S05.E10: House Of Cards

[zoeysmom]

But isn't trying to expose an addict's relapse, on national TV again,  just as heinous?  Especially her sister's?  Because if Kyle really didn't want to go there, she didn't have to.

 

Upon rewatch, I'm firmly on Brandi's side (except for shoving Kyle).  I'll admit, though, that I have zero experience with addiction, so I'm very interested to hear opinions on this episode of people who do.

Kim all on her own decided to show up for work under the influence.  Kim was exposed in the car with Lisar-it had nothing to do with Kyle.  Everyone at the table knew Kim was using something.  Kim followed Kyle into the bathroom after an evening of pretty insulting behavior by Kim's drunk buddy Brandi and Kim towards Kyle.  It is all on Kim.  Hiding her relapse is far worse as the folks who participate are often labeled or "judged" as enablers.

 

What was the plan for Kim?  A prudent plan would be to detox (sober up)with someone competent to look after her until she was no longer a danger to herself or others.  This could not be accomplished with drunken Brandi trying to run roughshod over Kim.  When someone is under the influence it is not time to do therapy or discuss the dynamics of the moment or family history.  Kim is someone with a long history of polydrug abuse there is always a danger of seizure or the possibility if left unsupervised she might overdose.

 

Nothing Brandi was doing was correct, or decent or in the best interest of Kim.

 

Okay that was the opinion portion.  Obviously you are entitled to support Brandi, sorry Ryebread I may have gotten carried away. 

[RealityTVSmack]

What was the insult Kim was trying to lay on Kyle at the table using the long cylinder thing. She kept playing with it and said something about giving it to Kyle. Brandi had been talking about the gifts she won for winning the poker game. Kyle was not happy about what Kim was hinting at...I thought that Kim may have been inferring that Mauricio had undersized genitalia and her sister could use the cylinder thing???? All of a sudden Kyle popped up and went to the bathroom with Kim following her.

Did anyone else have an idea of what the Kim and Kyle's table disagreement was about?

Edited January 21, 2015 by RealityTVSmack

[Lablover27]

I'm concerned about that piece of pizza that fell on the floor.  Will someone trip on it?  Will the dog eat it?  Will it sit in the corner for days before someone realizes it is there?  Just trying to bring some brevity to this show!  Carry on….

 

Well, I'll bring some more brevity....

 

Has anyone seen that movie "Heartburn" with Meryl Streep and Jack Nicholson?  When the women were in the van talking about fantasies, I suspect Lisa didn't want anyone to know her fantasy is what she will wear to Ken's funeral, who she'll flirt with at the funeral, when can she start dating after the funeral and more imporant - what will Jiggy wear at the funeral.  Ala Brandi - just kidding.

 

My little brother was in and out of jail because of his addiction to drugs and alcohol.  I tried the supportive sister thing when I let him move into the garage.  He slowly stole everything he could pawn out of our garage, down to my husband's little league equipment (he was a coach).  I caught him sneaking into my room twice (our upstair floors creaked).  Unfortunately, he died in a solo car crash after drinking.  I don't know why, but my liver hurts to watch Brandi and Kim - really, I swear I can feel it hurt.  Do they not have cirrohisis yet?  That would scare the daylights out of me.  I too hope Kim checked herself into the hospital for help.  Everyone has said everything else I was thinking during tonight's episode.   

Edited January 21, 2015 by Lablover27

[suomi]

To me, that poker party was a perfect storm of plainly-stated insults, jealousy, button-pushing, innuendo and undercurrents. I cannot help but assume that during dark times over the years the Richards sisters have traded hurtful words re their respective acting careers. Whether producer-driven or on the natch Brandi has recently been hitting the actress/non-actress button fairly frequently. Kyle wasn't getting the hang of the basics of poker and tried to downplay it with humor and was taken aback when the word "stupid" started flying. Kim/Brandi made a big damn deal of being winners at something where Kyle was deficient. Whatever their history at the end of the day Kyle/Kim are family, yet Kim was driving the Kim/Brandi wagon at full speed and doing so gleefully. Triangulating. Then there was the innuendo re "big stick" and "dildo" and Kim cracked on Kyle with something like "don't act like you don't know," or words to that effect. Was Kyle worried that Kim would go further and blurt out something Kyle had shared re her private life with Mauricio? Kim was very, very pleased with herself when she saw how Kyle was taking the Kim/Brandi team-up. I think Kyle was justified in feeling wounded about being pushed aside in another person's favor while having it rubbed in her face (on TV), especially when the other person is Brandi, FFS, while Kim skillfully pulled Kyle's validation out from under her and made it about Kyle instead of it being about Kim "using" again. I'm the last person to like/defend Kyle but after tonight I think I can see how/why her (IMO) mean girl persona came into being. As others have said here re Kim:  classic addict behavior.

[princelina]

In my opinion and experience, as one with an addict sibling, it is hard to judge Kyle because she was expecting Sober Kim to show up, and as I said in an earlier post, having Relapsed Kim show up probably put her in a feeling of shock/confusion where you feel kind of sick and not sure how to behave.  Ignoring this shit is not good - in fact it is bad and enables the person to keep getting away with it!  But you don't want to embarrass your host, the other guests, yourself when the Relapsed Kim starts calling you an asshole, and to be honest the Relapsed One is actually at the bottom of this list even if you don't realize it at the time, because addicts don't really get the shame that the rest of us think they should be feeling.  (Or they do in their heart but certainly won't admit it because that would be admitting to a problem - which leads to having to do something about it - which leads to giving up their booze, pills, whatever - which they don't even want to think about!)  So  as the sibling, the battle goes on in your head - "Just ignore and keep the peace - we'll deal with this later!  No - it has to be mentioned - ignoring it only leads to excuse making and never helps!  No - it will just make our hosts feel bad and ruin their party!  But something should be said so she knows we know what she's doing!"  and on and on, and the next day, no matter what you did, you wish you had handled it differently.  So no judgment on Kyle from me here.

 

Instead of second-guessing Kyle, I'd like to address what I think was going on in Kim's addled, yet cunning addict brain (based only on what we saw tonight, and how very well i know my own angry and aggressive alcoholic of a brother):

 

1.  When Lisa gets in the car, she is overly friendly and upbeat - she is feeling good and wants to have fun with Lisa!

2.  That doesn't last long because Lisa quickly asks if she has been drinking/taking drugs

3.  "Yikes!"  thinks the addict.  "I need to defuse this shit ASAP!"  so denies immediately

4.  Followed by "Here's my sob story - STFU because you feel bad pressing me when I'm feeling blue/stressed/upset"

5.  Followed by a little bit of deliberately wacky behavior - "I'm not drunk/drugged - just being my usual wacky self!"

6.  (Interspersed with a little bit of drunken emotion that gets away from her - "Don't feel sorry for me, Lisa!" - also designed to keep Lisa wary about confronting her with anything else.  *Confrontations are unwelcome if they could lead to admitting I'm wrong/having to deal with my addictions.)

 

Arrive at Poker Night:

1.  Cunning Addict Brain knows that if acquaintance Lisa R. guesses I'm fucked up, Kyle who knows me will figure it out very quickly, so definitely don't want to sit by her!

2.  Coincidentally, my good, hard-drinking friend Brandi is on her nth glass of wine - let's hang out!  I'll sit by her!

3.  At this point, Addict Brain gets unreasonably angry with Kyle and begins heckling her - even though it would be the smarter move to ignore her in the hope that she will not notice/let it pass.  But the addict wants the person she knows is onto her to not notice/act like she doesn't notice/deny it.

4.  When Addict starts challenging Kyle (the one who knows her best) publicly, she is actually daring Kyle to state the obvious to the crowd, because in her inebriated state she ostensibly wants to see the group agree with her that clearly she is fine and Kyle is being an uptight asshole, but in reality the challenge is this:  "You won't dare say in public what you think is wrong, which means tomorrow I can deny it all or give an excuse, and everyone will want to give me the benefit of the doubt, and I can keep on keeping on for one more day in spite of you.")  And it sounds like she should end that thought-rant with a Ha Ha!  but I think it is more of a sigh of relief as she wipes the sweat off of her brow :(

5.  When Kyle keeps the peace/refuses to engage and heads off to the bathroom, Addict Brain worries that Kyle is getting the upper hand. {Also, let's step back as outsiders and remember that there are some anger issues in the minds of both Addict Brain and She Who Knows Her Well - and Addict Brain is used to SHKHW fighting back whenever certain triggers have been pulled - as they were tonight.}  Addict Brain feels threatened that SHKHW is not responding per the life-long script, and so follows her to the bathroom, in attempt to get things back on their proper footing.

