glowbug

The only reason to attempt to keep Jon's resurrection a mystery is if they were trying not to spoil the books as a courtesy to GRRM assuming it's a possibility that Winds of Winter could be released before the beginning of season 6, which I doubt. Not that there was anyway it would work because you can't hide an actor, but if they really wanted to do it I wish they hadn't lied by saying that Kit Harrington wouldn't be back for season 6. They could have said Jon was dead (which he is) and refused to answer questions about the possibility of him being resurrected. We still would have had Hair Watch and all the buzz without being lied to. It was just so unnecessary. If they were keeping the cliffhanger entirely for the show then, IMO, that was a poor decision. I think ending the season with Jon's resurrection would have created even more anticipation for season 6.

My opinion is that Vicki is a narcissist (based on her behavior throughout the run of the show) and her reaction to her mom's death was very narcissistic, but I say that in a non-critical way because the fact is even narcissists grieve when they lose someone they love and they have the right to grieve however they wish (as long as they're not a danger to themselves or others) just as everyone else does. And I think one of the times it's completely appropriate to make a situation all about yourself is when you lose someone close to you like a parent. Even people who are not narcissistic may do or say some of the things Vicki did. I also think Vicki would have had the same reaction had the cameras not been there. She's a very dramatic person so of course her reaction to her mother's death was very dramatic. She may also have been hoping someone would hear and come to see what was wrong, which would be understandable in that situation. I'm sure some people would rather be alone but many people would rather have others around for comfort. I can judge Vicki for a lot of things but not the reaction to her mother's death.

The reason I believe it would be better for the children if Shannon and David divorce is that divorce is infinitely better to living with family conflict. Shannon and David have a very contentious relationship from what we've seen on the show and that sort of fighting and tension is having a negative impact on their children. Research on the subject is clear. It is better to divorce than to live with a high degree of conflict. Multiple studies that have looked at divorce and family conflict have found that the children who turn out the best on average are those who grew up in a family with little conflict and no divorce, while those who turned out the worst on average experienced a high degree of conflict and their parents stayed together. Interestingly enough, children whose parents fought before they divorced turn out better than those whose parents didn't fight before they divorced. This research has led to the conclusion that divorce in and of itself is not a bad thing. It is actually a good thing if there is a lot of family conflict. Since the Beador marriage is fraught with conflict, the children will most likely be better off if their parents split.

Casting rumors for season 8: http://tamaratattles.com/2015/06/09/exclusive-piping-hot-season-eight-rhoa-casting-tea/ (I wasn't sure what thread to post this in so I'm posting it here because it has to do with future casting.) Tamara Tattles is reporting that Nene, Kenya, Cynthia and Kandi have all been asked back as full time housewives. She says she's gotten no confirmation for Phaedra, Claudia and Portia but that rumor is it's unlikely any of them will return. Also, they're auditioning actresses for the vacant housewives slots.

Thank you for pointing this out. This is the reason I've always been a little uncomfortable about the harsh criticisms lodged at Jeana's husband in the past. He may have always been a jerk and I do think she should have left him regardless, if not for her own sake for her children, I think a lot of his behaviors are a result of his brain injury. Jeana (and Shane, I believe) has said that before the brain damage he was a different person, which is not to say he was a nice guy before (some people on TWOP apparently heard he wasn't) but he probably wasn't as much of an asshole and he probably had way better social skills. He has brain damage to his frontal lobe which is associated with antisocial behavior. For example, they find that people with antisocial personality disorder (psychopaths/sociopaths) are more likely to have had head injuries as children than those in the general population. Also, there's a famous case study of a man in the nineteenth century, Phineas Gage, who had a metal rod shoot through his skull destroying part of his frontal lobe. Miraculously he survived but his personality was greatly altered for the worse. Before he was described as being a good guy who was responsible and well liked, and afterward he was described as irresponsible and basically a jerk. With Jeana's husband it's impossible to know which behaviors were caused by the brain injury and therefore out of his control.

On the Aftershow last week Bobby clarified the whole sleeping with Asifa's friend situation. He and Asifa were broken up at the time. She was in Europe with another guy. He had never met this friend before and had never seen Asifa with her. The only reason he knew the girl had a connection to Asifa was because the friend asked if he was Asifa's ex when they met but she mispronounced Asifa's name so he didn't think they were close. Honestly, I don't think he did anything that bad. He didn't cheat on her and he didn't know the girl was a friend. I don't even know if this girl was a friend or just an acquaintance since Asifa said they had only had dinner three times and the girl didn't even get her name right.

