Bravo's The Real Housewives of....

[FrenchBug82]

On the other hand, we started the season with everyone loving Eboni so I am holding off feeling anything until I see a lot of her.

[Faulkner]

Eboni just bangs that same note over and over and over… and over. It’s exhausting. Again, this is 7-8 episodes in. We’re approaching the midpoint of the season. And I blame Bravo.

Last summer, post-George Floyd, the Vanderpump Rules firings, and the overall cultural reckoning that was happening, it was clear that the zeitgeist wanted Ramona and the rest of these ladies to have a reckoning of their own. Enter Eboni, with her preachy elementary-school history lessons. They assumed the audience would be, Yaas queen! Black girl magic!  This current season would have played differently a year ago. But I think people now, post-pandemic, are just craving a messy fun season with some new faces.
 

Right now, Eboni feels like a killjoy. Should she have to bite her tongue if she feels abused or dismissed by these ignorant, sheltered white women? Absolutely not. But this isn’t good television. It’s repetitive and suffocating. (And when it’s not Eboni’s preaching, it’s Leah’s fake tears and “drunken” melodrama. Plus her dead-eyed sister Sarah.)
 

It speaks to the challenges of addressing difficult topics on reality TV. RHONY is doing a sh!t job of it right now. This is a series that has dealt with uncomfortable things like death (which ultimately led to the powerful episode of Dorinda and Carole in London) with a deft hand. Over time… Not all packed in few episodes.

 

I sense producers wanted Eboni and Bershan to compete for that black girl apple, which is very problematic in ways that they weren’t aware of. It’s performative wokeness.

 

That said, we’re seeing scenes, like with Luann and Victoria, that we should have seen earlier.

Edited June 30, 2021 by Faulkner

[Soaplovers]

Bershan needed to hold that apple...she seems fun.  She and Ramona would make a fun duo.

 

Eboni and Ramona conversation...i get where both are coming from.

[Cat]

In addition to Bershan on Wendy W yesterday, Sonja and Leah were on WWHL last night, and I've seen some clips (they are readily available on YouTube). Honestly, it was a fun, upbeat show, and I could listen to Sonja talk about her slightly embellished past all day long. Sonja is a social creature and natural born storyteller. If this had been on the last few episodes of RHONY itself, we would have definitely been feeling it. 

 

Sonja said she was pals with Ivana Trump (the ex, not the daughter), Joan Collins and Naomi Campbell. Bring 'em on the show, Sonja!

 

Leah waxed lyrical about how great Dolores Catania is, and I'm all about that life, so I was pleased, lol.

 

Haven't watched the actual RHONY episode yet but will later. I am looking forward to some NYC scenes and Bershan, but dreading the Eboni-forcing-a-political-convo-from-Ramona scene. I am not a fan of Ramona's politics (I am pretty sure I know where they lie), but I'm not sure she should be forced to discuss them in depth if she doesn't want to.

[Liberty City]

Eboni is a breath of fresh air... but she's beating a dead horse by trying to connect with Ramona on a level beyond base conversation. Ramona will never discuss politics. Not to mention, I genuinely don't believe Ramona wants to know anything beyond her group of 50 best [white] girlfriends. My feeling, in watching the episode, was that there was a cut between Eboni arriving and asking the politics question. I genuinely do, because I don't know why you'd lead off a sit down with that, unless there was more to it prior to going in.

 

Bershan I had hope for... but, I am completely on Eboni's side of this thing where Bershan's stance is. I get what she was saying about us being Americans, but blatantly coming off as ignorant in alluding to a more "All Lives Matter" stance is just... disheartening.  I guess we'll see what happens as the episodes go on.

 

I will admit: I am loving a sober Sonja, especially in her confessionals. She has not felt this alive and alert since her debut, and it is refreshing to see.

[Chris B]

 

I screamed when I heard Ashley’s tagline! I can’t wait for Potomac to return!

 

As for RHONY, this episode I felt was perfect and I enjoyed the potential that this group has. I’ll be honest, even Leah didn’t bother me. 
 

I enjoyed the Harlem night *because* it was a disaster. I didn’t find this too heavy to watch, but I could see why the women were confused and bored. They expected a fun and glam evening and it came off more like a college lecture. I enjoyed watching everybody tip toe around it in subsequent scenes, but ultimately let Eboni know how they felt so hopefully things can move forward. I’m keeping an open mind with her based on how tonight went. 
 

Next week looks GOOD!

 

 

Bershan is giving me Ramona/Dorinda with how outspoken she is. 

[Cat]

 

Ashley's and Karen's were the best! "The Grahhhhnde Dahhhhme can never be duplicated, imitated OR intimidated!" 

