Season 1 (2023)
And now we are in-universe. In 5, 4, 3, 2, 1...
“In the world of broadcast journalism, there are rules you
have to follow. Some are anchors. And some are behind the camera. Everyone
thinks that being in the news team means you're always neutral. But outside
their jobs, these newsgays let it all out. And in Burbank, the forecast is
always shady. These Flaming Bros don’t break news… they break each other. Where
the teleprompter ends, the read begins. This... is Flaming Bros Burbank.”
Flaming Bros Burbank premiered on July 16, 2023, consisting
of 16 episodes. DAMN! That's... a lot for a debut season. But we were all in
for a treat, that's for sure.
The inaugural main cast consisted of Romeo Escobar, Chris
Holmstrom, Carlos Saucedo, Karl Schmid, Alex Rozier, Robert Puente, David
González, and Nick Amador.
And by the end of this season, you'd be asking yourself,
"So, who's friends with who? And who doesn’t like who?"
───
Kicking off our inaugural cast is pageant coach and
entertainment producer Romeo Escobar of KTLA. Romeo is a rather polarizing
firecracker who is no stranger to reality television, being a Survivor 42
contestant. Anyone who watched the 39-year-old oddball on Survivor already has
this idea that he uses his religion (which he has yet to clarify to this day)
as an excuse to get what he wants. And because of this, fellow flaming bros are
not really quick to believe everything that he says. Still, Romeo calls himself
the “secret ingredient to this group,” but it’s his alleged on/off-camera
actions on Survivor that ends up being the very thing that fellow cast member
Nick Amador (oh, don’t worry we will get to him later) uses against Romeo.
Romeo literally grew up a survivor in life. He and his
brother were born in Central America, and sometimes their family and even their
neighborhood didn't have water or electricity. It wasn't much better
immigrating to the United States in 1991 (when Romeo was seven years old) and
growing up in South Central Los Angeles with gang violence, day in and day out.
He knew that he and his family would not get special treatment as immigrants.
But the entire Escobar family did whatever they needed to do to make ends meet
and live a decent life. And Romeo, who grew up wanting to work in television,
and fashion, was determined to live a better life; failure was not gonna be an
option. He graduated from CSUN in 2007 and shortly moved to Burbank, California
and worked in television/entertainment production for Entertainment Tonight for
nearly a decade. He also worked in TV production for Hallmark's Home &
Family, and most notably continued his career in KTLA after joining the news
team in 2015 as a entertainment producer.
He became a pageant coach in 2016, where his job is to
prepare women for the "Olympics of beauty pageants" - Miss Universe.
What that entails is making his students the best that they can be as Miss
Universe. And when he's not around the group, Romeo documents his career in the
pageant world, which makes up the bulk of solo storylines. We see
him holding contestants accountable to their stated goals and progress,
making sure he is asking the right questions in the right order to help the
contestants reach their own personal breakthroughs and identify where they are
stuck, and applying theoretical knowledge and patterns in human development,
learning, and behavioral psychology to help contestants understand their
experiences and challenges, such as the common stress experienced two weeks
before a pageant.
But we also see, in his solo storylines, a deeper side to
Romeo. Despite coming off very braggadocious to his castmates' faces, Romeo
also appears to be a tortured soul. We see him hang out with his supposed
friend Nick, and he tells Nick about the great degree of listlessness and
dissatisfaction with life, admitting to Nick (and to us viewers) that despite
managing to place 3rd in Survivor, he felt like a failure because he did
everything he had to do to get through the audition process and always found a way
to get whatever he wanted. Nick would eventually use this implicit revelation
against Romeo at the Bob's Big Boy restaurant. But it's clear that if Romeo
doesn't win at something or doesn't achieve something, he may as well have
failed. So, somedays he would emotionally give up, and give into the
party/nightclub lifestyle, not wanting to explain himself to anyone.
But perhaps Romeo's most interesting dynamic is that between
he and Carlos. They both work for KTLA with Romeo being the entertainment
producer and Carlos being the news anchor. But Romeo makes it very clear that
he and Carlos are not friends, just coworkers. A lot of their tension is mainly
Romeo's doing, as Romeo can be rude and comes off acting like a spoiled brat
who is usually oblivious to other people's feelings. Meanwhile Carlos - who has
way more to lose - always had a more diplomatic way to handle his conflict with
Romeo, by simply (and literally) dismissing Romeo as delusional and Romeo
dismissing Carlos as desperate. But what's really fascinating about their
dynamic is that nobody else in the group understands Romeo better than Carlos
when it comes to dealing with conflict. Romeo is not really good at opening up
to other people, especially when it's something important and personal (hence
his aforementioned implicit revelation to Nick about his experience and
aftermath of Survivor). But at some point Carlos began to really pay attention
to Romeo's choice of words over the years, which made it easier for Carlos to understand
and even translate for Romeo from time to time - at work and to the rest of the
cast. From that point on, it's assumed that Romeo often expects Carlos to be
his personal translator. And we see a pattern of everyone expecting Carlos to
always be there for them, even if they don't like Carlos.
With the group, Romeo seems to revel in his "confusing
asshole" reputation, defending himself by either changing the subject
quick or most notably saying anything that made zero sense until Carlos Saucedo
was there to explain what the Hell Romeo was meaning to say. We also see that
Romeo can be incredibly messy because of his... tendency (???)... to confuse
people. During the group's walking tour in Warner Bros Studio Tour Burbank
(after the now-infamous Bob's Big Boy confrontation), Robert - who told Nick
and Alex about a conversation that Romeo supposedly had with KTLA anchor John
Fenoglio (who I assure you will be a very important figure in the seasons to
come, spoiler alert) - confronts Romeo about texting John about Alex and Nick's
being "more than just 'single white female' friends," to get back at
Nick for asking that invasive question at Bob's Big Boy. And Romeo insists that
John texted him about Nick wanting to be like Alex, and Alex wanting a single
white female friend, and that Romeo and John both agreed that Alex and Nick are
actually the Bobbsey Twins. This throws Robert, Nick, and Alex completely
off, as they have no idea what Romeo just said. But Carlos immediately says to
Romeo, "So basically, you and John agree that Alex and Nick look alike,
and were joking about it." That's basically it, lol. It doesn't confirm or
reveal who texted who about exactly. But Carlos was able to keep Romeo from
continuing to talk in circles. We see that Romeo will only do this to wiggle
himself out of confrontation, whether or not he's telling the truth. But you
can tell that there's not a huge respect factor as Carlos is trying to be
patient with Romeo, and Romeo is such an ungrateful bitch to Carlos.
I don’t know. I want to believe that in different
circumstances, Romeo would indeed have a lot of potential as a flaming bro. But
in these circumstances in particular, he may not be the right fit at all. He
seems to be in his head a lot, and not really interested in opening up with
most of the cast – at least until Nick picks his brain. Fellow KTLA team member
Carlos Saucedo believes (as he states in his confessional) that it may be a
common situation where Romeo may not really mesh with the group and gets anxious,
defensive, and super reactive, which could further the divide between Romeo and
many others. Romeo doesn’t really have natural chemistry with any of the cast
members (except maybe Carlos, who he clearly does not want to like), where a
viewer would really buy that he would hang out with them if it weren’t for the
show. Then again, we do see throughout the season that most of these news gays
don’t really like each other; a lot of them are very hierarchy-driven to a very
petty and nasty degree.
Outside of Nick Amador (before Nick infamously threw him
under the bus at Bob's Big Boy, more on that later) and Carlos Saucedo, Romeo
is not great at communicating how he feels in a way that doesn’t feel like an
attack against others if they’re not reading his mind accurately.
For example, just as Romeo and John were leaving the finale
party early after Alex slapped the shit out of John, Nick makes the foolish
mistake of attempting to face off Romeo (who’s trying to ignore him) during the
finale party, saying to both Romeo and John, "Are you guys out of your
fucking minds?" And hatred on Romeo’s end is just evident. He says to
Nick, "I don't wanna do this with you; go away." And right before
Romeo says "go away," Nick talks over him, saying, "Oh, and why
not? Because everyone sees right through the both of you?" And Romeo says,
"Nick go back to New Jersey, and go fuck yourself, because nobody in Los
Angeles wants your fake ass." Nick scoffs, and says, "My fake ass?
Welcome to Los Angeles, dumbass!" And Romeo makes a potentially dangerous
move by putting his finger close to Nick's face - which catches Nick by
surprise - while saying, "You can take your nonsense, and your need to lie
on people and shove it! Nothing you say means shit to me, little boy."