We finally got to see the scene that someone in Amsterdam took a video of, which was posted in another thread earlier (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zla1LbUPbUs&spfreload=10). You can see a little of what was edited out, although not much since most of the dialogue isn't audible. It's still interesting to compare. Brandi just doesn't understand that apologizing doesn't erase what you've done, especially if you continue to hurt people over and over again. If she felt true remorse for her behavior, she wouldn't continue to make the same mistakes. It's evident that she isn't truly remorseful about the slap when in her talking head she follows up her admission that she took the joke too far with some statement about how Lisa V. has also taken jokes about her too far in the past. If you're truly remorseful there shouldn't be a qualifier in your acknowledgement of guilt or your apology. Brandi also fails to see how her actions differ from that of her cast mates (except Kim, who also behaves abhorrently without cause, and frequently hits below the belt). When Lisa V. takes a joke too far it doesn't involve violating someone's personal space or being violent. When Lisa R. went off the rails at that dinner she had been provoked. While that doesn't excuse her behavior, it's a lot easier to forgive her than someone who acts violently without provocation. Lisa in no way provoked Brandi into slapping her, nor did Eileen provoke Brandi into throwing wine at her. And while I could forgive Brandi for shoving Kyle away during poker night after Kyle was provoked into (wrongfully) grabbing Brandi (who shouldn't have been in between Kim and Kyle in the first place), there was no justification for Brandi putting her hands on Kyle in Eileen's driveway. Brandi also doesn't get that the things she says about others differs from the things they say about her. The other women have not hit below the belt. They've commented truthfully about her behavior that she's displayed on camera. Brandi does have a drinking problem (in a different way than Kim does), she is an angry drunk, she does lie about people, she does take things too far, she does hit below the belt, she is frequently mean to people on camera, she shouldn't insert herself in Kim and Kyle's relationship. Hitting below the belt would have been discussing Brandi's tampon strong incident on camera last season when it wasn't filmed, or commenting negatively on Brandi's parenting skills. Brandi, on the other hand, outright lies about people (e.g. Kyle saying Lisa V. cheats on Ken/filed for bankruptcy, and Lisa V. telling Brandi to put the tabloids in the suitcase), embellishes the truth (e.g. Adrienne and Paul suing her, and Adrienne arranging a meeting with the other women to gang up on Lisa V.), leaves out pertinent information (e.g. telling Kim that Lisa R. was questioning her sobriety without mentioning that she brought up the topic and expressed concern as well), and commenting on things that weren't seen on camera (e.g. Kyle smoking pot/being around pot smoking, and Adrienne and Paul using a surrogate for their twins). Comparing Brandi's behavior to the other women's is like comparing apples to hotdogs. They aren't even in the same category.

I think Kim was threatening to say something really bad and truthful about Harry based on Lisa R.'s reaction. Not only did Lisa R. go batshit crazy, she seemed to know what Kim was referring to. If Kim didn't actually have anything on Harry then Lisa R. was really out of line by getting physical and throwing that wine glass. Personally, I don't think physical violence is ever justified outside of self defense (or defending someone else against a physical attack), but it's certainly understandable if Kim was threatening to reveal something awful about Lisa R.'s husband. I also wonder how much of that scene was edited out because Lisa R. screaming "don't touch my husband" didn't really make much sense based on what was shown. Maybe she just misspoke and meant don't talk about my husband. It was an odd choice of words if nothing important was left on the cutting room floor. I'm torn between wanting to know what Kim was going to say and wanting Harry to maintain his privacy. As others have pointed out he really isn't part of this show so he should be off limits the way Kim's son is off limits, but I am really curious. And while part of me wishes Lisa R. had threatened to out Kim's son as payback and a warning, I feel like it wouldn't be fair to Chad to punish him for his mother's vile behavior. Kim is a nasty piece of work. There is definitely more going on with her than just addiction. Addiction may explain some of her awful behavior (the lying, deflecting, etc.) but it in no way explains everything. I think she's got a personality disorder or a combination of several. She's showing some real antisocial tendencies and narcissism. She is a horrible human being. No wonder she and Brandi are friends. Those two are cut from the same cloth.

It will be interesting to see the seating arrangement. Every year aside from the first Lisa V. and Kyle have sat on opposite sides in the coveted spots next to Andy. They've also been on opposing "teams" so to speak. This year they're friendly so if the couches are divided by teams, which one gets the seat closest to Andy? While Kyle deserves it more since she was much more a part of the drama this season, at least so far, I don't see Lisa V. being too happy if she's moved lower. Of course, they don't always arrange the couches by teams. Season three had Kyle with Brandi and Yolanda and Lisa V. with Kim and Taylor. Also, you can't count out Lisa R. or maybe even Eileen.

Kim is the most frustrating housewife on this franchise. Although I dislike Brandi more and if I could kick only one housewife off it would be Brandi, I don't find her nearly as frustrating as Kim. How can Kim not see how Brandi threw her under the bus with Lisa Rinna? I read her blog expecting that she would mention how hurt she was that Brandi basically admitted she had relapsed to someone who was not her friend on camera, but instead her anger is pointed at Kyle, who has actually been discreet about this relapse, and Lisa Rinna, who didn't betray her the way Brandi did. Kim doesn't have enough brain cells left to function anymore.

