S01.E06: Anyone For Tennis?

[Tara Ariano]

The new Liberty Belle Skin Centre building is slow as Andrea anxiously plans a launch party. Andrea hosts a tennis day at her beach house on the Mornington Peninsula. It starts off well but its game on when one of the girls arrives late.

Edited August 16, 2014 by Tara Ariano
Added episode descriptions

[citychic]

Andrea is delusional. That is all.

[technorebel]

I was wondering if a gang-up would start on this show like on other versions.  I can't believe they were all really that angry about Gina's tardiness; just start without her.  If she has to be in court, then she had to be there. 

 

I'm so irritated with Andrea, I don't really care if someone was late to her event or left a soiled towel in the bathroom.  I doubt if Gina really left make-up on the walls, etc.  Andrea's just got a knife out for her for whatever reason.  Of course, that whole storyline could just be the producers instigating drama.

 

I've really grown to like Jackie.  She may be a little flaky, but she can be charming and fun, as well.

[Primetimer]

When it comes to establishing cult Housewife status, Gina further cements herself as the bitch to beat during this week's tennis exhibition.

Read the story

[citychic]

Jackie did grow on me a bit this episode. She came along with Lydia for the ride and just enjoyed the day with laughs and no drama. The salsa class looked really fun, but Janet looked at the dance instructor as if she expected him to bed her right then and there!

Gina is doing certain things just to get a rise out of Andrea, and she's playing right into her hand. The makeup in the bathroom, the tardiness and also wearing heels on the tennis court - all just to provoke a reaction. I'm just not sure why she's disrespecting the rest of the women in the process, maybe she's just over all of them and their antics.

Andrea, as I said above is delusional. When she was talking to the contractor she kept reiterating deadlines that he was well aware of. The wrong color carpet and the like are all a normal part of any construction project. She talked to him in such a condescending tone, and her stupid assistant rolling her eyes as well.

I was glad to see the instructors eyes roll so far up into his head as Lydia was telling him her plans. She really doesn't have a clue what she's doing, even the young student she spoke to was confused by her plans. When she dissed the instructor to the other student and said he doesn't know what he's talking about I realized she really doesn't care to actually learn anything, she just wants to be able to say that she took a class in interior design to show off. Frustrating would be a better word to describe her.

Now compare that with sweet Chyka making dinner for her son and his friends. She's so nice and down to earth. Take note, because Chyka is a happy person inside and it shows on the outside.

[RubberDuckie]

Love Chyka! She seems so normal.

I, too, liked Jackie better this episode. She was fun and drama free.

Lydia fancies herself a decorator but I haven't seen anything yet that would lead me to believe she has sophisticated taste. Now on to Janet. I really do not understand her vitriol towards Gina. It's seems to have escalated out of nowhere. She did not seem that annoyed with her last week, but this week she absolutely hates her. I don't get it.

I love Andrea's beach home and Janet's country home. I love watching the Australian scenery. I also love the genuine wealth and fabulous lifestyles on this show.

[lisalionheart]

I was wondering if a gang-up would start on this show like on other versions.  I can't believe they were all really that angry about Gina's tardiness; just start without her.  If she has to be in court, then she had to be there.

 

 

The vehemence with which they hate her is bizarre. I hope that it was played up in editing because there was not enough conflict.

 

It felt totally attorney-ish that Gina gave in and sort of apologized to Jackie. She knew she'd lost the jury.

 

Chyka's scene was sweet but felt a little too awkward/staged.

[poeticlicensed]

Loved Chyka's house. It looked cottagey with the ivy.

 

Andrea, honey, if you decorate your house all in white, something is bound to get dirty. She wasacting like Gina was smearing makeup all over the walls. GMFB. 

 

OMG, the outfits the women wore for salsa, save for Chyka and Jackie were ridic. I was half covering my eyes waiting for a random veejayjay to pop out. 

 

Waiting for the inevitable fight while on holiday. Looks like a Gina gang up. I am confident she can handle it without batting an eye. 

 

I am overwhelmed by Gina's wardrobe. I swear she has matching jewelry, shoes and  purse for every dress she owns. Monochromatic on steroids. Too matchy matchy. 

 

I am liking Jackie so much more than a few weeks ago. Andrea can have many seats. 

[walnutqueen]

The only difference between these twunts and the American ones is their shit flushes counter clockwise (or so I'm told),  but with a delightful accent that is semi-comprehensible to the average American ear.  :-)    Oh, and usually your first ho'wife season is a little less calculated. 

[Neurochick]

Gina has zero class. If you're going to be late you call, I'm sure the woman knows how to use a cell phone, she's a lawyer after all.

Edited September 1, 2014 by Neurochick

[Betweenyouandme]

OMG, the outfits the women wore for salsa, save for Chyka and Jackie were ridic. I was half covering my eyes waiting for a random veejayjay to pop out.

