Gray Bunny

Well, to their credit, when a Guiding Light viewer organized a protest over the show's cancellation, she was the only one who showed up

That was my understanding. Once they switched Ryan's Hope & Loving, it marked the beginning of the end for RH.

Interesting to see how horrible Ryan's Hope was doing 2+ years before its cancellation. Nice to see DAYS up there during their Supercouple era. Surprised to see All My Children at No. 6. Santa Barbara's 4.8 is actually a respectable number, even for then.

I think my favorite moment on yesterday's Potomac was watching Karen school Candiace on how to express her feelings to the group, and then as soon as it got ratchet, Karen says "now you're letting it go left" and then basically tells her something along the lines of, "Okay I helped you set up this meeting but it's up to you to finish this, cuz you're a grown ass woman" and leaves and proceeds to take selfies and enjoy the view. LOL

Caught up on NYC. Bethenny is the worst kinda buzzkill you'd ever want on a vacation. Christ, she tried her damndest to suck the life out of every room she entered. She's so oblivious of her actions, saying she preferred being with Sonja and LuAnn just walking down the streets having fun... that's what all the other women want! To have FUN! God forbid Carole or Dorinda point out the obvious that Bethenny is a moody, sour bundle of negative puss trying to spill over onto everyone. Otherwise, the episode was fun and I'd have to go with Team Carole on the Carole vs. Bethenny feud. Bethenny jumps on the attack, saying Carole is believing the dude with the red scarf over her, but Carole simply mentioned that the dude with the red scarf made it sound like he and B were friends. Simple statement. Ugh, Bethenny, I kept saying to my TV "Just go home!," or in keeping with the Scary Island tradition, "Go to sleep! GO TO SLEEP!" And it really shows what a stuck-up primadonna B's become if even Ramona has no problem with the "grimy" accommodations they're staying at. Pinot Singer even got stuck in an elevator the first day and was nothing but light fun and giggles the entire night. I'm just glad they're showing everyone's distain/annoyance towards The Big B, even though she still had way too many talking head points of view during the episode. On to next week!

POTOMAC: I'm gonna go against the grain here and give props to "little miss Ashley." She puts her mess out there first, which is perfect for this type of atmosphere. There's no mud to sling back at her (minus the Michael-gay-hookups-in-Europe which I still don't know the details about). Yeah, her delivery can be messy and sometimes an obvious way to stir up drama for the cameras, but she isn't telling lies or being an ugly hater like Gizelle. Keep the wheels of drama turnin' Ashley! I gotta admit I was surprised by Robyn's rockin' bod. In clothes and in talking heads, she looks kinda thick and voluptuous but she actually has a tiny, fit lil bod. At least she has the body to balance out her empty head. I equate the ladies' frustrations with Karen as the same as the NYC women used to be about LuAnn and her front for the cameras, of etiquette and manners and "oh darling" and pretending everything was okay with the Count. I wonder if Karen divulges anything to them when the cameras aren't rolling. I'm guessing lil bits 'n pieces without giving the whole story, and then on camera she plays dumb. I have no problem with Monique exposing Charrisse, a la Porsha outing Phaedra as the culprit. Yeah, Candaice lucked out with a free trip to France. She's a Shamea who somehow found herself upgraded to full-time Wife. She's just kinda there.

Better to do it in 10 episode blocks per month. Anything beyond 10, maybe 13, is asking too much in this day and age. Isn't it crazy how many syndicated shows there were back in the 90's? Also a Chicagoan here, and remember Baywatch at 5pm on Saturdays & Sundays, along with other shows on the weekend like Xena and all those shows, Deep Space Nine, and Malibu beachy shows like the one with Rick Springfield, and another with Mario Lopez.

Laurie Metcalf scored a nomination for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy for Roseanne. Congrats! I was hoping Sara Gilbert would get a nod too, but at least they weren't completely shut out, especially in this era of non-network shows getting all the nominations.

@DaytimeFan @Cat It's been decided: Cannes it is! But we are totally going to try to hit all those great spots you both mentioned around Nice as our friends will be staying there. Appreciate the great tips from you seasoned travelers Will post photos!

