Cat

Extremely surprised about most of the people on the missing list. Stafford, Heinle, Mealor and Morrow are all frontburner actors on this show, three of them for many, many years. I would have thought they would make sure to fit 'repping the show" into their busy schedules. As for the people who came, I think Loren Lott looks absolutely movie-star spectacular in lilac. She literally stands out in her photos. So wonderful to see Victoria Rowell! I would love if this meant she was back on Y&R! Rowell is also one of the very few in this selection of photos to pull off a non-traditional evening look. I love her cape-coat. Heather Tom and Lauralee Bell simply do not age. Tom looks phenomenal in her flowery dress and glows from within. Kate Linder looked like she was channelling Joan Collins in some pics. Disappointed in Eileen Davidson's boring black, but luckily her elegance just about carries her through. Courtney Hope should have burned that sludge-colored horror when it was offered to her.

Julia quietly ended Larsa and Alexia:

Oh, they promised Kiki something alright -- a potential spot on the show, probably at the expense of someone on the right couch. I cringed when Marysol made Kiki sip that sparkly tumbler and she had to oblige. The irony is that while Marysol has to proclaim herself as the wittiest, it was Kiki's funniest VTs that Bravo chose to show. Alexia going to reconcile with Julia in the dressing room almost seemed like an excuse to drop a lot of raging put-downs, on camera of course, in Adriana's direction. Alexia seems to think this makes her look tough and cool (Erika Girardi does the same thing and we see how well that worked out for her). It also crossed my mind that Alexia doesn't want to be seen insulting Martina Navratilova's wife. If Adriana were dating someone with Martina's stature, would Alexia be nursing this convenient grudge which allows her to constantly rage on her? Or if Adriana held a mojito? I think Alexia and Marysol would be slightly less inclined to treat her like dirt.

RHOM This episode solidified why I love Julia. She's a truly kind and grounded person, talking about what Martina's going through, while also trying to mediate Alexia and Adriana's resentment. By contrast, Larsa looked like a clown. That man Julia was kissing turned out to be a fashion designer and close friend. Larsa looked especially dumb telling Nicole, a doctor, to get 'real jobs' like she has. This from the lazy-ass who posts pictures of her toes on OnlyFans? It never ceases to amaze me how dumbasses like Larsa seem to land rich men. She needs to do better with her pot-stirring because I just don't get why some fans think Larsa is accomplishing something on this show. Even Andy is over her. Marysol is annoying trying to make her sparkly tumbler happen. Apart from that, it was another very involving reunion. I'll be sad when this season is done after next week. What will fill it's place? RHUGT 3, I guess!

We are not the only two missing OG RHONY 😢 I would take this cast back in a snap, but around 3 of these 7 women likely won't return -- Bethenny, Carole and, I believe Tinsley didn't like the scrutiny over her relationship with that Chicago Tech Guy. She keeps turning down Bravo offers to rejoin. Something I've also wondered, given how many of these women (indeed, how much of the Upper East Side these days) now reside part-time in Florida -- mostly Miami or Palm Beach (or West Palm Beach -- looking at you, Luann). Given that Dale resides in Palm Beach, I would love a Real Housewives of Palm Beach with some amalgamation of this group + Dale. (Yes, I will keep banging that drum for Dale Social-Climbing Mercer. I love her!). And they can fight over what constitutes PB and WPB in 'Palm Beach.' Or indeed where Boca Raton fits into 'Palm Beach.' Also, Carole is close with Dorinda, and recently may have repaired fences with Bethenny via Dorinda mediation. It would be great if she and Tinsley were to make up too. Yes, I cannot help but like Eboni and think she was handed a poison chalice AND a mission to educate the OGs of RHONY who were/are possibly uneducable. I still think she had chemistry with a lot of them! I feel like pay should be based on what that individual HW brings (and indeed has brought) to the table. I'm sorry, but Jill didn't bring it to RHUGT 2, and she hasn't brought 'it' since S2 RHONY. Her methods are completely outdated. So I don't think she should be paid as much as Luann (who has a very watchable habit of picking the wrong men) or Sonja. But honestly, if Bravo had been minded to give LEGACY a chance, they could have accommodated Jill in some way -- or told her she would be replaced by Alex McCord. Ha! And then I would have needed a camera on Jill just to see her face. Finally, payback for how mean she was to Alex! I'm not sure I can answer whether Leah should come back to RHONY LEGACY until I watch RHUGT 3. I am still watching RHONY S12, Tinsley has gone now, and the law of diminishing returns is starting to set in as far as Ramona and Dorinda are concerned. I'm still liking Leah a lot, but S13 definitely changed all that. She was insufferable.

