Viewers are familiar with 90 Day Fiance villains, with scammers, with fame-seekers, and more.
Season 9 of the franchise’s flagship series has offered something a little new.
Bilal Hazziez and Patrick Mendes are both men of means, driving nice cars and living in expensive houses.
Both of their houses have come under scrutiny from fans for being, well, colorless bleachcore decorations.
On Season 9, Episode 10, someone finally said it.
Thais Ramone had gone from one home with fiance Patrick Mendes (and his brother, John) to another.
Both homes boasted the same aesthetic: bland, minimalist whitescapes where any mime would feel at home.
Okay, to briefly backtrack, Patrick — like Bilal — is a refreshing change of pace for the franchise.
The hunky weightlifter is a regional manager for a security company, and makes a considerable amount of money.
Though he does not drive a car made by a reputable company, his home is genuinely a nice one.
The interior is also genuinely nice.
Despite Patrick and John’s “bro” vibes, the first house that we saw them in did not feel like a bachelor pad.
It looked like a nice, upper-middle-class to upper-class residence. And yet …
Well, there’s not much going for it from the perspective of decor. Everything is the same white and gray.
We can more than understand not painting a home that you intend to later sell.
However, we can also understand Thais’ frustration — not only with the endless blank walls, but her lack of input.
When Patrick, Thais, and John moved to Dallas, they were in a new house, but the same situation.
Once gain, Thais found herself in house that looks sterile and lacking in personality.
And yet again, she had no input over any part of it — not the house, not the furniture, not the decor.
Thais did not buy the home. She cannot even work in the US yet.
But when Patrick invited her to live with him and be his wife, he signed up to be her partner.
That means compromise. It also means caring about her feelings. To his credit, he does.
When Patrick and Thais went to a high-end furniture shop, however, Patrick said “no” to almost everything.
The sales clerk had to put on a couples counseling act just to sell one vase — their new home’s first splash of color.
Patrick confessed that he actually likes the colorless mime aesthetic, that it’s not just out of convenience or disinterest.
He also admitted that there was more to it, stemming from his childhood of extreme poverty.
In Patrick’s mind, buying decorations that will not serve a practical purpose is … difficult.
He also has trouble opening up emotionally, which means that his discomfort turns into hostility. That’s not easy.
Patrick has emotional baggage. And everyone is entitled to their personal sense of taste, however bad.
The key for him and for Thais is learning to compromise and communicate honestly.
If Patrick doesn’t want to buy a bunch of paintings, fine — how about if he and Thais buy a magenta chair or a periwinkle ottoman?
On its own, Patrick’s home would just be a Kardashianesque footnote in the storyline.
Patrick and Thais seem to be fundamentally good people who have some issues to work out before they marry.
They clearly love each other, and we are rooting for them. But … Patrick is not alone.
Bilal Hazziez is also a successful man who grew up without money and now has a large, nice home.
Like Patrick, however, Bilal has cultivated a very deliberate aesthetic with … little to no color.
Bilal is very particular about how his home looks, right down to how throw pillows are arranged. If he wanted color, he’d have it.
Unlike Patrick Mendes , Bilal Hazziez has not received any on-camera blowback from his partner about his monochromatic residence.
Perhaps Shaeeda Sween enjoys the same aesthetic taste. It’s possible!
Alternatively, the psychological thriller that he’s putting her through may have her too on edge to comment on the decor.
Do Bilal Hazziez and Patrick Mendes see these easily stained, blank canvas approaches to interior decorating as status symbols?
Alternatively, does the uniformity and order of these large spaces provide a sense of comfort after their humble childhoods?
Whatever it is, we kind of hope to hear them talk about it at the Tell All, which likely filmed in mid-June.
Whatever the underlying psychology or bleak rich-people fashion trends at work, these are their homes to decorate.
Our thoughts on these whiteout color schemes don’t matter. Their respective partners are another story.
Most people only live in landlord white houses because they’re renting. Thais, at least, would like to bring her home to life.
