Warning! The following contains spoilers for the Jersey Shore Family Vacation episode "Ron Ron Juice." Read at your own risk!
Jersey Shore Family Vacation is four episodes in, and now that the crew has gotten used to being back together after five years, one cast member has emerged as the best part of the new series: Mike "The Situation" Sorrentino. It's really only fitting as he remains the most transformed member of the house. Sober Mike puts a new spin on the house dynamic, and could very well be the closest representation of what it would be like if a normal fan of the series moved in with the Jersey Shore cast.
The transformation of The Situation on the reality series was slow. Still, by the episode "Ron Ron Juice," it seemed even evident to him that Jersey Shore Family Vacation was not quite the trip down memory lane he was expecting. Old Mike was all about the partying, the ladies, the drinking, and the drama, but new Mike isn't about that mess. Mike's gem of a moment in the opening scene of the episode came when JWoww, Snooki, and Vinny were all having a drunken shouting match across the house while he was trying to have a conversation with his girlfriend on the phone. Mike paused when he heard the argument, digested what was happening, and then when back to his phone call because it was clearly something that didn't concern him. Sure, that sounds like what any level-headed and logical person would do in that moment. The fact that he of all people did that is what makes it so amazing.
In the old Jersey Shore days, The Situation wouldn't have only been aware of what was happening; he would be firmly implanted in the drama and most likely to blame for it. Now, he's the house dad casually avoiding drama and asking his friends what they think of the horribly unfashionable denim vest he wants to wear to the club. The poor guy's face when he was told the vest made him look like old-school Nick Lachey was priceless! Seriously though, who thinks that vest is a good idea to wear outside of 1998?
The highlight of the episode (for Mike at least) came at the club, and as Jersey Shore Family Vacation reminded us again and again, it was the club reunion of M.V.P. The Situation seemed jazzed to hit the club with Vinny and Pauly D when the cast first rolled in, but it didn't take but a few camera shots through the night before his enthusiasm turned into a 1000-yard sober friend stare. For those not familiar, that's the stare that will usually prompt an inebriated person to say, "Are you not having a good time?" To which the sober person will reply with "I'm fine." We can only speculate on what was going through The Situation's head at the time, but for the first time ever, it seemed like Mike Sorrentino realized his preferred "situation" was a quiet night at home, and who can't relate to and love that?
Jersey Shore Family Vacation airs on MTV Thursdays at 8:00 p.m. ET. For more on upcoming programming, visit our midseason premiere guide and summer premiere guide.