Black Shabbat was horrific, and honestly, I wanted Ramona to face the music at reunion. We at least needed a discussion about this mess, as awful as it was to watch. Eboni filed a complaint with HR about Ramona and that should have been discussed too, because even after the complaint was filed, Ramona and Eboni reportedly met up a few times to discuss it. Eboni later said she was prepared to return to RHONY *with* Ramona in S14. I actually think such a discussion between Eboni and Ramona would have initiated closure on all sides -- for Ramona, Eboni and the audience. As it stands, Ramona still feels (to me) integral to RHONY, and I wanted Eboni to be given a second chance on the show. But by burying all this, Bravo left everything hanging. I imagine Bravo did so because Ramona was already scheduled to be on RHUGT #1 on Peacock, which had not been filmed yet. The right move would have been to remove Ramona from that and stick in somebody else, AND gone ahead with RHONY reunion.

Eboni is a natural-born spar-er, and like you, my worry would be that she would choose to pick off Wendy first as the easy target. Thereby allowing lazy-asses Gizelle, Robyn and Ashley sit back, sip mimosas and pretend that Ray Huger looked at them the wrong way. When really, we need to see Eboni's quick mouth go after Gizelle, who (spoiler alert) is simply unable to think up ripostes on the fly unless they have been scripted beforehand by Kal. The draw was messed up. Hoppy and Russell should have been on opposite sides of the starting line! You know, like Wimbledon does with Djokevic and Nadal in hopes that they meet in the final. I also expected Jim Bellino and David Beador to get further than they actually did.

As someone who cherished the balance of Bethenny-less seasons 5-6, and who was somewhat relieved she was not there for S12 (allowing others, like Tinsley, to get a word in) -- IA that the loss of this Alpha left a huge void. And while Bethenny's solo stuff is peak Flopalooza (even her podcast was a hard, shrill listen), her dynamic in an ensemble really is unmatched. She lights a slowly-percolating fire under everybody. Honestly, S12 IMO has the blocks on which RHONY could build -- had Covid Season not happened. Today, I would still want Elyse, Eboni and Leah (and of course Tinsley) back, because I think their respective dynamics would soar in a less claustrophobic environment. Leah would have amends to make after being a real b!tch all through S13. Eboni hit it off with Sonja, Leah and even her frenemy dynamic with Ramona was watchable (prior to --shudder-- Black Shabbat). The fact that she was on Fox should have endeared her to Ramona, lol. Potomac is an inspired idea (and please note that Robyn's infamous sit-down with Andy on WWHL had Eboni in the second chair. She obviously keeps up with RHOP, judging by her responses). If I were Wendy, I would be WAY nervous of this other pundit coming on the show. Eboni is super-quick, and she is ruthless. I mean, the psychopaths that were Russell Armstrong and Dead-Eyes Hoppy.... 👀 The problem is that Russell and Hoppy were drawn against each other in Round 2. Hoppy somehow beat out a wifebeater before getting obliterated by Tom Girardi. Tough draws. I feel a bit bad for Ralph Pittman-Sidora for getting this far. While obviously a sleaze, he had some easy draws early on before somehow managing to beat creepy control-freak Simon Barney. Marc Daly was powerless against the life-force that is Jim Bellino. Ken Todd beat: Richie Wakile (how?), Eddie Judge (ok), Todd Tucker (I guess) and is now drawn against Lenny Hochstein. Surely Ken is not going to beat Lenny....?

