Violence may never be the best way to solve your problems, but Andy Kelly’s fight with Shawn Pomrenke on Bering Sea Gold was certainly entertaining.
You may not have expected Real Housewives levels of drama between cast mates when you first tuned in to watch Bering Sea Gold (at whichever point in the show you joined the bandwagon).
But the reality is that the squabbles and back-and-forth bickering about claims and honor has now become one of the most entertaining parts of the reality series.
And while the entire Kelly family usually manages to get themselves involved in the drama in one way or another, Andy has emerged as one unexpected cast-member-to-watch – if you are in it for the drama, that is.
Andy Kelly versus Shawn Pomrenke
Not only does Andy’s usually-stoic face provide some much needed comedic relief when the fights get to be a little too melodramatic, but the “Brawl of Duty” episode from the show’s fifteenth season saw Andy emerge as a sort-of pseudo Street Fighter character.
Of course, we still find ourselves wondering why the Bering Sea Gold producers chose to film the lengthy fight between Andy Kelly and Mr. Gold (Shawn Pomrenke), instead of intervening or putting a stop to the violence.
However, there was just something extremely entertaining about watching Shawn face off against Andy, while Andy with his rather intimidating frame, just sort of stared down at Shawn and occasionally made a move to strike.
And while it is always just a matter of time before another dockside smack-down starts brewing on Bering Sea Gold, it seems like dust has now finally settled on this confrontation without any serious medical or legal repercussions.
Bering Sea Gold so far
While not every episode of Bering Sea Gold is a dramatic as the “Brawl of Duty” episode, this show has proved popular enough with audiences to be repeatedly renewed for more than a decade now.
The show’s massively successful run on television can be outlined as follows:
| Detail | Description |
| Series premiere | January 27, 2012 |
| Seasons | 17 (currently) |
| Episodes | 207 (excluding the specials) |
| Most recent air date | November 3, 2023 |
Who started the fight?
If you watched through this entire awkward confrontation, you may have caught the brief squabble between Kris and Shawn over who really started the fight.
And while the cameras did not really show the first few crucial moments, everyone seems to agree that Shawn was looking to cause trouble, and found it when Andy made the first swing.
However, as for who won the fight, that might be an entirely different story.
Between being slapped into a boat with one swipe of Andy’s arm, being dunked in the water, and ultimately being sucker-punched to the ground, we think it is fairly safe to conclude that Shawn lost this fight.
Though by the end of the season, Reaper Nation had made just enough to keep their operation going, whilst the Pomrenke Empire reigned supreme with over 3000 ounces.
Does the Kelly family have a violent streak?
The other crews featured on Bearing Sea Gold have never held back when it came to their not-so subtle criticisms of the Kelly family. However, it seems like the family’s poor reputation has now extended beyond the series.
If you have been keeping up with all of the newest Bering Sea Gold news outside of the show, then you may already have heard that Brad Kelly was recently sentenced to four years in prison on domestic violence and assault charges.
According to the police reports obtained by TMZ, Brad’s girlfriend told officers that “she got into an argument with Kelly, went to sleep and woke up to find him standing over her in a pool of her own blood.”
After his arrest, Brad reportedly pled guilty to felony assault, which earned him a sentence of four years in prison (with three years suspended, because of his plea deal).
Will Reaper Nation be back next season?
With Brad Kelly now locked up and possibly facing parole even after he is released from prison, Reaper Nation has been left without their matriarch and captain.
Furthermore, things have still not calmed down entirely between the Kelly family and Shawn all these years later.
However, with Kris just barely getting his new crawler into the water at the end of season 17, it seems like it will take more than a few personal struggles to keep Reaper Nation away from the water in the future.
And while the series has not been officially renewed by Discovery yet, fans can probably rest easy knowing that Kris and Andy will make an appearance when and if Bering Sea does return for an eighteenth season.
