[S02:E20: Memorial Meltdown]

6 hours ago, funnygirl said:

No one was speculating Meredith's father's death. They were speculating the timing of the memorial. There is a difference. And with Meredith giving two of the women different days/times of said memorial, and her conveniently not being on the bus when authorities came for Jen, yeah... it's worth questioning. 

Meredith overreacting and refusing to answer makes her look like she's lying. 

"Conveniently not being on the bus." What?! No matter what date she gave, she wouldn't have been there. Why would Meredith go from Aspen back to Salt Lake City for a 7 hour bus ride to Vail when Aspen to Vail is about 2 hours? She was never going to ride the bus. Making a big deal about the date was nonsense. Also, colloquial speech is that the whole time you're gone for an event is considered the event. If I go to a friend's wedding, my whole time there, I'm there for my friend's wedding, not just the hours I'm at the venue. 

Also, Heather's father worked for the FBI for 20 years. How do we know that she didn't report Jen? Why else would she stick by Jen's side after being called an ogre, a manatee, Shrek and Jen getting physical? It's convenient that the authorities arrived at Beauty Lab. One could just as easily say that Heather has been helping to drive the narrative that Meredith avoided a sprinter van ride and lied about the memorial in order to place herself above suspicion. Who knows what G-Man contacts she has!

[S11.E16: Threats and Promises]

3 hours ago, Straycat80 said:

Yeah, Erika is scrolling The New York Times to see what trouble she’s in now. Rude thing to do, be on your phone at a cultural dinner . 

 

3 hours ago, FlyingEgret said:

NY Times? Why would she be reading that as I doubt her Instagram photos are published there...

Given the state of affairs, I doubt she can afford the paywall. Lol.

[S10.E19: Reunion (Part 3)]

49 minutes ago, LibertarianSlut said:

Lisa Rinna and “the Husband”

It’s simply not true that Lisa Rinna wouldn’t allow Kim to speak about Harry Hamlin.  At the restaurant in Amsterdam, yes, LisaR broke a glass and went for Kim’s throat.  Yes, after filming wrapped, LisaR texted Kim that Kim had better be careful or LisaR was going to “fuck [her] up.”  That was all stuff LisaR had to answer for.  But at the season five reunion, this fact is often ignored—everyone—with the possible exception of Brandi, who was Kim’s wingman, including Yolanda, including LisaR, urged Kim to divulge what she meant in reference to “the husband.”  Everyone said that if Kim was going to put something nefarious out there, that LisaR deserved to know, so that she could defend against it.  They were literally begging Kim to say it—Andy, LisaR, with her famously disgusting rhetoric of “Did Harry fuck the dog?” and Kim wouldn’t comply.  It went on for a long time and eventually they just had to move on.  

The fundamental difference is that the accusations were brought directly to Rinna in the first place. As we saw play out this season, Kyle brought Brandi into her home to lay out the accusations of a sexual affair without being directly confronted about them. She was free to tell her story unopposed and uninterrupted. Brandi was hauled out again at Teddi's, a woman who she is not friends with, baby shower to show text messages and any material she had about the alleged affair.

It also stretches credulity that "it's simply not true" that Rinna wouldn't allow Kim to speak about Harry when at the time she lunged for her throat and broke a glass in her face in a rage. That and the text can't just be ignored. And in the end, Rinna didn't have to defend against any rumor, because nothing was ever said.

The rumor about Denise and Brandi was laundered by Kyle to the show outside of Denise's presence.

An additional difference, which has no bearing on your post, is why were Denise's affairs the only main storyline? They really have nothing to do with what everyone else has going on. We saw in Atlanta and we're currently seeing in Potomac that cheating rumors can exist among the cast and not swallow the whole season. They can also be brought directly to the person "in private" on camera without the rest of the group present.

 

[S10.E19: Reunion (Part 3)]

The most telling portion for me was when Andy mentioned Lisa's hypocrisy regarding the Harry Hamlin situation. Lisa claimed to have handled it by nearly choking out Kim and breaking a glass in her face. That is nowhere near handling it and goes to show what an incredibly brazen hypocrite Rinna is. We never heard the rumor about Harry and she wasn't constantly asked about whatever the rumor was. And I somehow doubt if Denise lunged at Brandi or Teddi she or the rest of the ladies would have taken it as evidence of truthfulness. Please.

