NEED TO KNOW

• Zac Wyse faced more criticism from the Plath family about lifestyle and boundaries during the season 8 finale of Welcome to Plathville

• Tensions escalated during a family meeting when Zac and wife Lydia expressed feeling misunderstood and misrepresented by the Plaths

• After the conversation, Zac and Lydia expressed conflicting feelings about how to progress with their relationships with the Plaths

Lydia and Zac Wyse continued to feel “misunderstood” and “misrepresented” as they clashed with the Plath family during the season 8 finale of Welcome to Plathville.

Just like at the beginning of the season, the Plath family sat down for another family meeting — and once again, Zac was at the center of the conversation.

When we last left the group, the family quickly shifted gears from addressing Lydia’s public comments about the death of their late brother and son Joshua to the family’s ongoing criticisms of Lydia’s new husband.

At the beginning of the season finale, which aired Tuesday, June 16, on TLC, Ethan asked to “clear the air” with Zac, who many have criticized for overstepping boundaries by scolding other members of the family for not living “Godly” enough.

Ethan wasted no time telling Zac to “keep those opinions to yourself” unless he is specifically asked to share them. Kim also chimed in, insisting that the goal of the conversation was “not to pick on anybody.”

“The bottom line is we’re all family,” the mom said, adding, “So we need to give each other the latitude to live a little bit different life or have different viewpoints and accept each other and love each other where we’re at.”

For the last several episodes, the Plaths have discussed a now-infamous family trip to visit Moriah’s new home in Montana, where Zac and Lydia are said to have both been critical of their family member’s lifestyle.

Among their central concerns were the presence of alcohol, vulgar TV shows and a “raunchy” card game that made Zac and Lydia uncomfortable.

In a joint confessional with his wife, Zac suggested that his “biggest” concern was the impact these influences would have on Lydia’s younger sister Amber, who Zac said was a “new believer” and had recently been baptized.

Meanwhile, Moriah said in a confessional that she got real with her brother-in-law as they “worked through” their issues.

“I just told him, work on building relationships with everybody so that they know that you’re a safe person to go to when they want advice and they’re looking for advice more so than just like, you know, picking everything apart and telling them what you think they should fix.”

Even Barry, who showed Zac some support during the meeting, seemed to think Zac was out of line at times. “If someone’s not asking for your opinion, maybe in this gray area just you don’t need to say anything,” he suggested in a confessional.

Meanwhile, in her own confessional, Kim admitted she and her ex-husband have changed over the years. Still, she felt they should be “the ones that need to decide” how to raise their kids, and no one else.

Lydia grew defensive as the family meeting progressed: “If people don’t want our opinions, we won’t give our opinions and anything.”

Later, Lydia broke down in tears as she reflected on the conversation: “I just feel like time and time again, Zac’s always misunderstood and misrepresented, and that just hurts me.”

In a joint confessional, Zac also wept over his tense relationship with the Plaths, especially Lydia’s brothers. “And I never was a brother to other brothers,” he said before stumbling over his words. “I don’t know,” he finally said through tears. “I don’t know what to do.”

Speaking to the family, Zac complained about the lack of effort he felt the Plaths put in to visiting them. “It feels like we’re pulling an arm and a leg just to get you to come over and hang out sometimes,” he admitted to the group.

But the Plaths agreed that was not the case. Isaac claimed he had a hard time finding free time, while Kim argued she has visited Zac and Lydia “every time I’ve been invited.”

Eventually, Zac agreed to respect the family’s wishes. But when asked by a producer what he took away from the family’s comments, it was “that I need to shut up,” to which Lydia replied, “Duly noted.”

“I know I very well could have judged them wrongly. I just wish my heart was understood, that I care and love as much as I can,” he said.

As the meeting ended, Kim voiced relief that they could “move forward” and put the conversation to rest. But Zac said in a confessional that he and Lydia were left “confused.”

As the group transitioned inside the house, Zac and Lydia checked in with each other off to the side. “Are you okay?” Lydia asked her husband, who whispered back, “Yeah, I’m good.”

“I’m not going to change my entire lifestyle to be in their life, and they’re not going to change their entire lifestyle to be in mine, and that’s just what’s happening,” he explained in a confessional.

Later in the evening, the Plath family gathered to remember Joshua, with the eldest family members sharing some of their favorite memories of him with the youngest two, who never got to meet him.

“I’m here and I’m ready for whatever the children want to talk about,” Kim said in a confessional, referencing Lydia’s yearning for a deeper conversation about her late brother.

And Lydia got her wish, as Kim opened up about her real and raw feelings with her kids for the first time. “This is all I needed,” Lydia noted in a confessional.

As the evening progressed, the Plaths used some sneaky tactics to throw a surprise wedding anniversary party for Zac and Lydia right under their noses.

“I truly was amazed that everyone put in so much effort to just celebrate us for our anniversary,” Zac admitted in a confessional, with Lydia adding, “It was a really sweet gesture.”

However, neither Zac nor Lydia forgot the conversation had just hours prior. “I just hope next time if conflict does arise, that I’m not misunderstood,” Zac said.

When asked by a producer how they could avoid that, Lydia attempted to answer, but was cut off by her husband. “Let me answer, please,” he snapped before responding himself.

“If we’re continued to be misunderstood, then we just won’t keep trying,” he said.

Lydia later acknowledged that there have been “rough patches” in her relationships with her family, but maintained that they would keep things with them “open-ended without expectations.”

Still, she admittedly had grown tired of working on relationships with her family members. “I just kind of want to be for a little bit and see who floats in and out of my life,” she concluded.