Below Deck Mediterranean season 9 has been full of issues, and even just a few episodes into the charter season some of the crew members are facing major backlash after potentially faking their poor performances. As Below Deck Mediterranean season 9 has ventured out into the waters of the Mediterranean Sea, the crew has been doing its best to become a well-oiled machine quickly. With difficult charter guests in the first episodes of the season, things have been tough for the Mustique’s crew, especially Chef Johnathan Shillingford and Bosun Iain MacLean. Both have struggled to succeed in the first charters.
According to several fans on Reddit with the poor performances Johnathan, who goes by Jono, and Iain have been giving, it seems possible that they’re staging their issues for Below Deck Mediterranean style drama. “Sorry but the chefs food is not good enough. He needs to go. Something about this whole situation seems super staged. Same with Iain. It just seems so dramatically staged,” u/Legitimate_Candy2750 shared. While Jono has been struggling to create dishes that are up to Captain Sandy Yawn’s standards, his skillset should be wide enough that he shouldn’t be struggling this much with creating delicious dishes.
While Jono has been struggling through the meal service for guests, Bosun Iain has been on the other side of things with the rest of the exterior crew, but facing struggles all the same. Iain’s said to have some serious yachting experience, but his performance and lack of managerial skills have been surprising throughout the first episodes of Below Deck Mediterranean season 9. According to u/murderedbyaname,“the hires are a 50-50% responsibility between production and Capts” on Below Deck, meaning Iain and Jono could both have been brought in with qualifications, but with production knowing they’d fumble their responsibilities.
Are Bosun Iain & Chef Johnathan Actually Struggling On Below Deck Med?
While some feel that both Iain and Jono are production plants in the cast that will bring drama to the show while allowing replacement cast members to come in and save the day, others wonder if the crew members are truly having issues with their work. For Johnathan, it’s clear that his abilities aren’t quite as vast as he made them out to be in the first episodes of the season. Though Jono has said that his first passion wasn’t cooking, he’s been open that he enjoys what he does. His enjoyment of cooking doesn’t necessarily lend to being successful.
For Iain, it’s unclear what his experiences in the past have been and how they’ve prepared him for Below Deck Mediterranean. While Iain clearly has a depth of knowledge on superyachts, his issues seem to be more based in working with a team that he has to manage consistently. His issues could be real, but it appears that both Jono and Iain’s issues may have been exaggerated for the sake of drama on Below Deck Mediterranean. While Captain Sandy will still have to deal with the crew members, it may be somewhat less dramatic if their terminations were pre-determined.
Captain Sandy Knows Who Should Replace Chef Johnathan If He’s Fired
While Below Deck Mediterranean season 9 is just getting underway, if any of the crew ware to be fired before the charter comes to an end, there are contingency plans in place for their replacements. While Below Deck often shows the Captains of the franchise checking in with an agency to find new crew members, the way yachties are staffed on the series is actually a lot different than what viewers are shown. Typically, yachties are cast through Below Deck production and given the seal of approval by the Captain, who needs to have the final sign-off on the crew.
Though there are some hoops to jump through in order for Below Deck yachties to get aboard the vessel, there are always contingency plans in place should a yachtie need to leave the superyacht or should they be fired. As Chef Johnathan may not be working out for the charter season aboard Mustique, Captain Sandy’s recent appearance on Watch What Happens Live may have alluded to who his replacement could be if he’s fired. Chef Dave White, who Captain Sandy is a big fan of from previous charter seasons, appeared on WWHL with the Captain, hinting at a possible return.
Does Below Deck Have An Issue Keeping Quality Yachties?
Although Below Deck Mediterranean season 9’s crew has the exciting return of Aesha Scott as Chief Stew and several different crew members who appear to be pulling their weight successfully, some of the crew’s performance have been tough to watch. Though there are yachties each season who perform well and last throughout the charter season, there are also typically crew members who are fired or choose to leave due to the pressure of the season. Though it may just be the luck of the draw for yachties each season, many have wondered if there’s an issue with keeping skilled yachties.
With Below Deck Mediterranean season 9 only a few episodes into the season, the fact that two of the yachties are being questioned about skills and performance while others have already come into question definitely supports the idea that Below Deck struggles to keep skilled yachties. The pressures of working aboard a superyacht and dealing with the added difficulties of being on reality TV make the job infinitely more difficult, but those who sign up for Below Deck should be able to handle the task. Some Below Deck yachties struggle more than others, making it tough to find the fault.
Although the speculation about whether Jono and Iain are production plants may never fully be resolved, it will be interesting to see how things proceed on Below Deck Med. If Jono and Iain are both fired, two replacements will have to come into the cast, which will change the dynamics up entirely. As Below Deck Mediterranean continues, time will tell if viewers will have to get used to new crew members changing the Mustique’s in the future.