6.  Here is where Addict Brain gives the game away - when SWKHW asks about drinking/are you okay - she says she took a pill Monty gave her.  ("I have to admit to something - Lisa R asked in the car; Kyle has been giving me looks all night; all of the others seem uncomfortable - they all think something is going on!  Since I know I took _______ (?), I had better admit to taking something!  What's the big deal about one pill?  Everyone will understand that!  Etc., etc."  

7.  At this point, Addict Brain knows she needs to get the hell out before others are onto her (still, she's pretty sure that only Kyle, SWKHW, is really hip to what's happening.)  Leaving seems like a great idea until a better one rears it's head - go on back in and say goodbye to everyone!  That way when Kyle voices her concerns to the group, they will all say, "What do you mean, Kyle?  Kim was lovely tonight!  Didn't she come back in and wish us all goodnight?"

 

*Here's where Drunk Brandi gets to do her thang in all her glory - only those readers who are big drinkers/former big drinkers know the guts and the glory of the Drunk Girl Who Is Worried About The Other (Drunk) Girls!

 

***In my opinion as the person writing this, if she had only taken one pill, no one with the exception of possibly Kyle would have noticed anything different about her behavior, and she would have answered with an "Oh, I'm just tired; Kyle is over-sensitive, blah blah" (which may or may not have already happened off camera as well)  Which means that she has taken more than one pain pill (aka Bella had more than one glass of wine even though Mummy doesn't want to admit it:)  Not accusing Bella/Yo of anything other than normal behavior - teen drinking happens, but when it happens to be part of a larger problem, this is how it starts!

[RealityTVSmack]

First...what the hell is a recovering alchoholic doing taking care of her dying ex-husband??? Did I hear her tell LisaR in the car that she hates taking care of him or hates him? Sure...he offered her a HOUSE OF PAIN pill that turned her into the Joker on steroids...I doubt it?!? More like she took him in to have access to his meds.

Kim just happened to over medicate herself before spending a Bravo night out with the girls...how convenient for the camera...and I was born yesterday to believe it was all a last minute accident on her part....as she explained to sister Kyle in the bathroom.

LisaR stood in for the viewing audience as she experienced the most fractured limo ride ever with a totally whacked out fellow HW. This was as about sick as we've ever seen Kim IMO and personally I could have done without ever seeing this crap on my home TV ever. Bravo Andy and crew have taken "entertainment" to a new low..this sucked big time!

All I can think of, is if Kyle would have hit her head on a sharp object when Brandi shoved her...it could have paralyzed or killed her, all to entertain us???

WTF is going on in the desperate, money hungry heads of Bravo, Andy and the RHOBHs production crew...nothing normal I suspect!!! Nothing a caring nurturing audience member would find humor in.

In this episode RHOBH has gone over the top into insanity and it's not a pretty picture.

The very last place Kim needs to be is around a wine tasting bar or pain meds period. She needs to be locked away where she can get the care she needs.

Brandi has taken violence to a new low and needs to go to rehab or be locked up in jail for assault. It would give her time to dry out...the woman is dangerous to herself and others IMO.

[athousandclowns]

I'm guessing that's one reason why Kim volunteered to care for Monty; she knew she'd have relatively easy access to his potent pain meds. It was a nice gesture but if he's to stay under her roof those pills shouldn't be in the house or only be administered by a visiting nurse. Even if they were kept in a secure safe I'm sure Kim would manage to get her hands on them.

 

If he is well enough to take off there probably not visiting nurse at this stage at least not to give pills in the middle of the night if he were to have pain. They will not be there to administer pills till Hospice gets involved. 

When questioned by Kyle she said he gave her a pain pill her doctor gave her.  A doctor gave her a pain pill?

Edited January 21, 2015 by athousandclowns

[zoeysmom]

That could be true, or Kim might have realized how bad it would look if she left without saying goodbye to her hosts and thanking them for the evening. 

 

It looks like next week Kyle succeeds in getting Kim back on camera anyway. 

 

It's weird, I do think there is a tiny part of Kyle that really does want Kim to do well, but it's at war with the childhood jealousy and issues and wanting to make herself the "best" daughter of their distructive, weirdo stage mother. 

 

Kyle should have let Kim say goodbye and leave, for the good of her sister.  Instead, it looks like "for the good of the show and Kyle's image" we will get a bunch more dirt next week. 

The cameras aren't stationary they will go where the action is and the limos both had cameras in them.  So going towards or avoiding the cameras is irrelevant-the only one who tried to side step the cameras was Kyle and Kim followed her into the bathroom. 

 

Where was Kim going?  That is the most important question.

[RedheadZombie]

Kim handled the wine tasting well but after that she went downhill. She can't handle Monty's health and all of the feelings that are coming with it so she takes a pain pill to numb her emotional pain. She on the addict slippery slope indeed. I didn't get the feeling Kyle was calling her out, It looked like real concern from having been in this situation with her MANY times.

 

I also wonder if it's the Monty situation, they could be very co-dependent.  In the limo she was rambling on about Monty leaving her alone that night.  I think she keeps her shit together while she's taking care of him, but he took off that night to do his own thing.  Taking care of him is going to make it that much harder to lose him when he dies.  I wonder if she's developed romantic feelings for him again.

 

As someone not entirely unfamiliar with pain medications, I can't write Kim's behavior off to taking a "pain pill."

 

Being high on pain pills doesn't look much different from being high on illegal substances.  What Monty can take and function with, will knock someone not in physical pain on their ass. 

 

Kim and Brandi are a good pair. Both love playing the victim and it's getting old. Drunk ass Brandi is an enabler because she's an alcoholic like Kim. My guess is that Kim's ex gave her one of his pain pills, and since he has cancer it was probably something pretty strong.

 

Brandi was completely enabling her, but I suspect she thought she was helping her.  Brandi's a drunken mess, but it seemed like she wanted to get Kim out of the house and away from the cameras.  It's funny that Brandi doesn't have this capability to judge her own actions, and realize she's showing her ass on television.

[Watermelon]

That could be true, or Kim might have realized how bad it would look if she left without saying goodbye to her hosts and thanking them for the evening. 

 

It looks like next week Kyle succeeds in getting Kim back on camera anyway. 

 

It's weird, I do think there is a tiny part of Kyle that really does want Kim to do well, but it's at war with the childhood jealousy and issues and wanting to make herself the "best" daughter of their distructive, weirdo stage mother. 

 

Kyle should have let Kim say goodbye and leave, for the good of her sister.  Instead, it looks like "for the good of the show and Kyle's image" we will get a bunch more dirt next week. 

Why?  What's so "good" about letting your clearly angry and high ass sister leave in a limo to go home all by herself(since she told Lisa Monty isn't at the house?)

 

What would make Kyle think that's a better option than having her sit with everyone and eat food and be monitored by her covertly, until she stopped acting like an asshat and came down off whatever high she was on?

[hoosiermom]

PRINCELINA: I am a recovering alcoholic/addict going on 17 years and your evaluation of the addict brain was spot on! I am also a nurse and work in a small psychiatric hospital where we often detox patients. It was truly a work of amazing insight and hopefully educational for some of the posters. Thank you so much. I could never have written that even though I've been there/done that/was that.

[walnutqueen]

In my opinion and experience, as one with an addict sibling, it is hard to judge Kyle because she was expecting Sober Kim to show up, and as I said in an earlier post, having Relapsed Kim show up probably put her in a feeling of shock/confusion where you feel kind of sick and not sure how to behave.  Ignoring this shit is not good - in fact it is bad and enables the person to keep getting away with it!  But you don't want to embarrass your host, the other guests, yourself when the Relapsed Kim starts calling you an asshole, and to be honest the Relapsed One is actually at the bottom of this list even if you don't realize it at the time, because addicts don't really get the shame that the rest of us think they should be feeling.  (Or they do in their heart but certainly won't admit it because that would be admitting to a problem - which leads to having to do something about it - which leads to giving up their booze, pills, whatever - which they don't even want to think about!)  So  as the sibling, the battle goes on in your head - "Just ignore and keep the peace - we'll deal with this later!  No - it has to be mentioned - ignoring it only leads to excuse making and never helps!  No - it will just make our hosts feel bad and ruin their party!  But something should be said so she knows we know what she's doing!"  and on and on, and the next day, no matter what you did, you wish you had handled it differently.  So no judgment on Kyle from me here.

