Bravo's The Real Housewives of....

[FrenchBug82]

I think generally speaking fans welcoming longtime members of a cast leaving - because they are tired of them or because they did something that pissed them off - is almost always short-sighted.

And I say that as someone who couldn't take anymore of Nene's behavior.
But as I said earlier in this thread, generally speaking, for the shows to work and for the behavior of these women to feel tolerable, there needs to be a connection between them and us and familiarity is definitely a solid way to establish that. When you have followed someone's life for a decade, their low points are still going to be more interesting than a complete stranger's high points.

[Taoboi]

BH

 

Ooooo...'Kitten' (versus Peeking Tom which she didn't like as a nickname) got claws!!!

 

This week's episode was only really good for two (okay three) things.

 

Firstly, one really has to go faaarrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr back I feel to get this much day-to-day. I mean...next week we get Ex Soap Opera Star having a dinner at her house. WHEN was the last time she's done that? JS. 

 

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But seriously, other than that C Character thinking anyone is falling for Production editing her as the victim, I liked all of the day-to-day we saw. I was surprisingly not bored with it at all. But a part of me couldn't help but ask...are we getting these family scenes now...these BFF 4EVA AND 4EVA scenes...to deflect from Erika's lawsuit.

 

And that brings me to SECONDLY, it's the mystery of it all now really. I'm going to echo what I've been saying...when does the mystery of it starts? Cuz again, right now it feels like Production is trying its best on one hand to hide Erika's drama...well mask it really...while at the same time being sure to show anything that the judge can use against her later in court. Right now, It is Erika as Victim and Divorcing. I would even to go so far as to say if it wasn't for the fact that Kathy was the one to bring up Doorgate again rather than Kyle, I would say Production was using the growing Crystal/Sutton feud to mask Erika's drama. Cuz right now, Sutton has been nothing, but a good friend to Erika and cheering her up...just like she's been a good friend to Garcelle. Perhaps Production (and Crystal who clearly has Sherri O' Terrichamp whispering in her ear) thought they could use Sutton to mask away Erika's drama cuz she's the weak link. BOY DID SHE PROVE THEM WRONG!!! LOL. Since it did not work, the other ladies had no choice (?) but to gang up on Crystal. What a twist. In any case, I have to admit that the mystery of it all right now is what is keeping me tuned in. The intrigue of it all if you will.

 

LASTLY, DRRRRRAGGGGGG HER, SUTTON!!!! DRAG...HER!!!!  Now THAT was worth the wait!!!! I hoped after last week that Sutton was going to drag Crystal and I was not at all disappointed. And that condescending tone Crystal was having? NO, Ma'am!!! And then trying to give the defintion of violated...one) wrong franchise  2)rehearsed and 3) you really should have started those sentences with 'i feel...' Is it any wonder Sutton felt like she was being attacked again. If anything, Sutton showed how well she has picked up on the game on this show, and what did I say about her and her diamond? I found the ladies' look pre-drag to be telling. And as @DaytimeFan and I totally agree, it was interesting how they changed their tune once Sutton started dragging Crystal (with an assist from Garcelle and Dorit). Even Erika was defending Sutton. Very telling. Sutton knows after last season, these girls are not afraid to gang up on someone and keep an issue going so loved she flipped the script. 

 

And next week (cuz I found the editing suspect) she is going to try again? REALLY? Can we get to the GOOD stuff?

 

KYLE. Was pretty cool this week if I'm being honest. I liked her family scenes. And look at Portia and how she's grown!!! And her with Kathy is becoming a constant hoot.

 

DORIT. THANK YOU!!! It is nice to see someone NOT have selective amnesia in this group. I loved she held Crystal's feet to the fire. And I assume the work she and PK mentioned is a set-up for PK and Mo's show over in the UK? At least she can hustle.

 

GARCELLE. THAT'S RIGHT, GIRL!!! DEFEND YOUR BFF!!! As a friend SHOULD!!! Crystal can keep that word all she wants, but that does not mean Sutton needs to have her rep tarnished either. And I continue to like the light shade she throws at Kyle. And just her life in general.

 

ERIKA. GIRL, GIRL, GIRL...I look at you acting and I think...

Quit.

 

EX SOAP OPERA STAR. Doing a much better job than Erika is doing tbh. Cuz we know she welcomes her daughter hooking up with someone connected to Kris Jenner. I thought it was in poor taste to even mention how everyone will forget about her daughter's eating disorder due to the potential juicy gossip/scandal. Should I assume she will use that to deflect from Erika's problem, too? Just smh. 

 

SUTTON. 

