Pop Tart

Something was off about the Carole/Tinsley therapy session in Carole's apartment. Either it was the editing, with whole chunks of the conversation cut out, very possible. Or, and this is the way I'm leaning now, this was another time that Carole, as supportive friend, brings something out in conversation for her friend to react to without the friend having to be the one to say it. Carole talking to Tinsley about her abusive ex and Tinsley bursting into sobs - with nary a tear to be seen reminded me of the conversations last season where Bethenny and Carole would be talking and Carole would make mention of some bad thing that Jason had done - something Bethenny wasn't allowed to do on camera (or just was being super careful about). Bethenny could then react in her dramatic way about how her life was just so, so terrible because of what she was going through with Jason, etc. With Tinsley, I think she has gotten to the point where she wants her past relationship woes to be part of the story, but she's savvy enough to know it wouldn't be cool for her to be the one bad-mouthing the ex. This way she gets the sympathy-card (and I don't dispute that she was in a terrible situation in the past) and the plucky-card all at the same time. I do think Tinsley is ultimately a very shallow person, as are most of the cast, but I don't think she's dumb. I don't like her as a person or character, but I do think she's been calculated enough to play the RH reality show game pretty well.

I think they were all sick from something they ate or drank. The morning after the boat ride, when they all said they’d been running to the bathroom all night, they had a discussion about what they’d eaten for lunch the day before. They were comparing notes to see if they all ate the same thing, which to me sounds like they thought they had food poisoning and the effects of that can last for days.

“Congratulations on the ummm...that’s quite an accomplishment...” Adam is having a hard time remembering his lines of Carole praise. He kind of stumbled then mumbled something about the marathon and then threw in a mention of the article? And really? You’re having a big party to celebrate your getting an article published? I think Carole decided since no one threw her a party for her marathon run, she would throw one for herself for this new, fantabulous achievement. With regards to Ramona’s home makeover, I thought it looked like she’d prepped it to rent out on AirBnb. It not only looked bland and beige, it looked cheap. What I don’t get is why you’d think white would be a good choice for something that’s going to be rented. Renters - even if they’re paying big bucks, perhaps especially since they’re paying big bucks - aren’t known for taking the best care of things. Look how the ladies left the house in Cartagena, and that was a place rented with a full household staff. As harsh as B’s tweet is about why she didn’t go to Ramona’s pre-launch party, its also totally true. I don’t know which excuse for a ‘hey, look at me’ party was worse. Carole’s Cosmo article or Ramona’s to announce that at some point she’d have an actual product to announce? I guess since Carole had actually completed her thing, I have to give the worst title to Ramona.

This. Plus it was a little rich for Lauren to be bemoaning Billy as CEO and also wishing Jack were back in charge. Didn't Jack go to Lauren when he was ousted because of the blood clause (I can barely type that it's so stupid) and ask her to support him calling another board vote to change the clause? Or something along those lines?

It's not been mentioned on the show yet but she did an article for US Magazine in July about filing for divorce. In the article she talks about what is mentioned on the show, namely living in different cities. https://www.usmagazine.com/celebrity-news/news/new-rhoc-star-gina-kirschenheiter-speaks-out-after-divorce/

I think Gina has set some kind of record in RH history. Ostensibly happily married in her first episode and by ep. 4 we’re hearing she and hubby have filed for divorce in real time. Though Shannon’s daughters didn’t look thrilled with the taste testing they were doing, I will say that Shannon did a very good job of presenting the meals. She was consulting notes on her phone, but was very natural sounding. I could definitely see her presenting her frozen meals on QVC, while including her weight loss struggles as her “story” as to why the meals were developed. And regarding her QVC deal, I loved when she told the whole gang at the dinner that she’d worked out this deal and Vicki’s eyes went dark, dark green with envy. It was just a blip, but the expression on her face was not excitement for her good buddy Shannon.

Yes. That conversation was beyond bad. It wasn't only inane but was once again being used by Carole to name-drop Lee Radziwell. Tinsley was going on about how the scarf with the hat was so trendy right now, and I think she name-dropped some designer who was doing it or some specific person who was making it trendy. Carole comes back with 'no, it was my mother-in-law, Lee Radziwell who set the trend' or words to that effect. So I got Bethenny's irritation with the whole conversation. I was rolling my eyes majorly too. Both at the stupid of it all - "wow! you're wearing a scarf with a hat! Who ever heard of that?!" - and at Carole's ever-present need to emphasize her connection to Lee (and thus the Kennedys). Sure it was pretty immature of Bethenny to actually verbalize it, but I got it. And speaking of Bethenny saying things. Here's something she did actually say on Twitter about Carole's departure from the show. It's pretty brutal.