Romeo is cold as ice and more vicious than resident mean gay Nick is used to,
and it scares Nick, not that Nick is trying to show it. And Nick tries to
regain some form of control while yelling, "Oh, so you and John didn't say
that Alex and I look like the Bobbsey Twins? You didn't have sex to be on
Survivor? You know what? I'm actually glad that I exposed you because you're a
pussy. You're a phony and everyone knows it." Immediately after Nick says
"Bobbsey Twins," Romeo talks over Nick and says, "You know what?
You're makin' a big mistake following me, Amador. You better zip it and get out
of my way before I punch you in your motherfuckin' face!" Carlos, Karl,
and John end up having to physically separate the two before things got worse,
with Carlos and Karl pulling a shaken Nick away and John pulling a furious
Romeo away. And as Romeo and John are finally leaving, Romeo yells, "DON'T
FUCK WITH ME, NICK! YOU GOT LUCKY THIS TIME!"
Nick says in his confessional, "I don't understand what
Romeo has against me. But I'm pretty sure he knows that I'm not buying his
bullshit, nor did I ever. The truth always comes out, whether you like it or
not." Sigh, Nick... please stop talking.
And in Romeo’s chilling confessional which closes the season
finale, he says, "I'm still figuring out who really wants to be friends
with me, and who I wanna be friends with. And to be totally honest, I don't
wanna be friends with anyone in this cast. Nick ruined that experience for me,
and I will never forgive him for that. I don't understand the motivation. But
I'll tell you what Nicholas: you wanna be the top dog? Then please, it's all
yours. I don't need it. But remember this: I'm still your storyline, AND your
worst nightmare, bitch. That ain't no fuckin’ promise; it’s a threat."
Woah... you can't make THAT up, that's for sure.
Most cast members are torn on where they stand with Romeo as
he’s such an abrasive, confusing, and inconsistent person. But it’s clear to
everyone that whatever Romeo may or may not through before/during/after
Survivor, they don’t wanna sound like assholes, hence why none of them thought
that what Nick did to him at Bob's Big Boy was right. It’s likely that no one
ever confronted Romeo harshly due to the fear factor. It’s not really worth it
to go up against someone as reactive as Romeo, so the cast (sans Nick) will put
their feelings of annoyance and resentment aside, if it means that Romeo can
just be quiet and relax. However, Karl Schmid has no problem calling Romeo out
on anything that may be bullshit, telling Romeo in Puerto Vallarta, “Mate, I
really tried to be patient with you, but you are not fun to be around, okay?
You’re manipulative, super reactive, and boring.” Oh my. But regardless of
where most of us stand with Romeo, he’s proven to be a rather fascinating
enigma, and has gained the underdog status, especially against Karl and Nick.
But that can only last for so long.
Speaking of Puerto Vallarta, Romeo is the last person to
arrive because he decided to take a separate flight, not really wanting to
interact with anyone. And when he shows up, he’s mostly on an island of his own
for most of that trip. But he seems to be okay with that.
------------------------------------------------------
Next up we have a conservative anchor representing KCAL,
38-year-old Christopher Victor Holmstrom, an army brat from Phoenix, Arizona.
Married to Joshua Crandall, Chris ends up being the cast member that most
viewers are baffled by, but not the least invested in. Outside of his...
friendship/flirtationship with David, Chris doesn’t really share much about his
personal life, and is mostly remembered for being the judgmental one in the
group. Of course, the only person he never judges is David because in his eyes,
David can do no wrong, no matter what he does. You get the impression that he
wants to see other people fail because they don’t live up to HIS or David's
Christian values.
He gradually becomes even less comfortable sharing his
personal life, often choosing to be private, even during the cast trip to
Puerto Vallarta, which makes you wonder why he would even sign up to be on this
show to begin with. There's nothing entirely wrong with having a conservative
cast member because it allows us to hear a different perspective on certain
topics. Even his arch nemesis Carlos Saucedo has to remind him, "I grew up
conservative, too, and that was all I knew for a long time." But the problem
is that Chris has this attitude that tells you that he's better than you, and
you are immoral for being liberal.
Chris's best friend and fellow flaming bro David is rather
interesting, too. And while Chris isn't much of a sharer of his personal
life, you can bet your bottom dollar that he STAYS commenting on other people's
views and lifestyles.
Chris has this quality about him, in that he is super
sensitive and protective of his reputation and family dynamic (which we never
really see beyond his husband occasionally), while still being this calm loose cannon
type of person compared to David's more fiery personality.
------------------------------------------------------
Moving on, we have news anchor, photographer, UCLA/USC
alumnus, and Dodgers fan Carlos Saucedo (my personal favorite cast member and
news anchor). 39-year-old Carlos grew up in the Montebello area as the youngest
of four boys in a 2-bedroom home, raised with a conservative Catholic
upbringing. His parents were immigrants from Mexico, and Carlos inherited their
hard work and determination. Despite his religious upbringing, Carlos grew up
caring a lot about people, and always giving back to the community. It wasn't
until his teenage years that he allowed himself to really come to the
realization that he wasn't conservative at all, but liberal. And he was even a
council member at UCLA (where he earned a BA in Political Science in 2007),
helping to create the campus’s very first gender-neutral restroom by 2005. He
recalls that day in his Season Premiere confessional: "Most people who are
not trans or non-binary think that anything gender-neutral has nothing to do
with them. But actually, something as important as an all-gender
restroom provides safe, accessible, and efficient restroom facilities for
people of all gender identities, family needs, and physical
abilities."
He also went to USC in 2008 and majored in Broadcast
Journalism in 2010, leading to his career as a news anchor. He was a news
junkie growing up, mainly watching the legendary “KTLA 5 News,” and began to
develop an interest in journalism following the real-time events of 9/11. He
was determined to become an anchor for KTLA, and finally got the chance to do
so in March 2019. And as of now, he is still a huge part of KTLA’s family. But
before that, he had become a news anchor in 2010, reporting in Texas and Northern
California, before moving back to Southern California, settling in Burbank
shortly after being hired by KTLA.
Although he’s still close with his brothers and mother, his
father (who always held conservative views on homosexuality) is a different
story. To put it bluntly, he was not happy about Carlos being gay. Carlos came
out to him on Father’s Day 2019, and the reaction was quite negative and not
what Carlos had hoped it would be, even if it wasn’t surprising. In a
confessional, Carlos explains to us, “You know, my family was always very close
when I was a kid, and I always thought that we could get through anything. But
I’ll never forget when I was around… maybe five years old… my Dad said
something very… [deep breaths] insensitive… to his friends at a barbershop
while I was getting my haircut. He said that he was glad that none of his sons
were… excuse my language… faggots… because he wouldn’t want anything to do with
that ‘garbage.’” As Carlos is telling us this, we see a montage of family
pictures throughout his childhood and adolescence. And he continues,
“That always scared me because before I knew that I was gay, I was already
feeling different from my brothers. And with each passing time, I was becoming
less and less… close with my Dad. I just knew that I couldn’t trust him, as
much as I loved him. I think my Dad always knew that I was gay, and just didn’t
wanna believe it. Because… when I finally came out to him in 2019… he wasn’t
surprised. But he certainly wasn’t having it either. While there’s still issues
in our relationship, I really want to believe that he loves me.”
As a cast member this season, Carlos often clashed with Nick
Amador, Robert Puente, Chris Holmstrom, and Romeo Escobar, respectively, but he
managed to get along with (or at least tolerate) the rest of the cast; he’s
very easy to talk to and get along with, has a forgiving heart, and is very
patient, all of which eventually work against him. Many viewers, including
myself, consider him to be the nicest and sweetest person on the show, and most
importantly THE moral center of the show. But that doesn’t mean he’s perfect;
he just has enough common sense to not make the same mistake twice. Despite his
issues with fellow KTLA team member Romeo, Carlos gives him the most grace and
is even a good translator of sorts for Romeo during group scenes and
confessionals, showing how much care and respect Carlos gives, even to people
who may not deserve it.
Case in point, Carlos lets us into his emotional world
through his personal storyline, in which he opens up about the depression and
social anxiety he often felt as a gay kid, teenager, and adult, as well as the
guilt he still harbors to some degree after coming out to his father in 2019.
Their dynamic is… not good. In fact, it’s very complicated, and while Carlos
never yells at his Dad – having too much respect to do that to either of his
parents – his Dad is rather cruel to him, and nothing gets resolved by the end
of the season, which breaks Carlos’s heart (he hates crying) and shakes his
confidence.