Sutton was not having it and I...WAS...LIVING!!!! I'm over it, too, Sutton. If she is going to attack you when you have receipts, witnesses, and audience respect, girl better come much better, bae. No, she deserves that dragging. And if it is done, IT...IS...DONE. PERIOD. And no little side comments under the breath either. Other than that, knowing what's coming, it was nice to see Sutton being as good a friend to Erika as she is to Garcelle.

 

CRYSTAL. 

For all of Sutton's flaws, Girl ain't no better either. And as a true bitca named Kenya Moore has said...NOT THE REHEARSED READ!!!! GIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIRLLLLLLLL, QUIT!!! At this point, Crystal is just embrassing herself. And apparently leather pants. 

 

KATHY. LOVE. 

 

 

 

They really are going to (though I liked NJ's last season other than Reunion Part 2).

 

I haven't watched NY yet (hopefully tonight) but I loved her clip so far. 

[Cat]

 

Indeed. Jill Zarin and Kelly Bensimon leaving RHONY after S4 was long overdue -- viewers kind of wanted them gone after S3 but Bravo made the right decision to keep them on for S4 so that viewers (and the network) could be sure.

 

I remember after the RHONY reunion last year, they announced immediately that Dorinda was gone and it was such a shock. I believe that she did not want to go. We also forget that 9 months-to-a-year is a long time. In May 2020, we may have wanted her off our screen but by March 2021 we are starting to look forward to seeing her and the show again. That viewing break is important because it allows us to miss members of the cast. And a well-done trailer whets our appetite all over again.

 

I honestly could have done with seeing Dorinda come to terms with big changes, and her drinking, her anger management, her widowhood, her broke-down relationship with many of the other women. We missed a chance seeing her with a new man and a new outlook during the pandemic (judging by her Instagram). She also reconnected with Bethenny and with Carole during her off-time.

 

Having said all that... I don't really have anything to add about this week's RHONY episode beyond what you all mentioned here (which in of itself may not be a great sign). IA with @DaytimeFan in particular about production's positioning of Eboni on the canvas (perhaps to her detriment), and about how losing Dorinda really hurt the show. Again, that was a network (and not rabid viewers wanting her gone) decision.

Edited July 2, 2021 by Cat

[alwaysAMC]

 

NY was on Thursday night last season, just before Top Chef.  With the exception of Sunday night, which always belongs to Atlanta, Potomac, M2M and Shahs, all the other shows switch their nights up every other season or so.

 

If you look at all Bravo shows, all ratings are down proportionally.  I don't think NYC has anything to worry about here.

[Taoboi]

Same.

 

 

[Faulkner]

I love Dorinda, but I totally get why she was sidelined for a season. She was so gratuitously vicious to Tinsley for reasons no one really understood at the time (it’s one thing to disdain someone, but it’s a whole other thing to take out a flamethrower to kill a gnat). Plus, even after Tinsley left, she seemed like she was spiraling, and on social media, she often doubled down on her bad behavior. For me, I was like, take a year, get your [!@#$%^&*] together, address your lingering grief away from the cameras a bit, and come back triumphant.
 

Even though I love her and hope she’ll return in 2022, I’d be ok with Dorinda’s absence if this season wasn’t so padded and poorly paced, which it is.
 

They did need to bring back someone, which they attempted with Heather (unsuccessfully).

[Liberty City]

 

The Real Housewives of New York City originally aired on Tuesdays, so I guess it currently airing on Tuesdays is a return-to-form for the franchise.

But it back switching to Thursdays last year was such a mistake, in my opinion. The Thursday night competition is rough in terms of network comparisons.

 

• Season one: Tuesdays
• Season two: Tuesdays
• Season three: Thursdays
• Season four: Thursdays
• Season five: Mondays
• Season six: Tuesdays
• Season seven: Tuesdays
• Season eight: Wednesdays
• Season nine: Wednesdays
• Season ten: Wednesdays
• Season eleven: Wednesdays
• Season twelve: Thursdays
• Season thirteen: Tuesdays

The Mondays for the fifth season was such a random switch up, if you ask me, and I felt they hit their niche on Wednesday nights. But, that's just me.

 

Dorinda got too mean, and I feel as if TPTB made her out to be the villain of the season, following Luann the season prior.

 

 

They do. I think why S12 worked well without Bethenny is because of Dorinda and what she brought to the table, setting up TPTB's agenda of making her the villain of the season.

This season there is no villain, and that is ultimately not entertaining, which is why I think Heather vs. Leah failed to resonate.

[Faulkner]

Leah *should* be a villain, but they are playing her like the heroine.

