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'Below Deck': Can Robert Phillips and James Hough handle working under a female lead? Fans cheer Izzy Wouters

Eddie rewards Izzy by giving her a promotion but James and Rob cannot seem to handle it

Eddie Lucas may have made mistakes in Season 3 but he is a changed man now. He is quite a bosun and an approachable one at that, which made Izzy Wouters's job as a new entrant to the team easier. She was learning faster and adapting quicker when she first joined the deck crew. Izzy was never an interiors person. She always thought she'd be better off cleaning the deck and learning the technical aspects of yachting rather than serving alcohol to demanding guests. 

After struggling for a bit and checking with Captain Lee Rosbach, she was transferred to Eddie's team, where she really blossomed with time. There were multiple occasions during which Eddie had one-on-one chats with her, where he praised her for doing good work.

In this week's episode, the bosun was certain he wanted to truly reward Izzy for her efforts. Remember she had fallen sick last charter but the girl never skipped work and offered to pitch in wherever she could. It appears Eddie took notice of that. He spoke with Captain Lee and made her the lead deckhand. 

Even though it's quite a celebratory moment for Izzy, James Hough and Robert Phillips may not be feeling the same. Fans suspect they seem to be experiencing issues reporting to a female lead. 

"James and Rob are treating Izzy like absolute shit. I liked Rob up until now. “Lead shammy”, what an assholish comment. #BelowDeck," a fan commented, while another shared: "This is NOT ok. Izzy is your higher up. Have some fucking respect, Rob and James. There’s a reason you’re not in that position. #BelowDeck."

"Really disappointed that Rob is suddenly such a prick now that a woman is in charge over him. #BelowDeck," another posted. "Rob sounds jealous of Izzy's promotion to lead deckhand. Weak sauce, dude. #BelowDeck," a fan expressed. 

"wtf is this 180 attitude change with Rob now that Izzy is lead?? #BelowDeck," another user pointed out.

Will Izzy straighten her team out by having a chat with them or will she continue to let them push her over? Only time will tell.

Catch all the new episodes of 'Below Deck' Season 8 on Bravo every Monday at 9/8c. For more information, check your local listings.