 

Instead of second-guessing Kyle, I'd like to address what I think was going on in Kim's addled, yet cunning addict brain (based only on what we saw tonight, and how very well i know my own angry and aggressive alcoholic of a brother):

 

1.  When Lisa gets in the car, she is overly friendly and upbeat - she is feeling good and wants to have fun with Lisa!

2.  That doesn't last long because Lisa quickly asks if she has been drinking/taking drugs

3.  "Yikes!"  thinks the addict.  "I need to defuse this shit ASAP!"  so denies immediately

4.  Followed by "Here's my sob story - STFU because you feel bad pressing me when I'm feeling blue/stressed/upset"

5.  Followed by a little bit of deliberately wacky behavior - "I'm not drunk/drugged - just being my usual wacky self!"

6.  (Interspersed with a little bit of drunken emotion that gets away from her - "Don't feel sorry for me, Lisa!" - also designed to keep Lisa wary about confronting her with anything else.  *Confrontations are unwelcome if they could lead to admitting I'm wrong/having to deal with my addictions.)

 

Arrive at Poker Night:

1.  Cunning Addict Brain knows that if acquaintance Lisa R. guesses I'm fucked up, Kyle who knows me will figure it out very quickly, so definitely don't want to sit by her!

2.  Coincidentally, my good, hard-drinking friend Brandi is on her nth glass of wine - let's hang out!  I'll sit by her!

3.  At this point, Addict Brain gets unreasonably angry with Kyle and begins heckling her - even though it would be the smarter move to ignore her in the hope that she will not notice/let it pass.  But the addict wants the person she knows is onto her to not notice/act like she doesn't notice/deny it.

4.  When Addict starts challenging Kyle (the one who knows her best) publicly, she is actually daring Kyle to state the obvious to the crowd, because in her inebriated state she ostensibly wants to see the group agree with her that clearly she is fine and Kyle is being an uptight asshole, but in reality the challenge is this:  "You won't dare say in public what you think is wrong, which means tomorrow I can deny it all or give an excuse, and everyone will want to give me the benefit of the doubt, and I can keep on keeping on for one more day in spite of you.")  And it sounds like she should end that thought-rant with a Ha Ha!  but I think it is more of a sigh of relief as she wipes the sweat off of her brow :(

5.  When Kyle keeps the peace/refuses to engage and heads off to the bathroom, Addict Brain worries that Kyle is getting the upper hand. {Also, let's step back as outsiders and remember that there are some anger issues in the minds of both Addict Brain and She Who Knows Her Well - and Addict Brain is used to SHKHW fighting back whenever certain triggers have been pulled - as they were tonight.}  Addict Brain feels threatened that SHKHW is not responding per the life-long script, and so follows her to the bathroom, in attempt to get things back on their proper footing.

6.  Here is where Addict Brain gives the game away - when SWKHW asks about drinking/are you okay - she says she took a pill Monty gave her.  ("I have to admit to something - Lisa R asked in the car; Kyle has been giving me looks all night; all of the others seem uncomfortable - they all think something is going on!  Since I know I took _______ (?), I had better admit to taking something!  What's the big deal about one pill?  Everyone will understand that!  Etc., etc."  

7.  At this point, Addict Brain knows she needs to get the hell out before others are onto her (still, she's pretty sure that only Kyle, SWKHW, is really hip to what's happening.)  Leaving seems like a great idea until a better one rears it's head - go on back in and say goodbye to everyone!  That way when Kyle voices her concerns to the group, they will all say, "What do you mean, Kyle?  Kim was lovely tonight!  Didn't she come back in and wish us all goodnight?"

 

*Here's where Drunk Brandi gets to do her thang in all her glory - only those readers who are big drinkers/former big drinkers know the guts and the glory of the Drunk Girl Who Is Worried About The Other (Drunk) Girls!

 

***In my opinion as the person writing this, if she had only taken one pill, no one with the exception of possibly Kyle would have noticed anything different about her behavior, and she would have answered with an "Oh, I'm just tired; Kyle is over-sensitive, blah blah" (which may or may not have already happened off camera as well)  Which means that she has taken more than one pain pill (aka Bella had more than one glass of wine even though Mummy doesn't want to admit it:)  Not accusing Bella/Yo of anything other than normal behavior - teen drinking happens, but when it happens to be part of a larger problem, this is how it starts!

 

princelina - you have an excellent insight into the machinations of an addict/alcoholic mind.  Thank you!

 

 

ETA - what hoosiermom said

Edited January 21, 2015 by walnutqueen

[LotusFlower]

Why?  What's so "good" about letting your clearly angry and high ass sister leave in a limo to go home all by herself(since she told Lisa Monty isn't at the house?)

 

What would make Kyle think that's a better option than having her sit with everyone and eat food and be monitored by her covertly, until she stopped acting like an asshat and came down off whatever high she was on?

Because it's not fair to Kyle and her well-being to have to constantly be on guard and responsible for Kim and her well-being. Kim is an addict, and an exhausting and manipulative one at that. I would have handled the wine tasting differently if I had been in Kyle"s shoes, but here, it's hard to blame anyone but Kim for yet again showing up at a filmed event high as a kite. (Except for Brandi and her enabling, as I can't help myself with her).

Kyle needs Al-Anon.

(Incidentally, Monty apparently was back at Kim's house, as Kim used that as the excuse to leave early, whatever that means. She clearly has a co-dependent relationship with him, which is not good for either of them).

[Lizzing]

On a light note, I freakin' love Eileen's house.  We saw more of it tonight, and I love how she has family pictures everywhere, antique furniture, and it looks like they actually live there.  Sure, they probably have a maid or several, but everything seems so personal, rather than decorated for show.  And it's a tad cluttered, not in a bad way, but in a "these things show my travels through life" way.

 

I was holding off too much judgment on Eileen & LisaR, but I really like their addition to this season now.  They're kind of the voice of the viewer in some ways and seem waaay smarter than the usual RH.

 

Ugh, as for Kim's slump back down into the pills, all I'm going to say is that I do not judge Monty at all on this.  Maybe he was culpable, maybe he wasn't.  But as I have an uncle undergoing constant chemo for sever cancers, he gets what they term "chemo brain", where easy decisions seem epically weird and difficult.  Given Monty's cancer and likely chemo, I do not think he intentionally tried to push Kim off the wagon.

[LotusFlower]

So I know there's been a lot of play-by-play of Poker Night, but has this been mentioned yet? As Kim enters the kitchen and tells everyone she's leaving, she turns to Kyle and says "thanks for doing it." (It was even captioned). It was said in a pissed-off and passive-aggressive tone. Kyle asked "doing what?" and Kim, with a smirk on her face, says "don't." Then she walks away, mad, with her lap dog and protector Brandi in tow. This is the limo ride all over again! Kim is angry that Kyle outed her falling off the wagon, just like the outing of her alcoholism during take one. That's why she's mad, and that's why she decided to leave. But she couldn't leave without an angry dig at Kyle, and that's what set Kyle off to follow her out the door. Kim shifted the blame of what happened onto Kyle (classic addict move), and that's why Kyle got mad in return.

[renatae]

Good grief, Brandi is a screeching harpy from hell.

 

My first experience with discomfort this episode was when she said something about how she wasn't sober and Kim was sober and that was OK, because she didn't have to be sober, or something along those lines. There was something about what she said that seemed to foreshadow the disaster of her enabling Kim to go off the wagon. She was all kinds of inappropriate all over the place yet again, but how she encouraged Kim and pretty much ganged up on Kyle in all that bitchy silliness was ugly.

 

I've never been a great supporter of Kyle, but after seeing the conversation of honesty between her and Kim regarding the wine tasting, and then the awful debacle that followed, that whole scene was just horrible. I also saw on WWHL that it escalates next week to Brandi telling Kyle she has "never been there" for Kim. That's right, Brandi, encourage and enable Kim to fall off the wagon after her hard won sobriety. You just want someone lolling in the gutter with you. Class act all the way.

[meeeeech]

Letting Kim go back home where she has access to pills and privacy is what panicked Kyle, I think. Not enabling your addict relative is an essential part of his/her recovery. It's logical in theory but very difficult in practice. You basically cut them off in every way from your life and hope they swim, not sink. I don't think Kyle has ever been able to detach from Kim like that and I don't think she could now. My point is that seeing Kim high and angry and stubbornly heading for the exit made Kyle want to keep her at Eileen's house if only to prevent her from getting a spare moment to take another pill or shoot up again. It's instinct to steer a loved one away from danger. By now Kyle knows she can't save Kim from herself but she tries anyway.

