There have been 100 seasons of the Real Housewives franchise (at least, Bravo-led). That’s right: The current season of Real Housewives of Orange County is the actual 100th Real Housewives season. That means most fans have watched more than 1,000 hours of Housewives in their lifetimes. With almost as many reunions under our belt, it’s inevitable you may have a random reunion moment reverberating through your mind at any given moment.
Whether that means you’ve rotted your brain or entered an enlightened realm depends on if you enjoy the whimsy of life, of course. On the occasion of this centennial—and in remorse that, for only the second time ever, there won’t be a reunion for the current season of New Jersey, ending Sunday—here are 27 reunion moments constantly on my mind. And some I hope you struggle to forget, too. They’re also ranked, because why not?
27. Ramona Singer Falls Asleep (The Real Housewives of New York City)
Sometimes reunion couches look so comfy and cozy, and you just want to take a cute little nap on them. Or is it just me? Either way, we can thank Ramona Singer for not only being the first Housewife to walk off the reunion stage, but the first to fall asleep at a reunion. It’s hard to blame her given Heather “Holla” Thomson’s soothing diatribes would lull anyone into a deep slumber. Either that or Singer just wanted to avert the attention back to her. But regardless, that’s what made her a pro.
26. Nicki Minaj Accuses Gizelle Bryant and Robyn Dixon of Being Lesbians? (The Real Housewives of Potomac)
The factors that led Nicki Minaj to host an episode of the RHOP Season 6 reunion are entirely implausible, yet it somehow is something that actually happened. While she flopped miserably in proving her hosting capabilities, she did use her platform to follow the Andy Cohen protocol and ask Gizelle Bryant and Robyn Dixon if they’ve ever swam in the lady pond. Nothing that happened in the season would really lead one to suspect that, but thank you Ms. Minaj for always letting your intrusive thoughts win.
25. Lisa Hochstein and Joanna Krupa’s Makeup Artist Proxy War (The Real Housewives of Miami)
It’s kind of surprising that there aren’t more Housewives reunion fights that take place entirely backstage, but RHOM is a pioneer of that front. Before Adriana de Moura and Alexia Nepola threw down in their dressing room at the Season 5 reunion, Joanna Krupa’s makeup artist launched an attack on Lisa Hochstein behind the scenes of the Season 3 reunion. When he tells Hochstein to fix her “ugly” makeup, a war erupts between the dueling Housewives and their makeup artists, who apparently ride just as hard for these ladies as the average stan Twitter fan.
24. Teresa Giudice Takes On Caroline Manzo (The Real Housewives of New Jersey)
Teresa Giudice vs. Caroline Manzo is a fight between a woman who’s always wrong and a woman who’s always wrong, so the question is: Do you prefer tone-deaf idiocy or sanctimonious preaching? Depending on which flavor is more up your alley, you may love Caroline retorting that Teresa’s wearing a “Christmas pageant dress” or you might love Teresa’s insistence that Caroline’s look is “blubber, blubber, and more blubber.” Ah, don’t you miss the good old days, before things got so toxic? Oh, wait…
23. Sonja Morgan Exposes Dorinda Medley’s Drug Habit (RHONY)
There are some lines Housewives don’t often cross, and one of those is hard drug accusations. That’s what makes the Season 8 RHONY reunion so pivotal, as the entire cast tip-toes around Dorinda’s obvious love for snow, while Sonja just flat-out says, “Everyone knows you do drugs!” Medley’s shocked “I don’t do drugs…” rings through my head on any given day, as does the cast’s ample fear.
22. Ana Quincoces Accuses Lea Black of Sleeping Her Way to the Top (RHOM)
Ana Quincoces and Lea Black aren’t exactly most people’s go-to when you think of iconic feuds, but their Season 2 RHOM reunion spat is one for the books. Black randomly standing up every other minute makes for a great reunion performance, as does Quincoces’ decision to come in with the utmost hatred and nastiness in an effort to save her mojito. And, while her efforts prove futile, she does create an iconic moment when she accuses Lea of doing her “best work on her back,” to which Lea squawks, “ON MY BACK!?” Too bad Quincoces couldn’t harness that energy for her underwhelming Season 6 return.
