'Married at First Sight' recap: Michelle shuts down on David, Madison lacks attraction to Allen

Married at First Sight featured Michelle shutting down and telling David that he was "smothering" her, Madison lacking an attraction to Allen, and Juan trying to set financial boundaries with Karla during the Season 18 episode that aired Tuesday night on Lifetime.


Married at First Sight's eighteenth season stars five Chicago-based couples marrying at first sight, moving in together, and trying to make newlywed life work for eight weeks.

RELATED: 'MARRIED AT FIRST SIGHT' COUPLES NOW: WHERE ARE THEY NOW? WHO IS STILL TOGETHER? WHO HAS RE-MARRIED? (PHOTOS)

The five couples who tied the knot at first sight are Camille and Thomas, Karla and Juan, Madison and Allen, David and Michelle, and Emem and Ikechi.

If at the end of the eight-week experiment a couple is unhappy, they can choose to split and part ways on "Decision Day."


The Married at First Sight broadcast kicked off on Day 4 of married life for the couples. Camille and Thomas went paddleboarding, while Juan and Karla took a fun canoe ride.

Juan told Karla that while she loved to travel, she may have to take a trip on her own every now and then because, as a tech company founder, he had to come up with potentially thousands of dollars every month to pay his employees.

Juan said he worked really hard and also had a full-time sales position, and so he told Karla that he wouldn't be buying $10-plus juices every day or taking her to $400 dinners.

Karla said she understood but hoped that Juan would at least make her feel like he wanted to take care of her and provide for her.

Camille, meanwhile, told the cameras that while she takes charge in her work life, she prefers her partner to be the leader in their relationship. Camille therefore hoped Thomas would pick up on that and be more assertive.


And Madison and David were shown bonding while walking on treadmills at the gym. David explained how Michelle seemed overwhelmed in their marriage, and so Madison advised him to push a little harder to make Michelle open up.

Michelle, however, apparently wanted the exact opposite from her new husband. Michelle was craving space and independence within the relationship. Michelle was still trying to move past the fact David lived at home and that they had very different work schedules.

"My walls are coming up and I'm getting moody. I feel myself being a brat, and I'm trying not to do that," Michelle told a pal over the phone.

Michelle's mood apparently worsened when she found out that David has an ex-girlfriend's name tattooed on his chest.

"I think that was a bad move," Michelle vented in a confessional.


David suggested they could make a fun date out of getting his tattoo removed, but Michelle wasn't up for it.

"I want no part of going to a tattoo shop with David and getting that covered up. I would not be interested in that at all. That does not sound like a fun thing to me," Michelle complained.

David then asked Michelle if she was attracted to him, and she admitted that she was "having a hard time" finding an attraction between them.

David still remained optimistic about the future, and Michelle could tell that David was trying.

But Michelle didn't feel like she knew David well enough to open up, and she confessed that she wasn't having a good time with him at all.


Michelle told her husband that he was "living in a fantasy land" about their relationship, and David wasn't sure how to proceed or win his wife over.

David wanted to learn more about his wife and hang out with her, but she was unwilling to share things about herself. Michelle felt like she and David were "faking" a bond.

David invited Michelle to take a walk with him or grab food together, but she turned him down and called their dynamic an "uphill battle." Michelle asked for space, and she was annoyed when David kept messaging her to ask how she was doing and if she wanted to meet up.

After Madison's chat with David, she suggested to Allen that he was a bit of a pushover because he always seemed worry about her and how she was feeling. Madison told Allen to be selfish sometimes and do some things for himself.

Allen, who felt a strong chemistry with his wife on their wedding day, said he had a "slight" inclination that Madison wasn't attracted to him, and he was right. That physical component was missing for Madison.


After Michelle and David spent some time apart, Michelle told her husband that she didn't think they had the same future goals and were compatible. David therefore asked Michelle what she wanted from him.

