Well, there were housewarming parties from heaven and those from hell.
As time goes on, there are cracks in some of the relationships. But while Miles and Karen, and Brett and Olivia, made some strides on Married at First Sight Season 11 Episode 8, Henry and Christina are imploding.
And let’s be honest; it’s making for delicious drama.
Woody & Amani
Woody and Amani had one of the most successful housewarming parties with their collection of friends. Everyone got along well together, and you know it’s a good sign when you can’t tell who was friends with whom.
They had such a good time with some of the usual games, and while a rousing game of “Never Have I Ever” could spark some issues with a couple, Woody and Amani are equally feisty.
It worked for them. The weirdest part of the evening was the level of investment in their sex life. Why does everyone dive into those conversations?
Leave it to Woody to volunteer information that he and Amani had sex approximately 98 hours into their marriage (his words). I’m still trying to figure out it was cute or concerning that he counted how long it took before they had sex.
For now, Woody is in love with and smitten by this process, but does he feel the same about Amani?
Sometimes with Woody, especially given our introduction to him, it seems too good to be true. It’s hard to say. They’re an enjoyable pairing, and they’ve been a delightful surprise.
You can’t help but love them, but with caution, you know?
Amelia & Bennett
Of course, they’ve also been the most endearing couple of the season, and it continued with their time spent with the other couples and with their friends.
The only bump in the road they faced during the installment was Bennett’s sister expressing her reservations about him (possibly) relocating.
She’s close to her brother, and she wants him to herself, and she can’t stand the thought of him leaving her and the rest of their family to follow Amelia around during her residency.
It’s the one thing that keeps cropping up for this pair. They both enjoy their easygoing relationship, and they don’t want to make any waves.
Their refusal to go into further detail about this issue looming over them does tinge all the endearing, cuteness that we love so much.
And they were adorable as usual. Instead of resorting to icebreaker questions and whatever else, they arranged for their friends to paint a mural, and they chowed down on a cardboard box full of Lo Mein.
I loved it when Amelia’s best friend told her what many of us have already been thinking. Amelia and Bennett are so much alike that they’re damn near the same person.
Even when they interact with the other couples at the get-togethers, everyone feels the vibe they have. They’re so compatible, and they’re naturals. Everyone loves Bennett and Amelia.
Brett & Olivia
Both of them need to learn how to let go of their ways and meet in the middle. And it’s something that the others picked up on as well.
It sucked when Brett told the other guys that Olivia has a significant issue budgeting when he’s basing it on his standards, and even Woody thought Brett was off for doing that.
And Brett did not seem into Olivia at all when he was speaking with his friend. He was harsh about Olivia and how different they are, and it didn’t sound as if he thought they could work.
But the two of them budgeting over dinner was one of the first times they felt like a genuine married couple. It was the first glimpse we ever got that they could be a solid couple.
Brett is a total geek about budgeting. We haven’t seen the man smile that much on the show ever.
Brett needs to learn how to loosen up because it isn’t right of him to micromanage someone else’s money. But Olivia does need to be more flexible too.
Both of them had this idea in their heads of what their partner and marriage should be like, and they haven’t made room for an actual person bringing their own personality, livelihood, flaws, and quirks to a relationship.
Olivia is still holding on to the fact that she doesn’t have this rich, world-traveler, who will have all the same hobbies as her, be independent and dominant enough while also somehow willing to cave into her ways, thoughts, and needs.
I don’t think the man Olivia has on her vision board or checklist exists, but I also don’t know if she and Brett have a real chance of lasting.
I also wonder if Brett’s drinking will become an issue down the line. He tends to rely on it during social situations, but when he drinks too much, he kind of becomes an ass.
Karen & Miles
Karen actually made strides, and she didn’t spend the entire installment calling Miles a stranger. But thankfully, Miles finally sat Karen down and talked to her about his needs.
He wanted to share with her what he needs regarding affection and positive affirmations, and it was mature of him to broach the topic. Karen has come across frigid for the entirety of the experiment.
But the best part about it was that she didn’t shut down on him or imply (again) that he was too emotional for sharing his feelings.
Karen talked to Miles’ sister, and she is holding onto the past too much. It’s odd, hell, sad even, that she doesn’t know how to respond to a genuinely kind man.
She kept saying that he’s generous and nice, and she’s waiting for “the real Miles” to come out. She can’t fathom that Miles is actually being himself with her.
Karen claims she’s a giver, too, but her previous experiences have her guarded. To get the most out of this, she has to let some of the past go.
Miles’ sister has some reasonable observations about their relationship, though. It feels like it’s always centered on what Karen needs from Miles, but what about his needs?
Miles pours everything into them and Karen, but at some point, he deserves to get some of that energy back.