 

Kim needs to focus on her sobriety. Brandi needs a swift kick in her flat pancake ass. I volunteer myself to do it.

[RedheadZombie]

I agree with the upthreaders: Kim didn't take just one pill. And if she's "stealing" Monty's drugs, she's pretty despicable.

 

No, just an addict.

 

I can understand the desire to be a model when you're that young. You get dressed up, get your picture taken, feel like a star, travel, have people fuss over you and have you Mother beam with pride. I just don't understand why a parent would want their teen daughter in that industry. It's filled with lecherous people, drug abuse, eating disorders, etc.

 

The woman who used to do my hair had an amazing history.  She had been classically trained in opera, was the lead singer of a band, and she also shared that she had become bulimic when she modelled.  I was pretty shocked when, at the age of fourteen, she began grooming her daughter to be a model.  I actually talked to her about it, and it just didn't click for her.  Her daughter was a Ford model by fifteen and made it to top five or six on a cycle of America's Next Top Model, so she reached a level of success.

[bosawks]

I think Brandi so wants to be the hero of the story, anybody's story, but she can't help but behave like a villain.

What a clusterfuck.

Edited January 21, 2015 by bosawks

[renatae]

Kim handled the wine tasting well but after that she went downhill. She can't handle Monty's health and all of the feelings that are coming with it so she takes a pain pill to numb her emotional pain. She on the addict slippery slope indeed. I didn't get the feeling Kyle was calling her out, It looked like real concern from having been in this situation with her MANY times.

Brandi please just get off my TV!

 

I felt that was real concern as well. I know she was embarrassed, but I think she was really distressed that Kim was not together. Brandi said she was jealous because Kim had been a bigger child star. Well, maybe she is, but that was not the problem when they were playing poker. It was Kim's "in your face" imitation of Brandi at her worst that was the problem.

[Granimal]

I hope I didn't come across as bitchy. Kyle is by no means a saint. However in this particular situation, I don't think it's fair to judge how she handled/handles Kim's spells because the emotions involved can throw you for a loop. And sadly because of those emotions and history, it does indeed also become about you even as you hate yourself for allowing their disease to become about you.

 

I can't help but to agree firmly with this. Substance abuse counseling isn't hard science. There isn't a mathematical formula with one right answer for dealing with every addict and family member/friend of. All that family members or friends can and should do is to act using their own integrity and conscience. Everyone will get it wrong sometimes and everyone will get it right sometimes because life is messy and unpredictable like that.

 

Okay, moving on from this subject. Just as I expected to, I hated the poker night. Everyone was being rude to the host and nobody cared to learn how to play. I understand that they were bored and that this wasn't their cup of tea, but they were incredibly rude to both Eileen and Vince. I completely expected this, but this is VVP's profession (sort of)! If your host tries to teach you about something that they are considered to be talented at or an expert in it's just rude to talk all over them. And while its possible that some of the women really were that dense (or drunk), I agree with Brandi (!!) that Kyle was playing dumb. I mean the women were playing with their cards face up!

Edited January 21, 2015 by Granimal

[SFoster21]

Princella, wonderful post. I recently read "Permanent Midnight," which details addiction and the addictive mindset in just the way that you did. That author was capable of examining himself dispassionately and he was still unable to quit. He details all his periods of sobriety, as well. He "quit" again and again, but he was so helpless. He really doesn't discuss his final rehab and how he's maintained to date, but focusses on the reality that his shame at his condition drove him to use further.

It's a horrible, scary thing to be an addict and the people who love you are living in hell as well.

Man, reality tv is sometimes really real.

[Avaleigh]

Kim needs Narcotics Anonymous IMO. I too agree with those who think that she thinks it somehow sounds better if she's simply labeled as an alcoholic as opposed to a drug addict.

 

I can't believe that I've managed to be shocked by any more of Kim's loopy behavior but the scene with LisaR was so unbelievably crazy--can you imagine seeing that shit unedited and what the driver must have been thinking during that long ride? I've wondered in the past if the women have to draw straws when it comes to filming solo scenes with Kim because it can so often turn into an embarrassing encounter. Poor LisaR clearly had no idea what she'd be in for when she hopped into that car.

 

I loved Eileen's "What are you talking about?"

 

Eileen and LisaR both have been incredibly understanding and patient with all of the madness so far. Good for them. I don't know that I'd be able to control myself half so well. 

 

Again, the fact that Kyle has been dealing with this shit for years, probably a couple of decades at this point--it's tiresome and she's been over it for ages. There's no winning for her in this situation and I can totally understand why she felt uncomfortable with Brandi and Kim having a scene together outside given Kim's state of mind. She probably thought Kim was going to start talking shit and I think she's probably sick of it. Kim was gunning for Kyle and others all evening for no reason so I can see why Kyle didn't think anything good was going to come out of Brandi going out to the car with Kim.

 

I also disagree that Brandi's primary goal was to get Kim safely home and away from the cameras. I felt like she was trying to slam Kyle by making it seem like she's the only one who has Kim's best interests at heart. I felt like she was trying to make herself look like the good person in that moment and that she was basically just using Kim in order to try to score points with viewers. I'm not buying any of Brandi's fake ass concern. Not for one second. Seriously, have we ever seen her do anything that wasn't at least 80% selfish? 

 

And Brandi I think was confusing American Psycho with Hitchcock's Psycho, with Norman bates living among his stuffed animals and flowered wallpaper. God she's an idiot.

 

 

That's what this stupid woman was talking about? I was so confused, I'm like, that place doesn't have the Patrick Bateman look at all.

 

Also, did I miss the taxidermy display? 

 

And what was up with the you all should be better at this - you're all actresses.......?

I didn't understand this at all or what she was babbling about. She comes across as a very insecure woman who actively resents the success and achievements of others. 

 

Oh, and what was with her random put down of Kyle's acting ability and basically saying that Kim excelled at acting and that Kyle did not and that Kyle was and is jealous of Kim because of this? Where is she getting that Kyle didn't excel at acting? Kyle was a very good and capable child actress she just didn't have as many high profile roles as Kim did when they were younger. Sure, they definitely dealt with issues like jealousy and favoritism and their mother played a large role in that, but I think it's just pure mean-spirited instigating of Brandi to make digs like this. It feels like she's deliberately trying to prick at Kyle for no particular reason. 

Edited January 21, 2015 by Avaleigh

[ScoobieDoobs]

On a light note, I freakin' love Eileen's house.  We saw more of it tonight, and I love how she has family pictures everywhere, antique furniture, and it looks like they actually live there.

 

 

Me, I was glad to finally get to see the interior of Eileen's ginormous place.  We've seen the huge kitchen.  And we saw the pool area, but only aerial shots of the place -- and it really looks giganto.  Still didn't really get a feel for the house.  Honestly, I didn't much care for what I saw.  Smallish rooms with low ceilings & the decor did look darkish & depressing (to me).  And yet, while it's not my taste, it did look cozy & comfy & welcoming.  Eileen was only wrong in calling Brandi "weird" in her TH.  She shoulda said Brandi is an idiot -- and a tactless (and tacky) rude idiot at that.

 

Why do I get the feeling Satan Andy & the other asshole producers musta been deliriously happy to see Kim falling off the wagon?  I can totally see them all screeching to each other in sheer delight, "Storyline for the season -- awesome!!"  What do ya bet they were all high-fiving each other to see this?  And surely they were encouraging both Kyle & Kim to play everything out before the cameras.  I suspect both Kyle & Kim were manipulated (yet again) by producers.  Now don't get me wrong.  Neither are blameless cuz they did sign onto this shit.  But Kim was out of it & Kyle looked dazed & confused by everything goin' on.

 

Look, Kyle just ain't that good of an actress.  She looked damned surprised to be confronted by Kim's druggy behavior.  More than surprised, she looked shell-shocked.  I don't trust Kyle one bit, but I don't believe she was playing up Kim's altered state for the cams.  And Brandi inserting herself in the middle of this family stuff was just all kinds of wrong.  Um, and just what was her motivation to do this?  She's not a close or long-time friend.  We know what Brandi's motivation was to get involved.  It's to keep herself employed by Bravo & that's it.  That's all Brandi cares about.  Blech, just blech.

 

There have been lots of posts from those who have experienced alcohol and/or drug addictions or had close family members who have.  For those who have experienced this, how would you feel if someone you haven't known very long (and especially someone of questionable character) became overly involved -- as Brandi has with Kim?  Seems awful to me.  I can't blame Kyle for being annoyed & concerned, especially considering Brandi's behavior -- always acting so unpredictably & getting drunk in public so often.

