In the last few weeks, reality truly made its presence known in the world of The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills when cast member Taylor Armstrong’s estranged husband Russell commited suicide last month at the age of 47. The devastating news put the show, Bravo, and reality TV as a whole under public scrutiny, opening up a debate on whether or not Bravo had a hand in Armstrong’s unfortunate death. Critics also pondered if the second season of RHOBH should even be aired out of respect for the Armstrong family due to the Armstrongs’ marital problems being a big focal point this season.
Luckily, Bravo stuck with their September 5th premiere date and the show returned tonight in top form despite the heavy clouds circling behind the scenes. And for that, I’m as happy as Camille Grammer might feel once she starts getting those alimony checks from Kelsey Grammer… if she succeeds in collecting those funds that is.
The premiere was preceded by a special intro taped last Monday, which featured the women (sans Taylor) as they finally broke their silence on Russell’s death and how they felt about it. Before I get to that, I would like to give a quick review on how we found our
Lisa
When the episode opened up, we found Lisa, Ken and Giggy still going strong and happy as ever. Lisa met with her daughter Pandora for a day at the salon where talk quickly turned to Pandora tying the knot one day. Lisa hoped it would be soon, but what she didn’t know was that Pandora’s boyfriend Josh was in the process of asking Ken for his blessing in marrying Pandora. Ken happily accepted and Josh swore his future father-in-law to secrecy in order to surprise Lisa. If this wedding takes place this season, I’m sure that it will probably rival anything the Kardashians threw together for Kim’s nuptials ceremony.
Camille
After being humiliated by Kelsey Grammer’s approach to ending their marriage, Camille was still going strong
with her sidekick D.D. at her side as they sifted through Camille’s belongings, which were shipped from her old house with Kelsey. The more Camille reveals about what happened in the aftermath of her and Kelsey’s split, the more sympathetic she comes across. Clearly the woman grew up a little and became humble since we last saw her, but will she be less annoying than she was last year? My guess is an easy yes.
Kyle and Kim
The Richards sisters were still on the outs with each other, but not to the point of them wanting to continue their ugly argument that closed the end of last season. Kyle had been reaching out to Kim by trying to call her, but according to Kim, the two sisters have not had much of a relationship since the blow out happened. It looks as if the kids are also suffering from their parents’ fighting, but if the previews are of any indication, then Kim and Kyle will be thick as theives again in no time. However, it was still pretty sad to see how the sisters struggled to talk about their issues and I just hope that the inevitable mended fences between the two stay firm and grounded.
Adrienne
The Bickersons returned and lived up to their nickname in abundance by displaying thier trademark arguing in front of their dinner company. Adrienne continued to stress how much she loved Paul and how the two of them always try to spend some time with each other, but only in small doses. Uh oh…
Despite Adrienne and Paul’s nonstop arguing, the show introduced us to Adrienne and Paul’s cook Bernie, who didn’t take kindly to a remark Lisa said about him adding macaroni and cheese to a dinner she attended. There is no love lost between Mrs. VanderPump and Bernie and he’s not scared to show it. Sparks, anyone?
Taylor
While fans caught a glimpse of where everyone has been up to since we last saw them on the reunion, the same treatment wasn’t given to Taylor, who basically didn’t have too much of a presence until the middle of the episode. Taylor’s marital drama was still in play and became the subject of conversation during Adrienne’s dinner party, which also lead into some issues between Lisa and Taylor that is on the fast track of becoming ugly as sin this season.
After Taylor mentioned she and Russell being in therapy to save their marriage, Ken declared that he wouldn’t go to a therapist due to it making him seem weak to let a third person try to save his marriage. This offended Taylor, who picked Kyle to be her confidant on just how much she was peturbed by Ken’s remarks. Lisa saw this and was immediately turned off by the strong bond between her BFF and her frenemy and made up an excuse to leave the party with Ken. Could this feud be this season’s main conflict? I doubt it, because Brandi Glanville and Dana Wilkey haven’t entered the scene yet and we know the first class drama Brandi will be delivering this year. If the drama between Lisa and Taylor is not on the top of most talked about moments this season, it will be a close second.
Breaking Their Silence
The intro to the episode featured the ladies (with Ken and Mauricio) all convening to Adrienne’s house to talk about Taylor and Russell and the suicide. The cast didn’t hold back their feelings, with Kyle making it clear to everyone that Russell’s suicide was his choice and his choice alone and that Taylor shouldn’t feel responsible for Russell’s decision. Lisa mentioned how she didn’t connect with Russell (based on Taylor’s impressions of him), but she mentioned how she didn’t see if anything would be different in hindsight. Tears were shed, awkward pauses were given. In the end, the ladies (and gentlemen) said their peace on the matter and Bravo did a good job in handling this horrible situation the best way they could.
Miscellaneous Thoughts
– Ken letting Giggy drink out of his wine glass and taking a nice sized gulp himself after Giggy finished was one of the most WTF moments of the night. I love dogs, but there is a limit.
– Adrienne’s party was a private showing of Camille’s guest spot on Sh*t My Dad Says! and while I didn’t see the episode as it aired, I still thought Camille made fun of herself pretty well. However, she was a bit stilted in doing so.
– Taylor running into Cedric and running to tell Kyle. I don’t know why I found that funny or a standout part of the episode, but I guess it is because it is a wonder that Cedric hasn’t been ran out of Beverly Hills by now. And to think we will see more of him in the season. Oy vey…
So that was the Real Housewives of Beverly Hills premiere and I personally am on Cloud 9 to have these ladies back on my TV screen.What about you?
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