Also, it calls back to how the rumor was brought up. Kyle invited Brandi into her home to spread a rumor without Denise there to combat or refute it in any way. This was not the same with Rinna and Kim. Rinna was there to cut it off immediately. Denise isn't the one to do it, but I wish she had been savvy enough to lay out these facts. 

It's telling because it shows the disregard for anything resembling the truth. 

I had to laugh at Teddi talking about supporting other women. New York Magazine and the resulting fallout, however, will show her to be living in a glass house. 

I said in the last episode that I would share my final thoughts on the Denise-Brandi debacle. I believe Denise and Brandi had some sort of dalliance. I do not believe Denise and Brandi were intimate friends that saw one another constantly. And I firmly believe it's none of the other ladies' business. As the Hamlin thing proved, "we're on a TV show and we discuss things" is no excuse. It was dropped immediately then.

Lastly, Lisa Rinna's only friend is the Bravo cameras.

[S10.E18: Reunion (Part 2)]

I'm sick of the Brandi-Denise thing. And I believe they did hook up.  I'm just so tired. I'll save all my thoughts for the conclusion when they inevitably talk about it for another half hour.

What bothered me particularly tonight was the Garcelle-Rinna thing over her IG dancing. Bravo released additional footage of that conversation and it's clear that Garcelle was being reflective because her own son had problems with addiction since (I believe she said) the fifth grade. She was talking about how she was essentially self-absorbed as a parent and probably missed the signs and wondering if Rinna's dancing was a trigger or self-absorbed behavior she missed. That being the context and Rinna and Teddi, who insisted on putting in her two cents, having been present for that context just makes it clear that Rinna setting up that scene with her daughter to talk about Garcelle was nasty in its intent and continuing to frame it as some nasty dig on Garcelle's part is further proof of nasty intent. Still, it was incumbent on Garcelle to mention that during the reunion and she didn't, so whatever. She just didn't care. Good for her. 

Kyle can give but she can't take. And they don't even give that much on this franchise. Ziwe said it best: if you're upset about Dorit saying you're unprepared for your fashion show, maybe don't be unprepared. 

[S10.E17: Reunion Part I]

19 hours ago, Anne Thrax said:

I don't understand injecting race into the issue.  Kyle obviously has the facts that one of her cast mates made a pledge at her charity event that had not yet been honored.  I doubt Kyle has anything to do with collecting the pledges made that day, and probably just saw it as a name on a list.  As we saw, Garcelle wasn't really sure whether or not she had paid and said she sent an email to her business manager to find out.

I'm not "injecting" anything, and as a matter of fact, neither is Kyle. Not purposely anyway. I just exist in a reality where comments have more deleterious effects on some races than others. I won't go into real world examples, because thats not what these forums are about, but there is another franchise that's illustrative. In season one of RHOA when Kim did not attend DeShawn's sunset BBQ, in her talking head she said, "I didn't want to go over there with them and eat chicken." It seems an innocent enough comment and the dislike between her and other attendees was mutual, but because of American history the comment reads terribly, and Nene called it out at the Reunion.

Also, Kyle's IG comment (as well as Lisa Rinna's) confirm how underhanded her intent was by implying she didn't have the money and that she was fronting for the cameras. Kyle has now claimed everyone else paid that night, only Garcelle had not, and from what we saw from the reunion she mentioned nothing about any other attempts to reach out. Kyle wanted it to look like Garcelle bilked her. This for me is what sticks in my craw, attempting to make it look like Garcelle was fleecing her and the charity for the sake of the cameras goes beyond just embarrassing her for non-payment. We can see the difference in how Kenya and Nene and the $20k donation thing (which someone mentioned upthread) played out. 

[S10.E17: Reunion Part I]

31 minutes ago, LibertarianSlut said:

If the implication is that Kyle should sit quiet because of her own race and the race of her cast member, respectively, I don’t know from that world.  Let the accusation stand or fail on its merits.  

The implication is quite the opposite. Kyle should have spoken up in the 8-9 months between the event and the reunion.

