Following the HGTV debut of Good Bones: New Beginnings, audiences are asking what happened between Mina and her mom, Karen Laine.
Karen E. Laine and Mina Starsiak Hawk were the mother-daughter hosts of the hit home renovation TV series, Good Bones, which first premiered in 2016 and wrapped in 2023 after eight seasons.
While the two have returned to the network for New Beginnings, their new journeys and projects are notably separate.
What Happened Between Good Bones' Mina and Karen?
While the first episode of Good Bones: New Beginnings featured Mina Starsiak Hawk, the absence of her mother and former business partner, Karen E. Laine, raised fan questions about their relationship.
Soon after the Good Bones finale aired in 2023, Mina shared on her podcast Mina AF (via People) that "My mom and I aren't in a great place:"
“My mom and I aren’t in a great place. My brother Tad and I aren’t in a great place. My brother William and I are in a kind of like nonexistent place. It’s complicated without even being complicated. We don’t really engage much and the last engagement wasn’t super positive, and that was maybe a year ago.”
Mina went on to explain how she and her family used to "coexist," but she questions now if that was "just being wildly dysfunctional:"
“We all always coexist. We went on family vacation together and everyone is pleasant enough around each other. And is that the good thing, the right thing, or is that all just being wildly dysfunctional?”
Also on her podcast (shared via TV Insider), Mina didn't mention her mom when discussing that "small square of people in your life" who you "can really be your true self around."
In retrospect, there seem to have been cracks in the two's relationship long before their 2023 split.
According to Collider, Mina bought her mother out of their company, Two Chicks and a Hammer, back in 2019 and her other family members had stopped working for her as well.
As for Karen Laine, she's laregely been silent in the wake of Mina's candidness and her podcast confessions.
However, Mina did share (via Collider), that her mother has reached out asking to talk.
Karen has also continued to post on Instagram, and recently shared a pic of Mina to promote their new HGTV reality show, despite the two appearing in separate episodes.
One New Show, Two Estranged Co-Hosts?
Fans of Good Bones will find Good Bones: New Beginnings still features the mother-daughter duo; but this time, on separate paths.
The debut episode focused on Mina and her family as they tackle a personal and emotional project in Martinsville, Indiana.
As for Karen Laine's upcoming episode, she will look to risk her retirement on a 120-year-old North Carolina bungalow while also staring down a storm.
Just how the new limited series will sit with fans will be interesting to see, especially given the lack of cohesion between the two former stars.
Good Bones: New Beginnings premiered on Wednesday, August 14 at 9 p.m. ET on HGTV. Two additional episodes will also air on Wednesday, August 21, and Wednesday, August 28 at 9 p.m. ET.
Audiences can also stream the limited series on Max.