What’s also heartbreaking is during the Season Premiere
while the cast is sitting around a dinner table in the Islands Restaurant
patio. When Nick asks everyone who they don't click with, Chris immediately
says he will never click with Carlos. When Karl bluntly asks why, Chris says
it's because of Carlos’s “obsession” with building UCLA’s very first
gender-neutral restroom, saying “That was unnecessary. If someone’s clearly a
guy, he needs to go to the men’s restroom. It’s not rocket science.” That comment
is very disheartening and tone-deaf, and it’s a true reminder that not all
queer people are truly pro-Human-Rights or pro-Civil-Rights. Karl gives a
gesture that basically means, "Seriously?" Alex goes, "You're
upset about that, of all things? Seriously?" And Alex says in his
confessional, "Of course Chris would bring that up because he's a
Republican with skeletons in his closet, and needs to find something to kill
time. I almost feel sorry for that ol' nutcase." Back in the scene, Carlos
doesn't say anything and ignores Chris, who says to Alex, "What? Am I not
allowed to state my opinion?" Meanwhile, Karl reveals something that
permanently lives in the minds of national TV viewers forever: "Okay,
Chris. Don't be acting all holier than thou on Carlos, because we all know that
you and your husband Joshua be fucking David on the side," which makes
everyone shocked, and Carlos softly says, "Oh, snap..." And it's off
to the races between Karl and Chris/David. And this is also where we hear
Robert say to David, Karl, Carlos, Chris and Romeo, "Man, you guys are a
bunch of boring-ass grandmas!” to which Romeo says, "Excuse me?" And
Robert continues, "I can't believe y'all are arguing about a bunch of
bullshit, for real!" And in his confessional, Robert says, "Think
about it - these guys ARE old, they act like bitter old grannies, and most of
them can't get a man. Meanwhile Nick, Alex, and I are the only sane ones."
Back in the scene, Romeo says, "And who are you again?" Romeo says,
"You know who I am, bitch we work in the same station." Romeo says,
"That don't mean I know you, Robert; I just know your name and your
ANNOYING voice. Have a seat." Lol, damn, Romeo! And while everyone - minus
Carlos - is going back and fourth with each other, Alex whispers to Nick,
"Dude, why did you have to ask that question?" And Nick says,
"It was just a question; I didn't mean for it to get so personal,"
which causes Alex to give Nick a side-eye look that screams, "Girl
bye." So, there you have it, ladies and gentlemen: Nick chose to ask the
rest of the cast who they do not click with, which caused a chain reaction of team
members - some with pre-existing issues with each other - to argue with each
other for a WHOLE SEASON.
But back to Carlos.
Carlos didn't even have to say anything during any of those
deafening arguments, but even Stevie Wonder could see that Carlos was clearly
not impressed with the rest of the cast. And in his confessional, Carlos tells
us, "Shit, I thought Romeo and Robert were the only ones I was gonna have
to put up with since we work for the same station. But five more people?
Absolutely not. And I'm the only one eating my food and looking at my phone,
while talking to myself. Also... WE JUST MET EACH OTHER! I'll deal with Chris
later if I have to. But Nick started this chain reaction."
In one scene, some of the cast members have a meeting in
Hotel Café + Bar, which is located within the Hotel Burbank in East Angelino
Avenue. The attendees of this meeting (which takes place prior to the group’s
trip to Puerto Vallarta) are Chris, Karl, David, and Carlos; the anchors,
basically. Chris says in his confessional, “I actually want to have this
opportunity to talk to Carlos, and just lay everything on the line, with the
hopes that we can put our conflict to rest and start fresh,” which is a lie.
David says to everyone, “So, I’m really glad that we got together tonight,
fellas.” Chris happily thanks David (in a rather flirty tone), and both Carlos
and Karl stay silent but look confused by David and Chris's exchange. Karl says
in his confessional, “It’s a trap. You can smell the bullshit immediately. And
then it begins. David says, “Now, I feel like there’s some issues that need to
be hashed out before we go to Puerto Vallarta because I don’t like that most of
us don’t like each other. So, let me start with you, Chris, and you, Carlos.
And, uh--” Carlos cuts David off by saying, “Well can I at least drink
something first? Damn. Like, I'm already nervous.” And he says in his
confessional, “Uh, hello to you too, David. I mean, he and Chris just *wanted*
to go in on me. I swear, I didn’t even have my napkin in my lap, and David’s
like, ‘Alright, let’s work out our issues. Go!’ basically.” Back in the scene,
David says to Carlos, “Chris and I noticed that you looked really offended and
uncomfortable over Chris having an opinion about the fact that you helped build
an all-gender restroom for UCLA. You didn’t have to agree with Chris, but I
don’t think you were being respectful of his view.” And then he says to Chris,
“Okay, Chris, you can chime in,” And Chris happily does so: “Yeah, I—I
basically just wanna say that I don’t wanna hear what you have to say because
everybody’s not gonna see things your way. And it’s irrelevant to me. So,
we can move on to the next topic, if you don’t mind, Carlos.” Both Carlos
and Karl gives Chris a confused look, and then Karl rolls his eyes and says,
“Well, that was pretty clear. And typical.” And in his confessional, Karl says
to us, “Anybody who knows Christopher Holmstrom, knows that he doesn’t like to
talk about himself. Nor does he appreciate anyone talking about him or what he
does in his private life. So why is it that he’s getting butthurt over Carlos
making a difference for the trans and non-binary community, yet stays quiet
when David literally overshares his blatantly sexual dynamic with Chris and
Joshua? Why?” Back in the scene, Carlos asks, “Why are you being so defensive?
I mean, you started it by bringing up the whole restroom situation out of
nowhere in Islands Restaurant, to a group of people who I barely knew. So,
that’s on you for being offended by that.” That statement takes Karl by
surprise. And Chris gets heated and asks, “Seriously? You’re saying that this
is *my* fault?” And Carlos bluntly says, “Yes. And Nick’s fault too, because he
started the chain reaction. I’ve always respected your privacy, Chris. But you
love sticking your nose in other people’s business to make yourself look
less dull.” Karl gasps and gives an "ooh" look; he is stunned by
Carlos’s polite reading of Chris. But Chris says with a whiny tone, “Dude, you
are just too polite for my liking,” which makes David laugh out loud, and Chris
says to Carlos, “Seriously dude, you sound like a nerd. Just be quiet,” and
says to David, “Can we move on to the next thing?” Carlos – who’s clearly hurt
by Chris’s insults, but tries to not show it – says to Chris, “You are so
immature Chris. Grow up.” And Karl says in his confessional, “David was loving it
the whole time, watching his boytoy Chris treating Carlos so unfairly.” Back in
the scene, Chris says to Carlos, “Grow up? This whole nice guy thing you got
going on just makes me wanna throw up. Like, honestly, I really wanted to like
you and start over, but you're really showing your true colors. And now... I’m
ready to go.” Carlos smiles, fights back a laugh and bluntly says, “Thank you,
and bye,” which quickly becomes a meme. And Chris gets up and leaves,
and Karl just shakes his head. Miraculously, David stays. And David says
in his confessional, “Don’t get me wrong. I felt bad for Carlos. But at the
same time, Chris was *hilarious*. It was mean of me to laugh. But Carlos needs
to take a joke.” And back in the scene, David gives Carlos some rather weird
words of wisdom when he says, “We’re all new to this format. We don’t all
know each other. But, I mean… if Chris says, ‘This is how we do things,’ we
just gotta learn to do things his way, so that everyone’s happy. You know? But
you and I are cool.” David is truly bizarre. And Carlos gives him a side-eye
while fighting back a laughter, closing his eyes and shaking his head. Karl
looks away and shakes his head in annoyance after David gives that horrible
advice. Karl says in his confessional, “So this is why I think that bitch David
is completely bipolar as fuck. He was literally Team Chris and laughing at
Carlos. But as soon as Chris gets up and leaves, all of a sudden David’s cool
with Carlos? Okay. But Carlos knows better, so I’m not worried about
that. David is just gonna keep exposing himself, to the point where nobody
is gonna like him or take him seriously. And I cannot wait to somehow make
things worse for him because he looks like a completely moronic pick-me. Yes he
does.” Back in the scene, as Carlos (who is clearly over it) is getting
ready to leave, he says to David, “Whatever. I said what I needed to say, and
you and Christopher wasted my time. Have a good night.” David looks so awkward
and dumb when Carlos says that. Carlos says in his confessional, “I’ve never
been around a group of men like this one. The group is very unique, and very
much against each other. And right now, I’m not convinced that these are my
type of people.”
And the Chris vs Carlos situation doesn't stop there. When
the cast - minus Romeo - makes it to Puerto Vallarta, they all leave the PVR
airport (Puerto Vallarta International Airport) and get into a 10-passenger
van. Obviously the 2 extra people in the van are the driver and a camera man.
And because Romeo's not there, one seat is left empty. As they're walking, Karl
says out loud, "We're in Puerto Vallarta, bitches!" Nick says in his
confessional, "So, we get into Puerto Vallarta. Finally! And it is beautiful.