21. Kelly Dodd Decides She’s Black (RHOC)
The great thing about Housewives is one day you’re on top of the world, and the next you’re going out in disgrace. No one else has experienced such a bitter rise and fall as Kelly Dodd, who took Heather Dubrow out with ease in Season 11, only to fall victim to a horrendous reunion four years later. After a season where Dodd largely came across fine on-screen, her chickens came home to roost for her social media comments saying COVID-19 was “God’s way of thinning the herd,” wearing a “Drunk Wives Matter” hat, and a plethora of blunders.
Being Kelly Dodd, rather than apologizing, she tells Andy Cohen that her fans hate him for being anti-America and shouts “I’m BLACK!” when confronted with her racist rhetoric. Thus, Dodd closed out her arc just as it began: as a polarizing, morally repugnant woman who makes hilarious TV through her insanity.
20. The Richards Sisters Fight Yolanda Hadid (The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills)
Kim and Kyle Richards vs Yolanda Hadid is one of those random feuds that never really expands beyond five minutes at the Season 3 reunion, but is a very fun segue where the sisters—united, for once—accuse Hadid of talking poorly about Lisa Vanderpump. When Hadid interrupts Kim to share her side, Kim hits her with a pointed finger and “YOLANDA! YOLANDA!” It’s not even that memorable in an intrinsic sense, but it’s very fun to impersonate when you’re conversing with a friend.
19. Porsha Williams Attacks Kenya Moore (The Real Housewives of Atlanta)
Fighting with words is fun and all, but sometimes it’s even more fun to fight with props. When Kenya Moore wagged around her scepter in front of a fragile, violence-prone Porsha Williams, the “Flatline” singer took matters into her own hands and launched at Moore. It’s a move that gets Williams booted off the reunion stage and causes mass chaos, making for riveting TV, thus accomplishing exactly what Moore set out to do.
18. Briana Culberson Exposes “Girth Brooks” (RHOC)
Among the many reasons RHOC is Desperate Housewives’ spiritual successor is the fact a Housewife’s con man boyfriend has an emotional battle with her daughter over the fact he allegedly told her husband to physically abuse her, before ascending up prop stairs on a reunion set. The stakes of suburbia are simply higher than the rest of the nation, and this reunion moment toes the line of disturbing, engaging and satisfying, watching Brooks get verbally torn apart for his despicable ways.
17. Bethenny Frankel and Luann DeLesseps Fight, Pt. 132 (RHONY)
Bethenny Frankel is many things, one of them being an annoying person, but she also knows how to give good quotes. When she and Luann DeLesseps get in an argument over the fact people say they’re alike—they, say, have the same hair at the Season 8 reunion—DeLesseps goes to the gutter and accuses Frankel of having an affair with a married man, to which Frankel shuts her down. “You were born a liar, and you will die a liar” is a cutting Housewives quote, even if Frankel could have just as easily been talking about herself.
16. Kim and Kyle Richards Reach a Breaking Point (RHOBH)
Sibling squabbles can be especially brutal, and that’s doubly true when you put a camera crew and reunion set in the mix. Kim vs. Kyle Richards is a sad end to Kim’s full-time arc, leading the Season 5 reunion to being the best in RHOBH history as the two sisters enter new depths of darkness. And nothing quite tops Kim defending her dog biting Kyle’s daughter and saying Kyle over-dramaticized the moment, leading Kyle to bawl her eyes out while yelling, “You’re so mean.” God bless those poor, generationally traumatized girls.
15. Monica Garcia Tries to Argue That Angie K. is Racist (The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City)
The RHOSLC Season 4 reunion is an explosive melodrama with many major beats, but perhaps the most distinctly absurd moment is Angie K. calling Monica a “low brow rat” and Garcia immediately replying, “brown rat?” with a smirk. It’s not hard to see why Garcia didn’t make it back for Season 5 when she crashed and burned so profoundly, but gosh is it hilarious watching her so desperately wish Katsanevas had a racist slip-up, allowing her to take down the Greek goddess, too. You can feel Cohen’s life flash before his eyes as he vehemently states Katsanevas said “low brow,” making sure to avoid yet another Bravo racism scandal.
14. Sheree Whitfield’s Joggers Word Vomit (RHOA)
Sheree Whitfield is a Housewives pro who has never in her life had a good reunion, which adds to her flop appeal. But nothing quite beats her stammering “joggers” when Andy asks her when to expect an official She by Sheree drop. “Uhhh, that is, September, Spring, [unintelligible] Summer…” Whitfield mutters as you can practically feel Bravo firing her for the second time. Obviously, that was a big mistake (as is her third firing), but I digress.