I think both outfits Jackie tried on looked like beach cover ups rather than evening wear. The white "frock" looked like Hollister brand, while the orange diaper looked like OP brand from Walmart.

[Blueeyedgirl]

Oh, this show....So yes, Gina definitely should have called when she was going to be late, and what in the world could you possibly do in the bathroom to take an hour to get into a tennis dress and stiletto heels?  People are late all the time, but these days, texting or calling to let people know is polite. 

 

But suddenly, after being fairly friendly with and confiding in Gina last episode, Janet cannot be friends with her?  Janet is quickly losing me, after being one of my favorites.  I wouldn't trust her.

 

Andrea, well, there are no words. I do understand that delays in construction are incredibly frustrating, but perhaps you should have planned better.  What happened to the construction/remodeling checklist, that anticipates delays? :)  And why would you design a tennis court that means people could track little green sand into your white house, or a house at the beach which can't handle any dirt -- when you have 3 small children?!?! And it is a house designed for play -- pool, tennis court, and I assume, beach?!?! 

 

...and deluded Lydia?  Yes, Lydia dear, you are so talented and avant garde that even your excellent professor doesn't understand your work. I had forgotten that she was studying interior design when we were shown her ski house and when she was art shopping.  That puts everything in a different, tackier light.

 

At least they are showing less of Jackie...I am shining enough.

[technorebel]

I'm sure that Andrea is accustomed to having her poor, over-worked nannies to do the cleaning wherever she is.  There's no way she's cleaning up after anyone, especially her own kids.  I don't get having a house like that if you can't truly enjoy it.  I must admit I was kind of hoping a giant crocodile would dash across the lawn, snatch Andrea up, and disappear into the sea. It would've been a perfect ending to that tennis party.

[Neurochick]

When the women were all sitting having drinks after playing tennis, I noticed that the other women were more or less natural, while Gina looked like a clown.  I wonder if there is something psychologically wrong with her; did someone make fun of her looks when she was a child?  She seems to feel that she has to put all that paint on her face, no matter where she is.  To me that's not normal; you wear make up to enhance your looks, not to hide what you really look like.  I bet Gina is very pretty under all that mess, but she probably doesn't think so.

[Blueeyedgirl]

Yes, I wish we knew more about Gina beyond her caked on makeup and ridiculous clothing (I swear, she has dress after dress which are one move away from a wardrobe malfunction).  There is some sadness in her... Although I kind of like the glimpse of the fun side of her during the dancing -- it wasn't the focus (her story was "poor me, I was the last one chosen and then it was by a short little man who did it out of sympathy"), but when you saw her dancing, she was smiling (which we never see otherwise) and shimmying and seemed to be having fun.  Seems like they have story they created for her, and that's that.  We also have seen nothing of her real personal life -- besides shoe shopping and tennis dress shopping.  We've seen Jackie & husband at home, Chyka with husband and with son & friends and at work, Lydia art shopping and flying places and going to school, Andrea with the lists, husband & kids, and construction site, and Janet on the cougar date and melting down her jewelry.  Granted, some of the 'other' stuff is light, but we really know very little about Gina beyond the story line.

 

That said, I love Chyka.  Maybe she would make for boring tv, but I love her. 

[Pollock]

Gina is building her "tv look" I think. Her brand, something that people will remember and talk about. From all the women, she is the one who really understood what it means to be on a housewives show : be heard, be seen, be talked about. The last thing you want is being bland and boring, interchangeable. She wasn't. 

I think she went for a mix of Teresa G. and Lisa. Polarizing but efficient for the public recognition.

 

Even if people prefer Chyka this year (the only sane one ! Carole Manzo during her first season maybe ? I don't remember her clearly at that time but physically, she reminds me of her), it's Gina the star at the end of the season.

[walnutqueen]

I'd love to bag on Gina's outfits & makeup, but I cannot in all good conscience do so.  Because I dress like a steaming pile of dog shite and haven't even used mascara in years.  I'd be more inclined to ridicule people who follow fashion and trends with no sense of personal style. 

 

Good go on you, Gina( r ).  :-)

 

I still want to see her in that silly white curly court wig, though!

 

edited because when I added the "r" to Gina's name in parentheses, it posted some weird trademark thingy rather than the Aussie accent I was joking about!

Edited September 1, 2014 by walnutqueen

[larapu2000]

Chyka has a culinary degree?  I agree with the boys, that meal looked delicious-homemade ravioli?  Best home cooked meal I've seen on the Housewives shows, period!  I love her sly Martha Stewart-ness, too, with those bread plates.  Her son and his friends seemed sweet, even if that dinner was staged, but it seems like she was no stranger to them.

 

Ben is so weird.  I don't like him, but I don't hate him, and sometimes, I kind of love him.  He had an actual opinion on his wife's outfit and told her how great she looked. 

