S06.E25: Reunion Part Three

[MMLEsq]

I'll post later when I've had time to organize my thoughts, but I wanted to get the new thread up.

 

Initial, off the cuff thoughts:

 

I thought the most shocking moment of the 3rd part of the reunion was NeNe asking Andy Cohen if he wanted to pull down his pants so she could kiss his ass.  I'm not sure of the timing of filming -- was the reunion filmed before NeNe's one-on-one with AC on WWHL?  I'm pretty sure it was.  I guess he wasn't that upset about her comments because I didn't notice any obvious strain between the two of them on WWHL.  Homophobic remarks/gay slurs/etc. are kind of a hot button issue for him, though, so I'm surprised that he just kind of let her rant from the reunion go without comment.

 

Cynthia looked like she was on the verge of tears for most of the 3rd part of the reunion. 

 

Phaedra may claim everything's fine with her marriage, but things did not look fine.  There definitely was some tension there.

 

I liked how Andy called Kenya's bluff by asking her if she was through with the show when she said something about being done rolling aroung with pigs.  There's no way she'd voluntarily exit from RHoA.

Edited May 5, 2014 by MMLEsq

[Neurochick]

If I were Kenya I'd leave that mess.  There isn't enough money in the world that would make me stay on a "job" with people who hate me, make me a scapegoat and pile on me every chance they get.  What is Kenya getting, to be Queen of RHOA?  To make a sequel to "Dolls of Voodoo?"

[MMLEsq]

Another thought:  Kenya organized that charity event, but didn't seem to care that they never received any money from the event, except the personal check (for $500?) that Kenya wrote.  What was that about?  Where did the money raised that night go? 

 

I jumped over to the Bravo website a few minutes just to see if any of the HWs had blogs up after last night's episode.  There was a blog for Cynthia, but it was really a Q&A.  Anyway, this was one of the questions:

 

Bravotv.com: What's next?
Cynthia Bailey: We were just talking about that. I think we're going to take a vacation and go away for a week. We're going to take a much needed family vacation. Some spa time. The Reunion itself is very mentally draining and it feels like it's been the longest season ever. There's nowhere to go -- it's on all the time. You know, it's good to take a break. It's going to be a little different now. I'm on my own. NeNe keeps trying to say I'm BFFs with Kenya, but I'm still getting to know her. Just because I'm not Team NeNe anymore doesn't mean I'm Team Kenya. I'm just not Team NeNe anymore. I've got to be ready for it. Because I know NeNe isn't going to make it easy for me. But I'm up for the challenge.

Good Lord, Cynthia, why aren't you Team Cynthia??!?  I guess Cynthia is quite content to be a sidekick or a member of someone else's team.

 

ETA:  Why was Kenya saying, "Bye, Felicia" to NeNe?  Who's Felicia?  Obviously I missed something.

Edited May 5, 2014 by MMLEsq

[coloradoqt]

Andy should have been fired last night for losing/never having control of that disorderly ATL reunion. Bravo should not have let that go-on.Of course I watched as I'm sure millions did. I watched with disgust,but I watched. People have been fired,censured for saying less than NeNe said about Gays. The apology was bad enough, then after Andy (her boss?)said he was offended by her use of  queen and its connotations,she couldn't  just let it go; she had to add the,drop your pants,should I throw a benefit comment and Greg co-signing her with throw a parade,etc.That was so insolent,disrespectful and  sooo unnecessary. There were moments where I felt this was worst than the Porsha and Kenya incident, because  at least someone did intervene, here it was just massacre of words. I'm reminded of the saying "if words could kill" there  would have been a bloodbath.

 

 

Why was Kenya saying, "Bye, Felicia" to NeNe?  Who's Felicia?  Obviously I missed something.
Edited by MMLEsq, 30 minutes ago.

That was a line from a Chris Tucker ,Ice cube movie. I believe it was just a random name given to "someone" that was not respected or cared for.  I'm concerned (well, not really concerned)for Cynthia she looked as if she was having a very difficult time, she looked beat. Every time the camera panned  her, she looked so fragile as if she was not gonna make it through the nite.

[Neurochick]

I really felt for Cynthia but the woman needs to grow a spine.  

 

I can't stand Kenya, but I think the reason I can't stand her is because she doesn't belong on that show.  I think she's probably a pretty normal person but in order to stay on a show like Housewives, she has to create drama, she has to become a character.  I am afraid that Bravo will turn her into Nene 2.0.  I think she should get out while she can, I mean she's a former Miss USA for goodness sakes; surely she can do better.  

[coloradoqt]

I don't mean to be facetious, but what does it mean she has to become a character? I realize she is not a housewife, but then everyone knows that. Do you not believe this Kenya we see is someone different;that all of the other people and their families and their problems are real  and Kenya,her family her problems are just made up for the show, 

 

 

I think she's probably a pretty normal person but in order to stay on a show like Housewives, she has to create drama, she has to become a character

I'm serious, I've read in so many posts "Kenya is playing a part,etc) Is her part scripted and the others are not?  What have you seen to make you believe she is any more normal or different than she appears on the show?

