S10.E16: Denise and Desist

[blixie]

Quote

Denise meeting with Camille was producer-driven just like Kyle's meeting with her earlier in the season.  It shows that Denise is willing to honor her contractual obligations as long as she is not getting ambushed by the ladies. 

Seriously that was the most awkward "commiseration" I've ever seen, especially since they had her commiserate with someone both audience and the ladies can never quite like, because she really is kind of an ass. I agree Denise is willing to play ball even when it feeds a negative storyline about her, but she's not willing to engage with Brandi trying to fuck up her marriage, and no I still don't believe they fucked, I DO think Denise talked shit about these ladies after the party at her house and before Rome.

I don't care if she fucked or friend bashed with Brandi OR that she's lying about having fucked or friend bashed with Brandi. It is still all motivated by the idea that she's a dumb slut and infamous whore who has no right to monitor what her kids are or are not exposed to and if she does than she's a giant ass hypocrite. And that's why they are so focused on this did she fuck Brandi thing because it is further evidence that she is the bad one and they are the good perfect mothers. I honestly think Denise IS including herself in the whole I can't bring my kids around this group, she's part of the group! She acknowledged it was HER mistake, and her lesson. She said nothing about these ladies style of parenting. They have spent the rest of the season attacking her at every opportunity and then plotted to destroy her via Brandi/Kim. Aside from Garcelle, Sutton, and Dorito they all suck. Especially when you consider how they all go off when you dare say anything about their husbands, their marriages, their children. GTFO.

 

Quote

does not change the way Denise has turned about this season. Something happened

There is no grand mystery here, Charlie wasn't suing her last season and last season she mostly wasn't married to Aaron. 

She is now married and being sued by her fucking deranged ex, which will effect her kids, she is 100% entitled to behave differently under different circumstances but NO her caring about the sex talk is pretty consistent with Denise Richards she has always been honest about how much she wants to give her kids the kind of bucolic life her parents gave her, especially because she and Charlie are their parents. She has always been a big contradiction, struggling to reconcile two opposing parts of herself, this is NOTHING new. I love her for it, because that's real as fuck. 

[princelina]

2 hours ago, eleanorofaquitaine said:

I think a lot of people have come away from this season looking pretty bad - Kyle and Rinna, yes; but also Denise. Personally, and I know that many here disagree with me, but I don't think Teddi and Erika came off looking all that bad because I think that they were genuine in saying that all they cared about was whether or not Denise was badmouthing them. And it's clear she was, she's admitted to it, so I don't see them as off-base in their inquiries. Dorit, Sutton, and Garcelle (much as I find her thing with Kyle a little weird) all came off fine in the end, IMO, at least when it came to this situation.

I guess Erika did it right because I don't remember much about her.  But I laughed at Teddi through several episodes when they were all clutching their pearls about "She had sex with Brandi!!  Kids nearby!!  Aaron said he would kill her!!" and old Teddi bleating in the background "She said she doesn't like me!" 😄 😄😄   Teddi was not cut out to be on a RH show at all 😄 

1 hour ago, TurtlePower said:

The other ladies probably should have left the threesome talk alone after Denise requested they shut up about it. BUT, that does not change the way Denise has turned about this season. Something happened that she felt she needed to portray herself as less "wild". I suspect she was close with Brandi before she decided to change how she was perceived and didn't want to be associated with a person like Brandi (an investigator's hunch based on behavior). 

My suspicion is that she was already cooling it with Brandi because she was getting to know her better 😄 

[Wouldofshouldof]

14 hours ago, LibertarianSlut said:

Lol at Sutton saying no one is going to say she slept with her.  

That and the way she dresses makes me think she has self-confidence issues, especially with her body.

[princelina]

5 minutes ago, Wouldofshouldof said:

That and the way she dresses makes me think she has self-confidence issues, especially with her body.

She should take some of that money she throws away in couture houses and pay for a stylist who could show her how to dress that oddly shaped body flattering ways.

[Keywestclubkid]

Just now, princelina said:

She should take some of that money she throws away in couture houses and pay for a stylist who could show her how to dress that oddly shaped body flattering ways.

She reminds me of Edina Monsoon from Ab Fab in that regard she thinks just cause its a Name that its what she should wear without thinking does it look good on me ... someone needs to tell her they make high end clothes that actually flatter you and you should aim for that Not for the garment of the moment that was intended for a twig 20 something socialite

[Lizzing]

It has been widely reported that Denise has a 4 year $4M contract for this show.  Let's assume that is true for the sake of argument.  I'd further assume that it is $1M/year, and that this is more than anyone else on the cast is getting. If we know her contract deal, the rest of the cast knows it too. Kyle would be pissed because she sees this show as hers.  Rinna would be pissed because no one should out-hustle the hustler (e.g., the Vanderpump Dogs dust-up).  

