Chris B

Speaking of production, some RHOD news: They have a new casting director and officially have decided to hire Toni Grant. She’s a black, married mother of two who also is a fashion designer. She’s friends with Kary and Kameron. I hope a new casting director means they’ll also have a new producer. I’m pulling for them to finally get it right.

I agree. I know LaToya brought drama, but I still found her thirsty and don’t think she fit in. I only enjoyed her at the reunion. She simply wasn’t strong enough for this franchise. When you look at what we’ve lost, you need to do better. Nene, Sheree, Phaedra, even Kim were all such huge and iconic personalities that had real impact and fit in. I agree. I remember when it originally was airing I was ready for Phaedra to leave even before the stuff with Kandi. She got to the point where she was tired and once Apollo was gone her story was over. ATL could’ve benefitted from a cast revamp around season 8-9 so they wouldn’t be so dependent on old HWs now. They’ve done a horrible job building a next generation.

Three episodes into season 2 and I understand why people say to skip season 1. I still think it's wrong, but for people revisiting the show I can see how off putting season one can be due to the look and feel of the show, which is a bit dated. Season one had a very realistic visual style, everything looked gritty and dirty and didn't have that Hollywood sheen. With season two it instantly looks like they got a huge influx of cash in the budget and all the doctors have makeovers, the set is cleaned up and less cluttered and the picture is now crisp and looks HD, which is a complete change from season one. Despite all the changes, it still works. I like the new characters, especially a character called Kerry Weaver. She's very direct and likes things to be done her way, but she doesn't come off mean spirited as you can sometimes get with this type of character. An exciting surprise for me was Christine Elise from 90210 as a new intern. I didn't expect to see her on a show like this for some reason, but she's great. It's weird seeing Emily Valentine as a normal doctor, but she does a great job in the role. I'm excited to dig in and see what this season is all about! One last thing, I have to say I'm absolutely in love with Anthony Edwards. I now want to go find everything he's been in and watch it.

With Falynn, I see so many wanting her to be a HW next season, but she didn't make much of an impression on me. Throw in her losing her rich husband and I don't see what she could offer to another season. It doesn't seem like she made good connections with the other ladies either. All I want for next season is Marlo to finally get a peach and at least ONE newbie that can generate the same excitement that Eboni, Garcelle, Sutton and Tiffany have for their respective cities. ATL is supposed to be the #1 face of Real Housewives. I'm tired of this dreadful production and low rent casting. I don't need names, but I DO need an All Star newbie. If everybody else can do it (even Dallas!) there is no excuse with how many interesting people live in ATL. Right now I'm watching tonights Married to Medicine and it's making me even more mad about RHOA. Contessa got covid and due to their group filming, everybody had to quarantine for two weeks. RHOA shut down MULTIPLE times due to covid, including for another a month before the finale was filmed. This of course was never mentioned on the show and they had to act like it didn't happen. On Married To Medicine, they had each of the women film updates at home and they did multiple zoom calls to insert, that way the story continues and there are no awkward gaps. This stuff also didn't take up more than 5 minutes total, but it added so much to the episode. It's just another sign of their production being so much better than ATL. Covid was hard on every reality show, but RHOA is the only show where you can see it.

I'm not sure either! I was reading the Primetimer forum for ER and in the rewatch thread so many people were saying they just started with season 2. Yes there were some clunky early episodes, but I think they quickly figured out what type of show they wanted and I haven't noticed any bad episodes after maybe the first 5-6. I had heard Love's Labor Lost was on a lost of "Best of" lists and it definitely lived up to it's hype. I was on edge the entire episode and it was a great showcase for Anthony Edwards who is easily the star of this season. It's interesting watching this now and seeing how supporting Julianna Margulies is and George Clooney to a lesser extent. I expected them to dominate the show just based on how big their names are today. I imagine their characters will grow as time goes on. In addition to Anthony Edwards, I feel Eric La Salle and Sherry Stringfield carry much of the emotional weight since they have the biggest personal stories. The show is very well balanced considering how huge the cast is. They have so many recurring characters, but it doesn't distract and only makes it feel like a real workplace. So many shows ignore those background characters and treat those roles more as dayplayers. It would benefit them to look at how ER did it.

I truly don't understand why this is still around. They can never get the cast right, it's had endless behind the scenes drama, the co-hosts are expensive and ratings have been declining for years. I know it wouldn't happen, but I'd love to see them try a soap again. You can make it financially viable by filming in Atlanta and soaps are reliable fall back entertainment. Of course in reality they'd just replace it with another generic talk show or game show.