[S10.E17: Reunion Part I]

15 minutes ago, LibertarianSlut said:

I don’t think it’s below the belt for Kyle to say Garcelle never made a payment on her bid.  I thought the idea was to ‘mention it all.’

The event was months ago. Why wait for the reunion to air it out for the first time? You didn't reach out privately in the interim to make sure the charity received the funds promised? Telling the audience the Black cast member doesn't pay her bills doesn't sit right. And I'm sure other Black viewers caught that. She wanted to weaponize that information to get back at Garcelle for not saying she was welcoming and every other slight during the season.

--

Teddi revealed the whole game. She said something to the effect of "She made us look like assholes." And that's it. They have been carrying out this plan and constantly repeating and bringing up the Brandi story because they thought she made them look bad. They turned what was a forgettable moment about bawdy conversation in front of children into some grand affront. They are ridiculous and at this point a bit loathsome. 

Erika is fighting for that diamond. She was utterly forgettable and now she has too much dip on her chip at this reunion. She's turned all the way up over nothing.

I believe the word Rinna is looking for is gasbag. Indeed, she is full of hot air. 

[S10.E16: Denise and Desist]

I have to say this breaking the fourth wall and seeing what was happening after the cameras turned off… did absolutely nothing to change my opinion about the events. I always thought Brandi and Denise canoodled, so that never mattered to me. What mattered to me was how it was weaponized.

I can’t give an exact reason why it was weaponized, many on these forums in previous weeks believed it was to get back at Denise for “mom shaming.” In any event, it’s clear to me that this was brought to camera by Kyle via Kim & Brandi. It’s no coincidence that every time Kim brought a plus one to a non-Kyle event it was Brandi. It’s a setup to create a confrontation with Denise and make a moment. Denise didn’t show up, denying Kyle, the producers, Brandi and me (I love drama!) this opportunity.

I could be more upset with Denise if I didn’t know this show was not reality, but reality-constructed. We know the ladies don’t talk about certain things on camera, it’s not no holds barred, but for some reason this topic needed to be hashed out. Why?

[S10.E12: Roman Rumors]

21 minutes ago, eleanorofaquitaine said:

True but multiple people confirming that they heard the same rumor is one indication that said rumor could be true. I am afraid I legitimately don't see how Sutton repeating the rumor on camera is somehow "better" than Teddi repeating the same rumor. And indeed, I believe Sutton's confirmation leads more credence to it, which contributes to undermining Denise. 

She didn't say that Denise's alleged words are causing her anxiety. She said that the situation - including the fact that this was all out on camera - was causing her anxiety. 

The difference is intent. Sutton said she heard the rumor as a way to be dismissive, as if she hears rumors about other people all the time, which I'm sure they all do about one another. Teddi, on the other hand, broke bread with Brandi to be party to the rumor on camera, and then in an effort to confront Denise about her trash talking, repeated the rumor in front of everyone. Keep in mind, the dinner is the second time Teddi has shared the rumor in the episode. Sutton did not share it to move her storyline forward. Whether Teddi was anxious or felt guilty about the information or not, it does that for her. 

[S10.E12: Roman Rumors]

I believe Denise slept with Brandi. But as Sutton pointed out, I don't think Teddi or Kyle truly had some great issue with that, but only wished to weaponize the rumors against Denise. The talk last week was absolutely a set up, of that I am now sure. I also think Brandi's self-victimization is a commode full. 

[S05.E07: Stand-Up Smackdown]

As if it wasn't clear, I am Team Shea, but I wouldn't be disappointed if Jujubee won. I will say, however, that Shea being the only queen to win a lip-sync this season outright and unequivocally (that tie was ridiculous and 'Fancy' was a damn mess) is a big point in her favor for me. 

[S05.E07: Stand-Up Smackdown]

I hate when there's a clear incongruity with what was probably said in the brief for the girls to pack and what the category is named on the runway. It was abundantly clear to me that they were probably told Rave and it was generalized to "Freak Out." Freak is so incredibly general that there's no chance that three of them thought of 90s raver/Club Kids/Candy Kids and one Goth Raver. I just have a hard time believing none of them thought of horror or fetish or grunge Goth.

