Ready To Love: Season 9/ Episode 6 “Closed Mouths Don’t Get Fed” – Episode Recap & Review

Plot Recap

Goodbye To One And The Strengthening Of Others – Koshiea, Domonique, Meika, Rasheena, Justin, Chaz, Alexis, Mya

Koshiea is eliminated, as to be expected, but that doesn’t necessarily mean Meika is safe. A date with Domonique pushes the idea that she could one day be open to having another kid, but she remains firmly planted in the “It’s not for me” category, which could complicate things. Yes, Justin is cool with not having a biological child, but between Raheena and now Mya taking an interest in him? It would be one thing if he didn’t want kids, but with the options growing to be with a woman who does? It isn’t looking good.

Alongside him, Chaz and Alexis chat it up, and both desired to kiss one another. It didn’t happen, but with Chaz being at least one woman’s lifeline, him spreading his time and interests around will surely limit how much longer some may stay on this season.

A Non-Negotiable That Pretty Much Eliminates Me – Vanessa, Alonzo, William, Patrice, Rahseena, Will, Jonathan

This week, Tommy wants people to discuss their non-negotiables, and you hear the usual batch of non-negotiables from having to be with someone who has a sense of humor, knows how to communicate, and has a relationship with God. But, for some, the issue shouldn’t be what is non-negotiable but the lack of chemistry.

For example, Patrice decides to have what would appear to be a double date with her, Vanessa, Alonzo, and William, but it ends up mainly about her while Vanessa watches. Which isn’t to say William doesn’t try to interact with Vanessa, but after learning he dialed her number wrong, hence no replies, it seems things have long been dead, and he needs to put the defibrillator away.

Then, with Rasheena? She cuts having another woman and just has Will and Jonathan on a date. Needless to say, Will is still Will, and while he loves the lord, he is still a man who can be a bit awkward, and Jonathan? As forward as Will can be, Jonathan can be reserved, and while dealing with those extremes makes for a decent story for Rasheena, it doesn’t make a good date.

Not One But Two Got To Go – William, Jonathan, Will, Vanessa, Alexis, Mya, Patrice

With Layllen dropping out of the competition and things being lopsided as a result, you know what that means: A Double Elimination. So, the bottom three end up being William, due to homie vibes; Will, because of how forward and uncomfortably aggressive he can be; and Jonathan, because he is not only reserved to the point of coming off as secretive but also people aren’t sure he is over his ex-wife yet.

Of the three men who have Alexis, Mya, and Vanessa handle the elimination, William is the only one who is safe. But, I’d be remiss to skip over a notable part of the elimination deliberation in Alexis and Patrice having a spat in which others joined in.

As we’ve seen, Alexis is not here to make friends with the ladies, and her willingness to let even one man know what is discussed in the lounge has led to many giving her the side eye. Does she care? Not at all. However, Patrice takes exception to Will’s approach, and she thinks Alexis gave her name up. From the last episode, we know Will found out by deductive reasoning, but we’ll have to wait until the reunion show to see if there might be an apology.

Other Noteworthy Information

1. Next Eliminated (Men): Laron – for I don’t see him moving into the position needed with any of the women to be safe.
2. Next Eliminated (Women): Vanessa or Meika – What is holding Vanessa back is that she is really reserved, and it doesn’t seem like most of the men want to have an 80/20 dynamic in terms of taking the initiative. As for Meika? While she isn’t alone in not wanting to have children, because it is pushed so much with her narrative, and not a single man has yet to say he doesn’t want more kids or to have his first, that complicates things for her.
3. Final Couples: Outside of Patrice and Alonzo, It feels like everyone is still playing the field and not honing in on anyone. They are so open to the process that they seemingly rely on the elimination process to ultimately make a decision.

Review

Low Points

Tommy Making No Effort To Handle The Mounting Issues Alexis Is Going To Have

Now, I’m not going to sit here and pretend that Alexis cluing Will into issues the ladies had with him isn’t complicated. People rightfully get in their feelings about being in the bottom 2, and often things are a bit too vague to make real improvement, never mind you don’t know who needs a better impression of you to keep you from being eliminated next time.

However, while Will’s actions are Will’s actions, I feel like Tommy should have nipped the issue in the bud rather than saying everyone is on their own journey, and blending them gets messy. Someone, please explain to me how this whole show isn’t the blending of people’s journeys when you openly date multiple people, everyone convenes about who they like or don’t like, and the elimination process isn’t anonymous?

I get, as noted in Tommy’s last gig hosting the reunion, there is a limit to how much he can get involved because he is there to moderate the conversation, entertainment, and drama. However, sometimes Tommy Wonka’s attitude towards progressively worsening things is frustrating.

On The Fence

How Was Laron Not In The Bottom?

Maybe something was cut, but considering how Laron was speaking to Koshiea in the last episode, I thought that should have been a topic of conversation. Never mind, it seemed like his matches were minimal. Mya and him may have something flirty going on, but I can’t imagine him being in her top anything.

But I guess we’re still at the point of taking out the most offensive people, and the ones who just don’t have a match get to live another day.

A Lot Of Matches Look Cute, But Still Don’t Scream Couple

Each week, we make predictions of who may make it to the end, and I feel this season might be one of the hardest to predict. While there is talk of vulnerability and communication, I don’t get the vibe anyone has really opened up to the point of anything real coming of this. Yes, Patrice may like getting attention from Alonzo. Chaz might be charming, but as for seeing anyone go to the endgame? I’m not seeing it, and with us being halfway through the season, I feel like there should be at least one solid couple vs. many who seem to be waiting for the shoe to drop.

Background Information

Network	OWN
Release Date	February 16, 2024
Director(s)	N/A
Writer(s)	N/A
Previous Episode	Season 9/ Episode 5 “Pajama Jam”
Series Page	Ready To Love

Characters and Cast

Character’s Name	Actor’s Name
Self	Koshiea
Self	Domonique
Self	Meika
Self	Rasheena
Self	Justin
Self	Chaz
Self	Alexis
Self	Mya
Self	Vanessa
Self	Alonzo
Self	William
Self	Patrice
Self	Will
Self	Jonathan

Check out the character guide for more on characters mentioned in this episode and this series.