The air feels so nice around my exposed skin, which is great because I'm
free-balling the whole trip. [laughs] Uh, Romeo was not at the Burbank airport
with us, and I thought it was supposed to be everyone's flight. I'm really not
sure what that's all about. And at this point, I don't really care. If Romeo
stayed locked up in his home, that's on him." Uh, Nick, I don't think we
needed to know that you're free-balling. Lord have mercy. Back in the scene,
everyone is in seated in the van, and Carlos - who's wearing a disposable face
covering - is coughing, politely covering his mouth with his hand and inner
shirt. Karl jokes with him saying, "Mate, I gotta give you some cough
medicine," and chuckles as he does so. Carlos says, "I'm sorry,"
and when Karl gives him cough medicine, Carlos thanks him and takes it. And
Chris decides to comment on Carlos's "lack of manners": "Yeah,
Carlos, you've been coughing a lot since we left the airport, and I don't like
that. I'm not trying to get sick. Maybe Karl is, but he's already sick for
life." Karl gives Chris the side-eye and goes, "Really, dude?"
And in his confessional, Karl says, "Carlos is just minding his own
business, taking cough medicine, and Chris immediately finds something to
complain about. [rolls eyes and sighs] I really hope a shark eats Chris."
DAMN, KARL. Back in the scene, Chris says, "For real, you're coughing up a
storm, like [mocking Carlos's cough]," and David starts giggling. Carlos
sighs, rolls his eyes, and says to Chris, "Whatever." David says in
his confessional, "He was actually coughing in the airport, too, so Chris
is highly annoyed." Back in the scene, Chris is just talking and talking,
"I'm gonna have to start keeping an eye on your ass Carlos, because I
can't have you coughing out. I didn't see a hand go up your mouth. Maybe I
caught it late. I don't know. Either way, you're getting on my nerves with your
coughing." Carlos is not trying to hear it. And Chris says in his
confessional, "I get offended when people cough and they don't cover their
mouth. That's a big deal for me. I don't care if you're a kid or my
grandmother; I don't tolerate that from anyone." Yikes. But clearly,
Carlos did cover his mouth, even with a face covering on. And Carlos says in
his confessional, "As usual, Chris always has a problem with everything
that involves me, so of course, he complains that I cough." Back in the
scene, Carlos says, "So are you just gonna be complaining about me the
whole trip?" Chris quickly goes, "I'm not complaining--" and
Carlos cuts him off by saying, "You are! You are. And I know you think
about me too, 24/7. Like, if you're gonna be this miserable, you should've
stayed your ass at home. I'm sure David would've kept you company." The
other cast members are surprised by Carlos's reaction and David goes, "Hey!"
and Chris gets quiet, which Karl points out, saying to Chris, "Oh! So, you
have nothing to say now, Chris? Maybe don't ask for a reaction if you can't
handle it, mate. Just saying." The last thing Carlos says to Chris is, "Anything
else?" And Chris says nothing and looks away, to which Carlos goes,
"I didn't think so." And the two do not say another word to each
other until the reunion, ultimately affecting Chris's relevance for the rest of
the season. Yeah, don't get Carlos mad. PLEASE.
Other than that, Carlos has all the chops to be THE top tier
cast member. He may not have the spicy or outrageous personality that most
people look for, but he remains the most evolving, consistent, and sincere
person throughout the whole season. He definitely has the most potential to be
the alpha of FBBurbank. He’s naturally funny, smart, progressive, and has that
relatable quality that draws your eyes to him whenever he’s onscreen, through
the good times, bad times, and everything in-between.
One thing that many viewers appreciate about Carlos is that
no matter how much you may piss him off or trash his passions, he never changes
to make haters or naysayers feel comfortable. And he can easily move on from
conflict unlike the rest of the inaugural cast. And even when something has
absolutely nothing to do with Carlos, he's still arguably the most important
and reliable cast member in so many countless ways (his occasional absences
during certain scenes - especially group scenes - would be the most noticeable
right away). Even Romeo doesn't stop Carlos from correcting him or speaking for
him (the latter only happening when somebody doesn't understand Romeo’s
delivery). The problem is that Carlos can't be the hero all the time, and even
doing the right thing can have negative consequences.
And Karl agrees. While in Puerto Vallarta, after Carlos
tells Karl about his situation with his father, Karl tells us in his
confessional, “After hearing about Carlos’s relationship with his Dad, I really
think that Romeo and Chris treat him the same way his dad has always treated
him. There’s just no respect for Carlos, and it feels like that he had no
choice but to just… take it basically. It’s… it’s really depressing. It’s like
nobody wants to listen to him. Maybe it feels different for Carlos because Romeo
and Chris are not his family, so he can actually talk back to them without
hesitation, but it’s harder to get through his Dad. I know one thing, though,
if either of my parents treated me that way and had no remorse, they’d be dead
to me. Period. I couldn’t live with that, and I am an asshole.”
------------------------------------------------------------
Representing the HIV-positive community within the world of
journalism and activism is the most vocal and sexiest cast member alive,
43-year-old Karl Jeno Schmid of KABC, who found out that he was poz back in
2008, something that he did not disclose to the public until 2018. The oldest
in the group, this Aussie single (and not ready to mingle) bombshell is perhaps
the only anchor who has never been afraid to go naked (LITERALLY) while
managing to keep his career as an entertainment reporter for KABC. In fact, he
actually points out the unfair firing of Erick Adame, a meteorologist who was
formerly a part of Spectrum News NY1. And unlike most news anchors, Karl is
also never afraid to share his disdain for President Donald Trump, even calling
him a cunt on an IG story on one occasion, which immediately causes conflict
with our conservative voice Chris Holmstrom.
Founder of Plus Life Media, Karl continues the fight to end
the stigma of being HIV-positive. Karl has lived in the City of Burbank for
about 15 years, having relocated to the city from Geelong, Australia in 2008.
Outside of reporting, Karl has also been a TV host and red carpet host which
helps him shine as he’s incredibly smart, funny, and quick with his words, no
matter how messy he can be. He opens up about overcoming his internalized
stigma, admitting to Carlos while in Puerto Vallarta that he used to tell
self-deprecating jokes to cope with his diagnosis, which he later realized
contributed to his own negative beliefs about HIV and AIDS.
Outside of the group, we see Karl live his life like almost
anyone, except he’s the only one in the cast who has to take medication,
maintain a healthy diet, work at a safe pace, and go to therapy for stress,
anxiety, and depression (the latter three which he also opens up to Carlos
about in Puerto Vallarta). And we also get to see him interact with his loving
parents when they visit him in Burbank a week after the cast has returned home
from Puerto Vallarta.
Early on, we see Karl feuding with Alex over Alex’s
friendship with Nick. And later on, while in Puerto Vallarta, Karl and Alex
fight over Alex’s supposed lack of a backbone when it comes to Nick. It also
became very clear that Romeo absolutely despised Karl, though it wasn’t super
clear why. I guess it’s because that would require Romeo to actually open up to
Karl, the rest of the cast, and us viewers. This comes to quite the head when
the flaming bros take their trip to Puerto Vallarta and Romeo and Karl get into
it at the dinner table. Karl literally earns fan support when he says to Romeo
that he’s not fun, and is manipulative, super reactive, and boring,
leaving Romeo to look like a fool.
Karl has that alpha-dog personality where he knows everyone
and has a much deeper understanding of the Burbank society he lives in and how
it regularly functions. But as mentioned, he is pretty messy, so he certainly
brings both the drama and comedy.
For example, in Puerto Vallarta, the morning after Karl told
Romeo that he's "manipulative, super reactive, and boring," the group
tries to find things to do in Puerto Vallarta - though perhaps they're trying
to literally do things as a group - and Karl just feels tempted to start
something with Romeo. Really Karl? Come on. Carlos literally almost has to
scold Karl, saying, "You know, Karl, I've been having my issues with Romeo
for YEARS. But come on, you're in freaking Puerto Vallarta, for God’s sake!
Don't you wanna see what this beautiful city has to offer for tourists?"
And Karl says, "Yeah... but I also kinda wanna tell Romeo about himself
some more." Carlos rolls his eyes when Karl says that, and tell him,
"Well, I'm not gonna let you do that. Romeo has already made up his mind
that he doesn’t like any of us and doesn't trust us." And Karl asks,
"Well, then why is he even here on this trip?" And Carlos goes,
"Because... he has to be here just like the rest of us, and he likes to
travel. Besides - and no offense - nobody likes a person who beats a dead
horse." Karl gets shocked by that shade Carlos threw at him and says,
"Oh, damn," and laughs it off. Carlos softly says to Karl, "I
mean it, Karl. Leave him alone, please?" Karl rolls his eyes and says,
"Okay, okay, fine. I'll leave him alone." And Carlos says,
"Thank you."
This scene emphasizes Karl's messy ways, and how he and
Carlos communicate their differences. As the saying goes, opposites attract.
