'Love During Lockup' recap: Over-the-top purchases underline South Dakota inmate's marriage

The second episode of "Love During Lockup," a show featuring South Dakota inmate Chris Chipps, and his wife, Jade, fortunately did not contain any below-the-waist tattoos or physical battery to Mr. Chipps' corrugated cardboard stand-in as seen in the season premiere.

That doesn't mean the last four hours of writing this recap didn't make one want to lock themselves in an attic and drink straight absinthe to try to assuage ― or forget ― some of the more bizarre antics witnessed despite better judgment.

"Love During Lockup" is a reality series that follows inmates and their partners on the other side of the bars as they navigate the trials and travails of their relationships.

This latest season features Chris Chipps, a South Dakota inmate incarcerated at the Mike Durfee State Prison in Springfield, about 1,800 miles away from his wife, Jade, who is currently living in Naples, Florida. The couple gained viral attention for making TikToks about their relationship and Chris' experience behind bars.

Previously on LDL: 'Love During Lockup' asks: Are SD inmate Chris Chipps and his wife in a 'toxic relationship'?

The Chipps family entered part-way through episode two of the season. Jade and her father, Scott, were strapping a utility terrain vehicle to a flatbed trailer when the former broached what she termed "the Chris situation."

Chris' trust issues came to light in the previous episode after Jade missed a call from him while she was hosting a birthday party for his sister, Jessica. Chris berated Jade in front of her friends and family after she eventually picked-up her phone, which led Jade to argue back at Chris before hanging up on him.

Jade and Jessica divided by 'the Chris situation'

The mid-party spat appeared to form a rift between the sisters, since Jade asked Scott for advice on how to best communicate with Jessica about the dispute.

"Tell her how you feel," was Scott's simple advice.

"You should tell her she needs to talk to Chris. Pan it out with him," Scott added.

Shortly after Jade and Scott secured the UTV for a muddy ride in the Florida countryside, Jessica arrived to the Chipps' Florida home, where she hailed the pair with a playful "What up, [expletive]. You ready to ride?"

Scott saw the sisters off for their excursion, but not before leveraging some paternal diplomacy. Scott warned Jessica "better be nice" to the older sibling, since she had been critical of her sister's inmate-husband at the family gathering.

"You can't ruin my birthday," Jessica retorted.

Jessica will go scorched earth on her inmate-in-law

After Jade and Jessica hop in to a truck and begin to leave the Chipps' abode, the show quickly moved forward to when the pair addressed "the Chris situation."

"Like, why did you freak out like that at your birthday party?" Jade asked.

Jessica explained that Chris tends to make activities Jade hosts revolve around him despite being in prison.

"I'm like, 'You're in prison. Why does it matter so much to you?'" Jessica asked rhetorically.

Jade did not have much to say in defense of her husband. She seemed to agree with her younger sister's assessment, but she did bring up another matter: What if Jessica met Chris in prison?

Before Jade could finish asking her cautiously-asked question, Jessica interjected that she "would like to have a sit-down" with her brother-in-law and "tell him my worries."

"I feel like … this happens every single time we do something and it always ruins it, and then you guys fight for, like, a week," Jessica said. "Whenever he does this, he, like, puts us against him, and then you guys make up and we look like the [expletive]."

The Chipps' money scripts are not healthy, sister warns

Later, while still on the road, Jessica pointed out another potential pattern in Jade's marriage: whether Chris uses money to buy his wife's love.

Jade revealed in the previous episode much of the couple's more expensive belongings ― their Cadillac SUV, their UTV and the Chipps' Naples home ― were purchased by Chris. Jade also revealed that Chris, who is one-quarter Native American and a member of the Prairie Island Mdewakanton Dakota Tribe in Minnesota, receives $10,000 to $12,000 per month through profit-sharing funds from a tribe-operated casino near Hastings.

But Jessica reveals the couple's camper ― another purchase Chris made ― was bought after the two "had a big fight."

"Is he, like, trying to buy your love?" Jessica asked.

Jade claimed she did not know of Chris' wealth when she met him through a prison pen pal program.

"I just wrote him because I thought he was hot," Jade said.

But Jessica kept up the pressure on her sister by probing for how much Chris has spent on Jade throughout their relationship.