Again I'm not questioning you. It's just that I don't think anyone would behave on TV the way Kenya behaves without everyone knowing she is an actress on a tv show.  If a whore is on your screen, you know this is really (name a actress) and her part in this particular film is a whore.And you will see her in another film playing some other character. If this is the case then I would say she is a terrific actress, because I was really starting to hate her.Now I can just hate the part she is playing and not her. 

[Neurochick]

My point about Kenya is that she really has no reason to be in Atlanta except the show.  She's not married, not getting married, not having a child, or a career in Atlanta.  So why is she on the show?  I don't like her at all, in fact, I can't stand her because to me, she has no business on that show. 

 

I don't like most of the women on the show because I have a hard time respecting someone who can't even be bothered with vetting a man.  If Phaedra's so intelligent, why did she marry and have children with a man fresh out of prison?  Shouldn't she wait until he's proven himself first?  I once dated a man who's been in prison; for drugs in 1971 and I met him decades after he'd been released.  Kandi's a great businesswoman, so why did she get involved with that man (the one who was killed) who had about four or five children by four of five different women?  I mean one baby mama/ex wife is hard enough, but four of five?  Hell no.  Same with Cynthia, how many children did Peter have and was he ever married to any of their mothers?

 

It's important to vet men if you want to get married and have children.   Maybe I'm an old fart, but I just think it's important for women to do that.

Edited May 12, 2014 by Neurochick

[MMLEsq]

I just remembered this "gem" from Cynthia, when she was talking about having fibroids:  “I’m really grateful that he [Peter] didn’t go and have sex with someone else because I almost couldn’t really be mad at him.”  And it didn't seem to me like she was joking.  I don't understand how Cynthia's self-esteem and sense of self worth can be so low that she's grateful that he didn't cheat on her.  I think her intention was to make him seem like a good guy, but IMO it backfired.

[Milaxx]

ETA:  Why was Kenya saying, "Bye, Felicia" to NeNe?  Who's Felicia?  Obviously I missed something.

 

As mentioned it's slang. Sort of the ultimate dismal.

 

I take none of this serious. The reunion was filmed before Nene's one on one so Andy may indeed be okay with it. Bravo has also tolerated homophobic language from Marlo & Patty Sanger. The highlight of part 3 was Phaedra's epic read of Kenya. I stopped and replayed it. It was that good. That said, this franchise may need a retooling. I think Nene has outgrown it, Kenya is not liked well enough by the fans. Apollo is looking at serious time, Porsha has a case pending for dragging Phaedra. The only 2 not completely messy are Cynthia and Kandi. Cynthia is too much of a doormat. I can't imagine watching extended time with Peter and I can't stand her sister Mal. I like Kandi & Todd, but I cant deal with Mama Joyce. I don't want to see any former ho'wives return, but they need to rebuild this franchise. There's a very fine line between messy and crazy and this season may have crossed it.

[Neurochick]

I need someone to explain the Kenya love to me, I don't get it.  To me, she's as shady as the rest of them.

[technorebel]

Sure, Kenya's as shady as the rest. I think it's part of being on one of these shows. I still really like the girl, though. I think she's the smartest one on this show. Of course, some of my Kenya love could just be the tendency to cheer for someone who's being ganged up on.

Kandi is my other favorite because she's just nice, and I need a nice girl to root for.

[Neurochick]

I see your point but sometimes people get ganged up on for a reason.  It's not always unjustified, it's not like Salem and Kenya is being tried as a witch. 

 

I can't be 100% behind Kandi because I can't get past her almost marrying AJ, a man with how many children by how many different women?  Hopefully she learned from that mistake and vetted Todd. 

[technorebel]

It did seem to me that they were ganging up on her for no particular reason. What did Kenya do to deserve all the insults about her being a whore who, incidentally, only has imaginary boyfriends. I'm just not seeing her as some big bad witch. I think she's drop-dead gorgeous and smart as a whip.

Yeah, Kandi and her past boyfriends. Mama Joyce probably has a good reason to side-eye anyone she brings home and, unfortunately, Todd's getting the brunt of it.

[Neurochick]

Yes, Kenya can't be a whore if she has imaginary boyfriends.  But most folks that I know can't stand her for some reason; I don't think she's any better or worse than any of the other housewives; I think she's somewhat of a carpetbagger; I mean what's her connection to Atlanta if she lives in LA?  To me that's the big elephant in the living room; what is her purpose on that show if she's not living in Atlanta? 

 

What I didn't like though were the nasty things Porsha said to her last season about her being "old and single."  I thought that was nasty and unkind because people are single for all different reasons.  I think that's why Kenya has been so cool to Porsha, because she remembers those nasty things the woman said about her. 

 

I don't know about Kenya being smart; smart people don't need scepters or bullhorns to make their point; and smart people really don't need to be nasty.  I don't care how correct your grammar is, nasty is nasty.

[WimminWinning]

 

I need someone to explain the Kenya love to me, I don't get it.  To me, she's as shady as the rest of them.