Yeah, there hasn't been much comment on Tinsley's attitude in the car on the way back from the restaurant. Even though she hadn't actually heard what went on with Dor and Lu. She was going in on Luanne about how she had no room to judge, even when some of what Dorinda said (mugshot, convict, etc.) was conveyed to her she was still all about how Luanne was in the wrong. And the expression on her face was not one of someone just trying to keep Dorinda calm. She seems to have a special level of dislike for Lu and I can't quite figure what is prompting it. Did it start because she was best buds with Carole and when they started hanging out Carole was still on the major outs with Lu? Possible. I am starting to cotton to the idea that's mostly been said jokingly, that she's jealous that Lu got arrested in Palm Beach too? I saw a new clip of her when she must have been on WWHL recently. I say recently because it was a conversation about Lu going back to rehab so had to be in the last week or so. And in that clip she starts with "I was so proud of her for everything" but then the next words out of her mouth are "I had a mugshot in Palm Beach, too". So I think she's got some weird competitive feelings towards Lu because of that. With the Carole/Bethenny fight at dinner I thought it was interesting when Carole once again insisted that she didn't respond to B's texts (while Carole was in California I think) because it was "a lot". And Bethenny insisted all she did was text her one thing, like "I'm sorry" or words to that effect. Bethenny was shouting at this point, prove it, show her all the texts that Bethenny sent her that were "a lot". Carole didn't have the receipts. She started scrolling through her texts but had nothing to show B or us about all that bombardment she claimed.

I was just going to post how offensive (as well as eye-rollingly over the top) this whole storyline is. This isn’t the 70s and this isn’t Love Story. No doctor in the world would be telling others a patient’s diagnosis and not tell that patient. It isn’t sweet or romantic or kind to keep the info from Hillary that she’s dying. It’s medical malpractice and perhaps even illegal given HIPAA laws. Just as offensive as the guys in Lily’s life deciding to “protect” her from the knowledge of her role in the accident. These are adult women, not children. The more I type the angrier it’s making me.

I think Kendall nailed it last week that Logan is jealous of what his kids have had even if he’s the one who gave it to them. They didn’t have to struggle the way he presumably did. He both has to give them everything, to prove he can, at the same time he deeply resents how “easy” they’ve had it. In the first episode he’d set up Kendall to take on the running of the company and then at the last minute couldn’t do it and ripped the chance away. All while claiming to be all about his family.

She looks like young Madonna to me.

She’s ready to ditch Kelly as her “friend” now that she’s back in with Tamra and Shannon. Kelly was always just a filler while Vicki was feuding with the others. Now the feud is “forgiven”, thud, there goes Kelly. Dropped like a hot potato.

This show never takes me where I think it's going to with the characters. When Connor confirmed that yes, Roman had enjoyed being in the dog cage to Kendell, and then added that Kendell had too, you could see a light going on for Kendell. And then Connor added the tidbit about Logan's theory that you pit two dogs against each other and send the weaker one away (which is what happened to Roman). Next scene that Kendell and Roman have is in the elevator together and Kendell is staring at Roman so intently. I thought the revelation for Kendell was going to be that their father truly was a monster and that he and Roman should be better with each other, as in "we both went through the same shit" or along those lines. Not that they'd get mushy or anything, but that Kendell could see how much damage his dad did. Instead he deliberately slams Roman on the way out of the elevator, tells Furness he wants to go ahead and calls someone to have them destroy the two women who turned down his money for the app. Instead of having the memory of his childhood bond him to Roman, it instead reinforced the message his dad wanted to inculcate, only the strong succeed and you have to crush the weak. As much as all of the kids are pretty much horrible people, with every episode you can see - no matter how much money they had - they never stood a chance. Logan, whatever tortured background he himself has, was a monster as a parent. That his kids are too, is no surprise.

I didn't see it as disdain so much as genuine astonishment and dismay at where she'd landed. After she described biting into it (and she was saying that she was going to eat it) and biting the mustard packet "like a dead fish", her next line is just how pathetic and sad she realized it all was and how she was in that low moment. And hey, I haven't had a bologna sandwich in decades either - the kind she's talking about anyway which is a piece of bologna slapped between two pieces of white bread (with a mustard packet thrown in) - so I'd probably comment on it as part of my self-mocking retelling of the story too. In terms of Ramona. I don't think she owed it to Lu, particularly, to not go to (or want to go to) Tom's party, I think she owed it to all of woman-kind to not go to Tom's party given what an asshole he is. No woman should want to go to his party, be seen with him, or even acknowledge his existence. And given that Ramona had just given a big speech of how women should stick together and support each other?... Luann is correct Ramona has a very deep Fear Of Missing Out with a side of just wanting attention. She knew that if she did go to the party she'd get all sorts of attention as the "friend" of Lu's who was there. People would be buzzing all over the place and she would love that.