Last season Denise gave us stories about Charlie Sheen and hookers, happy endings, and walking out of the surf like the (worst ever) Bond girl she was.  People are still hung up about her "Wild Things" performance--why, I'll never understand.  This season she started off by defending Dorit getting glammed up and asking the women not to engage in threesome talk in front of her kids.  Because most Housewives, across all franchises, act like they have no concept of what times and places are appropriate for discussions, Denise's mild rebuke gets twisted into "she's not being truthful", which is a drum beaten by Kyle, Rinna, and Teddi as Kyle's minion, in every single episode from that point forward.  Say it enough, and it becomes true, I suppose.  Production piles on, with the introduction of the Brandi-related stories (the alleged sex & the uncharitable remarks about Teddi and Erika,  only one of which belonged on the show) and standing up Garcelle.

So why was this the focus of the entire season?  I think, firstly, they had nothing else.  The other women curate their on-screen personas tightly and we're never going to get the Real Tax Returns of Dorit & PK, though I'd find that fascinating.  Secondly, aside from Rinna's & Kyle's jealousy of Densie's paycheck and fan favorite status, production was pissed that they shelled out so much money on someone who was trying to pull a Season 2 Camille, and pull back on her image.  Possibly Denise did that because of the custody situation with Charlie Sheen.  Perhaps she wanted to revert to her original "just a big, quirky family" persona of her first reality show.  Maybe for some other reason.  But ultimately, just like the editors of VPR wanted to paint Scheana like an idiot, I think Kyle & Rinna's issues dove-tailed with a disappointed production house,  to make Denise look like a dishonest fool and get her off the show (and save some cash that they were going to lose, because they didn't have enough action to make it to the 20+ eps per season they usually have without juicy details--again, see Denise's first season tagline).

Of course, Denise played it all wrong and didn't help herself one bit.  She isn't that bright.  Garcelle saw that early on, because she's smart. But the real losers here are the viewers.  It's at least the 4th season we've had a one-issue conflict, and this season was the weakest by far.  So what if Denise wants to change her image?  So what if she trash-talked Erika and Teddi the same way Erika has been trashed and admitted to (she's "cold"...oh, big fuckin' deal)  and Teddi clearly is worried about staying relevant in this cast.  The rest of the cast could bring something.  We didn't even see Kyle's stupidly small car, her husband's open houses, Boy George, the Hamlin/Rinna rat, or the desert house Kyle bought with the proceeds from Kim's stolen house.

The bottom line is that production is showing their hand a bit too much. At first it was interesting, but then it became an "UnReal" redux.  And it had to be "too much" because this cast just doesn't have anything going on, or anything interesting going on that they want to share.  We can see LuAnn go to jail, Dorinda spiral into a utter bitch, Leeann reveal herself to be a vitriolic racist, Sandy weaponize mental health treatment, and so on.  But no one on this cast will let their guard down for a second.  It's only crafted glimpses.  My conclusion is that Denise was the easiest target, and the best for the bottom line.  If not her, it would have been someone else, probably Dorit, as Sutton and Garcelle are too new and it'd be a bad look to go after the first POC on this franchise in her first season. And, if this is how this show is going to shake out, it's time to put it to bed.

Oh, and one other thing that did shine through is that Teddi is a fucking monster. The "your shoulders look fat"  comment didn't come out of a place where the kid was taught commenting on other people's bodies is unwarranted.  Teddi didn't push back in those terms either.  If Teddi stays around, she has more of a natural alliance with Rinna than Kyle.

[VedaPierce]

The look of shear and utter disappointment that flashed all over Brandy’s stupid face when she realized her target Denise wouldn’t be there that night, got an audible sarcastic ‘Awwww’ from me. 
 

They all (Kyle, Rinna Brandy) reminded me of middle school bitches looking to beat up their victim after school, and the disgusting disappointment when their target gives them the slip. They are disgusting and can try to justify their ugly pile-on, I’m sure the aggressive school-yard animals think their targets had it coming too. 

Edited August 27, 2020 by VedaPierce

[suomi]

I fell asleep and woke up for the second half, and then watched the first half during the re-run so I hope I don't have the storyline mixed up here. 

"Someone" told Denise that Brandi would be at Dorit's party. "Someone" who knew or was pretty sure that the heads-up would make her cancel, which was the desired outcome. 

Garcelle's repeated calls to Denise went to VM. Denise may have seen Brandi's text about being at the party... or maybe production informed her. Denise didn't answer when Rinna asked her how she knew Brandi would be at the party (or maybe her answer was edited out). Being evasive because it was production or because it was Brandi would come across the same way onscreen. 

IMO Garcelle, Dorit, Teddi and possibly Sutton were not in on the set-up; Vyle, Kim, Brandi and Rinna were. 

Rinna in TH before Brandi arrived: I've been telling her she really really needs to come. Everyone needs to talk.

Garcelle at the party: Brandi's not coming, right?

Kyle (very quickly, so quick she almost stepped on Garcelle's question): Let's have something to eat!

(someone): Brandi and Kim are here! 

Vyle: Don't look at me!

Dorit was blindsided and not exactly thrilled

Sutton's set-up line to Brandi: Someday maybe learn to not say things.