[cpansy]

I cannot believe I almost stopped watching this gold after the first episode, since I thought it was incredibly boring. Gina absolutely rules. I love the fact that everyone can throw anything at her and she remains completely nonplussed (and I do mean unperturbed). Unless I am very much mistaken, no one is going to see Tammy Sue-style fake crocodile tears from Gina, who can handle a horde of Housewives without having to blot her bronzer. I would love to see her with a make-under, because I think she would look stunning, but if she's happy with the way she looks, far be it from me to interfere. On the other hand, I find Andrea appalling. Whether it's the grimly eager manner in which she shows off her homes/gardens/grounds, or the dismissive way in which she disregarded the comments of actual working mothers, Andrea just seems like some kind of fascist general to me - who wants to prove to the world that she is anything but. Loved Chyka, who does seem like a really good cook and an involved mother; and I adored the fact that Jackie actually wore a tennis skirt and t-shirt to play a casual game of tennis with friends...just like a normal person. While I usually love Janet, something is amiss with her now-I-can't-stand-Gina attitude. I'll give it a pass until I learn a little bit more about what's going on. As for Lydia and the decorating "class", her behavior is just about what I'd expect from someone interested in purchasing a large, bejeweled bear (or panther). Love these crazy babes!

[ichbin]

Even if people prefer Chyka this year (the only sane one ! Carole Manzo during her first season maybe ? I don't remember her clearly at that time but physically, she reminds me of her), it's Gina the star at the end of the season.

I was thinking the exact same thing about Chyka/Caroline! 

 

As for the 2nd season, they are already filming.  Someone shook out during a cast shake-up. . http://www.news.com.au/entertainment/tv/real-housewives-of-melbourne-season-2-gamble-breaux-and-pettifleur-berenger-join-the-cast/story-fn8yvfst-1227031781665S

 

There is a reunion show!!!  Some of the details here....sounds like it went the same as we have come to expect from the US versions. http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-2625538/Things-savage-Real-Housewives-Of-Melbourne-reunion-special-truth-Gina-Liano-revealed.html

[kassa]

Gina is building her "tv look" I think. Her brand, something that people will remember and talk about. From all the women, she is the one who really understood what it means to be on a housewives show : be heard, be seen, be talked about. The last thing you want is being bland and boring, interchangeable. She wasn't.

 

 

But just as Chyka may turn out to be Caroline Manzo, Gina may end up being Adrienne Maloof -- giving us superficialities and nothing more.  Not that I mind superficialities if somebody's delivering house porn.  But eventually you have to give a little, and she may learn that being "above" getting personal is a dangerous game when you've contracted your soul away on this show.  I can't say I know a thing about her except that she's obviously intelligent, and has a penchant for dramatic clothes and makeup.  What little she revealed about her "partner" was so clinical it was almost sterile.  Won't work, long term - there are only so many times you can watch somebody shop. 

 

I think Janet's about face is in response to something alluded to and then dropped -- Gina's partner threatened to sue the other women.  We've seen before that that does not go over well.

[ichbin]

I think Janet's about face is in response to something alluded to and then dropped -- Gina's partner threatened to sue the other women.  We've seen before that that does not go over well.

It's interesting watching a show that has already aired several months ago because a lot of the dirt has already come out.  For what it's worth:   http://www.smh.com.au/entertainment/tv-and-radio/why-life-is-hell-for-the-real-housewives-of-melbourne-20140328-35mc1.html

 

"Two Brain Cells and a Vagina"...oh, that Gina!

[The Closer]

I laugh at comments from the housewives about Gina's makeup or style because she must be doing pretty fine if that's supposed to be a big slam against her, especially when the laundry list against a couple of the others starts with "vapid" and ends with "petty". I'd rather hang out with someone whose style I don't share but who has an interesting career and the ability to manage their emotions like an adult.

[technorebel]

It's interesting watching a show that has already aired several months ago because a lot of the dirt has already come out.  For what it's worth:   http://www.smh.com.au/entertainment/tv-and-radio/why-life-is-hell-for-the-real-housewives-of-melbourne-20140328-35mc1.html

 

"Two Brain Cells and a Vagina"...oh, that Gina!

 

Doesn't that perfectly describe Lydia, though?  One of the new housewives is named "Pettifleur".  I love it.

[archer1267]

Ugh, these silly women are working my last nerve, for the most part. Anyone else get the sense that Lydia expects special regard at school because of her "rock star architect" husband? And her characterizations of her "sweet little naive simple friends" and instructor were so patronizing! She clearly needs practice in conveying her aesthetic "vision" to people, rather than stringing adjectives together ("my style is classical contemporary blah blah…"). 