I need someone to explain the Kenya hate to me. People are going in on Kenya as if she drowned infants while kicking puppies. For what? She really hasn't done anything. I think the haters who seem to have no justification for their hate are what make people want to defend Kenya. I haven't necessarily seen love for Kenya, I've just seen people try to bring reason to what seems to be unreasonable hate. In fact, I've been lurking at TWOP and in Twitterverse and many of the pro-Kenya posts start with something like "I don't like Kenya, but..." and then they go into a fact-based argument to rebuttal against random name-calling and propagation of lies/rumors that have already been dispelled.

[Neurochick]

To me, Kenya seems like a woman lacking humility, not in the same way Nene's lacking humility though.  IMO Kenya is a woman who doesn't get how much her looks have carried her, looks that she has because of DNA and not much else.  She cries that everybody bullies her but in reality life accommodates attractive people; if she were unattractive she never would have won Miss USA, nor had the career she's had.   Kenya needs to realize how attractive people get more in life and many times are treated better.  I've never heard Kenya referred to as an animal, but Nene gets called a "moose" a lot of times.  I am certain that if Nene looked like Kenya she wouldn't be called names.

 

I did not like the way she made fun of Phaedra's body.  If Kenya wants to make work out DVD's, she better realize that many women who purchase them have figures like Phaedra, meaning larger on the bottom, not straight up and down like Kenya.  I think Kenya is a beautiful woman outside, but ugly inside, unlike Cynthia who I think is beautiful inside and out.  To me, Cynthia gets that she's gotten where she is because of her looks.  The fact that Kenya speaks well and is articulate does nothing for me.  I have never disliked a person because of the way they speak.

 

Now, I think Kenya is very intelligent, but she uses that intelligence to hurt others.  I do think Nene was threatened by her.  Nene isn't as intelligent as Kenya, nor is she as attractive.  To me, Nene is one of those people who believes that if a person is vulnerable, or admits that they are wrong, that means they're weak.  I know woman like Nene and it's hard being friends with them because to them, everything they do is right and they're never wrong. 

[WimminWinning]

 

To me, Kenya seems like a woman lacking humility, not in the same way Nene's lacking humility though.  IMO Kenya is a woman who doesn't get how much her looks have carried her, looks that she has because of DNA and not much else.  She cries that everybody bullies her but in reality life accommodates attractive people; if she were unattractive she never would have won Miss USA, nor had the career she's had.   Kenya needs to realize how attractive people get more in life and many times are treated better.  I've never heard Kenya referred to as an animal, but Nene gets called a "moose" a lot of times.  I am certain that if Nene looked like Kenya she wouldn't be called names.

 

So the hate for Kenya is because she's pretty? I buy that explanation because, in the Kenya-hate posts I've seen, there have been many individuals talking about how Kenya isn't all that pretty, then they list all the housewives they think are prettier than Kenya. I guess her beauty is a fixation for those that dislike her. But I can't get behind that. That's like hating light-skinned women because of the way dark-skinned women are often treated. It's certainly wrong what people like Lil Wayne think about dark-skinned women, but that's not light-skinned women's fault. The same is true here - the way Nene is called Moose is wrong, but that's not Kenya's fault. Kenya does have "pretty privilege", but that's not something she needs to own up to or be humble about. Kenya playing small does not serve anyone.

 

re Kenya using her intelligence to harm people...reading the other housewives is the job, and let's not forget that hurtful words were thrown both ways. Kenya only started the body criticisms after Phaedra threw those mental illness daggers when Kenya revealed that she had a history of mental illness in her family. Also, Phaedra threw her own body-shaming insults with the fake booty comments - it was tit-for-tat. Kenya wasn't saying that all women with Phaedra's body are ugly, she was very careful to say that Phaedra shouldn't have made a workout DVD given the state of her un-toned body at the time. Workout DVDs are meant to be inspirational (which is why the covers are usually shots of oiled up ab and arm muscles) and Phaedra's body was not aspirational at the time. 

[Milaxx]

I don't like Kenya because she turned me off from the moment she came on the show. She seemed to started massive fights with everyone. Most of those were for not remember her decade old beauty crown. As for her beauty, I find her pretty, but noting special. She certainly doesn't have the models grace and poise that Cynthia has. I also don't see her being ganged up on. She gives as good a she gets. As for the name calling, I don't think she deserves to be called a "whore". I also don't think it's fair to call Nene "moose". I find Kenya calculating in a way that is unpleasant to watch. It goes beyond light hearted reality tv fun straight to nasty.

 

I'm not sure who I like on this show anymore. Especially after this nightmare of a reunion. I think it's time for Nene to move on. She's has outgrown the show. Not that she special, but you can't be out there trying for acting roles and talk show appearances where you act like you have some sense, then flip back to the racthedness of being a ho'wife. Cynthia is a doormat and all her storylines with Peter and her sister Mal annoy me. I like Kandi and I like Todd, but I could die happy if I never had to see Mama Joyce again. Porsha isn't the smartest, but she's mostly harmless as long as she isn't talking about Kordell. Phaedra has too much baggage with Apollo. If I had my choice, I'd scrape the entire cast maybe keep Kandi & Nene for a transitional period. Let the others make an appearance here and there. Give whoever they want to give a spin off show. The show as it is feels hateful. There's none of the fun and camaraderie it once had.