Brandi (not a good actress, was visibly concentrating hard on her cue line from Sutton): Hunny, it ain't happening. 

Rinna got the sweetheart edit: Why didn't she reach out to me?

Rinna was further rewarded with a TH mentioning that Denise learned how to strategize while battling with Charlie, and being the one who presented the surgery photos Denise posted. Her further reward was the scene at her house with Denise where she laid on a phony congenial greeting with a trowel. Rinna asked Denise who told her that Brandi would be at Dorit's house. The answer was cut/not shown. 

Somewhere along the way, a screen card informed the audience that Brandi and the cast were served with a Cease and Desist. Denise was blindsided when Rinna told her she knew about that. So who was served, only Brandi or the entire cast? Rinna's "Oooh, you're so angry" was in response to Denise saying Who told you that?

"Someone" stitched together a desired narrative. 

Edited August 27, 2020 by suomi
typo

[suomi]

44 minutes ago, blixie said:

There is no grand mystery here, Charlie wasn't suing her last season and last season she mostly wasn't married to Aaron. 

Charlie sued Denise in August 2016 to reduce his child support. In August 2018 he sued Denise and Brooke Mueller to reduce child support to both of them. 

[Sweet-tea]

14 hours ago, Beachdreamer said:

Kim Richards is a troubled person who will battle an addiction problem for the rest of her days.  It makes me sad to see that she is still close with Brandi, who is a terrible influence, and it makes me sad to watch her sister drag her back into the RHOBH limelight and party scene. 

Agree. I don’t know what’s going on with Kim but she doesn’t look good. My sister would’ve been furious if I encouraged my brother-in-law to feel my breasts, implants or no implants. That was weird! 

I had stopped watching this train wreck of a show but checked back to see the finale. Underwhelming. Mostly fake drama about Denise not showing up. I wouldn’t have either. 

I was thrown by how good Denise looked during her meeting (loved her hair) with Lisa and then how shockingly awful she looked in her TH. She also looked drunk in the latter. Lisa’s “you are so angry” sent chills up my spine. The woman is cold and scary. 

I don’t care how many wigs Lisa wears, how nice her outfit is or how skinny she is... I cannot get past her freakish lips. 

Brandi’s skirt looked cheap and tacky. It reminded me of something unfinished on Project Runway.

 

 

 

Edited August 27, 2020 by Sweet-tea

[ciaoformeow]

9 hours ago, Chalby said:

Is it the 'norm' to throw a housewarming party when you're living in a rental?

Well to be fair, it seemed to be a combination of that and a launch party for PKs non-alcoholic champagne. I don't know why she didn't just do the launch party instead of making it a house warming (we didn't even get a house tour!) But oh well

[VedaPierce]

2 hours ago, eleanorofaquitaine said:

As for your second point, that's just pure whataboutism. Yes, the other ladies said some stupid things about Denise's daughters. Yes, it's totally fine to criticize them for that. That still has ZERO to do with her claims that Sami was upset by the talk. She wasn't. Denise claimed she was and unfortunately, they had footage that showed otherwise. 

How do you know so definitively that Sami wasn’t upset by the threesome talk? Because they had 10 seconds of footage with Sami, a teenager, not wanting to admit that she was uncomfortable with threesomes being discussed by her mom’s drunk old friends in front of her friends? I’m around a lot of teens and not one of them would admit on camera that they were negatively affected by that, however, I don’t know any responsible adult who would think that that behavior is ok. “see?? the kid says so herself!! she doesn’t care! keep on talking about threesomes, mom and mom’s friends!” /s 

Just because the producers (who obviously have a stake in trying to make Denise look bad) have some quick footage of a child denying that she was affected by adult inappropriate behavior, doesn’t mean we don’t believe the mother who says that yes, she wasn’t cool with it behind closed doors.
 

I think it’s gross too, that they are attempting to normalize talking in lewd, sexually explicit ways in front of a group of minors, and now there’s a narrative trying to go around that Denise is lying or being fake about her daughter being upset about it. I don’t get it. 

[Quiet1]

We only know what Denise's daughter was willing to say on camera. Privately their conversation could have been very different. Her daughter knows if it is filmed it will air so that is why I think she was dismissive of it on camera. I also think Aaron let production know Denise wouldn't be at the party early enough that production would have let the other ladies know and Garcelle (and the camera crew) wouldn't have wasted time waiting for her.

[65mickey]

Lizzing you got it. right. There is no mystery here. The same mean girls who turned on LVP and drove her off are doing the same thing to Denise. Why? Like you said Kyle thinks she is the head bitch here. LVP was pretty much the star of this show with all of her animals, Ken and her restaurants and followers. Kyle was not happy with this. So when Dorit dumped the dog she marshalled the troups Lisa and the rest and turned it on LVP until she couldn't take the pounding anymore and left.  They are doing the same with Denise this year. It has nothing to do with the threesome talk or the mom shaming it has to do with the resentment over Denise being brought in as the star and being given a big contract. No Kyle and Lisa are not having this. Teddi is probably afraid that she might lose her diamond so she is clinging to Kyle. I don't know what Erika's problem with Denise is but you know pack mentality is at play here.  Denise messed up big time handling this  and played  right into their hands. She got caught in lies. From the jump she should have said to them. I don't know what Brandi has told you but I am not participating in this conversation. If you are so interested and titillated by this talk carry on with but you will do it without me, end of story. But she let down her guard and cried in front of them thereby showing her Achilles' heel. So they moved in for the kill.  

