Okay…we’re going to have to have a conversation about Bethenny Frankel. What exactly is happening with her? This is the 10th season of The Real Housewives of New York, and she’s the queen of the city. She should be on top of the world. Instead, she’s been petty, attention seeking, gossipy, and just plain mean sometimes! It’s not a good look..and on last night’s episode, it got downright ugly.
When we picked up with the ladies, they were mid vacation in the idyllic port city of Cartagena, Colombia, and Bethenny was mid panic attack. She was crying hysterically, and saying that she “couldn’t be around anyone.” Dorinda ran to comfort her, and listened as she sobbed about all the things she’d “had to give up,” and the fact that her life was “hanging within an inch of itself.”
Dorinda was sympathetic, but not overly so. She felt that the real problem was that Bethenny was used to having an ally, and that her recent track record with the other women had made them less tolerant and compassionate toward her.
Luann, on the other hand, did not need to be told twice that Bethenny wanted to be left alone, and made a hasty retreat with the others for their planned shopping trip. As they made their way to the shops, they all wondered what could possibly be going on with Bethenny.
Carole seemed to think that she had an idea of what was bothering her…a lack of control. Tinsley had planned the trip and all of the activities, and Bethenny had been complaining about everything since they’d arrived. Carole added that it was very “toxic” behavior, but not at all unexpected. Sonja reminded Carole that Bethenny wasn’t being rude on purpose. But Carole disagreed, saying that Bethenny had been very rude to her, and would barely look her in the eye.
Of course, it was Carole’s attention Bethenny was seeking, but she only succeeded in annoying her. The former BFFs have been at odds all season, and while Bethenny has longed to discuss the whys and what for’s, Carole has been much more laid back and understanding of the fact that friendships ebb and flow. And it’s driving Bethenny crazy!
Back at the house, Bethenny soon realized that her audience had dwindled, and magically pulled herself together enough join the others on their shopping spree. When she and Dorinda arrived, the others didn’t exactly look happy to see Bethenny, and they checked out and walked to a nearby restaurant to grab lunch shortly after they arrived.
Sonja stayed with Bethenny, and proceeded to tell her everything the other ladies had said about her before she got there, including Carole calling her toxic, and Ramona saying she was a “manipulator,” who was only friends with people when she needed them. Upon hearing this, Bethenny began crying all over again, and announced she was calling Dennis to “tell him to send a plane” because she was going home.
She made the call as she and Sonja walked to the restaurant to join the others, and sobbed as she explained to Dennis how difficult it was for her to feel so distant from Carole, and how “unwelcome” she felt on the trip, in general. By this point she was just outside the restaurant, and the others had really become exhausted by the whole spectacle.
But when Bethenny hung up, she felt better again, and went to the table to join the other women. They’d ordered paella, a popular seafood dish, and when Luann warned her against eating it, lest the fish base cause set off another allergic reaction, Bethenny said she was sure that most of the women at the table wanted to poison her.
At this point, Carole, Dorinda, and Tinsley decided they’d had enough, and left to go back to the house, leaving only the OGs…Bethenny, Luann, Sonja, and Ramona… and in a rare, touching moment, the four women toasted to all they had been through together.
Back at the house, Carole went into Sonja’s room, and presented her with a beautiful pair of earrings, which was completely out of the blue, and immediately aroused Sonja’s suspicions. Carole was only there to talk about Bethenny, and to ask why she was suddenly becoming so unraveled.
Sonja explained that Bethenny felt that Carole didn’t care about her at all anymore. Carole said that wasn’t true, but that when they had been close it had been ” a lot of Bethenny, and not much Carole,” and that she was simply concentrating on other things now.
Sonja said that maybe that was exactly what was hurting Bethenny so badly. She acknowledged that Bethenny could be a “nighmare” to deal with, but also said that true “ride or die” friends dealt with each other’s quirks, and pulled them closer when they were going through a bad time, instead of pushing them away.
But that’s not how these women roll. And when they all reconvened for dinner, things went from bad to far, far worse. Sonja tried to tell Bethenny about her conversation with Carole, and suggested they have a conversation, but Bethenny said she didn’t care about what Carole had to say. Poor Sonja! She just wants everyone to get along. You’d really think that after 10 seasons, she would know better.
After a few minutes, Dorinda and Carole, excused themselves to smoke, although Carole admitted that it was just an excuse to get up and walk away for awhile. And you really couldn’t blame her. The tension at that table was thick enough to cut with a knife!
