Tag Archives: reality tv

The Housewives of New York: Ranked

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It’s the Big Apple’s time to shine!

When I first started my foray into Real Housewives, I was fairly adamant that I wasn’t going to watch Real Housewives of New York because the snippets I did see didn’t tickle my fancy at all. Additionally, my impressions of Ramona and LuAnn from RHUGT weren’t the greatest, so it was a city I was happy to skip.

But then I had no other cities to watch, and my love for Real Housewives proved too great, so I started the second ever franchise with little expectations, and to be honest, I actually really enjoyed it!

Thought I’d trigger a fanbase by including a picture of the new RHONY over the OG’s.


It’s important to note that these rankings will take into consideration the original group of women that made up RHONY as well as the iconic women who appeared in the reboot. So from the wonderful eccentricities of Alex McCord, to the most Brynntesting girl in the room Brynn Whitfield…

Let’s get to ranking!

23. Ramona Singer
I find Ramona to be an abhorrent human being, and I’m one of those Bravoholics that can’t excuse poor behaviour and bad human qualities because “they’re entertaining”. Sure, she was entertaining at some points and she had some iconic moments, but she was so blatantly rude and condescending to literally everyone and tried to pass it off as ‘just being honest’. Good riddance tbh.

22. Luann de Lesseps
If you were to ask me who the most overrated housewife is, I’d say Luann. Luann seems to have such a big following among the Bravoverse and I truly don’t get it. While not as rude and condescending as Ramona, Luann makes up for it in grand delusion and not in the fun kinda way either. I’m surprised she’s noticed that other people exist in this world to be completely honest, so this is why she finds herself ranked so low. 

21. Cindy Barshop
The first one season wonder of this list, Cindy was just kinda there. While I did agree with her that a ‘pecking order’ among the group was ridiculous, Cindy just didn’t mesh with the group and it came across on screen very clearly. Being cropped out of the group photo really sealed the deal as well.

20. Leah McSweeney
How Leah could go from such a fantastic first season, to the most abysmal sophomore season is beyond me. Initially, I liked her young, free-spirited energy, and she was a great addition to a significantly older cast. And then the popularity got to her head, and she made young and free-spirited seem like a bad thing to the point of being unbearable. Oh well. At least I can thank her for bringing Brynn to our screens since she’s the sole reason RHONY had to be recast.

19. Sai de Silva
I personally have a bad taste in my mouth when it comes to ‘influencers’ so immediately I was wary of Sai. Turns out I had every reason to be. She was just so unbearable to watch, so I can’t imagine how unbearable she is to be around. The only praise I’ll give her is that every cast needs a villain, and with some refining, she could be a good one.

18. Erin Lichy
Erin’s beautiful and she looks like she lives a fancy, interesting life, but homegirl needs some lessons on how to be a bone collector because her pot-stirring ways were so obvious and they flopped nearly every time. I’ll cut her some slack that it was her first season and they had big shoes to fill, so hopefully she finds her footing more in her second season. Also I’ve never been so sure that someone has bad breath before.

17. Ubah Hassan
Ubah had a great start for me, being a beautiful, strong and outspoken woman that radiated classy model energy, and she finished off the season fairly the same. And then she had one of the worst reunion performances I’ve ever seen, which tanked her position on this list. Here’s to hoping she makes a snappy recovery in her second season.

16. Jules Wainstein
I actually really liked Jules. I thought she was beautiful, was great with her kids, and had an interesting story to share. Of the one season wonders (Eboni excluded for obvious reasons), I thought Jules was the most deserving of a second season. I couldn’t stand Bethenny bringing Jules’s eating disorder up, and also couldn’t stand that Bethenny had an issue with Jules mentioning she was Asian because if you’re not a POC, you don’t get how race plays into simple aspects of life. I hope Jules is living her best life now.

15. Jill Zarin
For the first couple of seasons, I really liked Jill. She was fun to watch, seemed to live an elite New York kind of lifestyle, and she was kinda quirky. And then her atrocious performance in season four happened, and that really dropped her down the list. Also, Jill’s unquenchable thirst for being featured in the spotlight is both hilarious and pathetic and gets really annoying sometimes.

14. Sonja Morgan
Sonja is a really popular housewife among the Bravoverse, and while I get why others may like her, I just couldn’t get behind her. Her shtick of being an older woman living as if she was a 21-year-old horny sorority girl got old very quick, and it became extremely embarrassing to watch all of her drunk antics. I will, however, applaud her for being the only one to acknowledge and accept Eboni voicing her struggles as a black woman in season 13.