And Dorinda could be mean before, especially to Luann and Sonja, but we all know Luann has some sharp claws herself and has delusions of grandeur that lead her to treat people callously. And Sonja, while ultimately a good person, has some pulled some sh!t in her years on the show, especially with the press. Those seemed at least more justifiable. 
 

Tinsley was an innocent (at least on screen), which made Dorinda’s attacks on her more bewildering. Her situation with Scott, even if it was not completely above board, didn’t seem to warrant such nastiness.

 

Edited July 2, 2021 by Faulkner

[Liberty City]

 

I don't think TPTB are ready for Leah to be a villain, because I think they're wanting her to come back for a third season in 2022.

 

 

Sonja can stir some sh*t up. She really can. I'm glad she isn't this season, though, because she has been so enjoyable!

Luann got everything she deserved during the eleventh season. She did. And it felt great to watch.

 

 

Tinsley annoyed me playing the "I'm not with Scott, but I'm with Scott" card.
I get Dorinda's frustration... but, I think her drinking just pushed her more than it would have had she been sober.

[Soaplovers]

I'd keep Eboni for another season, I see some hints of someone that has a fun side.  

 

Leah, on the other hand, had such misguided reads on people.  Calling Heather a Karen (yet she's one herself)..and next weeks preview with her saying Ramona is what's wrong with the world (um...think she means herself).

 

Ramona has her faults...but she's honest to a fault..and quirky.  Leah and Eboni have fallen in line with praising Ramona off season..because they know she isn't going anywhere unless she opts to do leave.

 

She's the OG of NY.

[FrenchBug82]

Ding ding ding

Listen, Dorinda crossed the line once or twice and while she is a fave of mine, the edit she got showed her being very off-putting. I get it and I get why they felt she needed a break.

I do think fans were too quick to celebrate it because they were mad at her bad behavior. That proved short-sighted.

AND "(at least on screen") is super-important.

That they never showed or tried to explain Dorinda's behavior is evidence that either they were setting her up for a storyline OR whatever Tinsley did was not showable for reasons. Or they killed two birds with one stone (they couldn't explain what happened on screen for whatever reason and they figured that it would make Dorinda's behavior even more season-defining if unexplained). 
It is not a conspiracy I am sharing here: One can readily admit Dorinda's aggressiveness was offputting and still recognize that Dorinda is neither crazy nor stupid. Her anger had to come from somewhere deep enough to justify why it escaladed that way and whatever mundane things they "leaked" do not make sense. Blaming alcohol also does not explain why she relentlessly targeted Tinsley of all people. I will go to my grave thinking we were not given a huge piece of the puzzle.

In any case, I get why Dorinda was sidelined this season but I think she is missed and when we lose a long-time housewife, we lose more than whatever she did the last season she was on.

Edited July 2, 2021 by FrenchBug82

[Faulkner]

I think it’s good for Dorinda because now there’ll be actual clamoring for her return after this dreadful season.

 

We’ll see how the rest of the season plays out, but I’m curious what, if any, cuts will be made. 

 

It’s funny: so many of the Bravo franchises have hit the skids recently. Meanwhile Top Chef just pulled off one of its best seasons ever after becoming basically irrelevant. Very different format, of course (easier to pull off a cooking competition in a COVID bubble than a slice-of-life reality series), but just an interesting turn of events.

Edited July 2, 2021 by Faulkner

[Gray Bunny]

 

I started watching RHONY towards the end of their 4th season, and I could've sworn it was on Tuesdays that year (2011). 

 

I agree with those who have said Dorinda needed a season off to get her stuff together. She admitted the same. It sounded like a mutual split, with the invitation to return in a year. It's just too bad the timing was off since we had just unexpectedly lost Bethenny, then Tinsley mid-year. RHONY is in a tough spot with only 3 vets (the same trio who survived the purge of Season 5), 1 sophomore who is quickly crashing and burning out of favor with viewers, and 1 newbie who is here to tick a box that says, "look we're diverse now!" and then proceeds to take us to school every. single. episode. 

 

A big F***YOU to Leah for running Heather off. And her WWHL explanation on going on the trip solidified what we all thought: she thought it was more important to be present for filming a reality show than to be with her grandmother on her literal last days on earth. 

[Faulkner]

Something about fulfilling her duties or something, which was a big load of wank. She could have easily skipped that  pageant instead of acting a fool with Heather.

Oof, Jamal and Gizelle just went live on IG for like two seconds. Was super weird. Jamal was in some store fitting room or something and he videochatted Gizelle, who was in bed looking just as crazy…

[Taoboi]