Haven't seen Sunday's show yet, but hubby & I are booking our place this week in Antibes. Nice place? We were also looking at a beautiful seaside view in Cannes but our friends will be staying in Nice so we wanted to be a little bit closer to them.

I definitely remember last season being “Bethenny Frankel and the Housewives” with promo tie-ins and spinoffs and the narrative always being told through her eyes. That’s why I was glad we were “allowed” to see the majority of the women discussing Bethenny a few episodes back. I dont remember S8 being bad. I loved how LuAnn was able to stand tall as the others tried to make her the punching bag. (If I wasn’t on my phone I’d pull up that amazing smirk shot of her at the Berkshire’s when Bethenny was going off on her for “fu.king anything”). I hated Carole and Bethenny shaming Jules’ eating disorder but it reflected on THEM very poorly (it was also ironic, as those two are such bony skeletal figures). Speaking of looks, Ramona’s new glam squad makes her look gorgeous this year! The makeup, the hair, all of it makes her look a good 15 years younger than last year, when she looked so harsh and the 4K high-def cameras made them all look so ragged in the face. I love how both Heather and then Carole used to try to rationalize the crazy and call her out, and then eventually had to succumb to the fact that she’s the OG and her brand of crazy is here to stay.

Thanks @Cat & @DaytimeFan! Much appreciated! I will definitely look these all up as we plan our routes

Agreed 110% (or "a thousand percent!" as Jill Zarin liked to use). Looking back, I just cannot rewatch Season 5 & 6. That's when the show was so irrelevant and it just didn't gel well. I don't miss Kristen, Heather or Aviva. I'm glad they had a whopping eight castmembers in the 7th season, which to me, was the perfect phasing out of the shaky years with the re-energized cast we have nowadays. Side note: Just the sloppy editing of the sixth season's cast shows what a "who gives an eff" attitude the producers must've had. From Aviva disappearing back 'n forth, to Luann suddenly appearing (by accident?) in some of the commercial bumpers, it was such an oddball year. Oh. I noticed. Trifling mess can't even respond for herself. A true puppet. This episode was fun, but it's goofy when the Housewives spend an entire episode playing the "Will I or won't I go? Will she or won't she be invited?" Gurrrrl, these trips are pre-planned and paid by Bravo TV. We know how it works. I am so looking forward to next week's episode because I'm going to France - Paris and Nice - in September (my first trip out of the USA, yay!) and the hubby & I are totally open to suggestions when we're in the south of France. What Housewives seasons stand out like sore thumbs for each franchise? I'd go with the 6th for NYC (and 5th to a lesser extent). For Atlanta, I'd have to go with the Kim Fields season. Was that the same year we had Claudia's one-and-done or was she a year beforehand?

Indeed, and well stated. Side note: Speaking of the character Sandy Swan (a singer), back in my naive day, I was convinced that whoever was doing the vocals for her was the same singer on the radio singing "If You Asked Me To" and "Nothing Broken But My Heart," which of course turned out to be Celine Dion. Suffice it to say, I don't think she lent her voice to this lil show.

I haven't seen NYC yet, but so far I'm okay with Dorinda. I could see both sides of the argument, re: Dorinda vs. Sonja and the family crest. I also understood her being irked by Bethenny's lack of gratitude to the nutcracker (granted, the discussion of it afterwards could've wrapped up more quickly, but this is Housewives. You have to talk about it and talk about it, and then do a talking head or two about it, and then talk about it again on Bravo blogs and at the reunion, etc.). Maybe my opinion will start to change when I view this week's show.... and Lord knows I wanna see what sparks the division between her and LuAnn!

I'll have you know that "Swans Crossing" debuted exactly 26 years ago today, and I didn't look that up! For some reason, I remember it debuted on June 29th, 1992. I was a wee boy of 9 years old and I loved every cheesy moment of it. Yes, the entire 2 month run can be found on YouTube. It's atrociously cheesy and 90's as all get out, but has an endearing, innocent charm to it. I don't think any couple was ever shown even kissing onscreen. It was always a case of "leaning in, then fade to black." It gave us Sarah Michelle Gellar, Shane McDermott (whatever happened to him?), and one of the Sweet Valley twins, Brittany Daniel. They aired it locally in Chicago at 2pm on an independent station (which later became UPN). Then, reran it a couple times in the wee hours of the morning. As a youngster who didn't know how television worked at the time, I kept hoping it'd return the following summer and held out hope until the summer of '93 when the same station brought on another syndicated soap, "Paradise Beach" (which gave us Ingo Rademacher, pre-GH).