13. Aviva Drescher
Let’s be honest: Aviva is iconic. Maybe bar Bethenny, Aviva was the sharpest with her words, and she could effortlessly read a bitch as made evident with her ‘white trash’ spiel. Her backstory of how she lost her leg was also very interesting. I don’t even need to mention the leg toss because that goes down in history, and rightfully so. Iconic. Simply iconic.

12. Kelly Killoren Bensimon
I lowkey love the crazy, unhinged housewives, and Kelly was New York’s version of this archetype. I mean, it wasn’t called Scary Island for no reason. Kelly was beautiful, but almost every word she spoke made absolutely no sense, but you could tell in her mind she thought she was spitting hard facts and truths. God bless her, that wonderful action verb of a woman.

11. Eboni K. Williams
I compare Eboni to Tiffany Moon of RHOD, in that their respective casts were never really confronted with the topic of race on their shows until they showed up. Eboni was the first black woman to be featured on RHONY, and she was unapologetic about that fact, looking to educate the women on black culture as well as explain to them the harsh stereotypes she faces as a black woman. Sure, she was a bit condescending, but I also think she should be proud that she’s a strong, intelligent black woman, and if others find that intimidating, that’s on them.

10. Bethenny Frankel
Bethenny was a hard one for me to rank, considering that I really liked her on the show, but despise her outside of it. The difference between Ramona and Bethenny, however, is that Bethenny was at least likeable during her tenure on RHONY. She was that bitch of the show, most of the season’s storylines revolved around her, and she was essentially always guaranteed to get first chair at the reunion. Her anti-Bravo antics currently can get fucked, however, and I’m sick of seeing her stupid face eating in her TikToks.

9. Jenna Lyons
I had preconceived notions of Jenna Lyons, and those led me to believe I wouldn’t like her. However, the images of a stonefaced, monotone boss-like figure were dashed when this sweet, gentle woman spoke for the first time, and I almost immediately fell in love with Jenna. I do believe she’s holding back, however, and would love to see more of her authentic self next season.

8. Jessel Taank
I started off not liking Jessel, especially with the Christmas tree lingerie fiasco, but then her fun side shone through, and she showed why she was the main girl for season 14. Her ability to stand up for herself, while also talking with this almost sweet naivety made her really likeable, and I can’t wait to see more of her next season.

7. Alex McCord
Oh my sweet Alex McCord. I don’t know how I’ve coped without you for so long. At first, I was indifferent to the eccentric Alex who couldn’t bear to be away from her man for more than 30 seconds, but then I grew to love her as she became more confident in her voice, and her reads were just so iconic. (“You are in high school!” anyone?) I will never forgive Caroline Manzo and Brandi Glanville for preventing us from seeing Alex’s grand return in RHUGT.

6. Heather Thomson
I saw Heather’s grinning face floating around Housewives Twitter before I started RHONY, so with that in mind, I assumed I wouldn’t like her. But I really liked both sides of Heather’s personality: the sweet and nurturing side that would refer to her friends as ‘mama’; and the no-nonsense ratchet side that so effortlessly dragged Aviva. I also really admired her strong business acumen, and her efforts to relate to Eboni. I will never forgive Leah McSweeney for ruining a potential Heather comeback in season 13.

5. Kristen Taekman
Every Housewives city will randomly cast a young, pretty housewife to change up the dynamic, and Kristen was New York’s version of this archetype. What makes Kristen different, though, is that she was super likeable, shady when she had to be, could defend herself when she needed to, and was just like the sweet girl next door. Her comeback performance on RHUGT also just goes to show that sometimes the ‘forgotten’ Housewives are some of the best Housewives.

4. Tinsley Mortimer
I didn’t know anything about Tinsley before RHONY, so finding out that she was the It Girl of New York and also lowkey inspired Gossip Girl was super fascinating. I love the sweet, non-confrontational but can get into it when needs be (more on that later) Housewife archetype, and I found Tinsley to be a version of this. Her personal storyline of wanting to find love was just so captivating, and how could you not be on her side with this? It’s just a shame she left halfway through season 12, because that was shaping up to be her best season yet.

3. Dorinda Medley
Like Radzi says, “When Dorinda is bad, she’s so good!” I had unfairly grouped Dorinda in with Ramona and Luann so I expected not to like her, but I ended up loving the Meddler so much. You had weet and sober Dorinda, who was very motherly and nurturing, but then you get martini Slurinda, who would just verbally eviscerate anyone for no good reason. Mix that together and you have yourself a top tier Housewife. In saying that, I could see why she was ‘put on pause’ at the end of season 12.

