pasdetrois

This should be PR's tagline. I think the majority of contestants view the show as a brief, rare chance to get their faces on TV and draw attention to their businesses. The prize money would be great, except after taxes it would all be gone after one design season. Not enough to sustain a business as it grows, just enough to pay some overdue bills or buy some supplies and PR. Good designers avoid the chance to be a contestant like the plague. They don't want to be a buffoon on TV.

I meant Rycroft. Sorry for any confusion.

Lea is an excellent dancer who knows she does not have the "DCC look." She stated this on camera, which breaks my heart. She asked for Kelli's approval of her new haircut after a practice. You can't perform at your best when you know the powers that be prefer long-haired blonde plastic bimbos who can dance and "shine." I don't think these women are bimbos, but some in the DCC organization do. I'm happy for the cheerleaders that they get turf time this year. More of Melissa Rycroft than, say, last year. Harbinger of things to come?

As someone who has known addicts and their excuses, my first thought upon reading Delilah's post was "addict." Already blaming others for her addiction.

At the start of the season, Aaron stated that he did the show to advance his brand. I think he knows he won't win but is marketing to wealthy Ladies Who Lunch.

I thought "Oh great he's being encouraged to follow in his mother's shallow, superficial footsteps." However I forgive him because of how sweet he is to his baby brother. I melt. As I watched I also wondered if the IRS still allows parents to hire their children but not pay income tax on their earnings (or something like that). I knew one family that got into trouble for taking advantage and pulling a scam.

Andre Leon Talley, with his lips firmly glued to Anna Wintour's behind, got away with voluminous robes and caftans for years. But I get your point. The burqa topic has come up in PR years past, or the modesty-clothing aesthetic. I'll refrain from repeating my thoughts. Elaine needs to go. She is essentially the new Karlie.

I thought this runway would be beautiful, and it wasn't. I wonder if the designers had to wait on their fabric before they could decide how to pattern or drape, and that slowed their process down. I loved the cooking robe's print. The rest of the prints were fairly ugly. Katie's aesthetic reminds me of Betsey Johnson. Production recruited her as camera fodder, because she's not ready for the pace or the process. On her own time she does interesting stuff. Loved Brandon's "southern girl" comments. We do love our big hair and bright makeup. We are fatally unhip. Gigi acted as if she had just escaped the clutches of her lunatic mother.

Another Erika lie substantiated: of course the LA Times reporters reached out to multiple people who represent Erika, requested information, and indicated the story would be published. Erika lied about this at least two times.

I think it's as simple as production told them to align with Erika. To keep Erika on the show. To monetize this debacle. As Erika's usefulness to Bravo ends, production will weaponize these hags to go after Erika. Pull in the viewers as long as possible so that Andy has time to spin up his other projects.

The foul depths to which Bravo will go in order to save a dying franchise sickens me, as does the housewives' craven willingness to enable that behavior. This includes Sutton and Garcelle. Sutton is wealthy enough to have walked away from production as the Erika story unfolded, and Garcelle pulled her punches too many times. There's something disgusting about rich white ladies getting paid to sit on a couch in expensive clothes and jewelry and dole out reaction shots as the victims continue to suffer and wait. So not wanting to get angry all over again, I only watched a little bit of the reunion. I left it thinking that Sutton knows she doesn't need to engage Erika or defend herself - she can just sit back and watch Erika dig herself down into the pits of Hell.

Did Bones race over to stand next to Chasity during her moment?I I thought his fabrics did not work together. Perhaps a molten gray/silver for the top? I loved the gray gown just because it was gray. I wish other designers had not gone for predictable black. The mansion visit was stoopid.

Maybe Dorit buys the designer clothes for $1 each. If they are gifted, I believe taxes come into play at some point.

Yeah, Steve is a bit needy and the cameras amp that up. I did not know he is married. I thought he was living out there alone, with the animals.

I've said before that all gold diggers know the ins and outs of their trade. It's a bit of misdirection for Erika to state that she didn't know the details of Tom's misdeeds. I'm sure she didn't because she didn't care to inquire. She craftily chose the plausible deniability path. But when she's party to accusations and complaints about misappropriation of funds, when litigation lending companies publicly announce the law firm isn't paying its debts...you should put two and two together, especially when there is a sudden infusion of $20M into your "business." I'm still waiting to know whether the IRS will investigate her for paying taxes, maintaining accurate accounting data, and issuing 1099s to her consultants and vendors. In order to plot one's getaway, a gold digger has to discretely research some details. How bad is the situation? How much money do I need to get away and fund my lifestyle? How can I get my hands on it - is it in offshore accounts? What's the best way to play this? She might have gotten away with it, but she ran out of time. Events overtook her scheming.

When will Bravo show a shot of the infamous widows and orphans earrings? Perfect example of "tone deaf." I believe Erika retweeted or showed them on her Instagram. ETA: perhaps Bravo cannot show the image because Bravo does not own the image. Kyle and Lisa and their shocked "O" faces: just join vaudeville and get it over with. Cheap hammy "acting." Knock it off you lightweights.

It's deeply obnoxious that these two are relying on grief porn to entice viewers. It was better when we saw their family life without this nonsense. And Jennie stomping around in the snow, all "I'm mad! Don't fuck with me today" was just so contrived and stupid. The babies were fun, and I spotted a Down syndrome baby. Hope he is OK, as they can have heart conditions. I won't comment on the random, tired arguments, as they are all the same across all the housewives shows. Lather, rinse, repeat. Vomit.

The manufactured drama is hiding the quiet, talented designers from the viewers. The Russian designer was robbed in the name of production shenanigans.

Deleted; wrong episode.

Interesting that she and the media are withholding his last name.

I wonder if production is choreographing a Camille vs Erika scenario. They've essentially tongue-bathed Erika this season and paid her lots of money, in order to keep her engaged, and the big question is when production will turn on her.

When she flipped up her skirt, I wondered if her overworked brain circuits misfired. Did she temporarily confuse the camera person for a trick? Is that how she expresses certain emotions - flashing her privates? That moment was bizarre. The Bravo paycheck defense is stupefying. That money is earned income - it should go from Bravo to Erika, or her LLC (that's how I get paid, electronically) and stay there, get taxes paid, pay business expenses, and get reported to the IRS. Were she and Tom trying to just pile all the money together to hide how they got it? She was triumphant after each little blurb she uttered. You could feel the exclamation points. Like a 5th grader giving a book report. Kyle and Kathy are monetizing their "trauma." Zero sympathy from me. ETA: I wonder if Erika used to use that face tape stuff that tightens loose skin, as well as the therma zapping gizmos. Because she suddenly has jowls and sagging and it's such a big change.

She sounds like a project manager in a conference room. "We've got to get to the bottom of this." As if she's a criminal investigator. Cheerily referring to the bankruptcy trustee as if she doesn't hate his guts. "Feisty." This performance is all wrong. And underneath that false bravado, she knows it. She's off-kilter.

I think one property's in GA, at least one in NY, I think one is vacation-ey, and one is in Italy. Not sure about the others.

One of the PopRoast guys read from an uncited article that described Sutton's property settlement. $1.2M in cash, alimony is $300K monthly, a half-dozen homes, interest in two baseball teams, and interest in a lumber business. I assume she also got child support and perhaps will benefit from former husband's retirement accounts. The guys speculated that Sutton's wealth is the source of Erika's vitriol against her, especially now that Erika stands to lose everything. As a divorcee, Sutton is living the life that Erika expected to have after Tom's eventual demise. "Man plans, God laughs."