[swankie]

It feels like she's deliberately trying to prick at Kyle for no particular reason.

 

 

I think Brandi is pricking away at Kyle because Lisa Vanderpump won't engage.  She has to have someone to rag on and play her silly little games on.  She called Kyle a bitch for no damned reason at all when they were all clearly toying with each other.  I wish they would hire Porsha (Stewart) Williams to come on here and drag Brandi to the floor.  Damn it, somebody has to!

[Wings]

This is the only housewife show I watch and only for a few years.   It used to hold my attention but not anymore.   Sending kids off to college (yawn), Lisa drugging and drinking again, of course (yawn).  Rehab has about a 3% success rate.  It is not a magic bullet by a long shot.  Should she go back?  No.  

 

It is interesting to note that the only indication we have that Brandi has had too much to drink is, she gets nasty.  No slurring, no staggering, no change in personality other than her attitude.  

 

On WWHL I learned that Yolanda is in Singapore now getting treatment for Lyme.  She was previously in Korea.  It is now effecting her brain.  Very scary. 

 

How Lyme can effect your brain.

http://www.igenex.com/psychological_effects.htm

Edited January 21, 2015 by wings707

[cooksdelight]

My biggest worry is that someone will die or be seriously injured on one of these shows before they are stopped. This episode was out of control, and if Andy is grinning about ratings or whatever, there's a special seat in hell waiting for him.

[Avaleigh]

I can't help but compare this episode to Game Night.

 

At Game Night Brandi is basically being teased and laughed at for being stupid. At Poker Night Brandi is being obnoxious and laughing at the other actresses and singles out Kyle in particular for supposedly being stupid. Kim also calls LisaR stupid and is just as obnoxious as Brandi is the entire evening.

 

Kim is on the wrong side of the fight at both events and the second time around she's actually teamed up with the woman she once referred to as a "slut pig". 

 

Kim is coddled at both events even after her weird behavior only it's Brandi doing the coddling at Poker Night.

 

The Richards sisters end up in the bathroom together at both events.

 

Kim is high at both events. Kim also clings to her bag at both events.

 

Both events were hosted by a new cast member. In the case of this episode the cast member in question actually provided food and furniture for her guests to enjoy.

 

Kyle and Brandi fight at both events.

 

Brandi says "Bring it, bitch" at both events. (This is technically in next's week's episode. Game Night was also a two-part episode.) She hasn't changed.

 

Kyle points her finger at both events. (Not sure if Kim does at Poker Night. I'd have to re-watch and two times is all I think I can stomach.)

 

Lisa was wise enough to skip out on both events.

Edited January 21, 2015 by Avaleigh

[English Teacher]

I actually came away with more respect for Kyle. When she was alone in the kitchen away from Kim and drunken Brandy, she was talking about being embarrassed and I cringed....until I realized she was speaking about her ability to count and poker and not her sister. Her reaction to Kim seemed real and heartfelt. IMHO Brandi "threw the first punch" by physically barricading Kim and blocking Kyle from talking to her.

[renatae]

Umm, what the fuck was that?

 

Kim has always been an oddball, but she is beyond bizarre when medicated. I wonder if she was coked out of her mind, because prescription meds for "the pain" don't make you act like that. Either that or she's been hitting the crack/meth pipe.

 

I felt sorry for Kyle up until the moment she decided to confront Kim, and at Eileen's house to boot. The best course of action would have been to let Kim go home and then discuss it at a later date. I'm sure the others would have vouched for Kim's bizarre behavior.

 

Brandi is nauseating. Her tits must be fake because there's an unnatural mile wide gap between them in some of those ugly outfits she shows them off in during her THs. Also, making nasty remarks and adding a "just kidding!" to try and negate the statement or shirk responsibility for speaking your mind is the kind of thing middle school girls do. Grow up.

 

Yo is such a stage mom, it's sickening. What would she have done if her daughters had been born homely and overweight? She's so gung ho on modeling careers for both of them she would have likely paid for multiple cosmetic procedures and liposuction or starved them (which I'm not entirely sure she hasn't done, seeing as her answer to weight loss is the Master cleanse or rationing your food to 6 almonds) until she deemed they were camera worthy.

 

If the execs Bravo had souls, they would terminate Kim Richard's contract immediately upon seeing her in such a state. Sadly, they do not.

 

Yo's fixation on her daughters becoming models is really uncomfortable to me. I'm not entirely sure why. I did some low profile modeling in my time, so it's not that modeling itself bothers me. I think it's more that the photoshoots I've seen the girls do really bother me. I don't like how seductively they are posed and when I saw her watching Bella's shoot with such approbation when the girl's boobs were hanging out, I was aghast. She worries about her daughters being away at school, and, I'm sorry, it just seems to me that if your daughters are away and you want them to be safe, you wouldn't want them seen on national TV semi nude.

[renatae]

I thought I read somewhere that Brandi said the viewers would side with her and Kim after this episode. Um, not a chance in hell. I think Brandi has been drunk in every episode this season.

Kim was totally creepy in the limo with Lisa. What was with all the whispering? I was totally waiting for her to say, "REDRUM"!

 

Yes, it was too creepy! And on WWHL they had a vote - Kyle or Brandi? It was 24 or 25% Brandi, and the rest went to Kyle.

[Maharincess]

People react to narcotics differently if they aren't used to taking them. Even though Kim is an alcoholic and has a tolerance for it, she doesn't for narcotics so it wouldn't have needed to be that big of a dose. I am an RN who gives a lot of pain meds on my post-op unit. It is illegal to take other people's prescription meds also!!!

I've never believed that Kim's only problem was alcohol. I think at the very least she's,addicted to prescription medication as well. Never believed it was strictly alcohol.

Has anybody seen Monty? Maybe she has his body buried in the yard so she can keep refilling his prescriptions.

[Diane Mars]

That was a weird episode....

 

For my part, I'm on Brandi's side, this time. And I also share her point of view regarding addicts/addicitons. It's unfair, but yes, some people have a kind of "addictable" personnalites and some others don't. Some will be able to drink, or use recreationnal drugs -even coke- without any trouble. Some other never will be able to keep it as a "recreative" use

 

I don't remember having read it, so... Regarding Kim and Al Anon, maybe she's following that kind of program and it has never been addressed ! Why am I thinking about it ? Only because when they were at spa day/wine tasting and Kim went out, she went out to pick her phone and make a call. Why not to her sober coach, or her psy ? Because, when she went back, she seems more calm after that.

 

Just my two cents, of course ;)

Edited January 21, 2015 by Diane Mars

[mwell345]

Last night, Melissa Gorga tweeted that RHOBH was "cray cray". I think it's safe to say that if a NJ housewife thinks it's crazy, then RHOBH truly went off the rails last night.

 

I don't even know where to begin, so I'll start with Brandi.  I know that she says much of what she says for shock value, but it's not shocking anymore, it's just disgusting (I'm referring to the conversation in the limo).  She continues to ruin every scene she is in.  It appears that Kyle and Yolanda may be over her, for sure the two Lisas and Eileen are, so I guess now she's latched on to Kim so she can have a friend.

 

The Wine Tasting:  I'm assuming Bravo set this up.  Way to go, Bravo - set up a wine tasting for a scene that includes an alcoholic cast member.  I can just see them gleefully rubbing their hands together thinking how great this scene will be. 

 

Poker Night:  Brandi was her usual obnoxious self.  Kim was clearly on something.  IIRC, she told Kyle in the bathroom that Monte gave her one of HER pills for pain.  I don't buy it.  Has a doctor really prescribed pain pills for someone who has a substance abuse problem?  Even if that's so, why did Monte give it to her?  Her pills, she can take them herself. Personally,  I think she helped herself to some of Monte's pain meds. And of course Brandi is there to support her, one drunk loves another.  Brandi admits that she was "toasted"...when is she not toasted? 

 

Bravo needs to do Kim a favor and take her off the show.   If Kim is disintegrating again, she needs help, I can't imagine that being on this show is helpful at all. But then I remember Russell Armstrong and know Bravo will never take the high road.

 

Ugh.  Just give me the two Lisa's and Eileen and I could watch every week.  The rest of them can leave any time. (And I won't be watching much longer if the focus of this season is Kim's descent and Brandi's obnoxious behavior).  Kudos to Lisa Rinna for handling the WackADoodle scene calmly and with class.  Would love to know what she and Eileen really think about their castmates.

