B-Side Blog

The Real Housewives of Orange County is truly becoming mesmerizing TV as it enters the final stretch of its season. With cancer, family crises, and financial dilemmas facing the various women, we have a delightful mix of real, urgent storylines that help gravitate some of the more petty diversions. Don’t get me wrong: I love the petty stuff. But unlike Atlanta, which reveled in dumb bickering over things like “Tardy for the Party,” Orange County is grounded in a fascinating reality — one that many viewers most likely can identify with. It’s intriguing, really. Looking at the show from a macro scale, we can see how “Camelot” has crumbled for these women. What used to be a series about spoiled women living the good life has revealed itself to be a sad, miserable peak inside a community on the decline. Perhaps this is a parable for America?
Probably not. And far be it for me to pseudo-intellectualize this show. The point is, there’s more going on under the surface than ever before, and it’s both gripping and, well, hilarious.

Continue reading “REAL HOUSEWIVES PHOTOCAP: We Got To Pray Just To Make It Today!”

I think we can all agree on one thing. This latest episode of The Real Housewives of Orange County was the best episode of the season. We’re talking epic, awesome, intense, shocking, GREAT. Overall, it’s been a solid season with some compelling stories, but we’ve been missing that awkward “it” factor that last year’s Gretchen-and-Lynne vs. Tamra-and-Vicki feud provided week in and week out. Finally it happened, and somehow, by the end of the show, Vicki and Donn emerged as the unlikely heroes of not just the hour, but the entire season. How did this happen? How did Vicki go from monster to… lovable monster? I’d like to think that she saw the way she acted last year and vowed to change her behavior. Little asides about wanting to be “nicer” seem to support that. I mean, she’s still crazy, but at least she’s crazy and growing.
Same can’t be said for Tamra, who continues to be a gentle mix of brash, tacky, shallow, and weak. Shame on Simon for also making us sympathetic to her. The passive-aggressive husband is such a control freak that he can’t deal with what he perceives to be an interloper to his marriage. In this case, that interloper would be Vicki, who’s not so much an intruder as she is merely a friend. Of course, having Tamra and Vicki spend some time apart isn’t necessarily a bad thing. The two bring out the worst in each other, but unlike Simon’s assessment, I don’t think it’s Vicki that’s the source of the awfulness. It’s clearly on Tamra’s shoulders. Nevertheless, watching the two take quiet swipes at each other (which is nothing new) is a bit painful, and it’s clear that this is not the product of Vicki’s meddling. It’s the result of Simon being a jerk. Of course, rather than endure a moment of introspection, Simon instead plays mind games with Tamra, making her believe it’s an us vs. them situation. Case in point: at Lynne’s disastrous dinner party, Simon threatened to march out unless Tamra took his side in an argument with Vicki. Immaturity at its height (both for his reaction and that there was a fight in the first place). After hectoring his wife until she was in tears, Tamra finally emerged pro-Simon, happily throwing her “friend” under the bus later after Vicki and Donn excused themselves from the increasingly tense dinner (an impossibly boring story by Alexis didn’t help matters either).

Continue reading “REAL HOUSEWIVES PHOTOCAP: Simon Says”