No. I'm rooting for Sara Gilbert and others.

For real! What's there to see on his site that you can't find everywhere else?

Yikes. I haven't been to Perez Hilton's site in YEARS. Ads, ads everywhere!

I think it's a great move, and it's good for the cast and crew. Listen, we may only get one season out of this and that's fine. It fulfills what the cast and especially the crew were counting on. The crew would've been without work this year, as new shows' crews were already set up & ready to go. I like the name change to "The Conners" to focus on its ensemble cast, and I think it's wonderful that *everyone* is back on board, even Laurie Metcalf, who's getting roles left and right and winning awards and accolades along the way. If "The Conners" is awful, I can just pretend this past May's finale was the family's last hurrah in my mind. We all do it, right? I certainly don't 'count' the Melrose Place 2009 revival as a true continuation of the original's story. Side note: I would hope the "Roseanne" actors would submit themselves for Emmy consideration. Whether ABC promotes it or not, people like Sara Gilbert have a great shot at a nomination, as she did stellar work. And finally, @Soapsuds I maintain my position that I thought "The Hogan Family" was *better* than "Valerie"! That show is another example of 80's/90's shows where the series got better once the kids got older by the 3rd or 4th season. P.S. I wouldn't mind a Roseanne / The Conners thread continuing on right here.

Agreed. And since they're so strong in their Christian faith, they love the whole "woman is subservient" hierarchy, which makes his spousal support request even more pathetic.

+1 on the Joni. Something about her reminds me of a less leathery, no-baggage Faye Resnick.

I'm in agreement with y'all in that Luann's worst season was the fourth season. Her dismissive attitude and constant belittling of Alex was quite ugly. All the more reason why she looked so alone on an island when all her besties were booted and she had to put up with Ramonja at their best (or worst) and a bunch of newbies in season 5. I agree with Ramona needing someone to pop her bubble before she got a head the size of a Jill or a Nene (or a present-day Bethenny). Side note: I wonder what took so long for Dorinda Medley to catch the eye of producers and/or for Dorinda to be interested in joining the show? Seeing her as a guest of Jill's in season 4, alongside Ramona, Luann, and Kelly... just imagine if she had joined in season 5!

I don't want Aviva back because her interaction with these women would look too forced. Last week, Bravo re-aired season 5, and I cringe looking at how forced and unnatural the whole transition was of having veterans Ramona-Sonja-LuAnn suddenly having to hang out with Heather-Carole-Aviva. There was nothing organic about this newfound group of women "friends." Heather and Aviva couldn't stand Ramona or Sonja; Carole was indifferent. They were cool with LuAnn, but the real friendships were Heather/Carole and Ramona/Sonja. Plus, LuAnn was left on her own island. Yes, she and Sonja have a good history together, but Sonja was so deep into the "Ramonja" relationship, that LuAnn really looked deserted, with her whole team from season 4 fired. The forced interaction didn't work for season 6 either. I can barely watch those episodes, too. That's why I loved how the 7th season helped bridge the past to the present, and bring the show back together and into the strong force that it still is today.

I'm in agreement with your Ashley assessment. I think Michael would rather she has cute little side projects to keep herself busy, without running an actual business or becoming too independent. I guess he should be glad she agreed to extend her prenup arrangement, as the marriage likely won't last long enough for her to cash in. Good for him; bad for her. If only she had waited until after their discussion about children... I'm ready to see Monique defend herself against sloppy Charrisse. I'm not gonna lie, I'm glad Charrisse is still around, but thank God it's only in a "Friend Of" capacity. @Cat I haven't read the article yet, but Re: Aviva brought on by Bethenny. Bethenny brought Aviva to the attention of Bravo producers. I believe she tried to get her on as early as the third season (perhaps when they were auditioning Sonja and Jennifer Guilbert?)