Warning! The following contains spoilers for the 90 Day Fiancé: The Other Way episode, "He's Just Not That Into U.S." Stream the episode with a Max subscription and read at your own risk!
It's been a long time since I've watched a 90 Day Fiancé storyline that frustrates me as much as what I'm witnessing with James and Meitalia Solis. These newcomers from The Other Way Season 6 barreled through episodes with plenty of tears and zero solutions to whether they would live in Indonesia or return to the United States. It all came to a head once again in the latest episode, and I genuinely think it could doom their marriage.
Typically, when spotting a problem at the start of a couple's storyline, I'm optimistic there will be some growth at the end. But once again, we were met with James' terrible way of communicating, and this could be the point where he set in motion the beginning of the end of their relationship.
James Bought A Ticket Back To The United States, Thinking He Could Pressure Meitalia Into Leaving
Just one episode after Meitalia said she'd return to the United States, but only if her sister Angel could come as well on a sponsored visa, James responded by buying a ticket back home. By his own admission, he assumed Meitalia would feel pressured to return to the United States until they could figure out a more permanent plan to living in Indonesia.
What he didn't expect is that Meitalia would refuse a ticket back, assuming it would convince her husband to stay in Indonesia longer. Meitalia said she would've been willing had he agreed to bring Angel to the United States, but given that he was adamantly opposed to that, she feared going back the the U.S.A. meant she may never return to Indonesia.
What this resulted in was neither person getting what they wanted, and honestly, James leaving Indonesia in a terrible place with Meitalia. Even if the end result was the same, using communication to more effectively talk this out rather than dramatically buying a ticket and forcing an ultimatum was the wrong way to handle it. Unfortunately, based on how he's handled avoiding talking about children or quitting his job at the family business at the last possible minute, it seems to be the way James regularly operates.
James Didn't Tell Her Parents He Was Leaving Until The Absolute Last Minute
Readers didn't really need past examples of James' poor communication skills and conflict resolution, as evidence of it popped up right on cue. After learning everything that happened above, James then goes on to say neither of them told Meitalia's parents he's leaving for the United States, and that they're going to drop him off in Jakarta under the guise of it being a family train ride. This was a ride James knew his father-in-law wanted to take for some time, so he figured that would lessen the impact of the news.
What he didn't predict, perhaps, was that his father would immediately sense something was up when James was heading out for the train ride with all of his luggage. As such, he then decided it was time to tell them, leading to a train ride in which they talked about this sudden news for most of the trip. The part that I felt 90 Day Fiancé: The Other Way really missed out on was James turning his father-in-law's fun day out into an upsetting day that ended with his daughter crying.
I know when I checked in on their social media earlier this season it seemed as though James and Meitalia were still together. That said, if I were to find out at the upcoming tell-all for 90 Day Fiancé: The Other Way that this married couple split up, I wouldn't be the least bit surpirsed. The poor communication between them and dramatic gestures can't continue, and I fear the rift between them will only grow between long distance. Maybe I'm wrong, and hopefully we get some more answers about this in the tell-all.
90 Day Fiancé: The Other Way airs on TLC on Mondays at 8:00 p.m. ET. I'm beyond ready for tell-all host Shaun Robinson to dig into this season, so let's hope she's ready to ask some tough questions to James and Meitalia.