 

Oh - and could Yolanda be any more boring?  Sick of hearing about Gigi and Bella and their modeling careers blah blah blah blah blah.

 

ETA: Lisa Rinna's blog is up. Very candid about how uncomfortable she was http://www.bravotv.com/the-real-housewives-of-beverly-hills/season-5/blogs/lisa-rinna/lisa-r-it-felt-just-as-awkward-as-it . Blog from Eileen and Lisa V are also worth a read.

Edited January 21, 2015 by mwell345

[walnutqueen]

My biggest worry is that someone will die or be seriously injured on one of these shows before they are stopped. This episode was out of control, and if Andy is grinning about ratings or whatever, there's a special seat in hell waiting for him.

 

Andy Cohen already has a vacation home in Hell, right next door to Satan's place.  He spends a lot of time there, lording over his minions (and grinning).  I understand Brandi is a frequent houseguest.

 

So what are the odds that Kim landed in the hospital because of her addiction?   She probably either OD'd or managed to concoct some sort of ailment/accident in order to score more meds.

[mwell345]

This is all I could find about Kim in the hospital.

 

http://www.inquisitr.com/1448017/rhobh-star-kim-richards-is-back-home-after-hospital-stay-what-happened/

 

No reason given - Yo sent her flowers.

Edited January 21, 2015 by mwell345

[Leroux]

Kim Richards

 

She by her own admission has struggled with sustance abuse since her early 20's , she is about to be 50 so that is most of her adult life being an addict. She is a nasty one when she is using so I just can't imagine what a nightmare it has been for her family as in her kids and her sister Kyle and family to deal with her on a daily basis, having to pick up the pieces of the mess that Kim is. Kathy has lived the fabulous life jetsetting everywhere and most of this mess has fallen on Kyle's lap. What a nightmare, this is a life sentence that you just can't get away from.

 

For anybody who has lived with an addict, you know how manipulative they are, first of all they must find an excuse for their addiction , in this case for Kim she took Monty in and found the perfect excuse , the second thing an addict has to find is somebody to blame, in this case Kim seems to have her own personal punching bag in Kyle. it doesn't matter if she was acting like a lunatic in the limo with LisaR, it doesn't matter it she was acting like an asshole at the poker table with help of her bestie Brandi, it doesn't matter if it was obvious as the day is long that she was on "something" all that needed to happen was for Kyle to even dare to ask her if she was using, that forced her to fessed up to taking pain medication and BAM, must blame her for everything.

 

Kim was mad not at herself for relapsing, she was mad at Kyle for (in her hazed mind) even asking, Kim is so delusional that she probably believes that nobody noticed her strange behavior at all, she probably is crazy enough to believe that during season 1 nobody knew she was abusing sustances until Kyle mentioned it. Well, let me tell you Kim Richards, the day you take accountability for your own actions and stop trying to find an excuse and blame others that might be the day you have a chance at recovery, but as long as you keep surrounding yourself with the likes of Brandi, you have no hope.

 

What a slap in the face that despite of all this events you are still Brandi's BFF, you have shoved that POS in your sister's face and brought her with you to family events to further antagonize Kyle, I wish Kyle would say "F..it, I am done with you" and walk away, then you would have to find somebody else to blame. When that time comes maybe a mirror would come in handy.

[rehoboth]

It was asked way back on page 2 what was Kyle going to do with Kim when she was leaving?  Did Kyle want her to expose herself more in front of the ladies/cameras?  I didn't see it that way.  For me, once my family member was on the way home (limo = great!) my worries were over.  They would just go to sleep.  For Kyle, I think her worries were just beginning. 

 

Kyle may have wanted to say to Kim that falling off the wagon, while not ok, is not the end of the world.  And that how you deal with it afterward is more important.  To speculate more, Kyle may have wanted to also call someone back at the house to alert them.  She may have wanted to call Kim's sponsor and ask them to give Kim a call the next day.

 

For Kim to go back to her black hole of a house in the state of mind she was in was scary to me, let alone Kyle.  Having drunken Brandi with her would be outrageous.

[Leroux]

 

That could be true, or Kim might have realized how bad it would look if she left without saying goodbye to her hosts and thanking them for the evening

 

Really? Kim was worried about what the host would think of her if she didn't say good bye? I was fooled , I would think that not getting high like a kite before going to her event would probably be a better sign of respect but that is just me. Kim wanted to go back because she wanted to throw that last dig at Kyle.

At that point and even after Kim had fessed up to popping a pill Kyle had returned to the kitchen and was pretending that nothing was happening, all Kim had to do was jump in the car and leave and Brandi would have come with the news that Kim wasn't feeling well and EVERYBODY would have understood, do you think that LisaR or Eileen were worried at that point about Kim not saying Good bye?

 

 

It looks like next week Kyle succeeds in getting Kim back on camera anyway.

 

So when is Kim accountable for her own decisions? It was Kim decision to use pain substances when she knows that she shouldn't. She used them before going to an event that would be filmed by cameras, doesn't she know after four seasons that when she is on something it is VERY obvious?. Kyle was not with her in Kim's house when she decided to pop the pill, that was all on Kim. Kim was acting like an "ornery child" as she mildly put it, but everybody has to hush and pretend that is not happening because that would be using Kim for camera time? I am confused.

 

 

It's weird, I do think there is a tiny part of Kyle that really does want Kim to do well, but it's at war with the childhood jealousy and issues and wanting to make herself the "best" daughter of their distructive, weirdo stage mother.

 

If Kim was truly commited to her sobriety there is nothing that Kyle could do to jeopardize that, in the meantime by her own admission Kim has taken on a person who is cancer striken just so she can 1)have the perfect excuse about why she needs to use due to being overwhelmed 2) having available pain medications that she obviously is addicted to, then again where is Kim's accountability on this? It is not like Monty doesn't have the resources to hire a nurse if needed be, it is not like Kim is nursing him 24/7 as he obviously comes an goes as he pleases. The issue of the jealousy is something that Kim will milk for the rest of her life because it allows her to make Kyle feel guilty and overcompensate by trying to hide Kim's obvious relapses.

 

 

Kyle should have let Kim say goodbye and leave, for the good of her sister.  Instead, it looks like "for the good of the show and Kyle's image" we will get a bunch more dirt next week.

 

Kyle didn't drag Kim back to the house, she came back because like the selfish idiot she is, she wanted that last dig at her sister, her passive aggresive "Thanks" was meant to create chaos and confussion and she got that. Any rational person would have pegged Kim's antics and just ignore her and let her go to hell , but unfortunately Kyle is not there yet.

 

Kim is or should be responsible for her own actions and decision, she is the one who decided to pop a pill and act like an asshole, everything else came as a result of that.

[ottergirl]

Believe it or not, I found everyone in this episode - even Kim! - sympathetic, except for Brandi.

 

Eileen - poor woman - I can only imagine the conversations that she and Vinnie have every time they interact with this group.  They're like adults being asked to socialize with toddlers, but treat them as peers.  I almost feel second hand embarrassment as a VIEWER of the show, that Eileen must be thinking "Who watches these crazy people?"  

 

Lisa Rinna seems less baffled and horrified than Eileen, but seems to have a neat ability to roll with the crazy and almost enjoy it, without getting corrupted by it, and keeping the ability to comment on it without seeming to judge it.  The best comparison I can make is early Bethenny of RHONY.  Which is a very nice comparison.

 

I really liked Kyle in this circumstance, to the point where I want to defend her to other people.  Like maybe I'll stop people on the street today and make sure they understand why Kyle was trying to do the right thing here.  Look, yes, she has an incredible ability to make everything all about her; and I cringed at that part of the wine tasting.  "Oh my God, my sister the alcoholic is being asked to participate in a wine tasting and even asked to smell the wine, this is so awkward and uncomfortable for ME."  Sigh.  But on poker night, I thought Kyle was having a genuine, authentic, sympathetic, human reaction.  She started the evening so proud and happy of her sister's progress (I thought the conversation with Brandi in the limo was pro-Kim, she was trying to show how far they had come; it's always going to be tricky to talk about Kim's alcoholism on camera given how Kyle outed it in S1, but I thought she was trying to make this a positive narrative for Kim.  Choosing Brandi to be the partner in that narrative was a terrible misjudgment, but oh well.)  She became visibly distressed when she realized what was happening, with the aggressive behavior and the acting out.  She literally fled the scene and was clearly going to look for backup, with her phone out.  I suspect she might have even taken off her mic, because until Kim (with HER mic) entered the bathroom, we did not hear a word of what Kyle was saying in there.  Even if she didn't take off her mic, she was texting - whatever she was doing about the situation, she was doing it off camera.