[Rahul]

 

4 hours ago, psychoticstate said:

I liked Rinna when she first came on the show but she is a friend to no one.  Someone needs to remind her how she reacted when Kim brought up Harry Hamlin at the dinner n Amsterdam.  Talk about angry.

I can't believe I didn't see it before but Rinna's outbursts are classic examples of narcissistic rage. It's quite evident now with her tone-deaf and tasteless incessant dancing on Instagram that Lisa Rinna is an attention-seeking narcissist. She has been seething with jealousy that her friend of two decades sauntered onto her show and negotiated a four year, multimillion dollar contract. Any mention of the real issues in Lisa's life around her disordered eating, sham of a marriage and perpetual pot stirring get shutdown immediately with a violent and disproportionate response. Rinna is a master of deflection and gaslighting.  

If Dorinda can be fired for being a raging alcoholic who displays fits of narcissistic rage, Lisa Rinna should be held to the same standard and likewise fired. Rinna's behavior is just as despicable and some might argue even worse, as it isn't fueled by alcohol.

4 hours ago, psychoticstate said:

Has production ever gotten this involved before?  Twice now in the last 2 or 3 episodes we've seen production interfere.  First, by telling Denise that she needed to return to the Rome pizza dinner.  Denise isn't a child, I think she can decide for herself.  Have they ever told anyone else that you have to return to anything because you've said something and it's not fair to leave before other people respond?  (Frankly, in the real world does anyone operate like that?)  And second by telling Garcelle that Denise being a no-show for Dorit's party is not cool because Garcelle stood up for Denise.  Talk about stoking the fire and shit stirring.  

Production always tries to create drama behind the scenes. However, this is the first time viewers have seen the fourth wall broken. BH needs to not only retire the majority of its cast but clean house of toxic producers as well. They have made many missteps over the years and turned a once glamorous and almost aspirational 'reality' series into nothing more than the truculent trash MTV and VH1 have served up over the years.

4 hours ago, Keywestclubkid said:

I really really think that production and the ladies thought we would all be on the bandwagon of hating Denise. And as the season played out they came to the realization that maybe just maybe they have fucked up... still #TeamDenise no one gave a shit that Denise “might have” done something with Brandi and their mommy shamming scheme went nowhere ... they all came across as the assholes 

The producers vitriol towards Denise is evident by her unflattering edit and the narrative turn this season has taken. Ostensibly, Denise's refusal to film and continue to engage in the unremitting attacks against her soured production's attitude towards her. Production already found Denise difficult to work with but once she got lawyers involved and filed a cease and desist, they decided to go all in and skewer her to the best of their ability. Producers have been whispering poison in the ears of the already jealous ladies all season, further feeding into their collective dislike of her.  The coven's extant resentment of Denise's salary and popularity seems to have likewise fed into producer's rancor as they had a common enemy, creating a vicious symbiotic synergy that created the shitshow that was this season. That's my take on it, anyway.

[Mindthinkr]

A thought. How about they all stop stirring the pot and give it all to Mauricio? His being stoned was one of the few genuine laughs I had this season. 

[eleanorofaquitaine]

12 minutes ago, VedaPierce said:

How do you know so definitively that Sami wasn’t upset by the threesome talk? Because they had 10 seconds of footage with Sami, a teenager, not wanting to admit that she was uncomfortable with threesomes being discussed by her mom’s drunk old friends in front of her friends? I’m around a lot of teens and not one of them would admit on camera that they were negatively affected by that, however, I don’t know any responsible adult who would think that that behavior is ok. “see?? the kid says so herself!! she doesn’t care! keep on talking about threesomes, mom and mom’s friends!” /s 

Just because the producers (who obviously have a stake in trying to make Denise look bad) have some quick footage of a child denying that she was affected by adult inappropriate behavior, doesn’t mean we don’t believe the mother who says that yes, she wasn’t cool with it behind closed doors.
 

I think it’s gross too, that they are attempting to normalize talking in lewd, sexually explicit ways in front of a group of minors, and now there’s a narrative trying to go around that Denise is lying or being fake about her daughter being upset about it. I don’t get it. 

What stake do they have in making her look bad? What do they benefit, if she is so popular, in making her look bad, do you think?

It is true that we didn't see the entire conversation and that it is entirely possible that Sami said something in private that she didn't say on camera. But given the lack of specificity in Denise's description - and the fact that yes, she did kind of keep changing what it is that Sami allegedly said once confronted with it - we can only go on what we saw. My guess is that Sami probably thought it was stupid and gross in that way that teenagers think about the way adults talk but probably wasn't scarred by it. 