Queen Bershan hasn’t even debuted on RHONY yet and she’s filming Karen’s renewal vows for RHOP! This is the second time she’s posted with Karen this week so I wonder if she filmed more. Bershan is from DC which is how she became friends with Karen.

@FrenchBug82I wasn’t speaking of you specifically, but the fanbase at large. In this thread we all have different opinions. I wouldn’t assume that it’s a personal attack against yours.

@FrenchBug82Shes obviously a Republican and Trump supporter, but I don’t recall her saying anything problematic in the way a Kelly Dodd has. I try to ignore their politics because the majority of housewives are Republican so i hate when fans pick and choose who to yell at for that.

I have always loved Ramona from day one. I know it’s wrong but I just can’t quit that woman. Not only is she tv good, but I really don’t think she’s mean spirited like some of the other HWs. I truly think she just has issues with understanding social cues. I wouldn’t be surprised to find out she has a form of Autism. I understand with her age she won’t last forever, but I still think she fits in perfectly and is important to the show. The day Ramona leaves will be very sad. I hope when that comes they give her heads up so she can have a proper send off.

@CatFor me, WWHL was fine as a general special, but since not much happened in the premiere they didn’t comment in the episode as you typically would and instead spoke generally. It seemed like they were trying to be vague and not reveal stuff so it came off awkward. Everybody was trying to act like they’re getting along so great but we know that isn’t the case. I’m certainly glad they didn’t spoil the entire show, but I think this would’ve been better as a preview special aired the week prior.

Ramona has said this season will be longer than the last one which tells me there's lots of drama we don't know about. It seems like the season trailer is mostly the first few episodes since a lot of the drama featured comes from the Hampton's trip that starts next week. I thought they did their best of hiding things on WWHL, but I'm not buying this kumbaya stuff. I think we're in for a very good, dramatic season and I LOVE that New York doesn't reveal everything like most series. I feel like last season although not the best, had endless surprises throughout the season we had no idea about. Hell, we didn't even know Elyse existed and she ended up playing a big role in the second half of the season. Eboni also mentioned in Vanity Fair that she has a big upcoming issue which spins off into a major issue. Little nuggets like that and Sonja saying she *still* doesn't speak to Ramona and Luann have me super excited for whats to come. We have some little teasers, but nothing that would ruin the show. I dread when RHOA starts filming again because we'll have to hear the entire storyline play-by-play in the media as usual. That's so boring to me! RHOD: This reunion I felt moved so fast. They had more going on than RHOA. I actually am disappointed it's not 3 parts if they going at it like that! My perception of Kameron vs Tiffany is that Kam (and Stephanie) is jealous of the fact that you have an Asian girl coming on who is incredibly rich and not intimidated by her. They all show off their wealth, but only Tiffany was knocked for doing the same. She came guns blazing, but I feel like nothing she said stuck because Tiffany was willing to double down. Tiffany STILL is tweeting that Kameron is a dumb ass lol. I'm not surprised by Kary's divorce and I love that D'Andra didn't let her slide by. She still dug in her ass while showing an appropriate amount of sympathy. I know many don't like Kary, but I think she is fantastic. I feel this show came alive when she joined in season 4 and after this season I think they finally have a way forward. I just hope they get rid of Brandi and Stephanie and I'm hoping the rumors of multiple diverse newbies is true. This show is in such dire need of a reboot before Bravo gives up. If you get rid of the dead weight and keep adding strong newbies I do think they have a shot.

I've watched 13 episodes and I'm all in. In my research I see lots of comments that the first season isn't great and many saying to skip it, but as a soap fan I always need to see from the beginning if possible. I do see the problems with this season, but I feel it's valuable to be introduced to the characters the way it was intended. I'm not sure if they had a lot of freelancers, but the stories are very hit or miss. What works is that the cast is fantastic, both contract and the recurring people at the hospital. Everybody has enough of a personality that you instantly get a sense of place when the episodes start. The biggest miss for me is the story with Dr. Lewis' sister, but I'm enjoying most of the personal stories so far. In the most recent episode I watched I was introduced to Ming Na's character and was shocked that she seems to be so unexperienced and clunky. I'm used to seeing Asians as the perfect and smartest person in the room, so it's nice that they decided to defy stereotypes and allow her to be more human. I'm curious to see her evolution knowing that she'll disappear after this season and return later. That is another reason I'm glad I didn't skip this season!