 

When Kim told her what "happened" (true or not, I vote not), Kyle tried to keep it quiet, went back to the party and clearly changed the subject and tried to get things normal again.  But Kim AND BRANDI escalated. 

 

And yes.  Brandi is clinging to "Kyle grabbed me first!" but let me say this:  if my sister were in crisis, and spiraling, and I was trying to deal with it, and BRANDI was trying to physically block me?  Yes.  I would try to get around her, including trying to push her blocking arm out of the way.  Brandi made it physical first.  (More on Brandi in a minute.)

 

And believe it or not, I'm sympathetic to Kim.  Not as much as Kyle - not by a long shot - but this is a woman who has really struggled with a disease and is now watching her long time friend and family member, the father of her oldest child, dying of a terrible disease.  Her kids are moving on, she's struggling with her life.  And she fell off the wagon.  I agree with the wonderful post from princelina about Kim's thought patterns, so I'm on Kyle's "side" in this one, but I'm still sympathetic to Kim, who is struggling.

 

Brandi.  I almost don't want to talk about Brandi because then Bravo will think they should keep her; and I'm also not a big fan of "I don't like so and so, take them off the show!"  But she's a horrible person and what makes her even more horrible is that she has absolutely no self-awareness or sense of accountability.  Let's detail Brandi in this situation, and see if we can break down WHY she is NOT the voice of reason here:

 

1.  Brandi was drunk and aggressive herself.  A drunk and aggressive person is not the best choice to tend to another drunk and aggressive person.  (This should be enough.)

 

2.  Brandi has a long track record of shaming and attacking Kim Richards - not just on the infamous Game Night, with the "At least I haven't been in the bathroom doing crystal meth all night, b---ch", but even as recent as the S3 reunion when she announced that Kim had a "s--t stained pillow" that she had forced Yolanda to carry through the airport, or in Season 4 when she tweeted that "at least production didn't find me wandering pantsless in Puerto Rico." The hypocrisy of positioning herself as Kim's protector after this long track record is staggering.  I can't believe Kim would fall for it, but like Brandi, Kim has no allies in the group.   

 

3.  This is all about one thing:  Brandi (and Kim, to a lesser degree) are jealous of and want revenge on Kyle.   It is very plain that the only reason she is being kind to Kim now is a) there is no one else who will talk to Brandi any more, and b) she really wants to hurt Kyle, and what better way to do that than through her sister? Brandi is mad that Kyle and Lisa are friends again.  Brandi knows that Kyle's original sin, in Housewives land, was outing her sister as an alcoholic in Season One.  Brandi figures that by reminding viewers AND KIM of Kyle's original sin, people will turn against Kyle.  "Oh, this is just like that horrible thing she did in Season One!"  Brandi said so herself on twitter last night.  Brandi wants to take Kyle down, and thinks Kim is the way to do it.

 

4.  Brandi has a LONG LONG history of trying to break up friendships.  Last season's war between Lisa and Kyle started when Brandi went to Kyle with the whole 'tabloid in the suitcase' thing, which Brandi did because she was angry they were getting to be friends again.  Now Brandi wants to break up Kim and Kyle.  Down to physically trying to block Kyle from talking to Kim when Kim was melting down.  (Let's remember - Kyle had done NOTHING wrong when Kim attacked her on Poker Night.  Brandi should at least know that now, after seeing the footage.)  But to me, for Brandi to try to break up these sisters is the height of foolishness and - given Kim's addiction history and the genuine danger to her life from her addiction -- that's just horrible.

 

5.  Brandi has tried to isolate Kim and Kyle before.  In Season 3, she told Kim "everyone here wants to see you fail."  At the S3 reunion, as we've discussed, she said that Kyle wants Kim to fail.  That is incredibly dangerous, not even to Kyle really, but to Kim, as Kim herself said.  If she relapses again, she said, she could die.  Why does Brandi keep trying to isolate Kim from her sister, who has been her primary support system throughout her adult life?  For one reason only - to hurt Kyle, and to try to "win" a public opinion battle with her by "taking" her sister.  The same way she "took" Lisa (temporarily, until Lisa came to her senses about Brandi).  

 

6.  Mostly, I just can't believe Brandi's incredible nerve - as someone who knows Kim only through a reality show, and who has primarily tormented her during that show -- in stating that SHE knows more about Kim than Kyle, that SHE is the one who is supportive of Kim - as opposed to her sister who, for better or worse (and lots of the latter) has literally been with Kim through hell, for decades.  The gall of that, the sheer insanity of it, is breathtaking.  I truly think it's pathological, I'm not kidding, that Brandi could think that she above Kyle knows about Kim's disease and knows what is best for Kim and has been there for Kim.  That's a level of delusion for which I think someone could be institutionalized.  And, really, I wish she would be.  Forget off the show - I'd like her off the street.  Bravo can continue filming her, if they like, as long as she's not running loose in the wild.  :)

 

The end!

[WireWrap]

ryebread, I love your name and I am also firmly on Brandi's side on this one even though last season she made Lisa cry and smoke cigarettes and I thought I would never like her again!  First of all, Kyle should NEVER have had a spa day that she organized with Kim as a guest where alcohol was included.  And a wine tasting even one Kyle said she wasn't aware of was way out of line.  If Kyle wants to help protect Kim's sobriety she needs to walk the walk not just talk the talk.  At the poker party where everyone knew Kim was fucked up, Brandi clearly gave the finger across the neck, stop filming sign and she was the only one that made any attempt to help Kim by stopping the filming.  Kyle OTOH tried to keep the filming going!  She tried to keep Kim at the party while Brandi was trying to get Kim into the limo and out of the potentially embarrassing situation.  I don't think Brandi was going home with Kim, she said she was walking Kim out to her car, trying to escort her out of the filming.  Kyle should have backed off and let Kim go instead of having the situation escalate as according to the previews it did.  

Allowing Kim to go home, where there are powerful narcotics to help ease the pain of a dying man is foolhardy IMO. After that fight, most likely, all Kim would have done would be take more pills to numb "her" pain. After all, it is all about Kim's pain and no one elses. She even put her pain before Monty's pain when talking to Lisa R in the limo ride to Eileen's home.

 

Me, I was glad to finally get to see the interior of Eileen's ginormous place.  We've seen the huge kitchen.  And we saw the pool area, but only aerial shots of the place -- and it really looks giganto.  Still didn't really get a feel for the house.  Honestly, I didn't much care for what I saw.  Smallish rooms with low ceilings & the decor did look darkish & depressing (to me).  And yet, while it's not my taste, it did look cozy & comfy & welcoming.  Eileen was only wrong in calling Brandi "weird" in her TH.  She shoulda said Brandi is an idiot -- and a tactless (and tacky) rude idiot at that.

 

Why do I get the feeling Satan Andy & the other asshole producers musta been deliriously happy to see Kim falling off the wagon?  I can totally see them all screeching to each other in sheer delight, "Storyline for the season -- awesome!!"  What do ya bet they were all high-fiving each other to see this?  And surely they were encouraging both Kyle & Kim to play everything out before the cameras.  I suspect both Kyle & Kim were manipulated (yet again) by producers.  Now don't get me wrong.  Neither are blameless cuz they did sign onto this shit.  But Kim was out of it & Kyle looked dazed & confused by everything goin' on.

 

Look, Kyle just ain't that good of an actress.  She looked damned surprised to be confronted by Kim's druggy behavior.  More than surprised, she looked shell-shocked.  I don't trust Kyle one bit, but I don't believe she was playing up Kim's altered state for the cams.  And Brandi inserting herself in the middle of this family stuff was just all kinds of wrong.  Um, and just what was her motivation to do this?  She's not a close or long-time friend.  We know what Brandi's motivation was to get involved.  It's to keep herself employed by Bravo & that's it.  That's all Brandi cares about.  Blech, just blech.

 

There have been lots of posts from those who have experienced alcohol and/or drug addictions or had close family members who have.  For those who have experienced this, how would you feel if someone you haven't known very long (and especially someone of questionable character) became overly involved -- as Brandi has with Kim?  Seems awful to me.  I can't blame Kyle for being annoyed & concerned, especially considering Brandi's behavior -- always acting so unpredictably & getting drunk in public so often.

