BLACK INK CREW NY SEASON 10 RECAP: LATER GATOR
By Sidra Lackey
Black Ink Crew NY episode 9, season 10 is a direct continuation of the previous episode, and picks up in the bar where most of the crew was last seen. When Vanity tells Young Bae, “mind your business” — Young Bae promptly throws a glass at her. Young Bae says, “it is my business. Don’t disrespect a veteran.” A bar fight ensues, that ends with an ambulance being called. The show’s producer Treiva Williams appears at the bar angry and tells the crew, “we don’t get down like that!” She demands to see the footage of what happened and who started the fight. She scolds Young Bae and Tatti as they recount their side and tells them they can’t stay in the house with Vanity and Krystal.
The next day the entire crew replays the bar fight. At the guy’s house, things are tense as Ceaser holds a meeting. Spyder says, “Looks like Ceaser is at war today!” At the girl’s house Nychelle and Draya say they’re in shock and trying to wrap their heads around what happened. Meanwhile, Tatti and Young Bae meet up and Young Bae says she went to the hospital to get stitches on her ear. Back at the guy’s house, Ceaser asks, “what happened?” Alex explains the bar fight as, “a little altercation.” Tatti jokes to Young Bae, “I’m so happy I didn’t drink.” The rest of the crew tell Ceaser what ignited everything was Tatti asking everyone, “do y'all f**k with me?” Ceaser says in disbelief, “it was over high school s**t?” Tatti says Ceaser should have never told her what the others thought about her. Draya admits off camera that Ceaser invited her to work at Black Ink Brooklyn but she’s having second thoughts after the bar incident. Ceaser is livid and asks, “This happened in front of our guests?!” when Draya and Nychelle are mentioned. Puma points out that as a team and with the network, they agreed there’s, “zero tolerance for violence” on the show. It’s revealed that Young Bae threw the glass first. Young Bae says off camera, “I f**ked up. It’s my mess,” and that she didn’t want to throw glass and things happened, “unintentional/intentional.” She admits she has to deal with the consequences. Tatti says a fight wasn’t her intention because her PO says it’s, “four years automatic” if she’s in any trouble. She bluntly says, “Bae did the most. I’m not with that,” and wants to apologize to Ceaser. She also says she regrets she came to Orlando. Ceaser says he feels like he’s running a “circus.” He says the fight ruined everything and now he’s looking at everyone differently. “Bootcamp is over,” he declares.
Elsewhere, Krystal and Rok visit Krystal’s father’s tattoo shop. She says she hasn’t talked to Young Bae or Tatti since the fight and hopes Ceaser fires them. She wants to get advice from her father on the incident, on the contract with Ceaser and to introduce Rok to him. When they get to her father’s shop after Krystal and her father say salutations, Rok sticks his hand out to him and introduces himself. Krystal seems to not remember Rok was with her and tells her father, “Oh, this is Rok.” Her father says, “the boyfriend.” Rok is a bit hurt her father doesn’t know they’re engaged but doesn’t correct him. He says he’s nervous but will turn on the, “Rok charm.” Krystal does mention that Rok is her business partner too to her father. She jokes to her father, “should I beat these girls up? I’m a business owner.” Her father tells her no, that would be a liability. He asks them about their shop Gods Of Ink. When they say Ceaser made them partners, her father wants to see the paperwork. Krystal admits she’s having second thoughts since the contract says she and Rok would get 25%, not the 33% Ceaser initially claimed. Her father encourages her to take the deal saying they’ll benefit from it because the Black Ink name is already established. Krystal says, “it’s not all about cash. I’m seeing glasses flying.” Her father then advises her to talk to a lawyer and try to postpone the contract. Krystal and Rok agree. She says she’s going to tattoo her father and Rok leaves them together for “quality time.” while he goes to talk to Ceaser about the contract. Rok is relieved he’s, “still in one piece.” Krystal’s father remarks, “he looks like a good kid.”
Krystal is prepping for her father’s tattoo when Vanity video calls her. Vanity asks about Krystal’s face and Krystal is glad her face wasn’t hurt in the bar fight. Vanity says they came for Black Ink bootcamp not for bulls**t. She says she had Tatti’s back until the night before. Krystal asks did she talk about Tatti to Ceaser and Vanity admits she did but in private. Krystal complains Young Bae needs to, “stay in your place,” as an apprentice. They agree Young Bae shouldn’t have inserted herself in Tatti’s business. Vanity cruelly calls Young Bae and Tatti, “dumb bitches.” Krystal quotes Ceaser and says, “some are gonna make it some aren’t” and she hopes Young Bae and Tatti don’t.
