Despite recent issues within the group, Jesse‘s Santa Barbara trip brings everyone together on this episode of The Valley. Well, almost everyone. Jax is in rehab, rage texting Brittany nasty things, all while trying to better himself for their son, Cruz. Zack and Janet manage to mend their friendship, but Jesse lets his emotions (or the Prosecco) get the best of him when it comes to Michelle…
Instead of taking one big Sprinter Van, the group has opted to take a few cars to get to Santa Barbara. (This is a wise move, considering historically, Sprinter Vans tend to bring some of the most explosive moments on Bravo.) Jasmine has brought a flat Benji popsicle stick doll for Zack so he doesn’t miss his boyfriend too much, and Brittany shares that she is getting bombarded with nasty texts from Jax… yes, from rehab. It is so rich that after Jax finishes his therapy sessions, he manages to shoot a few thousand rage-filled texts Brittany’s way.
Jesse, Luke, and Kristen (the newest besties) ride together and commiserate over the fact that Michelle has not even said hello/looked at any of them. The house that Jesse has rented is stunning, complete with ocean views from a cliff. Jesse greets his guests with some white flags, but Michelle refuses to give Jesse a pass for calling her an escort.
Everyone seems hyped for this trip, especially Kristen, who is taking full advantage of her ovulation window. So much so that she and Luke hold the group up christening their room before car racing.
When I say car racing, don’t get it twisted. Despite the Nascar-themed lewks, this group is racing remote-controlled cars around a track. Shirtless Jesse arrives at the track, and Brittany is having a hard time enjoying herself while dodging Jax’s maniacal text messages. One reads, “You took my son from me,” while another from him states, “Disgusting.” It’s unbelievable that Jax is spiraling even in rehab. Talk about main character energy.
Jax has also texted Kristen, full of hope and claiming to be liking rehab. This positive side changes once Kristen brings up Brittany, and that naturally sets Jax off. This is unhealthy behavior.
Luke leads the instruction for the car race, stating that the winner gets relieved from all house responsibilities for the night. After three heats, Danny wins.
Post race, they realize that all of the Jax rehab details are coming out, and Brittany finds this weird. She tells the group to avoid telling Jax that his news is very public, and she wonders who told Jax about the Santa Barbara trip. Jesse admits that he speaks to Jax every day and filled him in on the trip deets. According to Jesse, the group going on a trip and NOT telling Jax would end more terribly than them telling Jax up front.
Jesse seems like he is looking to fight when he confronts Janet and Brittany about talking poorly of his now-ex-girlfriend. Janet promises that she has had nothing but wonderful things to say about her, but Brittany doesn’t like this girl. Despite the fact that Jesse is not with her anymore, he continues to defend her, and this blows Janet’s mind. She is miffed that his ex is threatening a lawsuit, and Jesse deflects by blaming Michelle for cheating. Huh? To that, Janet retorts, “Honestly, if I was married to you, I would be cheating on you, too.” Boom.
While cooking up dinner, Zack decides he is going to pull Janet aside to talk about what’s going on between them. Janet wants Zack to put his guard down, and she feels like the cruel things he has said about her need to be discussed. Janet claims she is a nice person despite “the mean girl comments.”
Things have gone sideways between them, but Zack thought they had apologized and moved forward. Zack felt like Janet dropped him, and Janet admits that she should have had a conversation with Zack about her feelings. Janet has issues with things that a blacked-out Zack said about her pregnancy, but she only knows this information because Brittany told her about it. Zack feels like Brittany is “actively taking Janet’s side,” and he calls calm Nia in for backup when he becomes too emotional. Janet states, “We don’t have to be best friends,” but they can try to move on from this. Finally.
Kristen has found a spiritual guide for some post-dinner entertainment for the group. There will be a healing ceremony and a gratitude circle. But something tells me Kristen is going to need this the most after finding out the devastating news that her ovulation window is off yet again. She becomes frustrated, claiming to hate her body, but Luke is there to help her pick up the pieces.
Later, Jesse chats with Jason and Danny and jokes, “Who is Michelle?” Michelle not speaking to him and getting into it with Janet and Brittany are not quite the positive vibes he was hoping for with this trip…
Even though he has now made up with Janet, Zack is left reeling, wondering where his friendship with Brittany stands. He does not appreciate that Brittany told Janet what he said when he was wasted, but Brittany doubles down and states that she would have done the same thing for Zack.
No physical activity is required for the spiritual healing (luckily for Janet), but it seems that not many in the group are taking this seriously. Brittany giggles her way through the activity, but she aims to get her “sparkle” back. Michelle releases stress and anxiety, and she is ready to accept a new life of happiness and love. Jesse refuses to take part in this exercise, but the rest of the group goes through it and really opens up. I mean, Luke even went as far as calling the group his family!
As the activity wraps up, Jason suggests that they put energy towards Jax and him getting the help he needs. Speaking of Jax, we get a video diary of him claiming to “find some emotions” he didn’t know he had. He hates that he feels alone and neglected. Jax wants Brittany to check in on him more and claims that he is “sick” right now. Jax wonders, doesn’t a wedding vow state, “in sickness and in health?” He cries about how he needs to get fixed, yet he feels that this situation is essentially all Brittany’s fault. I am pretty sure no one asked for this.
Danny leaves Santa Barbara since he has a voice-over gig, and it’s a real shame that he misses out on the gratitude ball game (not). Brittany is first to share what she is grateful for and then passes the ball to Jesse. He gets emotional talking about the toxic situation he is in, and he is grateful that Isabella, his daughter, is thriving.
When Jesse tosses the ball Michelle’s way, he states, “And, Zack, don’t roll your eyes with Michelle the way you did with me.” He threatens to throw him off the cliff — or something really mature like that. Michelle’s ice-cold exterior breaks down as she shares a great moment she had with Jesse: when they decided to have a child. Jesse can barely hold it together and excuses himself as he reminisces that, at one point, their marriage was good.
Jason follows after him, and I was really not ready to see Jesse already in his undies, shouting about how he is ready to drive himself home. He tells Jason to go back downstairs and yells that he is done. Is he done filming, done with the night, done with Prosecco, or done with all of the above??