 

No one sucks as much as Andrea does, though. From her weird inflections and hand movements to this charade of having a perfect life, and not knowing how to treat a guest in her home (hint: you don't ring up everyone to complain about what Gina left behind in the loo). Between that and the way she treated the construction foreman, she's got the emotional intelligence of a brick. Her beach house looked sterile and unlived-in, and I'd be afraid to sit down and make myself at home, less I muss up anything. Telling people what you paid for things is so tacky, too. Contrast that with Chyka, whose home was warm and inviting. Both homes are a reflection of the women within them.

 

I'm getting really sick of this "Gina Gina Gina" stuff. Don't these women have anything else to talk about?? She had to go to court and yes, it would have been polite to call and explain, and say "Please start without me," but you'd think, from the way these crones carried on, that she stabbed Poppy with her stiletto on the court.

Edited September 5, 2014 by archer1267

[jnymph]

I'd rather hang out with someone whose style I don't share but who has an interesting career and the ability to manage their emotions like an adult.

Me too.

Her makeup & style is frightful but I still like her, She doesn't strike me as the type to judge what others wear, so why should I judge her (personally) ? ( although it wouldn't hurt to CALL when you're so late!!!)

Janet has banging bod. Wonder how she stays so thin. I'm not far behind her age wise & it's a BITCH to stay in shape.

Hated Jackie & her stupid jumpsuit. Ben is awfully dumpy for a "rock star"

Chykas dinner for the boys made me so damn hungry & I don't even care for ravioli, but that looked delicious !

Edited September 6, 2014 by jnymph

[MiamiGuy]

 Ben is awfully dumpy for a "rock star"

 

He was the drummer in Silverchair, not the lead singer, and drummers aren't always the "prettiest" guys in the band. And, at the risk of sounding lookist, a lot of sins can be hidden behind a drum kit!

[sasha206]

Both Lydia and Andrea seem to think decorating = white, sterile environment.  

 

And Andrea:  get your teeth fixed.  Does she even see a dentist for fuck's sake?

[sasha206]

 and I adored the fact that Jackie actually wore a tennis skirt and t-shirt to play a casual game of tennis with friends...just like a normal person. 

 

I hate myself for saying this but she's growing on me.  She actually seems like a fun person.  She just has to drop the "I'm so gorgeous" routine.

I'm sure that Andrea is accustomed to having her poor, over-worked nannies to do the cleaning wherever she is.  There's no way she's cleaning up after anyone, especially her own kids.  I don't get having a house like that if you can't truly enjoy it.  I must admit I was kind of hoping a giant crocodile would dash across the lawn, snatch Andrea up, and disappear into the sea. It would've been a perfect ending to that tennis party.

 

YES. 

 

I cannot stand her.  For some reason, even her face just bugs me. I guess being married to a plastic surgeon doesn't necessarily mean you take care of your teeth. They look green and have some sort of gap in the front.  Stop building suspended pools and visit a dentist for fuck's sake.

[archer1267]

Ben is awfully dumpy for a "rock star"

 

 

I think it's endearing, though, how Jackie thinks he's the bee's knees and why wouldn't every woman want him? Ditto her disbelief when Lydia and Andrea talked about how they'd spent so much time molding their husbands. She seems to truly be into Ben (although I'm not sure how into him she'd be if he hadn't been in a successful band and well-off as a result).

 

At least Jackie's as generous with complimenting her somewhat dumpy husband as she is herself :)

[sasha206]

I think it's endearing, though, how Jackie thinks he's the bee's knees and why wouldn't every woman want him? Ditto her disbelief when Lydia and Andrea talked about how they'd spent so much time molding their husbands. She seems to truly be into Ben (although I'm not sure how into him she'd be if he hadn't been in a successful band and well-off as a result).

 

At least Jackie's as generous with complimenting her somewhat dumpy husband as she is herself :)

 

I really hate myself because that woman has really grown on me.  She seems like she'd be a blast to party with unlike most of those broads.

[Duke2801]

I hate myself for saying this but she's growing on me.  She actually seems like a fun person.  She just has to drop the "I'm so gorgeous" routine.

 

YES. 

 

I cannot stand her.  For some reason, even her face just bugs me. I guess being married to a plastic surgeon doesn't necessarily mean you take care of your teeth. They look green and have some sort of gap in the front.  Stop building suspended pools and visit a dentist for fuck's sake.

 

Agree with all of this!  I know I've dissed her before, but Jackie has definitely grown on me as well.  Maybe it's a "lesser of the evils" thing, but compared to Andrea, Lydia, and even Janet, she seems quite nice and almost normal---far less into creating drama than some of those other shrews. 

 

Chyka is still my favorite.  She just seems so sweet and nurturing- that "mom" that everybody really flocks to for good advice and delicious food! Not loving that whole "legal" aspect that was going on behind the scenes, but as far as what she presents on camera, Gina is alright with me, too.

 

Andrea is just vile and ugly, inside and out.