12 minutes ago, Quiet1 said:

We only know what Denise's daughter was willing to say on camera. Privately their conversation could have been very different. Her daughter knows if it is filmed it will air so that is why I think she was dismissive of it on camera. I also think Aaron let production know Denise wouldn't be at the party early enough that production would have let the other ladies know and Garcelle (and the camera crew) wouldn't have wasted time waiting for her.

See above. Denise was vague about the alleged harm done to Sami. So we can only go by what we've seen. The fact is that if Sami said something to Denise in private that was different than what she said on camera, Denise should have probably said, "but that's not what you told me the other day" or some such.

I don't love the fact that Sami has become such a focus of this because she is a kid and because, as I've said a few times, I really do feel like Denise was well within her rights to ask the women to pipe down and that should have been respected. But Denise is the one who brought Sami into it after the party, and unfortunately, she made a tactical mistake on that end. 

[TattleTeeny]

I will not go so far as to say I liked Sutton's' dress; it looked uncomfortable, weirdly puffy and bulky in places--as if patches of comforters were affixed to it--and was definitely done no favors by her body or vice versa. However, I like the idea of it because I love loteria imagery.

[eleanorofaquitaine]

Because I have been critical of Denise here, I will also say that I find Rinna's anger towards her inexplicable and over the top. As far as I know, Rinna didn't have a feud or anything with Brandi, so I don't understand why Rinna feels so hurt or angry or whatever about Denise's relationship with Brandi, whatever it is, and I don't get why she cares if Denise is being a little less than truthful about whatever happened with Brandi. Brandi didn't even say that Denise was bad-mouthing Rinna.

I could understand it if it were Erika or Teddi - again, I get why they are mad at Denise. But they don't feel the same sense of betrayal that Rinna is showing and I just don't get it. I do think she absolutely stirred the pot several times this season, and made the situation worse, not better. And I don't really get that. 

Edited August 27, 2020 by eleanorofaquitaine

[Quiet1]

4 minutes ago, eleanorofaquitaine said:

The fact is that if Sami said something to Denise in private that was different than what she said on camera, Denise should have probably said, "but that's not what you told me the other day" or some such.

I don't love the fact that Sami has become such a focus of this because she is a kid and because, as I've said a few times, I really do feel like Denise was well within her rights to ask the women to pipe down and that should have been respected. But Denise is the one who brought Sami into it after the party, and unfortunately, she made a tactical mistake on that end. 

Completely disagree with you. I'm happy Denise didn't treat her daughter like that.

[princelina]

52 minutes ago, suomi said:

Sutton's set-up line to Brandi: Someday maybe learn to not say things.

Brandi (not a good actress, was visibly concentrating hard on her cue line from Sutton): Hunny, it ain't happening. 

Rinna got the sweetheart edit: Why didn't she reach out to me?

 

a.  This is the main reason I dislike Brandi and she can miss me with her self-pitying tears - her complete insistence that "this is who she is" and there ain't no changing it ever.  It's a popular personality type on reality shows, I have noticed, but then they can shut it when they're crying "Why me? Why me?"  Learn something bitch.

b.  Was that supposed to be a sweetheart edit?  I thought it was designed to make the audience roar, in unison, "Because you're a fucking asshole!!!" 😄 

[eleanorofaquitaine]

Just now, Quiet1 said:

Completely disagree with you. I'm happy Denise didn't treat her daughter like that.

Like what? I am not suggesting that she use those exact words but I don't see how it would be mistreating her to say, "when we were talking the other day, you mentioned that you were really uncomfortable with the stuff that was being said."

Of course, I don't happen to believe that there was a separate conversation in which Sami expressed discomfort. I think Sami said what we saw her say - she didn't think it was a big deal. So my hypothetical is just that. But if Sami DID say something differently in private than what she said on camera, and if Denise just ignored that, then it does a pretty big disservice to Sami. 

[janiema]

1 hour ago, princelina said:

She should take some of that money she throws away in couture houses and pay for a stylist who could show her how to dress that oddly shaped body flattering ways.

I agree with this but I like her. Would like to see more.

[65mickey]

17 minutes ago, eleanorofaquitaine said:

Because I have been critical of Denise here, I will also say that I find Rinna's anger towards her inexplicable and over the top. As far as I know, Rinna didn't have a feud or anything with Brandi, so I don't understand why Rinna feels so hurt or angry or whatever about Denise's relationship with Brandi, whatever it is, and I don't get why she cares if Denise is being a little less than truthful about whatever happened with Brandi. Brandi didn't even say that Denise was bad-mouthing Rinna.

I could understand it if it were Erika or Teddi - again, I get why they are mad at Denise. But they don't feel the same sense of betrayal that Rinna is showing and I just don't get it. I do think she absolutely stirred the pot several times this season, and made the situation worse, not better. And I don't really get that. 

All of this so called anger is just a smoke screen. They are trying to run her off the show. They can't let up now they have her where they want with production in hot water.  They are trying to make her so miserable that she will either quit or be fired becaue she will not show up to  film.  