Jade's (presumably non-exhaustive) itemized list of Chris' gifts is as follows:

• The Chipps' Florida home: $570,000

• Chevrolet truck: $60,000

• UTV: $34,000

• Camper: $50,000 to $60,000

"I definitely think that Chris tries to buy Jade's love," Jessica said during a confessional. "Jade isn't, like, a materialist person, but also, like, it's kind of nice having all this stuff thrown at you. I think the money helps a lot in this situation."

Mudding mends siblings' strained relations

The scene shifts to a motorsport recreation area, where Jade and Jessica put their squabbles aside for the moment to get ready for some laps in their UTV.

But before hopping into the vehicle, Jade unveils some surprising riding attire: a full body, hooded suit with a collage of various pictures of her incarcerated husband printed on every inch and limb of the garment.

"What the hell is that?" Jessica exclaimed before sarcastically approving of the outfit. "It's great, Jade. I'm going to be so excited to ride next to you wearing that."

With Jade behind the wheel, the sisters run some dusty laps on the well-worn circuit.

But when the two come across their first muddy puddle, Jade asked her sister if she "wants to get dirty."

Despite her pleas against the idea, Jade steered the side-by-side straight into the waters.

"You owe me a new outfit after this," Jessica playfully warned her sibling, whose new Chris suit was soaked. "But I don't want one with Chris' face on it, that's for [expletive] sure."

The fun started to enter muddy waters, however, when Jessica checked her sister's phone. The sisters both seemed to anticipate some missed calls from Chris.

Their assumption proved correct: Jade had 18 missed calls from her husband.

While Jessica happened to be scrolling through Jade's call log, Chris called again. This time, Jade picked up.

"I'm trying to message you and call you and you're not answering my calls," Chris told Jade. " I mean, like, it's not, it's not that hard [to pick up the phone], Jade.

Jade responded that she can't be "glued to [her phone]" every time Chris tries to call her, but the conversation was quickly hijacked when Jessica took her sister's phone to confront her brother-in-law.

"Chris, look, I want to sit down, have a talk," Jessica said to Chris. "We're going to lay it all out on the table, because I can't, we can't keep doing this. You're going to tear me and my sister apart."

From his point-of-view, Chris feels like he's left out of the lives of loved ones, the inmate explained.

"You're in prison, Chris. It's not like you live down the road," Jessica responded.

Chris expressed he felt like he was being "treated like scum." This prompted Jessica to call him "so dramatic" before handing the phone back to her sister.

"I just expect a courtesy call every once in a while, that's all," Chris told Jade. "I don't expect you to be on the phone with me 24/7. I just want a call from time to time, you know."

While Jade was hearing her husband out, Jessica pushed back as Chris was speaking his mind. Chris said his sister-in-law was "reaping the benefits" of their marriage ― and the spendy gifts ― and argued she should encourage Jade to be more available to Chris' calls.

Jessica flatly objected, however.

"I just want [Jade] to be happy, but I don't want her in a marriage that's this controlling," Jessica said during another confessional. "So, me and Jade, we're going to see Chris in South Dakota, and I'm going to wreak havoc when I get there. Chris needs to know that this is not OK and either we're hashing it out and we're cool, but, if not, he doesn't know what's coming."

Social media is Jade's creative outlet, but the implications of a second clothing item embossed with Chris' face are unknown

Fast-forward to later in the episode, Jade returned to her Naples home, where she assembled a table-spread of handmade gifts given to her by Chris and other items to show-off to her social media following on TikTok.

First, Jade held up what appeared to be a sequined or beaded blue rose adorned with a purple heart, which was also inscribed with the words "Chris & Jade" on its front.

Continuing the trend of wearing your better half as a fashion statement, Jade presented her virtual audience with a tank top embossed with a photo of Chris' face. His countenance was graphically altered to appear to be bursting out from within an unzipped zipper on the front of the clothing item.

"I do find social media to be an outlet for me, even though half of my followers send me [expletive] pics and the other half, you know, hate on me," Jade said during a confessional.

The next episode of "Love During Lockup" will air at 8 p.m. Friday CDT on We TV.

This article originally appeared on Sioux Falls Argus Leader: 'Love During Lockup' recap: SD inmate used for fashion, finances