But it also shows - perhaps unintentionally - Carlos's habit of protecting
people who abuse him or take his grace for granted.
---------------------------------------------------------------
Then we have the most adorable addition to the show,
34-year-old Alex Rozier from Virginia, Minnesota. Yes, there's literally a city
in Minnesota called Virginia, and if you didn't know that before meeting Alex
Rozier, then you'd better thank him, lol. If FBBurbank were a boy band,
Alex would be the heartthrob, without a doubt. but looks can be
deceiving.
He is a news anchor for KNBC, but like many anchors in this
cast, he’s been an anchor from one station, to another, to another, to another,
ultimately becoming one of the YOUNGEST news anchors when he started at age 18
in KOMU, which is based in Columbia-Jefferson City, Missouri. He often clashes
with Karl. When he first appears on the season premiere, it’s already known
that he is close friends with Nick Amador. And they seem to be thick as
thieves. Visually, they're often referred to as the Bobbsey Twins or Single
White Female because they sometimes resemble each other, except Nick is taller
than Alex.
Nick tells us in his first appearance that outside his
journalism career, he’s also a socialite in Burbank and the greater Los
Angeles, and even Robert Puente tells us that the Rozier family is well-known
for their philanthropy work. And we actually see Alex do his thing as a
socialite with him explaining in his confessional that he always had it in him
to socialize since he was a kid going to block parties and doing events for
church, and then going to mixers in his early adulthood. His best friend Nick
tells us in his confessional, "Alex is literally at the center of the
socialite charity world. And I believe it; it's in his blood. You know, that is
his life. I mean, I think that's his job, too. I don't know how you get a job
drinking and socializing, but hey! I socialize A LOT, so maybe I should look
into it. How hard can it be?" Well, that certainly wasn't shady.
Carlos and Alex were acquaintances prior to joining the show
having known each other through charity. Carlos says in his confessional,
"Alex and I know each other enough to know each other's reputation in the
charity world. I know that Alex is the fun socialite; I'm a bit more, um...
sterile [laughs] or maybe I'm just awkward, I don't know. But anyway, the more
events you chair, the more you're welcomed in society, and a more powerful
player in society."
Early on, it seems like even some of the oldest cast
members, like Carlos and Chris, defer to Alex a bit for his legacy and class,
but it doesn’t take too long for the façade to crumble. In fact, we do see Alex
not really behaving like a socialite at times, especially when it comes to
food. When Alex and Carlos attend a charity event, Alex quietly says to Carlos,
"Dude, this is so fucking boring," to which a shocked Carlos is like,
"Alex, be nice; this is a charity event." But Alex is not listening
to him as he sees a plate full of vanilla cupcakes with sprinkles and rushes to
that plate, making Carlos roll his eyes in frustration. "Jesus, help
me," Carlos says in his confessional. And Alex is steadily eating those
cupcakes like his life depends on it, saying, "These are really good. I
ain't got no manners today; fuck that. Oopsy." Carlos looks at him,
probably thinking, "What the Hell?" and Alex says to Carlos,
"You know, Carlos, it's too bad that my man's not here right now, 'cuz he
and I would've snuck outta this lame-ass event and made some babies." And
Carlos gets shocked that Alex would say that in a charity event, and just
simply goes, "Wow. Just... inappropriate." And he says in his
confessional, "I know that Alex has done hundreds of charity events his
whole life. But... either he's not really serious about it anymore or he was
never serious about it at all. I don't know. I just know that I didn't come
here to babysit."
Alex is a pretty complex young man. While he comes from a
prim and proper background, there's a edgier part of him that's begging to come
out. He has grown to be more comfortable with his average body and sexuality
once he had reached his 30s. When he’s not dressed up for social gatherings,
church, or the news, he’s wearing see-through shirts and short shorts.
We see in the season premiere that he is in a relationship
with his 31-year-old boyfriend of two years Kris Hardin, an African-American
singer, dancer, and actor who becomes a funny and welcomed presence. Alex’s
main personal storyline covers Alex and Kris living together for the first time
and we see the many pros and cons to living with your significant other, and we
see their relationship featured quite prominently on the show. Kris manages to
bring a lighter, softer, and funnier side to Alex who can come off a little
standoffish and mean, and take himself too seriously without Kris’s
presence.
In his confessional, Alex says, "Kris Hardin and I met
in 2021 after I had just come out to the public and moved to Burbank to work
for KNBC. He was already living in the area for about 10 years, already acting,
singing, dancing, and performing in stage plays. We randomly met at the Burbank
Town Center mall's food court one morning. We both just got our pizzas, and it
was just love at first bite. [laughs] We just couldn't get away from each
other, and I felt so comfortable around him. And we stayed in touch immediately
after we were finally ready to leave the mall, and whenever people ask how we
met, we mention that the day we met was literally our first date."
During the Puerto Vallarta trip, when the cast is having a
dinner from Hell, Karl makes a comment to Alex about Alex’s apparent lack of a
backbone when it comes to Nick, which triggers Alex in a major way. His harsh
and not-so-kind reactions to Karl’s comment shows that Alex is not afraid to
fight dirty. And Alex is certainly NOT above standing up for himself. "You
know Karl, I'm actually worried about you," Alex says to Karl who's
confused and says, "Why?" Alex answers, "Because every time I'm
not around, my name is always in your mouth. Though I guess that's better than
a stranger always cumming in your mouth, right?" The cast gags at their
food, gasps, chuckles, etc. Karl is shocked and goes, "Wait, hold on,
mate. I'm not always talking about you--" And Alex cuts him off,
"Maybe you should worry less about who I'm friends with, and pay more
attention to your life because so far, your life is boring as shit. And stop
being such a big mouth. Okay, mate?" And Karl is done with the
conversation - which usually means that he has no idea what else to say - and
just says, "Bye, Alex." and Alex says, "Bye, bitch."
And if Nick has to, he will take a stand against anyone he
may consider a friend. One of those friends, Nick Amador, gets under major hot
water with Alex when Nick throws him under the bus at the midseason trip to
Puerto Vallarta. The day after that Puerto Vallarta dinner from Hell, Nick
accuses Alex of also wanting to dig up dirt on Romeo and David, respectively.
Needless to say, Alex and Nick go at it. From that day forward, they’re no
longer friends, leaving Nick on an island alone by the end of the season. And
the two constantly butt heads for the rest of the season, and the rest of their
time on the show.
I don’t know what it is about Alex Rozier, but I just find
him fascinating and very easy to watch, much like Carlos. He and his family
have led such an interesting life, and Alex certainly has a lot of reasons to
stay on the show, as long as he wants to. However, we do start to see a much
darker side of Alex creep in by the end of the season.
For example, during the finale party after Robert and David
have their verbal sparring (more on that later), Romeo and his plus-one, the
41-year-old messy and shameless KTLA anchor and retired EMT and firefighter
John Fenoglio approaches Alex, and Alex is immediately over it. And John asks
Alex, "Hey can we talk alone?" Alex says, "No, I'm not
interested. Go bother someone else." And John says, "Well I wasn't
interested in your constant attacks on Instagram, but here we are." Alex
says to John, "John, if you’re expecting me to welcome you with open arms
after you and Romeo said that Nick and I are Bobbsey Twins, you're either
delusional or on crack." The other cast members look awkward and
uncomfortable, and John mockingly says with a whiny baby voice, "Oh, I'm
sawee that I hurt your wee wittle feewings," And in his normal voice,
"If you're that upset over a joke, why don't you go back to sucking on
Nick's titty?" That comment surprises Nick. But what's more surprising to
the rest of the cast is when Alex immediately slaps John in face REALLY HARD
for saying that - causing Romeo to gasp and say, "OH MY GOD!" - and
Nick says, "Oh, I'm sawee, John, was that too soft for you?" John
took that like a trooper and says, "Woww short stuff, you really put your
hand on me? [Laughs] You're such a little bitch. So much for etiquette, Mr.
Charity Case." Romeo says to John, "Maybe we should go, John."
And Alex goes, "Yes, please leave! And take your messy-ass friend with
you!"
---------------------------------
Another entertainment producer for KTLA is our
rough-around-the-edges cast member 27-year-old Robert Puente. He might
apologize for what he says (which never happens), but never for who he is. The
youngest of the group, he causes quite a stir after calling David, Karl,
Carlos, Chris and Romeo “boring-ass grandmas” during a group dinner in the
season premiere, while getting on well with Alex and (once upon a time) Nick.
In a cast that’s largely dominated by (seemingly)
classy-looking men, Robert came in as the bad boy from East LA with an edgy
vibe. His tattoos become a point of contention with David, who Robert
effortlessly reminds, “You have tattoos and a nose ring, dude. Calm down.” His
dynamic with David is actually pretty interesting albeit strained as Hell as
they fight over mundane societal situations – from tattoos and piercings, to
David’s… escapades.
