Episode 5 Recap: Judges savage repeated mistake in first Room Reveals and tears as one team fail to finish their bathroom

We've made it to our first Block Room Reveal of 2025!

After a huge week of waterproofing, tiling, pulling tiles down and once again... tiling, it's time for us to sit back, relax, and find out what the judges think.

Stream the latest episodes of The Block for free on 9Now.

But first... we mentioned tile drama. After Wednesday night's disastrous realisation that multiple teams have used the wrong glue, stress levels are high.

Sonny and Alicia are almost back to square one, needing to waterproof parts of their bathroom again where tiles coming off has damaged the membrane.

Sonny's desperately trying to remain positive. Alicia is already resigned to failure.

Next door, Britt and Taz are in a bad position too and having to really hustle to finish on time.

Down in House 5, Robby and Mat have dodged the same bullet, just, while House 1 and House 2 are blissfully unaware.

OK, blissfully is probably not the right word. They're dealing with their own tile-related problems.

DAN VS DANI EXCLUSIVE: Couple brand one duo's bathroom feature the 'ugliest thing I've seen'

Fitting the shower screen to the wall in House 1 pulls some of theirs' off the wall, which Foreman Dan says needs to be completely reset.

House 2's tile problem is that they just have so many of the damn things.

They've got floor-to-ceiling tiles to lay, one single tiler, and a very, very worried foreman convinced they aren't going to make it.

Unsurprisingly, the final hours before Saturday's midnight lockout and Sunday's 9am deadline are chaotic.

There's Waterproof Saturday over in Sonny and Alicia's. Britt and Taz find time for a very sweet phone call with their kids back home. Robby and Mat are... in a good spot?!

But most up against the pump are Han and Can, who have to do a whole days work in just three hours on Sunday morning.

READ MORE: Cashed-up kings and money woes: How are the Blockheads tracking with their budgets in 2025?

Right on cue, Scotty and Frankie drive onto site.

And for the first time in Season 21, "tool's down!"

It's instant tears in House 2, as Han and Can fall well short of completing their room.

There's no time to dwell, however, because the familiar faces of Shaynna Blaza, Darren Palmer and Marty Fox have arrived on The Block and they are not holding back.

Emma and Ben

The first to face the judges' scrutiny (or fury) are Emma and Ben in House 1.

Shaynna is immediately hit by their use of texture, which she says fits the Daylesford location well. Nice to get a positive right out the gate!

...Because then comes Marty, who is disappointed by the craftsmanship of their curved shower wall.

Next up is a vintage Block gripe: Shaynna hates the vertical shower rails.

"I don't want to see this whole series, where we are talking again about a towel hanging over a hook," she says.

Darren ended things on a high, labelling it a "cracker of the room".

"This couple, Emma and Ben, have lots of experience and clearly they know how to deliver, so I have really high hopes," he says.

It's a solid start from our reno veterans!

Han and Can

House 2's bathroom is all about curves and tranquility, so Darren's initial reaction that it's "soft" and "calming" is great news.

But it doesn't exactly soften the rest of the blows.

EXCLUSIVE: Major competition shake-up sees contestants locked out of The Block 2025

Shaynna thinks the vanity is way too high. Marty hates the industrial-style shower screen. The curved skylight makes the room feel smaller and the curved door is not right for the house.

Plus, the styling direction seems all wrong.

"What I've seen of the market, its sultry, moody, textured and quirk, but it's chic and refined," Darren says. "Unfortunately for me I don't believe this is what the Daylesford market is really going to respond to aesthetically speaking."

The judges implore Han and Can to be guided by the exterior of the home from now on.

Shaynna hopes they are discouraged by the feedback and hopes they can embrace Daylesford and what makes House 2 special going forward.

Britt and Taz

Fresh off pulling all them all off the walls and then reapplying them, Britt and Taz are relieved that the judges' first reactions are the praise their tile choices.

Darren is even more full of praise for their clever time and money-saving tactic of using wallpaper on some of their walls.