Michelle explained how she needed David to totally leave her alone when she asked for space.

"I'm still trying to be in this marriage, and I feel like those are things a husband should do," David said.

"I don't need you checking up so often. I'm feeling smothered. I'm like, 'He needs to leave me alone,'" Michelle told her spouse, adding how David's frequent texts and calls "irked" her and made her "more angry."

Michelle proceeded to ask David to "back off," and he became increasingly more frustrated.

Michelle accused David of constantly interrupting her and "talking to" her, but David insisted he wasn't trying to cut her off.


"I get, in a genuine situation, that when you want your motherf-cking space, I'll give it to you. I get it," David snapped, before walking away from his wife in defeat.

Michelle's cold demeanor and constant attacks made David feel helpless, and he said her behavior was taking a toll on him mentally and physically.

David therefore apologized to Michelle for getting so angry at her, and he said he was going to need some time to himself that night.

"I'm going to be the man that I am and what I want to present to this marriage, and I'm going to continue to fight. [But] I'm not going to be up your ass... I need to decompress and take a step back," David told his wife.

"Same," Michelle responded.

Michelle wondered if she was grasping at straws to feel in control. She was used to leaving a relationship in this type of situation, but a part of herself wanted to keep pushing forward.


Camille and Thomas, meanwhile, strengthened their relationship when Thomas revealed he had been adopted and Camille opened up about her parents' divorce.

Emem and Ikechi also grew closer when Ikechi shared how his father had kicked him out of the house when he was young and he used education as a way to get out of a bad situation.

Emem, in turn, opened up about her parents weren't expressive and never said, "I love you," when she was growing up.

Emem and Ikechi were forming a friendship as well as a romance, but Emem didn't like it when Ikechi called her a "homie" in conversation with the other Married at First Sight grooms. Ikechi promised he'd come up with a better term.

Later on, Karla and Juan received a couple's massage. Juan said Karla was "beautiful and sexy," but he said he wanted to wait until he was in love with Karla to have sex for the first time.

Juan wanted to feel an emotional connection with his wife before becoming intimate because sex had apparently ruined relationships in his past.


Karla, however, was craving intimacy and a deeper connection with Juan, and she acknowledged how she hated wearing clothes.

Madison and Allen were then shown renting a paddleboat and getting to know each other better.

Madison playfully criticized Allen's weird outfit choice -- including neon green sunglasses -- and then she complained about how Allen's stories tended to drag on and be too detailed.

"We have to work on your rambling. I'm going to start interrupting you. Shut your ass up!" Madison joked.

Madison told the cameras that Allen was unapologetically himself and had an eclectic personality, which she appreciated about him, but she noted how his style was "out there, for sure."

On Day 6 of marriage, the entire Married at First Sight cast took a boat ride together.


Michelle said she'd be fine with "small talk" with David because they had different communication styles and weren't seeing eye to eye.

On the boat, David asked Michelle why she was feeling frustrated and annoyed, but she countered, "I'm trying to keep the day light!"

"I'm down for that," David said, trying to be kind and agreeable.

But Madison and Allen had a good conversation in which Madison said she could be herself around him. Madison and Allen were finding topics to connect on.

The Married at First Sight episode concluded with Michelle crying to a producer.

Michelle lamented, "I am closing off. I'm at the point where everything is annoying, and that's not fair to him! He's not annoying; he's a good guy. I didn't envision this going this way. I don't even know if I want to try."


The producer asked Michelle to remember why she had wanted to get married to begin with, but Michelle replied, "I can't."

Meanwhile, David was trying to keep a smile on his face and just go with the flow, and Allen said he respected David's optimism and strength.

RELATED: 'MARRIED AT FIRST SIGHT' COUPLES NOW: WHERE ARE THEY NOW? WHO IS STILL TOGETHER? WHO HAS RE-MARRIED? (PHOTOS)

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About The Author: Elizabeth Kwiatkowski