The tension was palpable when Maci, Taylor, Jen and Larry convened at the Teen Mom OG reunion. And Part 1 ended with the two men exchanging heated language about Ryan and Bentley as the women tried to calm their significant others.
“Put the kid first!” Taylor screamed, as the message “to be continued” flashed on the screen when the episode ended. It remains to be seen if the temperature can be lowered, but the sitdown — moderated by hosts Dr. Drew and Nessa from another studio — began to escalate when Larry stated that “a 12-year-old can be manipulated.”
“Watching the show and kind of hearing and seeing how they were feeling, it was kind of shocking to me,” Maci admitted. “I did not realize that the feelings and the [belief] of me manipulating Bentley or us manipulating Bentley — I did not know that existed.”
Jen felt that she and Larry are “caught in the middle” and that Maci knows how much they love their grandson.
“You know how much we want to support Ryan’s recovery,” a tearful Jen confessed. “It’s so hard. If you put yourself in our place and if Bentley had a problem down the road, I know for a fact that you would do everything in your power to support him.”
Maci agreed, but Larry could not get over Maci’s statement that they put Bentley in an “unsafe situation.”
“That would never happen, ever,” a visibly angry Larry stated and inched forward on the couch, which elicited a “calm down” from his wife.
“Don’t you buck up to me,” Taylor told Larry, as Larry positioned himself to speak directly to Taylor.
“Look, I’m going to tell you,” Larry began, to which Taylor replied with a quick, “Tell me. Tell me what we did and when.”
Maci wanted Taylor to “stop,” but he mimicked Larry’s position.
“When you’re forcing him when y’all are showing up to something and you’re telling him, ‘Go over there and give your dad a hug. Go take a picture with your dad.’ Bentley is a child,” Taylor forcefully stated. “Stop forcing a relationship on the child. Stop guilt-tripping him into it.”
Larry intervened that they do not guilt trip Bentley. Taylor was perturbed that he was being interrupted and told Bentley’s grandparents that Ryan has not been there for his son and that they apply pressure on Bentley which, in turn, makes him feel guilty.
Voices began to get louder, with Larry questioning where Taylor was during the first three years of Bentley’s life (he was living in Texas). Jen told her husband repeatedly to stop while Dr. Drew tried to get the duo to settle down from afar, to no avail. Taylor and Larry eventually stood up, with Maci telling her husband, “We are not doing this,” as she forced him to sit.
“Taylor, you need to step back. Take a seat,” Jen insisted.
“You’re a sorry son of a bitch,” Taylor hurled at Larry.
Dr. Drew stated, “this is not putting the kid first,” but Taylor could not contain his fury.
“I’m sitting here watching the piece of crap son call my wife an evil bitch,” Taylor retorted.
“This is exactly what happened three years ago when you called him up on the phone and used that mouth of yours,” Larry claimed. “Let me tell you something…” Larry began, but it was too late. The men began yelling over each other about the aforementioned recorded conversation, and the installment ended.
This upsetting exchange is a far cry from heartfelt conversations the foursome have shared through the years. Can Taylor, Larry, Maci and Jen put aside their differences for the sake of Bentley, or are tough times ahead? Do not miss Part 2 of the Teen Mom OG reunion on Tuesday at 8/7c.