Shaynna likes their use of fluting, different colour scheme and large skylight.

But – and she's gone and got a prop for this one – the height of the vanity is all wrong.

She's also not a fan of their chosen nickel tapware and, of course, the vertical towel rails.

Marty has plenty of problems with the wet area, from the "minuscule" shower screen to shower head placed too deep in the corner.

"It just feels spatially really incorrect," he says.

It's a fine bathroom, but he thinks it is lacking any Daylesford personality.

They all fire off a few more positives to end, making this a classic feedback sandwich: the bath is nice, the curved tile shelf is "absolutely stunning" and the finishing is almost perfect.

EXCLUSIVE: The biggest rookie reno blunders aired in unseen clips from The Block 2025

Sonny and Alicia

"Ooof, this is different," Marty says upon entering House 4's bathroom.

Good different? Bad different?

Oh thank goodness, it's good different.

The warmth of the aesthetic takes their breath away.

They're fans of Sonny and Alicia ditching a shower screen, as the room adequately separates the wet and amenities spaces without one.

Marty thinks it's very appropriate for the Daylesford location and Darren is "besotted".

But of course, it's Week 1! It's not all glowing feedback!

They too have placed their vanity too high and Shaynna is stunned by this wrong through line in all the houses so far.

She thinks the room is almost there, but again, the vertical towel rails are killing her vibe.

The cuts of the tiles, which don't quite line up with each other, also distract her, and Marty says that attention to detail is the difference that can give a team a perfect 10.

Shaynna does see 10s in their future – just not yet.

"I feel really strong about this couple in their execution and their planning. I feel really strong in their direction," she says.

"Look at where things line up, look at the styling and they could blow it out of the park."

Robby and Mat

Last up are the boys and what's that we spy? Horizontal towel rails? Let's get Shaynna in here, stat!

And right on cue, she leads a round of applause.

Darren labels it the "Goldilocks room".

"This is everything that we've seen that worked in other rooms working extremely well all together," he praised.

Another win: their vanity is at the right height!

The compliments keep flowing as they look up and spot the ginormous skylight and lighting in all the right spots.

"For a Week 1 job, this is some of the best work I've seen," Marty says.

The warm, coffee-esque colour palette gets the tick of approval, as does the dark timber choices and texture.

Darren thinks the room shows they have an incredible eye for detail and style that will fit the Daylesford market well.

After all that gushing, it's no surprise that Robby and Mat win by one point, and they can barely contain themselves.

"We've been trying to keep a low profile and be the dark horse and you know what? They can hear us galloping now," Mat says.

The scores are:

Emma and Ben: 24
Han and Can: 19.5
Britt and Taz: 24
Sonny and Alicia: 25.5
Robby and Mat: 26.5

That's not all, with another $10k up for grabs for the best managed budget.

Scotty says all of them have done the best budget managing in all of The Block history – isn't it amazing what a cash incentive can achieve?

This week, our savvy savers are Sonny and Alicia meaning they also score some much-needed money.

EXCLUSIVE: Single decision leaves duo 'traumatised' – as teams reveal what they really think of their houses on The Block 2025

The loss is taken particularly hard by Han, who takes herself off for a much-needed shower cry.

"I feel like such a failure," she sobs.

Can is desperately trying to look at the positives – here's hoping that attitude makes for a better week next week!

Speaking of, in Week 2 it's time to get stuck into kids' bedrooms. Expect a massive challenge, a lot of mishaps and one judge labelling a room an "upmarket nursing home".

Brutal! See you tomorrow, when kids' bedroom week gets underway.

The Block continues Monday to Wednesday at 7:30pm and Sunday at 7:00pm on Channel 9 and 9Now.

Stream every episode ever of The Block for free on 9Now.

FOLLOW US ON WHATSAPP HERE: Stay across all the latest news from your favourite shows via our WhatsApp channel. No comments, no algorithm and nobody can see your private details.