The producers and Andy could have shown the footage of Kim's relapse in PR last season but instead chose to protect her. I suspect that there are countless hours of Kim under the influence lying on the cutting room floor/Bravo's unseen footage vault. Something makes me suspect that someone was finally tired of Kim and her addictions and felt it was time to let the truth seep out about her ongoing addictions or that simply, they could no longer hide her ongoing addict behavior/drug addictions. JMO

[DollyMamaB]

Brandi:  "That's why all their husbands are cheating.....Just kidding!"  Ok, coming from someone who was SO HURT when it happened to her, she thinks it's ok to make the insinuation (even jokingly) about everyone else's husband? 

[LotusFlower]

Kyle didn't drag Kim back to the house, she came back because like the selfish idiot she is, she wanted that last dig at her sister, her passive aggresive "Thanks" was meant to create chaos and confussion and she got that. Any rational person would have pegged Kim's antics and just ignore her and let her go to hell, but unfortunately Kyle is not there yet.

That's exacty what happened. To Kim, it was the limo ride 2.0. Her sister "outed" her, once again, so she went back to say a sarcastic "thanks a lot." Kyle should have told her to fuck off, but, like you said, she still hasn't learned to do this, so she instead engages the drama. Because it can't be said enough, Kyle needs to stop resisting and go to Al-Anon.

[WireWrap]

Brandi:  "That's why all their husbands are cheating.....Just kidding!"  Ok, coming from someone who was SO HURT when it happened to her, she thinks it's ok to make the insinuation (even jokingly) about everyone else's husband? 

Is she going to blame Lisa V for this "cheating" comment as well? It's things like this make me believe it was Brandi all along, tabloidgate last season, and not Lisa V! Brandi will say/do anything for shock value because she realizes it gets her more camera time and press.

[The Mighty Peanut]

I don't know how Kim could ever trust Brandi again. Last year Brandi tweeted about Kim's drunken rampage in PR, Something to the effect of " at least production didn't find me passed out in the hall without pants on". So this new found friendship is baffling to me. If she chooses Brandi over Kyle I will know she has officially lost her damn mind. Kyle may have made mistakes (limo anyone?) but she certainly loves Kim and I beleive has her best interest at heart. Brandi only wants Kim as an ally because everyone else has wised up and doesn't want to film with her.

When did she relapse? Was this when she was dating the guy Brandi called a gay bull mastiff?

[ghoulina]

Wow, Kim was MESSED up on card night. From the minute she got into the SUV with Lisar it was obvious. I felt so badly for Lisa. How awkward. She totally knew Kim was on something, even tried to address it....but that was just the most uncomfortable car ride ever. I don't believe that she just took some pain pill that had been prescribed to her and that was it. First of all, what condition does she have that she needs pain pills? With her past, I'd think doctor would be very reticent about prescribing her something unless she had a very serious condition, and even then you'd need to be careful with what you gave her and monitor her usage. I don't recall ever hearing about her having a chronic pain condition. So what was the 100% pain she was in? A tooth ache? Cramps?

 

Sigh, It's just so sad. I'm one of those few who actually likes Kim. Sober Kim. I think she has a good heart, but she is just such a troubled woman. I always feel so proud of her when she's doing well, but it never seems to last. I just feel so very sad for her, and for her family - what an emotional roller coaster it must be to love her. 

 

And Brandi....that woman is just a fucking evil bitch. Point blank, period. She was perfectly nice to Kyle in the limo, but as soon as they got in a group setting she became a nasty bully. I felt so badly for Kyle. For one, she clearly could tell something was off with Kim and it was making her uncomfortable. And then you've got Brandi over there making fun of Kyle for not catching onto the game as quickly as everyone else, and gloating every time she won. But her meddling in the relationship between the two sisters was just the worst. I don't know what is wrong with that woman. She clearly gets off on fucking with people. It was as if she wanted to insert herself right into Kim's life, leech onto her side, baby her and kiss her ass all night, and then taunt Kyle, as if SHE'S now the "sister", and Kyle is cast off to the curb. 

 

I swear, the entire reason behind Brandi becoming friendly with Kim was to get back at Kyle. I know, it sounds crazy. But that's how fucked up Brandi is! Those looks she was giving Kyle, as she followed Kim around all night spoke volumes. I mean, maybe Kyle should have just let Kim go. And she did put her hands on Brandi first. But they are sisters! They have a history. Kyle knows more than anyone how bad things can get for Kim and she just wanted to be able to talk with her sister, maybe help her out. And Brandi's blocking her like security at a Justin Bieber concert. 

 

I swear, I bet Brandi LOVES Kim falling off the wagon. She probably thinks it makes her drunken ass look better by comparison. And notice during the wine tasting the previous day, Brandi was the only one who didn't ask Kim if she was okay or uncomfortable. But as soon as it's clear she's whacked out of her mind, Brandi is all over it. 

 

I'm just so over her. Look, one long rant about the episode, and I'm mostly talking about Brandi! She doesn't warrant that much attention! But she just oozes onto the screen and is so vile and takes over everything. What was that weird shit about her fantasy basically being her SO cheating on her in front of her??? I don't get it. You're pissed that you were cheated on, so much so that you use it as an excuse for your every transgression....but you secretly get off on seeing the act in person? 

 

Oh, but every other woman on the show is being cheated on because they're not frisky enough in bed?! You must have been dullsville yourself, then. Ugh. Please. Get her off my screen!!!

 

 

Best moment of the show - Gigi's ANTM impersonation. 

[WireWrap]

When did she relapse? Was this when she was dating the guy Brandi called a gay bull mastiff?

It happened while they were in PR last season. There were reports of Kim using again and that the producers found her curled up, half naked, in a hallway in the hotel where they were staying. It was never shown at all. IMO, Kim has not been clean/sober the entire time since she did the last rehab stint, I do think she has backed off the booze but is still using Rx meds. 

[Superwomann]

I wish Kyle would finally realize that it helps no one to keep putting up with her addict sister's erratic behavior. I am sure it effects her marriage with the constant caring for of Kim. Plus it can't be healthy to subject their daughters to their crazy aunt's behavior. Kyle needs to cut her off and engage solely with her nieces/nephews. The amount of stress it most feel like to constantly be on the lookout for aggressive behavior has to be off putting.

I'd be done with her a long time ago for everyones good. Kyle seems smart enough to know thats the healthy plan of action but her need to nurture seems to come first. Sad

[imjagain]

I wish Kyle had just let Kim leave, and not tried to get her stay and eat pizza. But I don't think she was being evil and trying milk another awkard Kim moment for screen time. I'm sure she was confused about why all of a sudden Kim was angry with her. And that is what Kyle was trying find out as Kim was leaving. Kyle should know by now that an addict doesn't need a reason to lash out or go from a good laughing mood to a nasty mood. IMO Kim was in a pretty nasty mood most of the night.

Brandi a terrible person. I don't think gives a shit about Kim or Kyle so she can take a seat and let those hash it out on their own. But, this is Brandi I'm talking about.

I think she only befriended Kim because she thinks looks less pathetic. It's close, but usually Brandi still come across the most pathetic in any room.

[thesupremediva1]

When are they going to get Brandi off this show?

 

I get that Eileen and Lisa aren't above the fray since they're on the show as well, but Brandi just looks even more of a tragic mess next to these two (relatively) classy dames.

 

And I see that, now that the two new ladies have her number and Lisa's sick of her, Brandi has changed her strategy - no longer a hanger-on trying to ride someone else's coattails, she's now a "tragedy groupie," as Gillian Flynn would say. She's barnacled herself to Kim, and you bet your bottom dollar that if Taylor Armstrong was still around, Brandi would latch on to her as well.

 

Judge Kyle all you want, but Kim is her sister and they have a lifetime of history together. It is really disgusting of Brandi to insert herself into that sister relationship again and again. WTF does she know about their jealousy toward one another? Where did she even get the balls to say that Kyle didn't excel at acting? Same crap, different year. She spouts lies over and over again and then plays the victim. It's as bad as what she did to Adrienne with the surrogacy outing. I wish Lisa and Adrienne hadn't been on the outs then, because Lisa would have closelined Brandi for that had it suited her agenda.

 

Brandi is just a classless ho who doesn't belong on TV. I actually like the other women and I'm tired of watching Brandi's low-rent version of this show. Put your boobs away, I don't need to see them in your gross talking heads.

 

It speaks volumes that Brandi would push a woman away from her own sister. Kyle is a lot of things but she's not dangerous or physically violent. Brandi is a loose cannon who just proved herself capable of a physical altercation when she threw the wine at Eileen. I have to wonder what reality Brandi lives in and how bad her behavior will have to get before the other women demand she's thrown off the show.

Edited January 21, 2015 by thesupremediva1