Another notable conflict Robert has is with Carlos. During
the lunch from Hell at Karl’s house, Robert goes hard for Carlos – his biggest
gripe being that Carlos allegedly went maskless while working in the cubicles
of KTLA during the Covid pandemic, pre-vaccine. But Carlos denies this, saying,
“You were there; you always saw me with my mask on, and the only times I
wouldn’t show up to work was if I tested positive or was exposed to someone
else with the symptoms. You have people still gravely ill from the disease, and
you think I wouldn’t worry about anyone else’s safety but my own?” Once the
accusation against Carlos finally aired, a lot of KTLA coworkers came to
Carlos’s defense, saying that he was never maskless at any point while on the
clock, with one KTLA producer anonymously saying online, “And this is why
Robert is stuck doing office work and has very little screentime on KTLA. He’s
lucky to still be working with us.” Oh my. Robert also goes on an unhinged
tirade against Karl. He’s beyond rude to Karl, ignoring him for seemingly no
reason, and then brings up a podcast in which Karl apparently spoke
negatively about all the other cast members. But when Karl played a large chunk
of the 20-minute podcast on YouTube to the rest of the cast, it turns out that
Karl was only talking negatively about Romeo, Alex, Robert, and David, NOT the
entire cast. Days later, Karl then says to Robert, “The one thing I
should’ve said on that podcast is that you’re a pathological liar, Robert,”
which launches Robert into another unhinged rant where he makes some pretty vicious
attacks at Karl, with one standout being, "Stay protected next time, you
fuckin' slut." And uh... Karl doesn't take kindly to insults directed
towards his HIV status, and he says to Robert, "Why don't you go commit
another grand theft auto, jailbird?" Yeah, rumor has it that Robert was
involved in illegal street racing when he was a teenager in high school.
Without anything to back up that allegation, it's just simply a rumor, started
by none other than Nick Amador. And when Robert finds out about this from
Karl after confronting Karl again during the Puerto Vallarta trip, Robert is
confused.
There’s a moment where after Alex and Chris had gotten into
an incredibly heated argument on Alex’s inability to stay in one news station
whereas Chris has been a part of KCAL for five years and counting and is
therefore "more reliable and consistent," Alex vents to Robert about
what has happened. Robert seems almost excited to hear this, but Alex
(following his Puerto Vallarta falling out with Nick Amador) just needs a
friend.
It seems like Robert is meant to be an in-your-face type of
flaming bro, wanting to set up certain people to fail, and presenting himself
as someone who wouldn’t be forgivable to the audience. But what I find
hilarious about Robert Puente is that in his confessional during the season
finale, he says (and I couldn't make this up even if you paid me), "This
was a great season for me; I met some really cool and really nice people."
Girl, WHAT?! LMAO! WHO?! WHERE?! AND WHEN?! I mean, yeah, Carlos is nice - and
arguably THE nicest - but you hate Carlos. And a great season? What exactly do
we know about you outside the group? Not a whole lot. You said in your finale
confessional that you were going through a lot - your mom was sick, you got out
of an open relationship, to name a few. So how come we didn't know about this
earlier in the season? All you did was talk shit about everyone every episode,
and even try to throw a chair at Nick in Puerto Vallarta after you exposed Nick
for talking even more shit about Alex, and telling Karl about the alleged
illegal street racing. That was it. If anything, we were left wondering,
"Who in the Hell is Robert Puente?" And even Karl asked that
question VERBATIM during the season finale!
And about the chair incident...
During their last day in Puerto Vallarta, just as everyone
in the cast is chilling out at the beach (minus Romeo who stayed in the house
they're renting), Robert shows up much later, clearly with an ulterior motive.
"Holy shit..." says Karl via confessional. "Hello, Nick,"
says Robert. And Nick says, "Hi Robert," with a confused look on his
face. Nick asks in his confessional, "What the fuck is going on? Is he
gonna talk some crap again? Because if so, I don't have time." Alex tries
to break the ice when he says to Robert, "You look cute," and Robert
says, "Thanks dude." And Nick tells us in his confessional,
"Since when did Robert and Alex be so buddy-buddy? Let me guess: 'an enemy
of my enemy is my friend,' right? Because otherwise, Robert and Alex make no
sense. At all." Then it gets real quiet. No one is talking. And then Karl
says out loud, "Ummm, are we doing shots? Like, what are we doing?"
And Carlos chuckles and says, "Whatever you want, Karl." And then
it's quiet, again. Robert says in his confessional, "I'm still mad at Nick
because I was trying to be a friend to someone who I thought was a friend. But
instead, he's just lying on me, lying to everyone's faces, trying to take Romeo
down, and lying on Alex. And now I'm in the middle of some shit that I had
nothing to do with because of him." Back in the scene, Robert tells Nick,
"You told me that I needed to say whatever I needed to say. And you gave
me the info to do whatever I wanted with it. And I think it's a situation where
I always respected you and you didn't give a fuck about me." And Nick
says, "First of all, Robert, you and I were never close. And you were
never close with Alex. You getting more and more heated, at the wrong person,
mind you. And you just keep talking out of your ass." Robert takes a deep
breath and is like, "Boy, you are a fucking con artist, for real."
Nick goes, "Sorry that you feel that way." And Robert quickly says
with venom, "No, you're not fucking sorry! And now I know that you are
just-- you are a manipulative little bitch." Chris, Carlos, Karl, Alex,
and David look really tense and uncomfortable. Nick says to Robert,
"Actually, I'm THAT bitch, honey." Robert goes, "No, you're an
opportunist. I'm not about to sit here, and play these games with you; I've
been nothing but fucking genuine to your fowl ass." Carlos says in his
confessional, "Nick has started so much drama with everyone. But knowing
Robert from work, I know that when Robert is at his angriest, he will not
listen to anyone. And whatever story he tells, he's gonna stick with that, true
or false. And all I'm thinking is, 'Nick, do not say another word. If you know
what's good for you, just be quiet.'" And of course, back in the scene,
Nick keeps talking, "Okay, if I'm an opportunist, you're the bum who cried
wolf. Now what?" OOH! Damn, Nick. And Robert goes, "Well you have
your ex-friend Alex, who you talked so much shit about behind his back,
endlessly, even before you decided to say that he also wanted to take down
Romeo. Some best friend." Alex is surprised, and says, "What? What
else did he say about me?" And Robert happily says, "That you're in
an open relationship behind Kris Hardin's back," which catches everyone by
surprise, "that you cheated on him with another coworker at NBC,"
Alex is looking at Nick in shock, "that you told Nick that Romeo wanted to
perform sexual acts to get on survivor," Nick is looking real pissed,
"and that you and Nick hooked up when you first met--" and Nick cuts
him off by saying, "OH, UH-UH UH-UH! Alright you know what, bitch? You
better stop right there! I'm warning you!" And Robert bluntly says,
"Oh, and you also told Karl that I was involved in illegal street racing.
To name a few." Alex is speechless. In his confessional, Alex says,
"I am in shock. I really wanna punch Nick in the fucking face." Back
in the scene, Nick yells at Robert, "You're really messing with the right
one today." And Robert says while clapping his hands loudly and walking to
Nick, "Bitch, don't you fucking lie! You said all those things, AND MORE!
You're a fucking hater, bitch!" As he's saying all of this, Karl and
Carlos are alert, looking tempted to hold Robert back. And Nick says to Robert,
"Fuck you, you bum!" And that sets off Robert. He starts trying to
run to Nick, but several cast members struggle to hold him back and keep him
from attacking Nick, and it's a huge commotion with everyone yelling, and other
tourists around them staring at them. Robert then proceeds to pick up a chair
and attempt to throw it at Nick. He throws the chair, but misses because a
security guard catches it in time and lands it on the sand. This angers Robert
even more who yells to Nick, "You trifling-ass ho!" while being taken
away by security. And Carlos says calmly in his confessional, "Oh... my...
God. What in the Hell is wrong with these two?" Back in the scene, Nick
yells to Robert, "Go to fucking jail, bitch! I ain't scared of you! I
don't care that you're from East LA!" Interestingly enough, Alex has
remained speechless since Robert revealed with Nick was allegedly saying about
Alex. But he says in his confessional, "I don't have anything to say to
Nick at the moment. I just wanna kill him, badly. But I won't. Still, I can't
promise that I won't hit below the belt every time I see him. Either way, Nick
and I are officially done. And If I have to take a lie detector test to prove
that what Nick said about me isn't true, I will. Because this is
ridiculous."
------------------------------------------
Phoenix native David González is a 36-year-old anchor for
KABC, and the only one in the station to have a nose ring, which helps him
stand out from most news anchors. He comes in as a free-spirited and naughty
rebel of a Christian. Personality-wise, you could say that in a way, David is
the "Buddy Love" to Christopher's "Sherman Klump" even
though Chris is actually fit and a gym bro, too, and they both like each other.
