star award?
Maybe there should be, because Bini would be a strong contender with his sudden interest in being a good partner.
Some news is TOO good
Ariela and Biniyam’s interview won’t just be soon — it’s in only 19 days. And because of how it’s set up, it will take place in Ethiopia, which means that they have to return to the country. It’s not unreasonable to ask if their relationship can survive all of the awkward and conflicting feelings that they’ll face over these next three weeks.
Corey Rathgeber and Evelin Villegas
Corey’s (second) wedding to Evelin is coming up, and he’s feeling all kinds of ways about it. For him, it’s not about cold feet or timing — it’s about how dozens of people from Evelin’s family are coming, but not even one person from Corey’s family is planning to attend.
It’s not as bad as it sounds
As Corey’s brother Matt explains, that’s a huge ask in a pandemic. We’re talking about a whole group of people taking an international flight during a pandemic. Even with vaccinations, that’s a huge ask. It also feels like there’s a little bit more to their reluctance (there is).
Corey feels like he’s not being supported
Ideally, he would like it if his entire family could be there to witness the wedding, but it would mean the world to him if ONE person, at least, would show up.
Matt gets real
He and Corey were basically best friends growing up, but for the past few years, Corey has been living in Ecuador, and there is a tangible distance between them. It’s awkward.
And Corey’s family does know Evelin
When she was there, however, she was not very sociable. We see a throwback video of Evelin spending time with the Rathgebers, and she felt isolated there — in part, geographically, but perhaps also culturally. Engabao is a very small community, but there are parts of the United States that feel more remote. We have to say that if Corey and Evelin tried “original” 90 Day Fiance, it could go very similarly to Mike and Natalie’s disastrous relationship.
Corey speaks with Raul
The show generously labels Raul as Corey’s friend, not describing him as Evelin’s ex or as Corey’s ONLY friend. Most recently, Corey stayed with Raul after Evelin kicked him out over Jenny in Peru.
Now, things are tense
Raul admits to the camera that he feels like Corey betrayed him, because after he crashed with him for a bit, he got his own place and then reconciled with Evelin … but basically doesn’t talk to Raul anymore now that he no longer seems to need him. Yeah, that would not feel fun.
It turns out that there was an incident during Corey’s stay with Raul
At one point, the two went out to lunch, and Raul invited two young women to join them. The ladies were already in relationships and certainly nothing happened, but Raul did share video of the lunch on his Instagram Story. As mouth-watering as that sushi spread looks, Evelin was upset over Corey spending time with random women. (Normally, we’d say that she’s being too controlling and that it’s toxic to be that way, but since Corey was just given the boot for sleeping with another woman while married to Evelin, it’s hard to call her unreasonable in this context)
But that’s all in the past
Even though one has to wonder what Raul was thinking putting that on Instagram where Evelin would see it, Corey wants Raul at the wedding. Evelin doesn’t, but Corey wants at least one person from his side of things as a guest. Gosh that’s a little sad, isn’t it?
Ellie Rose and Victor McLean
Remember that ugly argument that Ellie and Victor were having last time? They’re still having it. Ellie complains about how Victor is getting weird and defensive any time that money is brought up. Ellie wasn’t talking about the money that she sent him, just their financial prospects remaining on Providencia … and yes, that is clearly a sore subject.
Is it over?
Victor is angrily talking like it is, discussing the idea of adding up the money that she has sent him over the years so that he can pay her back and then they will go their separate ways. Harsh.
The thing is …
… Unless editing is being extremely dishonest about this argument (which, we must emphasize, does sometimes happen on this show), the money that Ellie was talking about was in terms of how many tourist dollars Victor can make tending bar when Providencia has been obliterated by a hurricane.
Victor gets nastier, saying that she didn’t send him all that much
Honestly, if Ellie had been trying to lord her spending over him, we would feel very differently. Instead, listing the things that he’d be buying if she were a proper sugar mama (not his words but it feels like the implication of what he’s saying in anger) is … not putting him in a good light.