Regarding the talk about roses, I haven't found it off-putting or alienating as someone others have mentioned. I can't imagine losing a reality competition program after a relatively dominating performance because of a format change and some rose petals and then, THEN, having rose petals thrown at me from city to city to city as a way to get a rise or a laugh. Combine that with the trauma of a dad and sister passing from cancer around that time and it's a lot to go through. She's clearly not past it and she'll work it out in her own time.

[S10.E10: Black Ties and White Lies]

30 minutes ago, princelina said:

Who can see all of this on facebook and tv.  I'm not going to fight about this as if we were Rinna and Denise 😄   It's okay for adults to disagree.  Someone needs to inform Rinna and Erika of that.

Respectfully, I find this a ridiculous standard. One can find any and everything on the internet, which I'm sure Denise's daughters and all their children have access to. Denise simply self-censors when she is around her daughters, like most reasonable adults do around children to some degree or another. All conversations are not no holds barred simply because one can find that conversation elsewhere. Absolutely everyone self-censors according to venue, audience, relevance every time they speak. In my opinion, they're fighting for the right to talk how they wish in front of Denise's daughters not because of some wish to expose hypocrisy, but because they don't value her children because of who their father is, and their own embarrassment at being called out and need for a storyline.

[S05.E06: The Charles Family Backyard Ball]

Didn't know whether this belonged here or in the media thread since it's a post-race interview, but what I want to mention is related to this episode. Mainly, India is a bold-faced liar. She poisoned the well for Alexis and then left nuggets in the form of letters to make sure the poison took effect. I just have to laugh because because this is the epitome of stunt queen. There's a line from Paris is Burning that talks about stunts and how a stunt will be pulled and you won't find out for years later. Very that. The relevant portion:

Quote

In this last episode you said Alexis campaigned for you to vote off Shea when she was in the bottom 3, is this true or was it game play? 

It was honestly the truth. However, it wasn’t so much of an alliance, but rather Alexis and Mayhem came to me to see if I voted Shea off.

 

To be clear, was it before or after you already voted?

It was after I voted. 

Blair should have been sent packing. 

[S05.E03: Get a Room!]

I hated the challenge. It was ill-conceived when they did the clubs last year, and it remains half-baked. The goal is to always make RuPaul laugh, I understand that, but it doesn't appear there's hardly any weight on the aesthetics of the rooms when it comes to the judging. If the goal is to just be funny and come up with goofy concepts, they can do this challenge in front of a green screen, why actually have them decorate?

And it wasn't lost on me that the winning team basically reconceived Club 96 in style (luxurious vapidity) and the way they performed (the whispering). Also, Ross made a Club 96 joke during the judging introductions. Just as I thought last year, Club 96 was the most memorable and funny, but then the judges were impressed with the aesthetics of whatever the bee themed room was. I had to roll my eyes. 

[S10.E08: Mind Your P's and BBQ's]

29 minutes ago, ParadoxLost said:

Rinna clearly knows exactly what Denise's daughter thought about what she and her friends overheard at dinner and exactly what she said to Denise about it.  That is twice tht she brought it up and it is too exact this second time to be guessing.

The only question is how she knows....producers.... called Denise's kids herself... sent her kids to do it and report back....

Agreed. Rinna definitely knows something, but isn't saying it directly, likely because of how she found out what Sammie said. That said, it doesn't matter what Sammie said to Denise, it doesn't matter whether she laughed, was disgusted, was disturbed — Denise didn't want her daughter hearing those conversations in her home around her. 

I don't understand why they're beating this dead horse, they've beaten it into glue at this point. 

[S12.E13: Alone Together]

Did anyone think Ru had on that facekini because he had a little nip, tuck and pluck? I got a very post surgery face compression mask vibe from it. And Ru loves plastic surgery (remember the show Good Work?).

He's normally male Ru for the reunion anyway, so why not just wear a nice pair of pajamas and put a little concealer under the eyes?

[The Naughty Hamptons: Summer House In The Media]

On 5/1/2020 at 11:46 AM, RedDelicious said:

You are NOT!! Were you in your mid-20s around that time? I was - I remember when Lizzie Grubman hit the gas when the car was still in reverse and a few years later Tinsley and her Samantha Thavasa bags. 