All I can say is Brandi is a friend to no one. In one episode she managed to throw her only two allies under the bus. First she throws out the idea that Yolanda's daughter is an alcoholic before quickly dismissing it so she can say she doesn't believe it. Then she divulges that Kim has relapsed to Lisa R. on camera as a way of deflecting attention away from her own drinking problems. Although, to be fair, I also don't think outing Kim was 100% calculated. Brandi has serious boundary issues and I believe that she often can't help herself from over sharing (about herself and others). I loved the Burbank Film Festival scenes. I'm glad that Lisa and Kyle are getting along. They both come across better when they're friends than when they're enemies and they both have good chemistry with Eileen and Lisa R. Lisa lost me at the beginning of the season with all her talk about being a victim of the her castmates. Although I was on her side for the most part last season, I never believed she was entirely innocent in the whole thing so I was getting tired of hearing her moan about how wronged she was as though she hadn't played any part in it. But she's slowly been winning me back. Her advice to Kyle about Brandi was spot on and she's handled Brandi exceedingly well. I'm also enjoying the Max researches has heritage storyline. Whatever Lisa's motives, I do think we are seeing some genuine emotion on her part and it's touching. I'm totally on Kyle's side in her fights with both Brandi and Kim. Kyle hasn't acted perfectly, but compared to Brandi and Kim she's the paragon of good sense and behavior. At least her errors in judgment are understandable. The fight between Kyle and Kim at the end was dark and full of disfunction but I have to admit I did have a moment of amusement when Kim used the "But that's how I feel" on Kyle. Those two really are sisters.

I, too, wonder who would buy a cookbook by Brandi. She's only cooked once on the show from what I can remember and the food wasn't very memorable because the only thing I remember from the scene was a bunch of hair extensions that might potentially fall in the food. Teresa's cookbooks sold because she presented herself as a cook on RHoNJ (regardless of whether she is or not), and because she was marketing Italian food that wouldn't make you fat, which many people want. Also, I thought I heard that the recipes in her books (or at leas the first one) are authentic Italian recipes passed down from her family so they might actually be worth having (if you don't mind financially supporting a felon). Brandi, on the other hand, doesn't have anything to offer the culinary world.

Thanks for the heads up. I always miss the first looks because my DVR only rarely records them automatically and I always forget to scroll through the guide to find it.

While the general public may see the Golden Globes as being close to an Oscar in terms of prestige, there is no one in the industry (or affiliated with the industry) who thinks they are anywhere near the same level. Insiders know that the Golden Globes are a complete farce. While politics play are large role in decide the winners and nominations of both, it plays a far bigger role in the Golden Globes. Money also plays a much bigger role in the Golden Globes as well. The Hollywood Foreign Press Association is extremely corrupt and therefore the Golden Globes means little except for the publicity they bring (and that buzz can sometimes up the chances of an Oscar win). There is no way Yolanda could confuse the two.

Just a heads up. My DVR says the First Look for the next episode is scheduled to air at 8:38 pm on Saturday (12/06).

I hate when they do that. Didn't Orange County also have footage from the trailer go missing during the season? I think this time it's especially likely since they put the trailer together so close to the end of filming. They're probaby even earlier in the editing process than last year.

I'm really excited Beverly Hills is back. I only watch this franchise and Orange County (I've watched and dropped all of the others over the years) and I've been in desperate need of housewives since Orange County ended. That said, I'm a little wary after watching the trailer. It looks more scripted than it has in past seasons, like an actual soap opera with thrown wine glasses and slaps, not to mention real soap stars. And because it can't be said enough, Brandi needs to go. She is poison for this franchise.

Not doubting the truthfulness of this story but I would like to know where it came from because I don't recall it ever being mentioned on the show. Did Heather say this in an interview?

Long time lurker on TWOP coming out of the shadows here. I'm so glad to see so many familiar usernames. Tamra is just awful. Once she realized how stupid her anger over the rival gym thing was she came up with a legitimate reason to be upset with Heather. So manipulative and Heather fell for it. Notice how Tamra got Heather to apologize and never offered her own apology was her ridiculous behavior. Then her throwing Shannon under the bus to get further back on Heather's good side was just awful. Divulging that very personal email Shannon's husband sent Shannon to someone who clearly doesn't like Shannon is something straight out of the mean girl handbook. I know that previews can be misleading so I'll reserve my final judgment for next week but if Heather was going around gossiping about Shannon's marriage, using private information that Tamra gave her, that is pretty messed up. I get that she doesn't like Shannon but that's hitting below the belt. In this feud between Shannon and Heather I'm Team Shannon. Shannon hasn't acted perfectly (last week's episode being a prime example) but Heather has behaved far worse in my opinion. I have to say that I actually like Shannon. She's refreshingly honest and self aware for a housewife. I cringe during the scenes with her husband (those are miserable to watch) but otherwise I like her. Of course this is a Housewives show so chances are I won't like her forever, but as of now I think I like her better than any of the other housewives in Orange County.