2. Brynn Whitfield
If I could pick any Housewife to be my spirit animal, it would definitely be Brynn Whitfield. Brynn is flirty, sexy and confident, willing to use her sexuality to her advantage whenever she wants, but also has a serious side that serves as a good friend and someone you don’t want to mess with. And that is basically describing myself. Learning more about Brynn’s backstory and her family dynamics also make her one of the more fascinating Housewives across any city.

1. Carole Radziwill
As mentioned before, I love the sweet non-confrontational but still don’t mess with me Housewife archetype, and that describes Princess Carole. An underrated Housewife IMO, Carole could hang in there with the heavy hitters like Bethenny and come out relatively unscathed, but she could also stay out of the drama while providing humourous commentary. Her personal backstory as a widow was also very interesting to watch. If I’m going to be honest, Carole won me over when one of the first things she says on RHONY is “I don’t hate children. I just can’t stand when mothers get together and that’s all they talk about”. Iconic.

Can you believe it? Over four years, I have finally finished all of Bravo‘s Real Housewives cities! (Excluding RHODC, but that has one season so it doesn’t really count.) I won’t know what to do with my spare time anymore! Someone send help!

– by the Black Widow

The Housewives of Potomac: Ranked

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Word on the street is this is another Real Housewives article.

As my working from home days are coming to an end, that means the intimate relationship I’ve had with my TV and hayU account will soon drastically change. But until that day comes, I will continue to binge watch as much Real Housewives as possible!

This time I will be ranking the ladies of Potomac. Real Housewives of Potomac came with a glowing review from my sister, who had compared it to a combination of Beverly Hills and Atlanta. Considering that they are two of my favourite franchises, it was a no brainer that this would be the next franchise I’d start.

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Real Housewives of Potomac has spanned, as of writing, six seasons and featured ten full-time housewives. Let’s get to ranking!

10. Candiace Dillard Bassett
Contrary to popular belief, I haven’t just recently turned on Candiace in the past couple of seasons; unfortunately I’ve just never liked her. Candiace strikes me as the type of person who grew up with a silver spoon in their mouth and never had to face the consequences of their actions, and when those consequences hit her, she cries victim. Thanku, next.

9. Charrisse Jackson-Jordan
According to some reports on Twitter, we have Charrisse to thank for rounding up the crew for the first season of RHOP so I am thankful to her for that. Other than that, I don’t have much to say about Charrisse. She was boring, and even when she tried to stir up drama, it was boring. Soz hun.

8. Wendy Osefo
Wendy had the potential to be a lot higher on this list. Her somewhat condescending performance on season five put her at the bottom, but the first half of season six she seemed to be redeeming herself. And then the second half happened. And here we are. I’m sorry professor but you are trying too hard to be iconic when really, if you just be yourself that’s iconic enough.

7. Robyn Dixon
I really want to like Robyn more than what I actually do; she’s funny, breathtakingly beautiful, and is a great mother to her kids. But for six seasons we have sat through the exact same storyline with Robyn – talking about Juan and their complicated relationship – and believe me when I say we are tired of it.

6. Mia Thornton
If Mia stayed off Twitter, she’d be a lot higher on this list. I really liked Mia when we were first introduced to her in season six and I thought she had a lot of potential. She was funny, glamorous, shady when she needed to be, and who can forget the absolute flair she had when tossing that lettuce at Candiace? Her messy antics on Twitter, however, prevent her from going any higher on this list.

5. Gizelle Bryant
The Queen of Shade herself comes in at the halfway mark. Gizelle really is a top-tier housewife who is the definition of understanding the assignment. She’s funny, she’s entertaining, she’s so beautiful, and she’s shady… sometimes too shady. With all that being said, I love watching the scenes with her daughters because she is such a wonderful mother.

4. Ashley Darby
Ashley was by far my favourite in season one, and she would’ve been higher on this list had it not been for her husband. Ashley is gorgeous, not scared to get into a scrap if needs be, and is completely messy, which she admits to being. I do however frown at her being completely blind to Michael’s actions, and some might even argue that she enables it.

3. Katie Rost
Katie is an interesting case. At first I didn’t take to her that much in season one, but as that season went on, she grew to be one of my favourites. And after two seasons away, she came back in as a FOH in season four and was absolutely my most favourite thing about that season. She’s so unapologetically herself and somewhat blunt… she’s Katie Rost.