I might be thinking of Single in the Hamptons and maybe one or two of the people were in a share house. I remember trying to watch it and being not really that into it. But there were definitely hookups and craziness but they were people who were a lot more established with real jobs and came from real money, not this social media influencer clown nonsense. I would love to watch that now.

Not to be elitist or anything, but everyone on Summer House comes from a solidly middle class background and they are enjoying the spoils of fast money and a production budget. I remember from S1 that Kyle, the Wirkus twins and a bunch of other people had been renting a share house for several years before they got the show. I wonder what the house situation looked like before they had Bravo. 

Also why don't they EVER go to the beach??

Just want to pop in and add some clarity, hopefully? On ABC was the Barbara Kopple documentary The Hamptons, while on WE TV debuting the same year was realty-tv series Single In the Hamptons (which went on to have a second season).

Reality TV was a different beast back then and wasn't so produced, so I can understand how the two can fold into one another. Modern reality tv, on the other hand, is easily distinguishable from a documentary. Single in the Hamptons was more like MTV's True Life in style, more about trying to see the action happen organically and where things go instead of create it whole cloth.

[S10.E01: The Crown Isn't So Heavy]

I really enjoyed this episode. It really let me know what deadweight LVP was and how much she was dragging down the cast with her lack of participation and inability to accept responsibility when she's caught out manipulating behind the scenes and playing semantic games. Hearing about texts, and off-camera conversations for three seasons has been exhausting. I want to see it on my TV. 

I'm happy we've found a new "villain" in Denise. This will be much more salacious and delicious. 

Sutton is the worst type of snob, one without knowledge or taste. She attends fashion weeks worldwide annually, but is unaware that FENTY is not a collaboration, but a label under the LVMH luxury group? And when is the last time Dolce & Gabbana designed something interesting? Something that doesn't rely on Catholic ceremony? They've beat the dead horse into glue at this point. 

I really like Garcelle, she brings a freshness to this group.

Kyle made a series of kimonos, shawls and muumuus. Cute-ish resortwear, but Asa from Shahs of Sunset has already done it at a better price point.

Wow, this was a bitchy post, must mean I'm excited for the season. 

[S07.E09: Fantasies and Firsts]

I think my theory from weeks ago regarding Amber's style has been increasingly validated as the series has continued. Her style is stuck in the early-00s because that's when she felt the most beautiful and most secure. Dave reacting adversely to her looks is a powerful slight precisely because she is stuck at what she believes to be her best. That said, I still believe Dave to be a drip who only wanted to get married because that's what all his friends in his circle have done and he was shit out of luck doing it on his own.

Mia's sister is way too far in Tristan and Mia's marital business for my liking. I would have had to check her. The discussion about where we live or will live or will do has nothing to do with you and everything to do with myself and Mia, we were informing you, not inviting you to give your opinion, we weren't workshopping this. How dare you get huffy with me about a discussion of our business. You have no say so.

That really irked me, can you tell? Add to that Mia's history and the thought of someone coming at me sends me over. 

[S07.E06: Too Close for Comfort]

11 hours ago, Yeah No said:

12 hours ago, sasha206 said:

I'm not buying that Dave likes women.  

OMG you and I think alike!  I just had the same thought earlier.  Like what if that's the reason he's so into his "bros", and the one that Amber dated was one of his former interests?  That would explain why he was so upset to hear that she dated the guy.  Plus my gaydar is picking up something.  He could be bisexual or even metrosexual (and a lot of younger men are certainly the latter), but I still wonder about him.

I was talking to my friend about the episode (we analyze everything like we're FBI profilers) and she said the same thing! I disagreed. To me, Dave's body comes off as if he's a former overweight individual and he lost the weight in late high school/early college a result of losing that weight and being more fit was meeting his group of bros and because he didn't get to live that "cool jock" "popular kids" in his adolescence, he continues to live that out through said bros and this manifests in interesting (and for me creepy ways) like his wall of bros in the entryway. I don't see gay, just arrested development. I'm willing, however, to hear more evidence. 

Regarding Danielle and Bobby, not a penny of the stipend should go to her debt. Now maybe I'm just a broke bitch, but how is it that one can get enough credit to eat, pray, love around the world? She needs to learn some discipline and pay it off herself. I don't know what she has done to her lashes (I assume extensions) but she needs to go down to the local beauty supply, buy a 5 pack of Ardell Whispies and call it a day. 

