Tom Pearson was fired from Below Deck Sailing Yacht during the most recent episode, and it was the right thing to do. Viewers met Tom when he joined Parsifal III at the start of season 3. The 23-year-old joined the deck team alongside first mate Gary King and fellow deckhand Kelsie Goglia. Also on the team was returning BDSY season 2 castmates chief stew Daisy Kelliher and Colin MacRae, along with new stews Gabriela Barragan and Ashley Marti.
Throughout the season, Tom was already at the center of the drama for his attraction to Ashley, who was only interested in Gary. However, Gary wasn't giving Ashley the attention she wanted, so she tried to give Tom a shot. The two slept together during their crew day off, and Tom thought he and Ashley had something special. After Tom was exiled from the group for his mistake of letting the anchor drag for too long while on anchor watch, Ashley began to distance herself from him. Tom was hurt, and it showed.
Captain Glenn Shephard, from all three seasons, came to the difficult decision during Monday night's new episode of BDSY to fire Tom after letting the anchor drag while he was on anchor watch. In the end, Glenn couldn't trust Tom to keep the boat safe and ultimately had to let him go. While Tom was disappointed, he completely understood Glenn's decision. Tom had been a little distracted lately as he recently found out that his best friend's father was in a coma. It became clear that Tom was distracted, and it was starting to put the boat and its people on board in danger. Overall, Glenn made the right decision. If Tom had stayed in his current state of mind, there is a chance the boat wouldn't have lasted long.
Tom began the season off to a great start, but things started to pile on him. First, he was rejected by third stew Ashley, who told him she preferred someone like Gary, who's a little older. Then he got the news about his friend's father, which was followed by his failed anchor watch. Tom clearly lost confidence in himself as he was making silly mistakes like getting water on the controls and forgetting to shammy the side of the boat. In the end, Glenn felt it was best to let Tom go and find a new deckhand for the team, even if that means being a man down for one charter.
Overall, Captain Glenn made the right decision to fire Tom from Parsifal III. While Glenn did his best to keep him on board, Tom wasn't showing he really wanted to be there by not putting in the effort. Now fans are ready to see who will be Tom's replacement for the rest of the season.
Below Deck Sailing Yacht airs Mondays at 8 p.m. EST on Bravo.