Krystal resumes her father’s tattoo session. She’s happy to see her father has her name tattooed on her because she never saw it before. She proudly says her father inspired her to become a tattoo artist. She picks the design out for her father, a candle, which she also has tattooed on her. When she’s done, her father says he’s waited for a long time to get tattooed by her. He tells her he loves the tattoo and he’s proud of her. Krystal off camera says she’s at a “crossroads” working at Black Ink. She says, “You can’t surround yourself with toxicity and it not pollute you too.”
At the guy’s house, Ceaser’s mother is present and has cooked the crew a home cooked meal.
As his mother is ending a prayer, Rok comes in late. Ted scoffs, “when it’s a free meal, you show up” and asks where he’s been all day. Ceaser asks him about Krystal. Rok says, “her eye hurts a little” but they’re there for business and the bootcamp. Ceaser loses his patience and says they all failed on the first day and there’s no more bootcamp. Rok brings up the postponement of the contract. Ceaser tells him he doesn’t know if he wants to go through with it because the franchise is now in jeopardy. He says plainly, “the contract is dead” because Krystal is involved. Rok says he doesn’t understand because Young Bae threw the glass first and Krystal was defending herself. Ceaser yells at him, “it’s not just you and your girl losing! We’re all losing!” And that, “motherf**kers have to take accountability as a whole.” Ted scathingly tells Rok, “nobody gives a f**k about ya’ll” — Krystal and Rok’s shop — and that without Black Ink they are nothing.
The next day, Puma takes the crew members (Alex, Spyder, Bux, Nychelle and Draya) who had nothing to do with the fight to Gatorland. Nychelle is not a fan of the choice of outing and says sarcastically, “anywhere but here” and wonders is that Ceaser’s way of getting her and Draya to stay. When the alligator trainers ask if anyone wants to feed the gators chicken, Draya asks, “you got insurance?” Alex jokes, “is this why fried alligator tastes like fried chicken?” One trainer remarks the gators like “dark meat” and Spyder jokes, “I’mma let that slide” as he looks at his own skin. Puma pushes Spyder to feed a gator but he’s so scared he runs off.
Young Bae is off to visit Black Ink Orlando to talk to Ceaser finally. She says she’s embarrassed but has to explain to him in person her side of the story, “one business owner to another.” She enters the studio and Ceaser isn’t happy to see her. He asks her coldly, “what’s up?” Then he softens and asks, “First are you okay?” Young Bae says, “I f**ked up. It was a misunderstanding.” She tells Ceaser she wanted to just “sprinkle” her drink on Vanity but the glass, “slipped away” and she wasn’t sure if she hit anyone or not. She says she got stitches herself. Ceaser says, “I hear you. Out of everybody I’m mad at you more.” He tells her he has to hear what everyone else says and then draw his conclusions.
The final scene in this episode of Black Ink Crew NY shows the crew getting ready for the meeting with Ceaser on the bar fight. Vanity says she hopes Ceaser will listen to her and Krystal says she feels like a weight was lifted off her shoulder with the contract retracted. Tatti says, “I’m f**ked” and Young Bae says, she doesn’t know what to expect but she’s ready to face whatever consequences. Everyone arrives at the house but Ceaser. Puma and Ted start the meeting without him. Vanity goes first to tell her story of what happened. She says the last thing she thought was that Young Bae would throw a drink and that it was “reflexes” after she did. Krystal says she thought everyone was her friend. Tatti says Young Bae was wrong for throwing the drink. Puma gets on her case the most and asks Tatti did she think it was a smart idea for her to come uninvited in the first place. Tatti tells him she should have never came. Puma retorts that was the best answer she could say.
Ceaser then walks in. Alex jokes, “I don’t know what’s worst, quiet Ceaser or angry Ceaser.” Young Bae is in the middle of telling her side of what happened when Ceaser cuts her off saying, “Hold on. S**t is pointless.” He continues on saying, “I don’t give a f**k” about who started the fight or how it ended but, “you put my brand at risk” and “there’s nothing without this platform for nobody.” He says, “I’mma choose my words carefully. We no longer can go back only forward.” He tells Nychelle and Draya, “effective immediately” for them to pack their bags because they’re coming back to New York. Followed by, “Krystal, Vanity, Young Bae and Tatti, y'all are officially fired.” The entire crew is in shock. He tells everyone else left, “Everyone else, y'all see how I’m moving.” Puma remarks, “It’s a cold day in Black Ink history.”
Black Ink Crew NY episode 10 sneak peek finally shows the unfolding of the infamous, alleged dog abuse incident involving Ceaser that ends with a producer telling the surprised crew, “the network decided to cut ties with Ceaser…”