Reality Recap: Editing, caution, illness

Southern Charm’s Leva Bonaparte and her husband Lamar are facing heat over allegations they are racially profiling guests in their new Charleston restaurant after this TikTok went viral. This BTS footage of the Summer House crew in da club is showing us how they really get down. And Anitta remained very tight-lipped when Andy Cohen pressed her about what exactly happened when those cheeky photos of her and Mauricio Umansky in Aspen surfaced. 

Southern Charm’s issue with race far from over

Venita and JT have been pretty flirty this season, leading fans to wonder whether there’s something more to their friendship. And when Venita cooked JT a luxe meal including my personal favourite, branzino, to soft launch the idea of the two of them pursuing something a bit more romantic, we knew it was serious.

So imagine the disappointment when, during that same dinner, he told her he had a girlfriend – something that, despite being his “best friend” she was completely unaware of. In a subsequent episode during the cast trip to the Bahamas, Venita can be seen making her way over to his room, allowing her in under one stipulation – no cameras.

After this scene aired, Venita was forced to take to social media to clarify something crucial after being labelled a homewrecker by fans of the show. According to Venita, producers swapped the order of the clips, misrepresenting the order in which they transpired. She says the meal she made for him happened after the trip to the Bahamas. 

A lot of people are saying no matter which way you slice it, she still expressed no regard for JT’s girlfriend – and I suppose at least in part, that’s true. But perhaps the bigger question in all of this is, who, between JT and Venita, has the bigger obligation to JT’s girlfriend? Why is he not catching the same heat?

This week, Leva informs Venita of a rumour JT allegedly spread while in his barber shop that “some Black girl” was pursuing him and making things really difficult for his girlfriend. JT swiftly called his people to get it straightened out, confirming that the words used were not “some Black girl” but “a cute Black girl”. To me, none of the hoopla surrounding his wording is the real issue. My issue is this show’s portrayal of Black women in general. And there really aren’t that many, so the fact that they manage to f-ck it up as hard and often as they do is baffling.

This season, Shep’s love interest, Sienna, a Bahamian beauty, has been labelled a “big fan” of the show, she’s been accused of trying to hit it off with Whitney prior to Shep, and during the trip to the Bahamas, seems shady and non-committal. She, like Venita, finally had to speak up for herself and revealed that she and Shep were never even in a committed relationship, and that she was apprehensive about filming and valued her privacy, and she didn’t feel for Shep as strongly as he felt for her. Yet she was portrayed to be this fame-hungry girl despite coming from a wealthy family and having a very successful modelling career.

Had neither of these women spoken up for themselves, their reputations would be tarnished, while their white, male counterparts would proceed with business as usual. People on a show shouldn’t have to defend themselves against editing. And it’s getting weird that the only people needing to are the only two Black women you’ve got on your cast. 

Danielle opposes Lindsay’s living arrangement

This week, while Kyle and Paige made amends, Danielle and Lindsay found themselves at odds over Lindsay’s living situation. Despite being a few months into her pregnancy at the time of filming, Danielle was shocked and appalled to learn that her boyfriend, Turner, hadn’t moved in yet

.“You don’t live together? You don’t live with this man and he put a baby inside you?” she asked Lindsay with equal parts judgement and curiosity. 

“If I wasn’t pregnant, we wouldn’t live together right now. We’ve only been dating for six months. I think the pregnancy and having a baby puts enough pressure on the relationship as it is, let alone living together.”

When Danielle presses Lindsay about when he’ll be moving in, Lindsay informs her that for the foreseeable future, he won’t be, and the nightly sleepovers will have to do. This prompts Danielle to ask how Lindsay knows that he is suitable for her if they don’t live together. 

“We’ll move in together when it feels normal for a normal relationship,” Lindsay said. 

While it appears that Danielle is coming from a good place, calling the situation “unfair to Lindsay” in a confessional, the entire conversation carried an incessant tone of judgement and confusion, rather than authentic concern. Also, the fact that Danielle didn’t already know their living situation tells me their friendship isn’t anywhere close to the level it used to be, or where she currently thinks it is. 

Lindsay poses a question in her confessional that really marks her growth and maturity over the last year or so:

“What if things don’t work out with Turner? I have learned that nothing is guaranteed. Let’s just be realistic and practical for once.”

Lindsay goes on to laud and defend Turner, saying that he was the one to find the baby nurse, the doula, and has refused to miss an appointment. This, Danielle says, makes her “feel better”.

I’ve often agreed with Danielle in the past, but I don’t know that I’ve ever really agreed with Lindsay. In this case, though, she is absolutely doing the right thing. And it’s nice to see her ability to make better decisions based on the experiences she’s had.

Danielle has to remember that Lindsay had not just an engagement, but an entire wedding, be called off by Carl, so it absolutely makes sense that she’s approaching this relationship, with or without the impending baby, with care and consideration. I love that she is not only aware of the optics, but also the potential they may not make it. Preparation is key.

Tamra Judge and Teddi Mellencamp reflect on Teddi’s brain tumours

On this week’s episode of Two Ts in a Pod, Teddi returned to the show in an emotional episode to talk about all of the struggles she had been facing in the months leading up to several cancerous brain tumours being discovered by doctors. 

She revealed that for at least six months, she was dealing with migraines, struggling to be alert and even had her mental health questioned before the discovery of the tumours. Finally, in February, excruciating pain in her head led her to seek out medical care.

“You said to me, ‘You all thought I was mental, but actually I’m on my deathbed,’” Tamra recalled Teddi saying to her shortly after five tumours were found.

“I didn’t want to face any of it. And I was like, I just need to keep moving forward. And if I keep moving forward, then everything’s going to be fine,” Teddi said. 

It’s clear that Teddi was just assuming some of the personal issues she was navigating, such as her pending divorce from her husband, Edwin, which I wrote about here, was playing a part in what she was experiencing. But it turned out to be much more serious.

Despite having some negative sentiments in the past about Teddi, and certainly Tamra, I am truly in admiration of the bond they share and so happy to see Teddi have someone to lean on during what I can only imagine is a really difficult time in her life. It certainly doesn’t make me a fan of Tamra, but I can’t hate on anyone who is offering some light to someone going through a very dark time.