Ken Todd in the same group as Lenny 'I do tits' Hochstein, Drew Sidora's semi-permanent-hard-on of a husband, and the vile Marchese psycho from NJ's forgotten season? Rinna's bots and Ryle Kichards are no doubt behind this outrage!

Been missing RHONY a LOT these days. To the point where I am re-watching S12 RHONY again (aka the season where Tinsley left and Dorinda self-destructed). I'm going to go out on a limb and say S12 was better than S11 (aka the Barb season + "Life is not a cabaret!!"). First of all, Tinsley came into her own. Whether Tinsdale was boxing with Martin, ushering Leah into the group, confiding in Dale, or standing up to Dorinda's bullying, Tinsley finally broke free of the rest of the cast's shadow. It was a shame she left for her (now broken) fairy-tale in Chicago halfway through. Secondly, Leah came across pretty well her first season, with good chemistry with the OG cast. If only we could pretend S13 never existed! Dorinda going after Tinsley for no reason seemed particularly cruel and deluded. That pause was deserved, and I'm not sure she doesn't need another one. Elyse -- gone too soon! Elyse could have been a great addition to the cast given her links to the OGs. I only mention all this because it seems like the Legacy RHONY series has grounded after wage negotiations fell through. Jill Zarin confirmed that she insisted that she be paid the same as all the other women, which caused Bravo to basically drop Legacy. To which I say: Jill needs to sit down. She was last relevant in 2010. Back them, she went after Bethenny for not bringing Jill on board her GMA segment! It's a similar premise here. I don't believe Jill needs to be paid the same as, say, Luann, who gave us 13 seasons of Pirate affairs, divorces and arrests. If I had been Bravo, I would have bid Jill adieu and tried to get Ramona back. I'd even try to get Tinsley (and maybe Leah and Eboni?) back at this point. Kelly Bensimon is a giant meh for me.

There's a clip in next week's preview for the reunion where Natural Diaper-Butt screams at Adriana "Shut up you and your bird mouth!" with her unrecognisable face and silicon-bursting lips. Adriana, looking impossibly gorgeous, just stares at her like 'You're nuts.' Because Adriana is looking like S3 Adriana-- simply the most stunning she has ever looked. Bringing back her darker hair and curling it 1940s style? LOVE. And Guerdy is probably not the richest in the cast, but her fashion sense is probably the most refined. At reunion she was channelling 1930s Paris Josephine Baker -- a style Beyoncé herself has channelled, not least in her mv Deja Vu. It also reminded me of Whitney Houston in The Bodyguard. Alexia and Larsa seriously are so hypocritical going after Nicole and Lisa's significant others/marriages -- when both of them are engulfed in relationship scandal (Alexia's ex husband, the budget Pablo Escobar, and of course Larsa quite literally robbing the cradle).

What a difference a year makes. Alexia was so great last season, and in seasons prior, but the adulation went to her head. She had great personal story, but this year she acted all tough and confrontational. Either that was to deflect from Peter beating up his girlfriend (and honestly she needs to stop coddling that manchild, because he spoke horribly about her to his cartel dad), or she thinks she has to play this bro role for fans. The right couch were letting Bobblehead run her mouth without landing any meaningful blows. She looked ridiculous. Larsa also looked a fool saying her butt was natural (ha!) and trying to make Nicole look mean regarding her dad. I don't know what she thought she was achieving by going after Nicole for no reason, but she was heading nowhere fast. Nicole, Julia, Adriana and Guerdy have an unspoken unity and kindness with each other which radiated off the screen without words. On a superficial note, Adriana and Guerdy in particular looked spectacular. Lisa is the queen of revealing her life, painful subject and all. She has supplanted Alexia in that department.

LVP was on WWHL last night talking VPR (you guys who follow can look those bits up), and continuing to needle Rinna in absentia.