Not only that, but David is HOT, which of course triggers the self-proclaimed
"hottest bitch in Burbank" Nick Amador. Nick doesn't make that
jealousy known right away, and David often dismisses the "immature little
shit."
Outside of his work, David is known to… get around at the
gym, which became a point of discussion and vulnerability for him. He started
as mostly neutral but often clashed directly with Robert, Karl, Carlos, and
Nick, respectively. He was introduced as a very close friend of Chris
Holmstrom, and the two have been best friends since 1999 when Chris was 14 and
David was 12. And they were both raised with Christian and conservative values
that continue to contradict their (in Nick's words) gossip-worthy friendship.
But while Chris proves to be a yawn to the viewers, David is probably one of
the more entertainingly bizarre additions to the show. He and David have even
admitted to have also uh... gotten with each other occasionally, and even
Nick's nosey ass says to them that it was bound to happen because those two are
also Coachella buddies, gym buddies, Church buddies, and occasionally each
other's dates when they hang out.
There’s a lot that can be said about David but he surely
isn’t afraid to go against the grain, not caring about the ramifications. Right
from the get-go David doesn’t click with Robert who is immediately thrown off
by David’s sexual activity. But things go absolutely haywire when Robert makes
a failed attempt at reconciling with everyone during the season finale party.
In this party, some thirsty-ass friends of Robert started antagonizing David
who suspected the whole thing was a setup to make David look bad. And David
went off on Robert, proving what even Chris knew, which is that David will go
straight for the widest part of a person’s meat; most notably when he says to
Robert, “This is why nobody wants to work with you, Robert! You’re just a dumb
wannabe Cholo and I can’t wait til KTLA fires your ass because your bullshit is
NOT acceptable!”
David is also at odds with fellow KABC team member Karl
Schmid. The two knew of each other when David moved from Orange County to
Burbank in 2022, and they never felt like they were in each other's level.
David was already a proud hater of "that annoying-ass Karl," and Karl
has some degree of tension with David's disparaging comments about Karl being
"carelessly poz," which Karl does not take well and rips David a new
one and throws him under the bus when he says during the Puerto Vallarta trip
in front of everyone, "I know you're the boyfriend of Chris and Joshua,
but I'm starting to think that you and Chris don't like Joshua at all,. Seeing
as how you both fucked each other's brains out in high school, I'm not
surprised" which gets Chris and David angry and David yells at Karl,
calling him a stupid fuck in Karl's face - and even Carlos face palms in
annoyance when Karl makes that accusation of David and Chris having slept
together since high school. The fact that Karl doesn't flinch at David getting
in his face and just smirks makes me inclined to agree that Karl won that
fight.
Karl and David just grate on each other's nerves, and there
is absolutely no respect between the two, showing that just because you may
work for the same newsroom, doesn't mean you'll be buddies. The KTLA coworkers
Carlos, Romeo, and Robert are living proof of this, as are KNBC team members
Nick and Alex. David and Chris are also the true definition of conservatives
with skeletons in their closet.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
If you hadn’t figured it out yet, 31-year-old Nick Amador
is… the biggest troublemaker of the group. On the surface, Nick is a lot fun,
and perhaps the biggest partier especially in the gay scene of North Hollywood
and West Hollywood. And he quickly carved out a niche for himself as - say it
with me now - "the hottest bitch in Burbank." Romeo, who still
struggles to warm up with everyone else in the cast, really takes to Nick as
they're both party gays who love to turn it up.
This transplanted Jersey Boy has been a platform manager for
KNBC for about a year, with an unhealthy obsession with reality TV, positioning
himself as the feisty queen bee. He’s also perhaps the most condescending cast
member that FBBurbank has ever had (he literally has his last name tattooed
across his back shoulder) though that could be debated. As a member of the cast,
he comes off charming, flirty, and charismatic. But pay close attention, and
you’ll see that he’s often manipulating situations, and trying super hard to
control the narrative. He also tends to seek attention and validation
deliberately by oversexualizing even himself to a very forced and cringey
degree; he’s no Karl Schmid or David González, that’s for sure. He pretty much
has a conflict with the entire cast. He learned from the best: Lisa Barlow,
Phaedra Parks, and Tamra Judge. So, it makes sense that he is a platform
manager, as he is VERY strategic. He is literally an all-out superfan of
reality TV villains and always saw himself as one, clearly.
During the last 20 minutes of the closing scene in the
season premiere, when everybody is gathered around an outdoor patio dinner
table (y'all know how that goes), everyone is kekeing amongst each other, and
Nick says in his confessional, "So far, I'm really feeling the group.
Like, everybody seems hella cool. I'm really enjoying myself. But trust me: the
best is yet to come." And then back in the scene, Nick asks the question
you must never ask: "So, my question for you guys is, who do you not click
with?" Carlos says under his breath, "Oh Jesus," while Alex goes
"Nick, dude, come on. We just got here." And everyone else looks
away, except for Chris who immediately says, "Oh, I already know who I'll
NEVER click with, and that, my friends, would be [points at Carlos] Carlos!
Everyone goes, "Oooooh.. " except Alex and Karlo, the latter who
bluntly asks, "Why?" And that is when Chris brings up something that
Carlos never brought up to the group - the fact that he helped build UCLA's
very first all-gender restroom, leading to Chris's opinion on the restroom
being unnecessary.
Outside of the group, Nick brings an interesting storyline
with the tension between himself and his sisters Brittany and Jessica; the
classic family drama that typically dominate reality shows based in the East
Coast, and lets you know that the siblings are clearly from the East Coast -
Belleville, New Jersey. Jessica is older than Nick, while Brittany is younger
than Nick, making Nick the classic middle child. According to Nick himself, he
was always a shameless rebel growing up; having his eyebrow pierced at the age
of 13 (he removed them when he was 20), getting his last name tattooed across
his back shoulder, being a slacker during his 9th and 10th grade years in high
school, and smoking pot (during a time when pot was illegal) by the time he was
15. Jessica would ay that Nick was definitely out of control. It doesn't help
that their mother more of a pushover and less of a disciplinary figure, and
their father wasn't ever around. Nick is definitely not afraid to bare it all,
showing the messiness of his personal life.
Although the entire cast is attractive in their own ways,
Nick literally labels himself, “the hottest bitch in Burbank.” But what he
forgets to say is that he’s also the “creepiest bitch” in Burbank, due to the
unfortunate fact that he makes it his mission to take down reality show veteran
Romeo Escobar. And Romeo – bless his heart – falls for it quite easily. The
rest of the cast is unsure how to approach Romeo because his attitude can be
pretty overwhelming and uncomfortable, and he’s already shown to not be a
trustworthy person. Because of this, Romeo is as private and introverted as
he’s ever been, but is still far more expressive than Chris, that’s for
sure. And at the time, Nick makes the controversial decision to actually
befriend Romeo and manages to be sweet to Romeo’s face, while talking shit via
confessionals about how much Romeo is a liar, a cheater, a con artist, and a
professional victim. Nick knows that he doesn’t know Romeo well enough to say
these things, but he doesn't care. He’s watched Romeo on Survivor and it’s
clear to him that everyone else doesn’t trust Romeo for a multitude of
reasons. So, Nick is hellbent on doing whatever he can to reinforce that
narrative of Romeo and make him out to be a genuinely horrible person, even if
whatever Nick finds, hears, or says, may not actually be true about Romeo. It
makes Nick come off very weird, creepy, and obsessed. And at first, the rest of
the cast is unaware of what Nick is doing because they’re too wrapped up in
their interpersonal drama to really notice.
That is until Nick – out of nowhere – while dining with the
rest of the cast in a local Bob's Big Boy restaurant asks Romeo, “Did you have
to do certain favors to get on Survivor?” It doesn’t take Sherlock Holmes to
understand what exactly Nick meant by “favors.” The cast is shocked and
confused by that question (remember, they didn’t know that Nick was ever
plotting behind Romeo’s back), except for Romeo who doesn’t get it the first
time, answering, “Yeah, I just had to apply and audition, basically; the usual
TV stuff,” which makes Nick chuckle at Romeo being clueless. Romeo’s confused
by Nick’s amusement and everyone else looks uncomfortable and concerned, with
Alex saying, “Oh, my God…” Carlos – the translator – tells Romeo, “Romeo...
Nick is asking if you had to… perform… sexual acts… to be on Survivor.”
Once Romeo hears "sexual acts", he is shocked, embarrassed, and
angry, and says to Nick, “What the Hell? Of course not!”