2. Karen Huger
If you’re a RHOP fan then you know you’re either Camp Gizelle or Camp Karen. Considering that Gizelle has already been rated, then you know that I’m definitely Camp Karen. Much like her counterpart, Karen definitely understands the assignment, and the Grand Dame almost epitomises what RHOP is.

1. Monique Samuels
Monique is by far my favourite of the franchise. She has the wealthy housewife lifestyle that us fans love, but also keeps the part of her identity that she was raised with, and I think that’s something to really be admired. Everything that a Real Housewife should be Monique was, and although season five’s events led to her departure, Monique to me is definitely one of the realest housewives of any franchise.

With season six officially finished, I eagerly anticipate season seven and hope that any cast changes shake up the show’s dynamics to bring even more reasonable shade!

– by The Black Widow

What RHOD Needs to Make a Comeback

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I’m still grieving guys. Give me a moment.

By now we have all heard the news that Real Housewives of Dallas has been placed on an indefinite hiatus and has not been renewed for a season six yet. This may not come as a shock to some huge Bravo fans as RHOD was one of the less popular franchises, but I personally really enjoyed RHOD and thought it had some great potential.

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There are many factors that could contribute to Bravo’s decision to not renew RHOD as of now, including low ratings and controversy surrounding the show with accusations of racism and xenophobia. But I don’t think the franchise is entirely dead, and if some changes are made, I believe the franchise could make a comeback within the coming years much like Real Housewives of Miami has done.

Here are five suggestions I have for RHOD to come back fighting strong. Because let’s be honest, we all need to see D’andra do more random shit, and we all need some more iconic Stephanie Hollman one-liners.

1. Kameron needs to go
Whether you believe these are reports or just rumours, there has been speculation that Kameron’s falling out with Tiffany Moon after season five was so bad that Kameron tried to give Bravo an ultimatum: if you want me on season six, then you need to fire Tiffany Moon. Given that ultimatum, the decision is really quite simple: get rid of Kameron, keep Tiffany. Kameron offers next to nothing to the show, has a really pretentious manner, and nitpicks at really small things to try seem ‘housewifey’ when her attempts fall flat (her bringing receipts to the season five reunion thinking she was funny or shady yet everyone else was bored with it). Tiffany was a ball of fun, wasn’t scared to say what was on her mind, and wasn’t against the drama. Really you’re comparing an Hermes handbag to something you can find in K-Mart. See ya later, Kameron.

2. Brandi and Stephanie no more?
On top of getting rid of Kameron, I feel as if my favourite Bravo friendship may have to come to an end as well. Brandi Redmond took to social media to say she wouldn’t be interested in coming back to the show, and to be honest I don’t think there’s a space for her anyway. Her abysmal season five served her downfall and I think not coming back is best for her and the show. As much as I love her, I don’t know if Stephanie could be as strong a housewife if Brandi isn’t on the show with her. She was beautiful and hilarious, but playing the peacekeeper for as long as she did can only do her so well.

3. New stars, new Housewives
Taking the above into consideration, I really think RHOD could benefit from having new faces and a seven-housewife cast. The more housewives, the more drama, and I think drama is what RHOD has been lacking since Leeanne left. If Kameron and Brandi are gone, and let’s say for the sake of this argument that Stephanie is also gone, that leaves four new spots for four new housewives to reach a seven-person cast. With new faces comes new drama, and new dynamics that could come into play to bring that spark back to RHOD. But speaking of introducing new faces…

4. Welcome back Cary!
Introducing four brand new faces would be a very bold move for the franchise to make if they were going to do four new housewives + three existing housewives. In saying that, their best option to counterbalance that is to bring back a former housewife plus three new faces, and of the three choices we have (Tiffany Hendra, Leeanne Locken and Cary Deuber), Cary is definitely the best bet. She was funny and witty and so glamorous, and she wasn’t afraid to bring the heat when the occasion called for it. Her bone collecting skills leave a bit to be desired, but I think bringing Cary back into the fray would be a nice change for the show.


5. The Housewives need to pull their weight
There’s no denying that in the early seasons, Leeanne Locken really carried the show. She was the catalyst for most if not all of the drama, and her funny one-liners and explosive moments really made the show. Essentially, it felt like the Leeanne show ft. the other housewives. This was until D’andra started carrying her own from season three onwards, and then Tiffany Moon helped with the load in season five. Brandi contributed a bit, Cary was okay, Stephanie was essentially moral support, and Kameron and Kary gave nothing to the show. For a Real Housewives franchise to be continuously successful, it needs all of the housewives to pull their weight. They can’t just rely on D’andra and Tiffany for the ratings and the success. Maybe they can all take a lesson from Kyle Richards in the art of ghost producing.