[psychoticstate]

1 hour ago, suomi said:

I fell asleep and woke up for the second half, and then watched the first half during the re-run so I hope I don't have the storyline mixed up here. 

"Someone" told Denise that Brandi would be at Dorit's party. "Someone" who knew or was pretty sure that the heads-up would make her cancel, which was the desired outcome. 

Garcelle's repeated calls to Denise went to VM. Denise may have seen Brandi's text about being at the party... or maybe production informed her. Denise didn't answer when Rinna asked her how she knew Brandi would be at the party (or maybe her answer was edited out). Being evasive because it was production or because it was Brandi would come across the same way onscreen. 

IMO Garcelle, Dorit, Teddi and possibly Sutton were not in on the set-up; Vyle, Kim, Brandi and Rinna were. 

Rinna in TH before Brandi arrived: I've been telling her she really really needs to come. Everyone needs to talk.

Garcelle at the party: Brandi's not coming, right?

Kyle (very quickly, so quick she almost stepped on Garcelle's question): Let's have something to eat!

(someone): Brandi and Kim are here! 

Vyle: Don't look at me!

Dorit was blindsided and not exactly thrilled

Sutton's set-up line to Brandi: Someday maybe learn to not say things.

Brandi (not a good actress, was visibly concentrating hard on her cue line from Sutton): Hunny, it ain't happening. 

Rinna got the sweetheart edit: Why didn't she reach out to me?

Rinna was further rewarded with a TH mentioning that Denise learned how to strategize while battling with Charlie, and being the one who presented the surgery photos Denise posted. Her further reward was the scene at her house with Denise where she laid on a phony congenial greeting with a trowel. Rinna asked Denise who told her that Brandi would be at Dorit's house. The answer was cut/not shown. 

Somewhere along the way, a screen card informed the audience that Brandi and the cast were served with a Cease and Desist. Denise was blindsided when Rinna told her she knew about that. So who was served, only Brandi or the entire cast? Rinna's "Oooh, you're so angry" was in response to Denise saying Who told you that?

"Someone" stitched together a desired narrative. 

Excellent points on this entire post but I want to point out that the real question is who told Rinna about the cease and desist and what was said?  I'm going to guess Kyle, who was either told by production and/or told by Kim, who was informed by Brandi.  

Again, very hypocritical of Rinna to think Denise is in the wrong, pointing out  how angry she is, etc. when Rinna lost her shit at the Amsterdam dinner when Kim suggested talking about Harry Hamlin.  Obviously Rinna didn't want HH, or whatever tea Kim was going to spill, brought out on the show so she's not "owning it."  

And while Erika wasn't there, I have little doubt that she would have joined in the Denise pile-on.  Which also makes her a hypocrite since she practically went for Eileen's throat over discussing Erika's grown son and certainly does not want to discuss too much about Tom.

We all know that Kyle pitched a fit when the rumor about Mauricio's cheating came up and shut that thing down pronto.   She also flipped her wig over Brandi talking about smoking pot when they were in Amsterdam because her kids would hear it.  Once again, major hypocrite -- she didn't want her kids hearing pot talk so what's so different about Denise not wanting her kids to hear threesome talk?  

Only Teddi is not guilty of being hypocritical in this regard but only because she's boring.

Most of these women are like a pack of rabid coyotes, just waiting to jump on prey and tear it to bits.  So long as they aren't getting dragged through the mud, they are perfectly fine at subjecting someone else to it.  

I don't care whether Denise lied about Brandi or not.  Brandi herself said (disingenuously, I might add) that the topic of her and Denise never should have been made public.  Very true.  Of course, Brandi was the one that made it public.  It wasn't as if her conversation was being recorded and she didn't know.  She blabbed on camera.  The only thing missing was the popcorn.  

As I've said before, I don't care whether Denise hooked up with Brandi (although I always thought she had better taste than that.)  That is between Denise, and Brandi and Denise and Aaron.  

 

[Mar]

If I have to listen to Lisa laughing at one of her own “jokes” in her interviews, I will not be responsible for my actions

 

[Keywestclubkid]

Just now, Mar said:

If I have to listen to Lisa laughing at one of her own “jokes” in her interviews, I will not be responsible for my actions

 

If they don’t do an all recast all at once  they need to let Rinna go first. 

[Mar]

 

11 minutes ago, Keywestclubkid said:

If they don’t do an all recast all at once  they need to let Rinna go first. 

In the same way that Dorinda ruined the New York franchise for me, Rinna has been instrumental in ruining this one for me. Luckily Dorinda was fired, but unfortunately I don’t think that is going to happen with Lisa. I think she is an expert at playing the game and playing by producers rules.

Edited August 27, 2020 by Mar

[OFDgal]

15 hours ago, FlyingEgret said:

Why would Brandi text Denise to let her know she would be there?  If Brandi knows Denise so well she would know that would cause Denise to bail on the party. Stupid play by Brandi? Or did Rinna get Brandi to send the text thus manipulating the final narrative???  Way too much conspiracy thought for a RH show, but that's how much I distrust the evil Rinna...