Victor says that Ellie’s concerns aren’t realistic
He speaks about how Providencia’s money isn’t all from tourists and that tourism only became a big thing about a decade ago. That’s great! But it does not change Ellie’s concern, which is less about the whole of the island and more about Victor’s bartending job.
What???
His palpable insecurities getting the better of him, Victor then insists that he is the one doing a favor for Ellie by giving her a house to stay in in paradise.
They part ways for the night
In shock and angry, Ellie tells the camera that she wishes that she could just magically be gone and be at home. She wants to leave, but doesn’t know that she’s up for the trip back to San Andres and the flight home. What she’s up for is to just teleport home, basically. That is oddly relatable, even if her actual situation is extraordinary.
Victor is still complaining
Everyone has sensitive topics, but if you as a couple cannot discuss important topics about what is viable long-term … what kind of hope is there for your relationship? How can you have a future if you can’t talk about the future?
The next day
Ellie feels drained, and at this point, the deadly hurricane and the wreckage that it left in its wake feels like a metaphor for her relationship. Ouch.
BUT!!!
Victor and Ellie do apologize to each other, for the fight and for the harsh words said during it.
Victor especially has things to say
He tells Ellie that he appreciates her help, even though his antics last night were evidence that he has complicated feelings about it.
Just like that, they’re happy again
Honestly? If you’re having a fight like that, you probably have more things to iron out before you even consider staying together. The words that they exchanged … it’s hard to imagine someone taking those back and their partner just forgetting about it.
Kenneth Niedermeier and Armando Rubio
The wedding is almost here, but first, Kenny has to tell Armando about how his adult children are taking things. They have been very supportive of their father and this relationship, but they do have some complicated feelings about Kenneth and Armando possibly adopting another child. With him living in another country, they worry that he’s leaving them behind. That’s hard for Armando to hear, but it needed to be shared.
Their wedding rental looks gorgeous
A vineyard is an amazing wedding location anyway, but this one looks particularly nice.
It’s their final morning as fiances!
Kenneth and Armando bask in how far they’ve come and how excited they are to be married, finally.
But …
With Armando’s dad attending the ceremony, his worries about how his dad will react to the couple’s kiss during the ceremony and their first dance are magnified.
But it’s not Armando’s dad’s special day
Kenneth reminds him that this is their day — and, in many ways, Armando’s especially — and that he can’t let worries over how the guests will feel sour what that day means to them.
Steven Johnston and Alina
The two of them are seriously running out of time, so they’re putting together all of the necessary paperwork to apply to marry and get an associated visa.
That’s the only way that Steven can return to Russia with Alina
The alternative, she tells the camera, would be for them to go back to their respective home countries and be long-distance again. Alina fears that Steven would go back to talking to other girls if that happens. (That is NOT a reason to get married, that is a reason to break up)
They start the registration process
The scene really drags out, to the point where it feels like the editors did this on purpose to highlight how awkward and restless and fidgety Steven can be.
They want to get married ASAP
The translator helps, and it works. Their wedding date will be on Wednesday afternoon, so it’s extremely last minute.
Alina goes dress shopping
She has a general idea of what looks she does and does not like (she doesn’t want to wear a huge dress) but this is all pretty rushed. Frankly, we have real questions about their budget.
She hired a wedding coordinator
Alina hired a woman who speaks Russian, which is convenient, but how much is there really to plan for something like this? Only time will tell.
That’s different!
Alina tries on a traditional Turkish dress and, to be honest, I don’t hate it on her. But it matters what Alina thinks of her dress, not what viewers do.
A dress, a venue, but … no blessing from mom
Alina’s mother, Anna, says what we’re all thinking — that this seems rushed and ill-conceived and Alina has only recently learned that Steven cheated on her. But Alina maintains that it’s her decision to make, so that’s that. You cannot reason with the unreasonable.