While I wouldn’t say that RHOD is my all-time favourite Real Housewives franchise, it’s definitely up there as a show that I really loved and enjoyed and I don’t want to see it fail anytime soon. Here’s to hoping that this indefinite hiatus is only a short-term thing and we can get back to seeing D’andra do some funny ass shit on our screens again.

– by The Black Widow

The Housewives of Dallas: Ranked

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Would you believe it… more Real Housewives content!

Because this Sydney lockdown is never-ending, I’ve had all the time in the world to catch up on some Real Housewives franchises. After finishing Atlanta, I decided to watch Real Housewives of Dallas because I have such a love for the Southern charm that’s in Texas.

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While the other franchises that I’ve reviewed and ranked on here had featured several women across a lot of seasons, RHOD has only featured nine housewives across five seasons. While the future of the franchise is up in the air, I am still excited to rank these iconic housewives in order of personal preference.

Without further ado… the Real Housewives of Dallas ranked!

9. Kameron Westcott
Kameron’s whole thing during the show is that she puts on a character when she’s really an intelligent woman behind the mask, but quite frankly I think she is one of the most pretentious women on any Real Housewives franchise ever. You could just tell that everything she said and did was rehearsed and fake and at no point did I ever find myself liking her. Also how is a white woman going to tell an Asian woman she’s racist against Asians and that Chinese food isn’t part of Chinese culture.

8. Kary Brittingham
I feel as if Kary was an addition that didn’t really add much to the show at all, besides being a drunk mess in season five. I had no real connection with her at all during the show, but I can say I was 100% on her side during the season four xenophobic drama.

7. Leeanne Locken
Every franchise has that one Housewife…and if you’re a Real Housewives fan then you know exactly what I’m referring to. Leanne is that Housewife for Dallas. She stirred up all the drama for the seasons she was in, she was the catalyst for most if not all of the fights, and she was that bitch. Which is exactly why she’s near the bottom of this list. Plus the xenophobia of season four… yeah, no.

6. Tiffany Hendra
I really liked Tiffany in season one, and I was kind of confused why she was dropped straight away. I thought she was a straight shooter and wasn’t scared to put up a fight, especially against her own best friend Leeanne. She comes in at sixth for lack of time in getting to know her.

5. Brandi Redmond
Brandi really was the life of RHOD, constantly being featured in storylines and promotional materials. Her big smile and red hair are pretty synonymous with the franchise. Hers and Stephanie’s friendship is without a doubt my favourite friendship in any of the Real Housewives shows. In saying that, her attitude in season five prevents her from going any higher on this list.

4. Cary Deuber
Watching season one, Cary was immediately my favourite. She was sassy, fun, glamorous, and you could just tell that she was super comfortable being herself. Her failed attempt at being the Bone Collector in season three a la Sheree Whitfield of RHOA does stop her from going any higher on this list however. However, homegirl always had some killer taglines.

3. Tiffany Moon
I wanted to start watching RHOD because I had seen so many glowing reviews for Tiffany Moon, saying she made season five and she was a breath of fresh air for the show. And after finishing the show, I can definitely see why fans seem so enamoured with her. She is brilliant, stylish, and so entertaining to watch. I need RHOD to come back just so we can see more Tiffany Moon!

2. Stephanie Hollman
Knowing that I was always going to do a ranking post for RHOD, Stephanie Hollman would’ve ranked at number one had season four and five not happened. I love her and Brandi’s friendship so much, but of the two, Stephanie is way more preferable. She’s unapologetic, funny, and just a great blonde ball of energy, while keeping a Southern Belle charm to herself. She managed to stay out of the drama while not being a total snoozefest which is a rare feat to accomplish.

1. D’Andra Simmons
Obsessed is an understatement. D’Andra Simmons made the entire franchise for me. What I absolutely loved about D’andra was that she was from a classy Dallas dynasty family, but still had the most infectious sense of humour and personality. She wasn’t afraid to be herself even when others seemed to judge her because of her last name, and that will always get brownie points with me. And even though there was a ton of body shaming done to her, I think D’andra is one of the sexiest Real Housewives of any franchise hands down period end of discussion.

Now that I’m thinking about all of the iconic stuff that D’andra has done on the show, I now need her and Tiffany to have their own spin off show to capture all the amazing shit they would do together without having to share the spotlight with other dumbasses like Kameron.

Please and thank you Bravo.

– by the Black Widow