Why didn't Denise block Brandi's number?  I cannot stand Rinna.

[Mar]

The scene at Dorit’s party concerning Denise being a no-show seems completely set up and staged and producer-driven to me. I am guessing that Denise had already announced she would not be filming any more to the producers and they had to add this in for some drama. Very fake. Bad acting.

[Mar]

Garcelle: is that Brandi?

Dorit: Kyle!

Kyle: Don’t look at me

Sorry Kyle, I am looking at you. I am looking at you really hard

Brandi, always so classy.

”There’s a lot of guys here. It’s like a sausage fest.”

[BloggerAloud]

This season has been a bust BUT I will say Dorit's incredibly awkward greeting of Brandi may be one of my favorite things that has come from this season.

[njbchlover]

1 hour ago, ciaoformeow said:

Well to be fair, it seemed to be a combination of that and a launch party for PKs non-alcoholic champagne. I don't know why she didn't just do the launch party instead of making it a house warming (we didn't even get a house tour!) But oh well

Because if it was just a launch party - Dorit and PK should be handing out gifts of sample bottles of PK's champagne.  If it's a housewarming party, Dorit and PK hold out their hands to collect gifts!!  

[Beachdreamer]

The scene where Denise asks Sami about what she heard was obviously a set up.  I'm not psychic, so I don't know why it was set up, but I thought even at the time that plainly obvious that is was.  One reasonable guess is that they were trying to recreate a conversation that happened off camera.  Maybe Sami responded the same way she did off camera, and maybe she didn't.  If so, I respect Denise for not pushing it.

Another guess is that maybe Sami was upset on camera, and Denise asked for a more favorable re-shoot for her child.  I think all of this was done long before Denise had any idea how threesomes would become the theme of the entire season.

[Jack Terrier]

17 hours ago, nexxie said:

Another creepy moment from Rinna: “Ooh, you’re so angry.”

Now see, I thought that was her best work to date. 😉

[nexxie]

1 hour ago, eleanorofaquitaine said:

Because I have been critical of Denise here, I will also say that I find Rinna's anger towards her inexplicable and over the top. As far as I know, Rinna didn't have a feud or anything with Brandi, so I don't understand why Rinna feels so hurt or angry or whatever about Denise's relationship with Brandi, whatever it is, and I don't get why she cares if Denise is being a little less than truthful about whatever happened with Brandi. Brandi didn't even say that Denise was bad-mouthing Rinna.

I could understand it if it were Erika or Teddi - again, I get why they are mad at Denise. But they don't feel the same sense of betrayal that Rinna is showing and I just don't get it. I do think she absolutely stirred the pot several times this season, and made the situation worse, not better. And I don't really get that. 

To me it looks like Rinna is threatened by Denise, and very jealous. Bravo gave Denise more money and more leeway. Plus, they’ve both been around a long time but Denise gets way more acting jobs and happy endings than Rinna.

[Beachdreamer]

Brandi says in the episode that she texted Denise herself to let her know she would be at Dorit's party.  The question is WHY?  What are the possible outcomes of this?  They are that Denise has time to prepare a response to Brandi, or that Denise doesn't come at all.  Brandi is reveling in the attention and probably paycheck that this storyline has given her.  Why would she thwart herself this way?

Is it possible Brandi didn't want Denise to come to the party??? 

 

[Slakkie]

So I am really trying to understand why these wives care so much about Brandi and Denise hooking up when they all admitted to do it.  If they did or did not why do they care EXCEPT .... THIS IS THE STORYLINE THAT WAS MANDATED.  I mean it is such a non issue no one cares they started the season going after Denise and I do not care if she had saved Lucy Lucy from an out of control Apple Juicy - she was the season's Satan of Stick and nothing she would do or say was right.  I am done

[nexxie]

6 minutes ago, Jack Terrier said:

Now see, I thought that was her best work to date. 😉

It was awesome if you don’t mind creepy!

[Mar]

17 hours ago, RealHousewife said:

Rinna is so full of it. She’s not there for Denise. She’s not there for anyone other than herself. 

Oh, but she is the truth seeker!🙄🙄🙄Her daughter was on a podcast the other day talking about her anorexia. She said that a few years ago she was so deep into it that the doctors told her she would soon weigh 45 pounds and be dead. Why wasn’t that on the show if it’s the truth? Calling Rinna, the truth seeker

[Ms Blue Jay]

17 hours ago, RealHousewife said:

Phoenix is so cute. I want one! Lol 

She really is.

[Mar]

17 hours ago, LibertarianSlut said:

Denise, please release Lisa Rinna’s text messages!!!!!  

If there is any possibility that any of this could come out at the reunion, it would make my year! Rinna needs to be taken down a peg or two or three, or 100.

[Ms Blue Jay]

17 hours ago, Emmeline said:

I just wish Denise would have been honest and wrote to the women, the evening of the party.  She just had to say that Brandi texted her stating she would be at the party that evening and Denise wasn’t comfortable with that.

Everyone has lied to get out of an event.  Not just the housewives.  Everyone.