The allegations started cropping up after Anila implied that Toya might have had a link to the break-in (in itself a shocking allegation). So it could be Toya stans spreading tit-for-tat rumors. I don't think the break-in was necessarily staged, but I do think Anila staged a few things on-camera -- like her housekeeper 'leaving' and then returning to the family later.

I saw that, too, and that's why Quad is staying and Porsha (who apparently used to date Dr. Greg -- that man gets around) is on the show. Conetessa said that she quit rather than was fired. She indicated that M2M focused on her personal drama a lot (and not her doctoring) and that she was tired of "crying and cussing," hence her decision to leave. She probably didn't want scrutiny on her and Scott anymore. Anila was apparently fired. No surprise given the thirst she and her husband displayed, and the whispers of fakery surrounding the break-in.

Delete.

I'm going to promote this RHOM trailer again because it looks pretty good! Alexia is doing WAY too much to everybody. Pipe down, Cocaine Bear, and worry about your precious bebe Peter trashing you on camera to his convict dad. Larsa hides her nasty behind this glossy-smooth, botoxed, Kardashian exterior, but when it seeps out -- "No-one's talking to you, you weirdo!" -- you can see the high school mean girl. Julia talking about Martina. 😥 Marysol coming on with a megaphone again. Kenya needs to put a copyright on that and sue! Adriana pulling out a letter from godknowswhere and godknowswho. 👀 All the cast to Lisa: "Oh, yeah, girl, Lenny's been cheating on you for YEARS." 💀 Las Cubanas are literally raging at everybody, especially Alexia who is coming across very heightened. (Like, why would you pick on Lisa this year??) You know what makes people rage sometimes? Coke. SO who is that letter from accusing Marysol of abuse? Please tell me it's not Mama Elsa. 👀 The trailer kept Guerdy and Nicole surprisingly mute, which is so weird!

Your comment took me straight to when Candiace told Gizelle at reunion that she was a garbage individual and had no soul. 👀 Gizelle: "Thanks, Candiace." The ICINESS with which Giz said that actually made my hair stand on end. All I could think was Candiace baby Gizelle is NEVER in a million years going to forgive that. In the RHUGT trailer, it is implied that somebody slipped drugs in another HW's suitcase which, given that they were in Thailand, was very serious. IF they had filmed that trip AFTER RHOP reunion? You know that would have been Grizzly. Revenge is a dish best served icy cold!

I figured it was either one of the things Charrisse lied about this season, or was linked to her DUI car accident some years ago when her license was revoked and she might have had to do rehab in return for judicial leniency. However, apparently Karen has not driven since, hence why she used to be chauffeured around (a chauffeur with blue eyes, said Ashley -- see S3). Make of that what you will. It is interesting that nobody remarked on it at reunion, because Charrisse was plenty mad at Karen and was probably dying to.

I feel like some of the women took the audience for fools TBH. Karen Huger is my fave across the RH franchises, and without her, I wouldn't enjoy RHOP nearly as much. Your words about Karen made me sad, especially the part about substance abuse issues, which I did not see coming! (I thought you were going to talk about her marriage to Ray-Ray). I have never gotten a Katie Rost-like vibe off Karen, but I also don't think you would mention it unless it was apparent to you. What *is* apparent to both of us, clearly, is the way Karen has become islanded from the rest of the cast. It's not so much bitterness as indifference. She is over these shenanigans. She got burned once and while she wants/needs to stay on the show, she is less willing to participate directly. After S5, she no longer has strong off-screen friendships with the cast, and they seem ready to move on without her -- reminiscent of LVP's final seasons on BH. And that also makes me sad because, as I said, on WWHL she reminded me of just how great Karen Huger can be. I'd be down for both Jacqueline and Askale to return, but probably as FOHs. They haven't wowed with their presence. What made Potomac special from the get was the fact that most of the original cast had friendships with each other prior to the show. This gave us a cohesive group where the chemistry was natural. That group tightness and history is almost impossible to penetrate as an outsider (see Wendy, and Candiace to an extent) and will be difficult to rebuild. And yet... rebuild it must.

