Bravo's The Real Housewives of....

[Liberty City]

Finally watched Sunday's episode of RHONY, and I am really loving this season. Brynn is slowly warming up when she's not pulling the ditsy, stupid hair-twirling persona she tries to give off. Jessel has to go; I'm over her and she is completely off-putting, and Erin is giving me major Heather "holla" vibes. Next week's episode looks chaotic, and I am here for it.

[NothinButAttitude]

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[Cat]

 

Kenya talking with Carlos is genuine and warm. I stand by my assessment of her being inauthentic and unsympathetic this season. But Kenya is engaged and engaging here.

 

Kenya talking about her childhood... the way her mother refused to claim her and what that must have done to her growing up, always gets to me. 

She sounds sparky and happy talking about the old RHOA memories. Honestly, this is the Kenya missing from RHOA. Kenya speaking about the current RHOA sounds like the brand has been tarnished in her eyes. Maybe Kenya is ready to call it a day if some major changes to cast and crew are not made. 

Edited August 15, 2023 by Cat

[Soaplovers]

RHONY:

 

Twitter seems cool with Jessel.. calling her the sober Ramona... and with her tendency to insert foot in mouth, I can see why people think that.  She does seem to know a lot of people in the fashion industry.. she had a lot of people at her event.

Erin seems to think she's the expert on all things New York.. but I swear she is a dog with a bone LOL

While I'm an introvert and I do commend Jenna for setting boundaries, I do think that Jenna tends to play up the introvert tendencies in order to get out of trouble (i.e. when she claimed she didn't know why she stirred the pot, saying she had an event when it was just time with her son and god-daughters) and out of filming with the other women.  And she does kind of seem elitist.

I confess I would have preferred seeing Brynn playing chess against that guy instead of another scene rehashing the Jessel/Erin coffee chat.  Chess playing.. rather at parks or in buildings.. is a huge thing in NYC and I would prefer seeing more of the city.

Not much from Ubah in this episode... though I like her way better than her witch of a cousin Aylan.

I liked the segment showing Sai at her job.. and her backstory on how she developed into a pretty successful influencer.  She would have to be pretty successful if she's able to offer her assistants/employees health insurance.

[Cat]

Someone reached out to me yesterday to tell me that Jessel attended my old high school (though a different year). That tracks. Picture competitive students with over-inflated airs of superiority, but also nursing deep (mostly class-related) insecurities. Suddenly Jessel makes sense!

She is nothing if not a good little student: after a shaky start, she's done her research of RHs, picked up some pot-stirring tips, and gone for the HW in search of a feud, Erin. Not sure she's the 'kween' a few voices on Twitter say she is, though.

(And oh the irony when Jessel says she came to this country and worked her way 'from nothing' -- you mean a fancy British prep school + university + the accent gets you nowhere in the US? Come on now!)

I wish id seen more of the Brynn chess game too. We did get more of her story which helped fill in some blanks, but NYC itself remains this elusive, unmoored entity. Like, where was the chess game?

Jenna is 100% using the outs she negotiated for herself to her advantage, and the other women are sick about it. Maybe next season they will try to negotiate similar outs. Pravit seems like he never wants to be on camera again, and the way Jessel sneers at him, I don't blame him. She is deeply ashamed of him for some reason.

Edited August 16, 2023 by Cat

[GLATWT88]

I'm not a Jessel fan and I'm not getting the hype over on Twitter either. I see the insecurity from a mile away - it's in her weird marriage situation to a guy she definitely feels is beneath her. I think in her mind she should have done better but in reality that was what she could get. She treats him horribly and you can't tell me 2 years of no sex is normal in a relationship and that she has other friends that think that's okay. There is some other problems there. Her reaction to Jenna's gift sucked. Was it ugly? Yes. But it brought out her own insecurities...instead of owning it and playing with it...you can tell from her whole demeanor, her frumpy walk, her attitude and what she was saying that she was so uncomfortable in how she looked. 

Also, did she go to the Dorit school of accents. Her accent is neither here nor there. I can understand that accents evolve over time, but for the most part they're pretty fixed after puberty unless you are forcibly trying to make some drastic changes. 

[Cat]

I think her family came from South Africa, but she grew up in Britain. Then she headed to the US to work in FASHUN. And she's been here ever since so her accent is a mix. Happens to a lot of ex-pats.

Totally agree with you assessment of Jessel on the show. She feels like she married beneath her and she can't stand it. She's looking to parachute out and trade up, but she's probably scared about going it alone with two twin toddlers.

[GLATWT88]

I think she's great for the show. I'm just not sure if these accounts stanning for her are actually condoning her weird/sometimes rude behavior or if they're saying she's great for TV. 

I'm curious as to her age when she moved. I worked abroad for a few years and just moved back and a great number of my colleagues were from South Africa. We were a good mix of accents - the only one that really struck me was a British woman who had worked abroad many years and her accent was Americanized but there was a uniqueness to it that didn't quite fit. Everyone else regardless of time abroad seemed to retain their national accent - I do know that some adults can experience a bit of a change after many years but usually very subtle. 

[Cat]

I think in the first episode she implied it was after university. So she's been in the US around two decades? I'm guessing. 

I've lived in the UK for a longtime and managed a Mid-Atlantic accent bordering on the British side. It's probably watching so many US shows that keeps my US cadences alive! Meanwhile, my mom is French but has lived in the US or UK all her married life, and she still has ze strong Parisian accent.

[kalbir]

Larsa Pippen and Marcus Jordan Spark Engagement Rumors — See the Ring (people.com)

I'm sure Michael Jordan has an army of lawyers working overtime right now.

[Soaplovers]

RHONY:

I liked the individual scenes better than the gathering.

We got a look into the marital dynamics of Erin, Sai, and Jessel..while seeing a bit more into Jenna's professional life.  More of this please.

Brynn is the friend you keep away from your significant other only because they don't respect boundaries.  I had a friend that I said if I ever dated someone seriously I wouldn't ever introduced them to one another because this friend didn't respect boundaries (and we're no longer friends).

Jessel is a combination of Alex/Ramona...while Erin is so Jill (holds grudges, takes things personally)...though I don't recall if Jill ever starved anyone at one of her gatherings or not.

Lastly..if Erin is hosting an event..you pre game or sneak in snacks since the girl loves to starve everyone.  At least Jessel had food at her gathering last week.

[Cheap21]

Jessel doesnt like her husband and I can see a divorce by the end of next season. People will get in his ear and rghtfully so bc the way she disrespects him on camera to his face and others is appalling

[DaytimeFan]

Agreed. The word is that Jessel rented her apartment for the show, which is why she had no idea about Tribeca.

[Antoyne]

Atlanta is only getting a 2 part reunion. Thank god. 

[Gray Bunny]

And here I thought they'd drag out the Drew post-filming divorce drama... which I'm sure they do.  It means so much of everything else is a dud. Glad to know it'll be a tighter reunion.