The Complex: Malibu, Episode 5: Dirty Cash I Want You!

After a recap of last week's show, we watch as the couples celebrate their victories. Sam and Scotty, and Nicole and Steve pop champagne as Dave and Ana move downstairs to apartment #3. Rose tells us that their apartment is beginning to feel like home. This week, they will all be working on their decks, but, since Barney and Rose have a third bedroom as well, they have their work cut out for them. Each couple has a different budget for completion since they have all been accumulating rollovers of different amounts. Steve and Nicole have $38,000. Hmmmm… this will be a real challenge in that they have yet to tackle the kitchen. Ana realizes their budgetary constraints, saying that she wants to do a great job on the deck but doesn't want to go overboard. They all start trying to figure out how to budget their remaining funds. Sam cleverly suggests to Scotty that they go out and price kitchen appliances before deciding how much to spend on the deck. Good idea!

Dave calls a "resident's meeting" to discuss plans for the individual decks. He thinks that they all need to be consistent since the decks are visible to the outside. They all discuss their patio ideas. Rose isn't planning on doing much, while Steve is going all out with floor covering. Scotty wonders about this and suddenly realizes that there are no more teams! Dave tries to disguise what he is planning and, in Rose's words, Barney is "getting pissed off."

Sam tells us that Steve has turned into a completely different person, and, really, their friendship appears to be over. Too bad, but that's the way it goes! Dave and Ana have a carpet delivered, but, with only one delivery person and a roll of carpet that weighs over 300 pounds, carrying it to their apartment proves to be too much for them to do by themselves. They have to hire two more people to carry this to the apartment, which, of course cuts into their budget. Meanwhile, Steve is scrambling around, laying a wood floor on the concrete deck. But where is Nicole? He is busy working, but she is nowhere in sight.

Barney and Rose have $44,000 left in their budget, and decide to order their kitchen cabinets immediately so that they will be delivered in time. They go shopping at a custom cabinet store, and it seems that the sales person knows a good mark when he sees one, and leads Rose around by the nose until her total is up to $24,000. Of course, she is flabbergasted. How could this have happened? But hey, she wants a nice kitchen, and this seems to justify her extravagance. Barney is livid but, for some reason, he agrees to go along with her on this. This leaves them only $20,000 for everything else that they need to do!

With no time to waste, Dave and Ana negotiate to have a hot tub delivered. Meanwhile, Steve and Nicole are beginning to show increasingly more evident signs of wear and tear. He's is all business now, and seems to have twisted into an almost unrecognizable character. "You can't make an omelet without breaking a few eggs," he says in an attempt to justify his behavior. They have to go shopping, and Nicole isn't looking forward to being with him all day. He tries to talk to her, but she isn't hearing him. She finally breaks down and cries tears of frustration.

Good old Sam and Scotty are moving right along, and have purchased an enormous and completely hideous sisal rug for their deck. Haven't they learned anything yet about what is "Malibu" and what is not? While they are cutting and sewing the mat, we see Dave downstairs building a wooden storage bin to store cushions and chairs. As usual, he isn't having an easy time with it.

While all this is going on, the "happy" couple continues their shopping excursion. Steve really wants Nicole to understand that this is not all "love and truffles," but, instead, a competition. They are doomed. She tells him that he is crushing her. While I understand that this is very difficult for her, she needs to look at the bigger picture. There is a lot of money up for grabs here, and they are very lucky to have made it this far. She is making it harder on herself than is necessary. But Steve is being a jerk and shares some of the blame here. I can relate to Nicole, actually, much as I hate to admit it. I tend to have the same reactions. But let's not go there, okay!