Their party with friends was nice, and thanks to the games they played, it forced Karen to loosen up and get affectionate with Miles. Hell, they even had their first kiss. They’re such a sweet couple on the surface, but forgive me for having some fun here.
Am I the only one who saw MORE chemistry between Miles and Karen’s friend? Her friend gets along well with Miles, she sees him for who and what he is, and they would look adorable together.
The same can be said about Henry, and his best friend, Kristen.
Henry & Christina
As a Henry fan, it was a damn good installment for him. Fans and Christina have waited ages for this quiet, reserved man to open up a bit and talk more.
Boy, it sure as heck was worth it!
You can always tell it’s going to be messy when they spend so much time showing production and crew members. Christina has a bad habit of speaking terribly to production.
She also has a bad habit of breaking the third wall to talk to them about her latest issue in front of Henry.
It is apparently happening enough to become a habit for Christina, and her way of speaking to others has turned Henry off.
You can’t blame him for that. As they say, “a person who is nice to you but mean to the server is not a good person.” You can tell a lot about someone based on how they speak to those around them when they don’t have personal gain.
Christina’s tantrums started before she even walked down the aisle. It was offputting then, and it remains so now.
Henry admitted he’s not comfortable with the cameras and everything either, but he also knows that he signed up for this process, and he willingly pushed himself out of his comfort zone.
IF Christina snapped and spoke like this to production recently because of how frustrated she is with Henry, she would be more sympathetic.
But let’s be honest; that isn’t the case here. Christina was like this during Married at First Sight Season 11 Episode 1, so you can’t even blame her ill-temper on Henry; she was doing this before she even met him.
The first argument between the two came out of nowhere. But by the end of it, Henry spoke his mind about Christina in a gratifying scene.
She wanted him to speak, and he did. A petty argument about expressing gratitude opened the door for Henry to acnowledge some of Christina’s least attractive traits.
She was shocked, but it threw her off so much that the next time she approached him, she was nice. It was almost as if she needed to see he was capable of coming across like a dick.
Their party was a bit awkward at times. Henry, for all of his odd ways, he does genuinely try to make the best of social situations.
And it sucked that he had to listen to Christina’s friends hammer him about their sex life and the importance of being aggressive and making all of the moves.
In the meantime, Henry’s friend Kristen shared that Henry was the person who supported her during the worst period of her life.
You can tell this woman has deep feelings for her friend, and dammit, why can’t they be together? She so protective of him, and she can tell that Christina doesn’t value the same things in Henry that she does.
Christina’s complaints remain that Henry won’t initiate phsical affection, and, oddly, she wants this when the rest of their relationship is struggling too.
But then Christina is a physical person. Her relationships have largely centered physicality, and she doesn’t know how to handle this thing with Henry as a result.
But Christina also can’t seem to deal with a man who isn’t falling all over her. I get that she’s not accustomed to initiating things, but for some reason, she refuses to do it herself and says she won’t, but she expects Henry to go against HIS nature to intitiate things to accomodate her.
It’s OK that it’s not in her nature, but it isn’t OK for Henry. What?
She also has this conversation with everyone but Henry, and talking to Henry is indeed difficult, but she never dives right in to the issues.
If she doesn’t get the response she wants from something basic, she gives up.
Their dinner scene was awkward. She tried to ask Henry about his favorite childhood memory, and he shared something that didn’t fit the bill about his brother.
But then, when Henry did ask her a question about her favorite dish her mom made, she refused to answer the question and passed on it.
But then she got upset about him not answering questions, and she complained to production in front of Henry about him not opening up to her and how she does all of the work.
It’s weird; there’s no telling how intimate the conversation could’ve gone if Christina answered the first question. Henry checked out of their relationship a long time ago because of him not being attracted to her personality early on.
On one hand, when Henry was talking to her on their wedding day, she would zone out and randomly start talking about superficial things. And then she would talk down to him on the honeymoon because of his inexperience traveling.
And a perfect opportunity to talk more and get to know each other qould’ve come from seeing each other’s apartments, but Christina opted out of that part on her end.
It’s possible that Henry shut down after that.
But he isn’t giving Christina much to work with either. When she does make efforts, it’s painful to watch. The two of them are a disasterous match, and the experts screwed up with this one.
Over to you, MAFS Fanatics.
Did Henry surprise you? Who do you sympathize with more in their relationship: Henry or Christina? Are you warming up to Olivia and Brett?
Do you think Karen and Miles can make it? Are Woody and Amani the most stable? Hit the comments!
You can watch Married at First Sight online here via TV Fanatic.
Jasmine Blu is a senior staff writer for TV Fanatic. Follow her on Twitter.