As much as I've been enjoying GH, their casting never ceases to amaze me. You have Sasha who looks like Lynn Herring's daughter, but she's not. You have Willow who is connected to nobody, but Serena and Christina are out there. Elizabeth is a long term tentpole character, but her sister is off screen, her parents are off screen and her biggest love interest is off screen. Then they keep casting these new actors would could fit old roles, but they almost always are some new random character. Of course they may surprise us, but I'm expecting all of these new roles to be a waste of these actors talents. Roger Howarth could be a great Tommy Hardy, but he won't be. Kimberly Brown could be Serena, Christina, Sarah Webber or Lulu, but she'll likely be Willow's third cousin. Cameron Mathison could be Ryan or Steven Webber, but he will most likely be a recast of Casey the Alien. I've never seen a soap like GH that ignores their legacy characters even though they have cast members directly related on the canvas.

That's what I'm thinking...this has been handled in such an odd way. I also wouldn't be surprised if they did a surprise Peacock announcement.

Okay I just finished RHONY, which was excellent, and I want to apologize for always overlooking Sonja Morgan! Much like people with Cynthia on ATL, every off season I wish they’d finally let her go and then the show premieres and I’m in love again. Sonja was her most delightful nutty self tonight! I also got the sense from seeing the flash forwards and trailer again that she’s about to give us a VERY strong performance this year! Even from WWHL the tension was thick. Whatever is going on with Ramona and Luann must be big because Sonja said she still doesn’t speak to them. Eboni’s debut was flawless. RHONY is like finding the rhythm to a song, either you can keep up or you can’t and there is no room for error. She instantly seemed to fit in with the fast paced nature of the group. I also love that despite fitting in so well she still felt fresh. She didn’t seem like she was trying to be another housewife, nor did she feel phony like she was trying too hard like a Leah. Speaking of Leah, she didn’t bother me too much because the other four are so strong. I feel like we are about to get fed. The big Hamptons trip starts next week and we know it’s endless drama. I can’t imagine what they have in store for us if that’s how they’re gonna kick things off! I’m glad we have the always reliable RHONY back and I’m glad Queen Ramona still has her Apple!

The Eve retcon was huge IMO and the most bizarre of them all. Eve was central to so many key Victor/Nikki moments and at the time Cole was introduced, it wasn't that long ago. It's odd that they took one element of the story, of course Cole potentially being Victor's son, but nothing else. Eve had such rich history with Victor and Nikki and it was all wasted. You can even keep her on her death bed, but imagine how much more interesting it would've been to see her show some regret over her past actions.

Poor Heavenly is working overtime to keep it interesting. Toya is working as well, but she's trying too hard. I'm curious how you'll feel about her as it goes on.

Allegedly she wanted more money than was offered to her.

I couldn't allow myself to get excited about this. I feel Brad Bell did an excellent job bringing Sheila back the last time. He did a great job of making the horrible stuff done to her on Y&R work in a way that freed her up to be a real long term character again. After that intro it went from an amazing return to a total dud. I get she would've had to leave because of her run for government, but it was so disappointing to see her do nothing. They could've brought her kids back or pursued a serious romance with Eric or anybody really. Sheila was vital to making B&B a success and her return felt disrespectful to what she could do for the show if she was properly utilized. Until Brad Bell steps down I'm at the point where I just can't invest in anything on this show. You know no matter how exciting the casting or pairing, the execution will always be lazy and go back to the merry go round of triangles and repeated stories.

Considering how early in development this seems to be, I think we'd be lucky if the show got a pilot order. It's also possible the script is so amazing they'll go ahead and give a series order based on the script, but I can't see them doing that for a soap reboot in primetime. Most likely we won't hear anything about it though.

It would likely be produced like a regular primetime show.

Okay this was an impressive way to show the reunion looks! Whatever company produced Real Housewives of Durban did an amazing job! It was much more interesting that I expected.

I feel like that’s a good description of how I viewed the show just from promos and media coverage. I remember things like when Kelli Martin’s character died and a big helicopter stunt. In that way it seems like it paved the way for the type of over the top stories and stunts you see on Grey’s Anatomy.

I’d never seen this show, but of course know of it due to popularity. I had been debating between starting this and NYPD Blue, but this thread getting bumped up was a sign so I started this! I’m only two episodes in but I’m loving it so far. They seem to have struck gold with this original ensemble. I will say it’s very jarring to see George Clooney on a tv show since I know him primarily from movies. I grew up watching The Facts of Life, but I was watching that as he became a movie star so this feels different. Looking forward to seeing this slice of history so many seem to love! Would y’all say it holds up until the end?