[Ms Blue Jay]

16 hours ago, Beachdreamer said:

I must grudgingly admit that Kyle wins the season.  At Denise's party, Kyle was the one who got drunk and sloppy and upset and stormed out.  From that moment on, I think Kyle was engineering Denise's fall, and she managed to pull it off by dragging Kim and Brandi in.  And then the dirty work of talking about Denise's private sex life was hidden under talk of Denise saying relatively mild but still negative comments about Teddi and Erika. so that they would be angry at Denise.  .  There was no mention of what Denise might have said about Kyle, Even though it was Kyle and Denise initially snapping at each other and leaving each other's parties.  That's very telling.

Kyle managed to make Teddi and Erika do her dirty work of calling Denise out for "mean" comments  and in doing so, bringing the accusation about Brandi to light, and she just sat there with her fake surprised look.  Rinna jumped in and became the bad guy on her own because frankly, she's just a terrible human being and can't resist a good take down, so I won't credit Kyle with that, but the rest of it...it was all Kyle.

Yup.  I believe you

[Mar]

17 hours ago, EmZeeGee said:

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.”

I read that Denise, Kim, and Brandi share the same agent, who worked out a deal for the three of them to appear and sign autographs and answer questions. I’m not sure if it was a one time thing or a sequence of events. Apparently Denise backed out, costing the other to the potential income. Voila a motive.

[bkathi]

2 hours ago, VedaPierce said:

How do you know so definitively that Sami wasn’t upset by the threesome talk? Because they had 10 seconds of footage with Sami, a teenager, not wanting to admit that she was uncomfortable with threesomes being discussed by her mom’s drunk old friends in front of her friends? I’m around a lot of teens and not one of them would admit on camera that they were negatively affected by that, however, I don’t know any responsible adult who would think that that behavior is ok. “see?? the kid says so herself!! she doesn’t care! keep on talking about threesomes, mom and mom’s friends!” /s 

Just because the producers (who obviously have a stake in trying to make Denise look bad) have some quick footage of a child denying that she was affected by adult inappropriate behavior, doesn’t mean we don’t believe the mother who says that yes, she wasn’t cool with it behind closed doors.
 

I think it’s gross too, that they are attempting to normalize talking in lewd, sexually explicit ways in front of a group of minors, and now there’s a narrative trying to go around that Denise is lying or being fake about her daughter being upset about it. I don’t get it. 

100% agree.  What 15 YO would admit on camera that they were upset about anything?

[eleanorofaquitaine]

13 minutes ago, Mar said:

If there is any possibility that any of this could come out at the reunion, it would make my year! Rinna needs to be taken down a peg or two or three, or 100.

Quite honestly, I doubt there is anything that interesting in Rinna's text. Now, I don't doubt that Rinna also stirs the pot in those texts and maybe says mean things about the other ladies, but I doubt there is anything beyond that. 

I still basically can't get over the fact that Denise said that the texts that Brandi showed the group must be fake and then in the confessional said she has texts from Brandi. I will give Denise this - she is such a tremendously bad liar that I believe that she probably doesn't lie all that much in her non-RH life.

 

[Ms Blue Jay]

13 hours ago, thesupremediva1 said:

Being in the path of someone who is knowingly trying to destroy your marriage constitutes a family emergency. Boom.

That's what I thought too.  Denise should have just said to Lisa "It was a family emergency" because it was.

[eleanorofaquitaine]

5 minutes ago, bkathi said:

100% agree.  What 15 YO would admit on camera that they were upset about anything?

Well, then, why would Denise agree to have her 15 year old on camera, if she said one thing in private and another thing on camera?

(Note - I don't think she did. I truly think Sami did not care. I just don't understand this argument that is somehow good mothering to make it look like your daughter is saying one thing in private, and another thing in public). 

Quote

That's what I thought too.  Denise should have just said to Lisa "It was a family emergency" because it was.

Except for the part where they posted something to make it look like it was a medical emergency.  That's pretty gross. She didn't have to go that route - even if she didn't want to tell the truth (which, again, why, Denise? Why not tell the truth?), she could have said something incredibly vague like "something came up."  I don't know if there was some sort of contract penalty for not showing, and maybe that's why she didn't. But misleading her coworkers and the public is not something I can applaud her for, no matter how many excuses I hear about how worried she is for the state of her marriage. (And of course, it's worth nothing that she herself said that she and her asshole husband are so strong, so she doesn't seem all that worried about the state of her marriage). 

Edited August 27, 2020 by eleanorofaquitaine

[Mar]

15 hours ago, lyric said:

By far, the most intriguing moment from tonight was Sutton stating how we didn't need to worry about any rumors of her having sex with Brandy because "I mean, look at me." with an eye roll. A HW openly insecure about her appeal? Now, THAT is a topic worth exploring.

This made me feel really bad for her. She got tears in her eyes when she said it, and it reminded me that she cried in the dressing room of that designer boutique in Rome, and didn’t want anyone to see her in the clothing. Apparently she suffers from extremely low self-esteem, which is really sad.