But when Carole returned to the table, she walked over to Bethenny, and suggested they discuss the “elephant in the room.” Bethenny immediately began talking a mile a minute, saying that things had been weird between them since summer, and that Carole had changed. Carole said “no,” but Bethenny told her not to say no to her. She was trying to assert control, just as Carole had said, but Carole wasn’t having it, which only served to further anger Bethenny.
The other women were pretending not to listen, and doing a horrible job of it. In their defense, Bethenny and Carole were still sitting right at the table, just a few feet away, so it really was impossible not to eavesdrop. But when Tinsley began openly gawking at them, Dorinda scolded her, and told her to let them talk.
Luann, noticing Dorinda’s sharp tone, advised her to slow down with her drinking because she “starting to turn” and become “aggressive.” Dorinda understandably took exception to this. I mean, come on, Luann JUST got out of rehab, so she’s hardly one to judge and lecture. But Dorinda had “turned,” and she went at The Countess HARD!
She told her not to get self righteous because she was nothing but “a Countess who’d lost her Countess-ship,” and reminded her that she “was the one with the mugshot.” Then she pushed a glass of wine toward her, and told her to “have a drink,” so she could do get charged with “another felony.” Her harsh words were punctuated by the wine glass falling to the floor with a loud crash. Obviously stung, Luann got up and walked back to the house alone.
At the other end of the table, Bethenny and Carole were still at it, now bickering about a months old text exchange. Bethenny was yelling at Carole to read the texts, and saying that Carole was just “too cool” now, and didn’t seem to care about anything.
Carole said that perhaps Bethenny just didn’t like her anymore, and walked away from the table. Bethenny’s not wrong about the “too cool” part. All Carole seems to say this season are millennial catch phrases like “it’s not that deep” and “it is what it is.” I can see how it could get on your nerves after awhile.
Bethenny began crying again, and Carole observed during her interview that Bethenny’s emotional manipulation, and “gaslighting” was similar to an abusive relationship, and she simply couldn’t take it anymore. When she returned to the table Bethenny, still crying told Carole that she loved her, and the two women hugged, but it was clear that Carole was all the way over Bethenny.
In the meantime, Dorinda was at the other end of the table still ranting and raving about her argument with Luann. Ramona attempted to calm her down, and explain why her words had been so hurtful, but Dorinda just turned on her, saying she didn’t care what Ramona thought, and ordering her to shut her mouth, which Ramona actually did, for once.
Everyone was pretty spent at this point, and they decided to head back to the house. Along the way, everyone said they agreed that Luann shouldn’t have been lecturing Dorinda about her drinking, and fueled by their support, Dorinda took another nasty, and sadly prophetic, swipe at Luann behind her back. She said that Luann would be drinking again in three months, and that Luann had said as much, herself.
When talk turned to Carole and Bethenny’s argument, Carole said that theirs was just another in a long line of Bethenny’s relationships that had exploded.
Back at the house, Bethenny checked on Luann, and found her still nursing hard feelings. Luann explained how much it hurt to hear what were obviously Dorinda’s true feelings about her. Bethenny told her that those weren’t Dorinda’s true feelings, and said that Dorinda had “a problem” too, and went on the attack any time anyone tried to call her on it. To prove her point, she shared the story of Dorinda getting drunk before a dinner with Bethenny’s colleagues in Puerto Rico, and how she’d managed to embarrass them both with her obnoxious behavior.
Elsewhere in the house, Dorinda sat having another drink, and brooding over her fight with Luann. When Carole came in, and asked about it, she explained that she was hurt because she’d been a really good friend to Luann, and had never judged her. She said she would never shame anyone, including “a heroine addicted prostitute,” and that she was the type of person who would invite them in, and offer them help.
Carole suggested that perhaps Luann was trying to help her. But Dorinda just sat there, looking confused, lipstick smeared all over her mouth like The Joker, and slurred “help with what?” By this time Bethenny had come along, and at a loss for anything else to say, simply assured Dorinda that Luann loved her, and everything would be fine.
Good grief! That was a lot of drama for one episode, but we haven’t seen anything yet. The ladies’ trip continues next week, and the harrowing ordeal they face while sailing the Caribbean, may just be the scariest moment in Housewives history! Stay tuned!
TELL US – THOUGHTS ON THE LATEST RHONY EPISODE? THOUGHTS ON LUANN & DORINDA’S CONVO? WHAT IS UP WITH BETHENNY?