And her idea of being a barista is that you take a pod and put it in the machine and press a button.

Yes. It was an especially dick move when she not only brought in Joao to pilot the boat but then called in the other deck crew to clean out the garbage bins so she could shove it even further in their faces that Joao was piloting the boat. Of course this is probably mostly all producer driven, but Sandy has clearly gotten a very big head and thinks she's the "star".

Yes, exactly. Thanks for stating it more clearly then I did.

Both Chelsea and Victoria seem to be playing their parts in terms of the storyline, and some bad acting it is. But truly the one to blame in this "triangle" is Austen. If he really, truly still wants to be with Chelsea, then he shouldn't be dating Victoria. And if he is interested exploring things with Victoria, then he can't have his cake and eat it too by allowing Chelsea to hang all over him. Of course his insistence that he should get to hang out with Chelsea as much as he wants even if he is dating Victoria is really more about having a story this season then anything else (the "triangle"), but as the person in the relationship with Victoria, he's the one who has a responsibility for her feelings. Not Chelsea. This isn't to say that Victoria isn't being overly clingy or that Chelsea is being overly present, but Austen is the one who has to set the boundaries. This is just TRav/Ashley/Katherine all over again (without the kids). Two women "fighting" over the guy and the guy gleeful about it.

This one is on right now, 8 am Central on Own. Tinsley, her mom and her sister.

That blog post seems very hastily written and meant to retroactively cover her ass for her nastiness tonight and what looks like is coming next week. She’s always on Twitter while the show is airing so she has to know how badly it was playing tonight.

The thing that gets me with this custody battle - which lasted all of two days - is the whereabouts of Nick’s sisters. Abby’s hanging out at the pool. Victoria? She hasn’t been seen in days. The only family member who’s said anything at all to Victor is Nikki, and that was only a line or two of dialogue. This story has no beats. Even if Victoria and Abby were torn in their loyalties, they’d at least have an opinion. I realize that the custody fight is nothing but a device to set up the battle lines between Nick and Victor, but there’s no emotional hook at all. I’m guessing Nick will team up with Jack to take on his dad, cause that’s the kind of thing Mal would think was poetic given how Kyle has been helping Victor.

Carole was so ugly during the whole workout scene, physically ugly because of the super-heavy makeup she was wearing (to work out!) and personally ugly because of the mean girl snark and digs about Lu’s arrest. I totally get making a joke or two, which is what everyone else did. But she just couldn’t let it go and had to make sure every single person there knew and talked about it. I will say, when she was telling one of the guys all that Lu did and you could tell that she was wanting him to respond that if it had been him, he’d still be in jail, or worse. Instead he asked if Lu was married! Loved that.

It is true that Axe is loyal to Wendy and she to him and Axe and Wags have a strong connection to one another as well - though I don't see Axe going to prison for Wags, as he was willing to do for Wendy. But outside of those three, Axe has not shown lasting loyalty to anyone, not even his wife and children, so the lecture Wendy gave to Taylor about relationships being so important, more important than money, was laughably hollow. Axe has shown time and again that if you cross him even slightly, if you have something he wants, if he perceives you to be competition, then he comes after you, no holds barred. And yes, he had mentored Taylor and seemed to be building a stronger relationship with them, but when he came back after his loss of power (due to being under indictment), he had to prove he was still top dog and he began to act out all the power plays with Taylor. That on top of tanking Taylor's relationship with the tech guy. So, Wendy talking to Taylor, about relationships? That is not what Axe is about at all. I loved Taylor's read back at Wendy in that scene. Taylor was spot on in everything they said. Wendy has let herself sink further and further into the morass of all the unethical, illegal behaviors both Axe and Chuck have undertaken. I've been losing respect for her for a while - she used to be somewhat of a moral center for the show, she's not anymore. So that she is being so self-righteous right now? Yeah, no. I didn't read it this way. I thought that initially Grigor said he'd take all his money and give it to Taylor's firm, when Axe first said no to killing Taylor. Called Axe weak because of it. But Axe argued back and talked about the ways in which he was going to destroy Taylor, so I thought that at that point Grigor conceded and was going to leave his money with Axe. I thought the threat was that Axe better not become so distracted by his revenge on Taylor that he lost any of Grigor's money.

I'm no fan of Bethenny's but do think they've all (with the exception of Carole perhaps) been chomping at the bit to be able to take her down and are pretty gleeful they finally get to do it, so I'm not rooting for any of them either. If this is the season of Bethenny's takedown (it really did need to happen at some point as the cycle of RH shows goes), then I want the season of the Carole takedown to be next. Or I'd take a Dorinda smackdown as well.

Dorinda said she expected a BIGGER thank you and she wanted it in front of the whole group and on camera. And I think even then it would not be enough for Dorinda in some way.