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It's almost as if Ashley peeped this thread last weekend when some of us were talking about her being a messy-ass.

 

And Thank You Jesus -- they finally retired "Word on the street" from Gizelle's tagline! (Now they need to retire anything related to "Beverly Hills is My Town" from Kyle's).

Edited June 30, 2021 by Cat

[Cheap21]

@Cat YES! Ashley and Karen for the win! "The only thing messier than two boys, is ME!" I LOVE how she owned it. Respect

[Taoboi]

YAAAAAAAAAASSSSSSSSSSSSSS ASHLEY!!!! LET THOSE HOES KNOW WHAT'S UP!!!!

 

AND YAAAAAAAAAAAAASSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS TO LA DAME GETTING LAST POINT AND CENTER!!!! And easily my favorite. 

 

I have to admit that I like Gizelle's though Kenya did it better.

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And Robyn has to be trolling fans at this point with that tagline.

 

Actually I like all of them. It is like everyone knows what's up. lol. Mia ain't here to play. Candiace ain't here to play. Wendy ain't here to play. Just...wow...this will be a great season. 

[Faulkner]

I hope so. Potomac’s gotta hold it down for the entire HW universe for me at this point. They’ve yet to disappoint me.

[Gray Bunny]

 

Yaass! I loved Karen's and Ashley's. Absolute perfection. (and +1 on retiring Kyle's "in Beverly Hills" "my town" blah blah basic boring shi*) 

[DaytimeFan]

RHOP

 

The taglines have raised my expectations for a truly sensational season. The chemistry is so fine with RHOP that I would resist changing that cast too much. Ashley is a mess and she seems to be embracing it. And of course La Grande Dame is will NOT be intimidated. 

 

RHONY

 

We're seeing with each episode that the producers had a narrative in mind with Eboni. As Wendy Williams said in that clip with Bershan, it's left Eboni being the producer's 'science experiment' about how to bring a woman of colour into an all white cast. It just comes across so heavy handed and I wonder how much is Eboni vs how much she was told to do by producers. That scene with Ramona was flat out nauseating as Eboni kept beating a dead horse when Ramona said she was not going to discuss politics. It seemed like producers wanted to bait Ramona and they were trying to use Eboni to do it. And Ramona is way too wily to get caught up in that. 

 

Otherwise, I remain loving Sonja this season. Luann's scene with Victoria was good because it acknowledged the elephant in the room about what Lu's drunken antics did to her kids. I liked Bershan's ballsiness and her discussion about her journey through cancer. Leah and her sister are flat out dull and unnecessary. 

 

All that said. Is this a good season? No. Do I blame Covid? Somewhat. Do I think they cut Dorinda loose way too quickly in hindsight? Absolutely. 

 

RHOBH

 

GO FOR IT, Sutton! Keep your stilettos on Crystal's neck! Do not let up! Do not give in! You could visibly see the cast turn on Crystal at that table when Dorit totally contradicted Crystal's bold faced lie. Props to Dorit, she sat there and told the truth, and you could see Rinna, Kyle, and Erika all pivot to trying to make this 'issue' go away. Crystal's face even betrayed that she knew she was losing this argument about being 'violated' and was quickly losing most support.  

 

Garcelle has been consistently in Sutton's corner and she's proven to be an excellent judge of character time and again. Her disdain of Kyle, and Kyle's dead fish, just had me rolling. RIP Kyle Beauvais. 

 

Erika keeps going for that Oscar with this week's performance. All that "You think I felt loved?"...delivered chillingly, but it rings hollow. Why? She openly admits Tom "funded [her]." I hope the lawyers were paying attention to that line. Erika admits that Tom funded her...and we now know he did that with other people's money. It's interesting the producers keep going back to that clip of Erika, Tom, Ken and LVP at dinner. When Tom was dissecting LVP, it seems to me that he knew she'd seen his type before and was not intimidated. 

 

Kathy remains an absolute hoot. She has a glamorous weariness to her. The Friend Of role is perfect for her.

 

 

[Faulkner]

Monique Samuels doing an IG chat with Tami Roman:

https://www.instagram.com/tv/CQy1IKfDK8e/?utm_medium=copy_link

[Liberty City]

 

It could also do with switching nights from Wednesdays to Tuesdays. RHONY is normally on Wednesday nights, but this season they're on Tuesdays. Ratings are down, but I'm not surprised by it.

[Antoyne]

It’s crazy by the end of last season I was fully onboard with Dorinda being gone but I think the one two punch of both her and Tinsley leaving was too much. We needed another longtime anchor and we almost had it with Heather, but Leah ruined that.

 

Kathy calling Dorit her English girl after forgetting her name was HILARIOUS.

 

Erika continues to annoy me.