Baroness Caroline Fleming of Ladies of London fame sold her magnificent Chelsea townhouse which featured on the show. She seems to be almost entirely based in Denmark now. https://www.ashdownmarks.co.uk/property-for-sale-ovington-street-chelsea-london-pi-ashd274.htm

In the past, I would have treated Gizelle as a 'necessary evil' on the show (a bit like Tamra on OC, only the difference is I grew to like Tamra). Not anymore. Frankly, Gizelle can GO. Candiace said it: "You are a garbage individual. You have no soul and you are the reason women can’t come forward because you make fake reports and sit there with your colorist privilege." I cannot speak on colorism, but IMO the rest of what Candiace said here is as close to a factual assessment as this season gets. Gizelle may be wonderful to her kids, her closest friends, the production team at Truly Original... but she gave a garbage performance Sunday night. How dare she be so high-handed and disdainful of Chris (who deserved answers as to why he was inexplicably dragged through the mud)? The answer is that she had no choice after painting herself in a corner. To admit that she made this up would = TV death. So she had to remain publicly committed to this story by gaslighting/misconstruing/parsing her words/deliberately acting dumb. In the season finale, she waved that DM from Chris 'apologizing' like it was some kind of proof! Yes, she is garbage. She made up this SL "and everybody knows it." [/Kathy Hilton voice]. The problem is, now we cannot unsee it. Most of the cast are heavily implicated in operating this way -- Juan's Roommate, Golddigger Fail, Stripper for Lobster, even the Dream Team to an extent. Nothing is truly personal, because nothing is real. The 'wedding,' Ashley's 'house-buying,' Mia lying like she breathes. And I can understand that RHOP faces a LOT of pressure to deliver after amazing seasons. To the point where now we got regular pre-production meetings between Giz, Rob, Ash, Cha, à la RHOBH, to hash out increasingly threadbare plotlines. It is their livelihoods on the line. Candiace gave a passionate riposte to Gizelle's mal-doing, but let's not forget that they went on RHUGT #3 together right after filming the season. And according to that trailer, they seem fine! So really, it seems, nothing is truly personal. The only thing that seemed somewhat personal was Robyn and Charrisse seething with inexplicable hatred every time Karen opened her mouth (which was rare). Karen kept very quiet during reunion like she was DONE. It was quite a contrast with her WWHL performance Sunday night where she was relaxed, dazzling and shading up a storm, reminding Andy, and us, of what he'd missed. I've heard it said that Karen was mad about Charrisse coming on the reunion to 'bring her down' and that's why she acted like she was on partial strike. But this story of Karen possibly having affairs is by no means over. What to do now? Well, RHOP needs a little rest for a few months to rethink the whole approach to being on a RH franchise. The Faker Contingent posting their dance-a-thon as a FU better not be a sign that Bravo is cool with Patreon-gate etc. At least 3, if not 4, of those women needs to not return IMO. The Faker Contingent, like the Coven on BH, are just too powerful. They are the mean-girl clique everyone wants to be part of. Witness Mia brown-nosing Gizelle, to the point where she threw her foster sister under the bus. And Wendy piping up to gently admonish Candiace about the colorism remark -- after Gizelle pointed at her twice and said "BUT I DON'T LIKE HER" ! Wendy is desperate to be accepted by that crowd and relive the glory days of her first season. Sorry for the long post.

Karen also cut right to the chase on WWHL with this gem:

And the faker contingent (Giz, Robert, Ash, Mia and Cha) took a selfie of themselves out for a preproduction dinner. So they obviously think they're going to get a mere slap on the wrist from Bravo. They were probably figuring out which husband to accuse of cheating next, to distract from Juan's lawsuits, Bungalow Bryant, Charrisse shtupping Katie Rost (!) and Ashley's pennilessness.