And with that, the infamous Nick vs Romeo feud is born. Also
notice that Romeo did not answer the question with a confusing statement. It
kinda makes you wonder, “Is he really that hard to follow, or is he only
confusing people on purpose?” Because once he said, “Of course not!” That’s all
he needed to say as an answer. But normally when asked certain personal
questions, he would talk in circles; not this time.
Anyway table gets quiet, and it’s very tense. VERY. TENSE.
Romeo is pissed, and says to Nick, “You know what, Nick. I really don’t
appreciate you asking me that question.” Nick stammers, which is… interesting.
Something tells me that Nick was not fully prepared for the wrath that he was
about to face from Romeo. But he says to Romeo, “Well… I… I just thought I’d
ask because… when we talked about your experience on Survivor, you said that
you did what you had to do to get through the audition, and found ways to get
what you want.” That revelation was enough for eyes to open wide. And like I
said, the revelation was so implicit that it could’ve meant anything. Now
everyone is torn. And Nick says in his confessional, “Romeo, hun, everyone
knows what it means to do whatever you have to do to get what you want. I know
I’m a catch, but I would never… perform favors to get what I want. Ever.”
Carlos asks Nick, “Well did you ask Romeo to elaborate?” And Nick says, “No and
I didn’t have to.” And Carlos says, “So you’re just jumping to conclusions…”
and Nick says, “No—” before Carlos continues, “… to spread gossip, basically.”
Romeo says in his confessional, “I’m bothered by Nick’s betrayal because he
seemed sympathetic when I was opening up to him about what I was feeling during
and after Survivor [flashback to their conversation]. And now he’s making these
people think that I fucked around basically to get on that show. Now I know
that how he’d normally act when it’s just he and I… is fake.”
And honey, when I tell you… back in the scene, Romeo goes
low. And Nick could not handle it. “You know what, Nick, I’m starting to think
that YOU had to suck someone’s dick to get on THIS show,” and Nick goes, “Woah,
woah, wait a minute. Don’t do that—” and Romeo talks over him, “You guys don’t
get to have an opinion about my experience on reality TV because none of you
were there! Until you do, you can all shut up about it.” And Karl asks in his
confessional, “Why’s the rest of us getting punished, we didn’t say anything;
Nick did.” Back in the scene, Romeo tells Nick how he really feels, “This is
what I feel about you: to my face you’re very, very nice. But now I know that
behind my back, you’ve really been talking a lot of shit about me. I mean how
does your ditsy-ass mother feel about seeing your dick and porn videos all over
the internet?” The cast gasps, Nick is mouth agape, and Robert in particular is
sipping his Coca-Cola like it’s tea (probably foreshadowing his confrontation
with Nick at Puerto Vallarta). Romeo says in his confessionals, “After Nick and
I met, I googled him, and found so many of his nudes and videos on all of these
different porn sites, and he’s working with the news? Poor thing. But knowing
his situation with his Dad, I guess Nick wanted validation.” Back in the scene,
Romeo says to Nick, “I mean, I guess your Dad will never want anything to do with
you now—” Carlos cuts Romeo and says, “Oh, oh, okay, TIME OUT!” while giving
the time-out signal. But Romeo goes, “No, I’m not playing nice, Carlos. You
come for me, I give you the same energy and more.” Carlos gets silent and looks
a little scared. Nick yells at Romeo, saying, “So this is how you defend
yourself? You just go low?” And Romeo says, “I’m just getting started, bitch.
What were you doing while growing up in New Jersey? Bending down for every man
who reminded you of your Dad!” Chris mutters while covering his face, “Oh,
Jesus…” while Romeo continues, “And what was I doing? Coming from nothing,
making moves, and building a resume! You’re just a coward, Nick.”
And Nick runs out of things to say, and just says with a
chuckle, “You know what? I’m done. I need to pee. Excuse me.” Alex reluctantly
follows Nick. Meanwhile, the rest of the cast remains sitting around their
table, and Romeo tearfully tells Carlos, “You know what pisses me off the most?
Is that I spent months hardly eating or drinking much, fighting to survive
every day, worrying that I was gonna die anytime.” Carlos says in his
confessional, “We didn’t experience the life that Romeo and his family lived,
and being on Survivor took him back to his days in Central America. It was very
personal for him and he didn’t take it for granted. And all people talk about
is that he was too competitive and willing to do ANYTHING… to win. Nick is a
heartless impulsive person, and… he needs to stay away from Romeo.” Back in the
scene, Romeo goes, “That is just fucked up of Nick to do that shit to me.” Nick
and Alex return from the restroom and sit back down, with Carlos saying, “I’m
surprised you guys are back.” And Romeo is just death-glaring at Nick which
makes Nick uncomfortable. Nick is clearly shaken. But in his confessionals, he
big and bad, and says, “Maybe the truth hurts,” whatever that means. Romeo
leaves the restaurant, and Nick says, “What’s wrong with him?” and Carlos goes,
“Actually, what’s wrong with you?” And Nick is just bothered by Carlos’s
clapback. Alex hesitantly asks Nick, “You okay?” And Nick goes, “Yeah. Yeah,
I’m—I’m good.” But Alex can tell that Nick was hurt by Romeo’s words. As Alex
says in his confessional, “Nick doesn’t wanna admit it, but’s no secret that
the mention of his parents – especially in a negative way – is a trigger for
him. Romeo went WAY below the belt. But… then again… Nick started it, by
throwing Romeo under the bus.”
And things get very mean and nasty between Romeo and Nick
for the rest of their time on the show. This won’t be the only time where Nick
is friends with someone (due to coming off sweet, bubbly, playful, and funny)
before that person realizes eventually that he’s been talking mad shit, lying
about them, and/or making fun of them for his own entertainment. This is just
terrible and indefensible. And really… nothing Nick does is ever
defensible.
There was a lot of pressure for Nick to give us a show, and
for anyone who’s a fan of trash TV, Nick more than succeeded. It wasn’t without
backlash, of course. In fact, when the season started, a lot of people were
shockingly “Team Nick,” because of his reality villain role. But as the season
progressed and he tried desperately to double down on his “Romeo Takedown” era
starting with that 'favors' question, his popularity started dwindling by the
time the group returned home from Puerto Vallarta.
The only person who truly had Nick's back (or at least tried
to) was Alex, but Alex was starting to have second thoughts after Nick asked
Romeo that disgusting favors question. Their friendship completely fell apart
in Puerto Vallarta. Nick was just being so fake, messy, and mean to people that
he didn’t even know, and it was exhausting to watch.
───
Speaking of sitting together, the reunion (Episodes 15 and
16) didn’t resolve anything either, so… not really worth talking about.
Well, actually, one moment that stood out was when Romeo
yelled to Nick, “WHAT DO YOU WANT FROM ME, NICK?!” and Nick said in a stern
tone, “I want you to be honest for once in your life!” And Romeo goes, “About
WHAT?! A show that I did over a year ago? WHO CARES?!” And Nick gets smug when
he says, "My God dude, you're such a fucking victim." And Carlos
yells, "JESUS CHRIST, NICK, SHUT THE FUCK UP!" which shocks Nick And
Romeo says to Nick, "And you'll always be garbage, Nick AmaWHORE."
GASP! And from that day forward, viewers would continuously refer to Nick
Amador as Nick Amawhore. Nick did not know what else to say after that, but you
could just tell from his body language that he hated being called a whore. If
he comes back for Season 2, he’s gonna need an ally, and fast. But one thing's
for sure, his "hottest bitch in Burbank" label never stuck or landed,
but the "Nick AmaWHORE" nickname is forever embedded in viewers
brains. Thank you Romeo, I guess?
Season 1 Reunion Seating Chart
At the reunion, the cast is seated from left to right as
follows: Chris Holmstrom in the fourth chair, Alex Rozier in the third, Carlos
Saucedo in the second, Romeo Escobar in the first, host Ross Matthews in the
center, then Nick Amador in the first chair on the opposite side, followed by
Karl Schmid in the second, and David González in the third.
Robert Puente was allegedly not invited to attend the
reunion. Ross Matthews actually said on-camera in the beginning of Part 1 of
the reunion that Robert was asked to attend but declined, but Karl immediately
– and quickly – said under his breath, “He wasn’t invited. Good riddance.”
Karl! That shit was funny though. Either way, I think we can already guess that
Robert’s run as a Flaming Bro has officially come to an end, especially after
Robert tweeted, “fuq flaming ho’s!” shortly before the reunion taping.
Yeah… he’s not coming back.
───
So, not a bad start for the first season. But one thing’s
for sure: even LA’s most devoted fans of the news could not believe how much
drama these 8 men had with each other. Going back to that "who's friends
with who"/"who doesn’t like who" question, it becomes clear that
if you take Carlos, and even David and Chris, out of the equation, NOBODY likes
each other. Nobody.