That said, I do think it's a bit unfair for the person whose living space they choose to reside to just basically have their bills paid for two months if the relationship doesn't work out. I'm an advocate for getting a new neutral place anyway. Seeing one's space entered and invaded and changed is much more likely to cause conflict in relationships this fresh. That's good for my viewing pleasure, but not for the relationship. Now I'll contradict myself and say I'd never move out of a place I owned for a relationship this fresh, that's crazy talk.  

[S07.E05: Trouble in Paradise]

I'd been trying to figure out what was wrong with Dave. (I think everyone that agrees to this show has some fundamental flaw and I try suss out what it is.) He seems to have a stable well-paying career, what looked to be a solid group of friends who were married and is good looking enough, just enough. Tonight, it finally clicked. He not only appears to be highly irritable (dancing and when they packed on their way to the honeymoon), he comes across as an escape artist. By that I mean someone always looking for an out in a relationship. He's already named multiple instances where he would have skedaddled. To be fair, one of those instances is a potential spouse lying about why they have warrants out for their arrest, but even so, he seems intent on finding an escape route.  "She's been with a friend of mine." " She's not religious." He's on this show to try to get around his usual escapes (whether this was a conscious or subconscious thing, who knows) and see if someone can endure his irritability.

[S07.E01: Here Comes a Stranger/I Don't Even Know His Name]

I just need to get Amber's makeover in my head off of my chest. If she insists on blonde she needs a darker one and needs to keep up with colorist appointments to make sure her roots are the same color. The platinum blonde ages her. I'd also suggest cutting it to her shoulders and not teasing it at the roots so much, It looks wispy and dry. And the extensions are a no, especially extensions that are not blended with the rest of your hair. I could see each piece and where it was clipped in like it was 2002. Working my way down, I want her to use a beige liner on her water line to open up her eyes a bit more and use a bronze liner for her eyes and assert her youth. The colors she uses are too dark and age her. Then I'd suggest a squared oval or an almond nail with an ombre french manicure (I'm trying to compromise, I would avoid the french manicure all together). The square nails and the regular french manicure are again a remnant of the late 90s/early 00s. 

I know I seem to be going in on her and reading her down, but style cues tell me a lot. All the early 2000s remnants give me the impression that she may think her best years were her early 20s. Many people think that, so it's not unusual, but to think that and remain stuck in that style gives me pause. It also reminds me that Amber states that she keeps dating Dallas douchebags and that dynamic strikes me as something very early 20s, when most of us flock to them. 

[Reinstalling Tyra Banks As The Host Of America's Next Top Model Is A Big Mistake]

On 3/17/2017 at 1:17 PM, annewithaneee said:

I basically hated this season of ANTM, but bringing back Tyra is not the fix. I think in general the modeling industry has kinda killed the spirit of the show for me -- it's not like it's ever turned out the next big thing, but the show debuted in sort of a transitional period where the era of the supermodel was definitely over, but models were still being "discovered". Print media was still thriving, the go-see challenges felt more authentic to how most future It Girls would be doing their hustle. Now, we're in the era of Jenners and Hadids and Insta-famous bullshit.

I mostly share these sentiments. I found the season incredibly boring and mostly awful. The lack of go-sees after the first or second episode, the lack of overseas travel, the weak concepts and even weaker styling on photoshoots, the numerous video challenges, the lack of range in types of shoots, these were all problems that bringing Tyra back won't necessarily fix. I use necessarily, because I'm hoping that since they had enough money to make Tyra happy, they increased the budget as well.  Even so, Tyra, for all her faults, made a lower budget work in Cycles 1 & 2 to much better effect than the mess that was this season. 

At its core, the industry is made up of more models who aren't "super" than are, and that's always been the case. I believe the show, if they took it as seriously as the Korean and Australian franchises do, can still achieve the ends of finding a well booked working model. In fact, I think this franchise is well positioned for living in an age of the insta-famous. They just need to find a girl who is unquestionably a model and push her after the season wraps.

I think a casting director or an agent from wherever the winner would sign with needs to be on the panel, that would help more than having Tyra back. But if they aren't serious about the modeling portion, then I at least welcome Tyra's entertaining antics.