It’s no secret that Dutchess of “Black Ink Crew” has no problem speaking up for a woman’s right to be respected by her man, especially if the subject matter is about her fiancé, Ceasar, the founder of Black Ink in Harlem. On the Oct. 20 episode, so much drama was taking place I’m actually baffled about where to begin this story. OK. I will take the Big Tigger approach and start with the first of several things to go wrong between Puma and Ceasar during the season. Puma threw a chicken wing on the floor after getting kicked out of the Black Ink party and Ceasar commenced to whippin Puma’s behind in the parking lot.
Some kind of way, this fight led to the demise of the relationship between Dutchess and Puma’s wife Quanie, whom Dutchess so graciously invited to Paris with her, a mistake she wishes she could reverse. I have no idea why Quanie decided she would use her platform on the reunion show to release untruths about Dutchess being a wh— and sleeping with Ceasar’s friends to get to the boss. This was the most ridiculous statement of the entire reunion show. Anyone who has watched the show from the first season knows how far removed from the truth this statement is. As a result, Dutchess tried her best to fight her way through securtiy in her evening gown to get to Quanie, who was next door in a safe place filming away from the crew.
It wouldn’t be very observant if I didn’t question why the reunion show was crammed into the Black Ink shop in Harlem and why VH1 thought it would be fancy to roll out a red carpet from the street to the tattoo parlor, announcing the arrivals while the infamous red cups awaited inside, turning the red carpet into an indoor backyard barbecue inside Black Ink. I’m baffled. Why VH1?
The dropped chicken wing also led to the demise of Puma and Ceasar’s relationship, which I truly believe was the beginning of everyone taking sides. Adding Sky and Donna to the cast has been quite interesting. With couples coming and going and this person sleeping with that person and having intercourse in the bathroom at the tattoo parlor, the question arises: when is it all too much? When does Ceasar put his foot down and either start kicking folks out or revamping restaffing the tattoo artists? This is worse than any messy hairdresser salon.
I believe Dutchess could probably answer that question better than anyone. She actually decided she could show us better than she could tell us when she packed her bags and went back home to North Carolina. Previously, she asked Ceasar to join her, even taking him to North Carolina to show him property and get him excited. Ceasar’s a real NY type of man and after interviewing him, I think it would be safe for me to say I believe Ceasar may just be fed up and give a change of scenery a chance. Dutchess pretty much cussed out all the producers of the show and put everyone on notice of her intentions against anyone who is bold enough to herald lies against her. In the last episodes, we witness Dutchess back in North Carolina minus Ceasar and opening her own tattoo shop. She even had customers already waiting.
Ceasar, I saw what you went through at the reunion show and I understand your point of view about the photo shoot and what happened in your mind was nothing because nothing sexual transpired. But, and you know there has to be a but, wouldn’t it have been easier to explain what took place exactly at the photoshoot so we wouldn’t have eye-witnessed a walking time bomb named Dutchess? She felt very betrayed and disrespected. In a sense, it was a photoshoot, and the term is called show business, but is there a thin line between show business and no funny business when you are in a relationship?
How many of you think Dutchess definitely overreacted and how many feel like she was justified and Ceasar was disrespectful? Based on your answers, I will be able to continue my next article on this subject matter.
