NBCUniversal Tumi Mhlongo and Natalya Scudder
Natalya Scudder gave more insight into her first meeting with Tumi Mhlongo in “Below Deck Mediterranean” season 8 after viewers saw their awkward interaction in episode 2.
Scudder, who ran the first charter as the temporary chief stew in Mhlongo’s absence, sat down with the South African to debrief her once she was cleared by immigration and joined the yacht. However, the episode ended on a cliffhanger as their conversation quickly went south due to some miscommunications.
Scudder opened up about her perspective in a few Instagram comments on the Below Deck Bravo account. On October 3, the account posted a video of Mhlongo opening up about being a chief stew for the first time on “Below Deck Med” season 8, captioning it, “Tumi talks everything about her first Chief Stew journey on #BelowDeckMed.” Scudder took to the comments to write, “My biggest pet peeve is when someone lets a certain person influence their opinion on someone before even meeting them.”
She then added, “My other pet peeve would be ungrateful people who can’t even say thank you for holding down the fort for 4 days, while being crew down, while setting up a boat, while running on no sleep.”
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During the Episode, Tumi Mhlongo & Natalya Scudder Clashed Right Away When Discussing the Yacht’s Pros & Cons
Scudder’s comment about people letting others influence their opinions was in reference to Mhlongo sharing in the final minutes of the episode that she met Kyle Viljoen ahead of the season. As the two got to know each other and were sorting out their visas for the charter season, Mhlongo revealed that Viljoen spilled on the ups and downs of his past with Scudder in season 7 of “Below Deck Med.”
“I don’t want to disrespect her, but I don’t want to demand respect,” Mhlongo said. “That’s where my struggle comes in. So, yeah, of course I’m worried.”
Scudder’s other Instagram comment indicated that she wasn’t pleased that Mhlongo didn’t thank her for stepping in as temporary chief stew and doing well in her absence. During the episode, viewers saw Mhlongo and Scudder disagree from the beginning of their first conversation about where the guests’ sunscreen and lotion should be located as well as the glassware and cutlery storage.
Mhlongo promptly told Scudder that the organization was a “s*** show” before clarifying to a taken-aback Scudder that she meant the boat’s organizational set-up and not Scudder’s work. “I’m not talking about you, I’m talking about the actual boat itself,” Mhlongo told her predecessor. “The way that it’s naturally been set up.”
While Scudder pointed out what she liked about the boat, the “Below Deck Down Under” alum replied, “I’m giving my opinion though. I’m telling you that’s how I feel. Don’t get defensive. You’re getting offended. I’m not offending you.” The episode ended as Scudder called out Mhlongo for gesturing with her hands toward her and telling her co-star, “Don’t put the hands up at me please. Thank you!”
Fans Had Mixed Reactions to Tumi Mhlongo’s First Interactions as a ‘Below Deck’ Chief Stew
Fans had really mixed reactions to the second episode’s cliffhanger and Scudder and Mhlongo’s first conversation. Several people wrote on the same Instagram account that they thought the South African’s behavior was “unprofessional and rude” and she gave a “bad first impression” as a chief stew.
Someone else asked her why she came in with so much attitude while others criticized her for meeting Scudder with preconceived notions from her meeting with Viljoen.
On the other hand, other viewers defended Mhlongo and suggested that fans give her a chance. “We literally saw her for a few minutes, there’s still a whole season ahead,” they said. Someone else said Mhlongo had no choice but to “come in strong” since Scudder would have had trouble stepping down for another chief stew.
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