13. Kelly Dodd Incinerates Heather Dubrow (RHOC)
Dodd muttering “You’re not the boss. Who makes you? Are you senior staff at Bravo?” as Dubrow short circuits “EXCUSE ME…” is such a good encapsulation of Dodd and Dubrow’s polar opposite demeanors. Dodd’s squeaky voice, Dubrow’s asymmetrical bob filled with rage, Meghan King Edmonds’ pregnant gasp; it’s all perfect. Dodd vs. Dubrow is one of those lightning in a bottle feuds that simply couldn’t have lasted longer than it did, but it’s so amazing in the meanwhile.
12. Monique Samuels Exposes Gizelle Bryant With a Binder (RHOP)
Monique Samuels may be one of the most overrated Housewives in history for her largely trite offering, but boy did she deliver a reunion blowout as she exited the show. Entering the reunion ready to scorch Bryant, that’s exactly what Monique does as she flips through the pages of her binder, coining Bryant’s ex-husband Jamal “Pastor Holy Whore” and exposing his philandering ways. If Bryant could feel shame, she would’ve been absolutely mortified. It’s such a good moment that Housewives have tried and failed to utilize their own binders and print-outs ever since, but no one can top the original.
11. Vicki Gunvalson Melts Down at Her Final Reunion (RHOC)
How do you get a perfect reunion performance out of a diminishing Housewife? Easy: Just strip her of her orange and watch as she melts away. After holding Gunvalson hostage backstage, the RHOC producers release her onto the Season 14 cast so she can yell at Dodd for calling her ugly, tell Andy Cohen to remember where he came from (her proverbial womb, evidently), and yell at Braunwyn Windham-Burke that her lesbian behavior is declassing the show, all before huffing off stage in a screaming fit as her yellow velvet dress comes undone at the seams. It may have been Vicki Gunvalson’s last gasp as an official cast member on RHOC, but it’s also proof she earned her long-standing run.
10. Michaele Salahi’s Lies are Exposed (The Real Housewives of D.C.)
Was Michaele Salahi a Washington Nationals cheerleader? Does she have multiple sclerosis? Did she invade a White House state dinner? These are some of the questions Salahi’s castmates and Cohen had for her at the one and only RHODC reunion. The reunion doesn’t come with many answers, except to tell us one thing already made abundantly clear by RHODC’s eccentric season: Salahi lives her life on a realm the rest of us will never find access to, and it’s unclear whether that’s a good thing. She seems pretty happy in her delusions—and she’s now married to the lead guitarist of Journey!
9. Lisa Barlow Coins Whitney Rose and Heather Gay “Bad Weather” (RHOSLC)
“Whitney and Heather, bad weather! Spin the truth. Tornado… destroy!” Need I say more? No, but I will. RHOSLC has one of the finest debut seasons in the franchise and its first reunion cements the show as a classic. “Bad Weather” is one of those nicknames that instantly stuck, and the physical comedy of Barlow’s scene makes it a standout moment, as does Heather’s gobsmacked response. Who knew years later we’d have Lisa and Heather, Good Leather? That’s the magic of RHOSLC.
8. Cynthia Bailey and Phaedra Parks Engage in a Whisper War (RHOA)
Many battles have been fought on the reunion stage, but few are as biting as the whispering war of words between Bailey and Parks at the RHOA Season 7 reunion. The dichotomy of both women maintaining such decorum while slinging guttural insults is beautiful, from Parks saying Bailey is “selling pipe dreams to little girls” to Bailey succinctly shutting her down with the zinger: “Win a case.” Every little gasp, chuckle, and face tilt is just… it’s perfect. There’s nothing else to say.
7. Danielle Staub Provokes Teresa Giudice to Shove Andy Cohen (RHONJ)
Many reunion looks live on in infamy, but perhaps none are as iconic as Danielle Staub’s white tank top and sparkly skirt. Jenna Lyons wants to be as effortlessly chic, but she simply can’t achieve this much of a serve. Not only does Staub make a fashion statement, but she hits Giudice with the insinuation she hasn’t acknowledged her nephew, opening the door to the Gorga’s invasion of the show, as well as leading Giudice to shove Cohen back into his seat. Right there, Housewives changed forever, for better or for worse.
6. Adriana de Moura Laughs at Romain Zago’s “Limp Penis” (RHOM)
The original seasons of the Real Housewives of Miami are vastly underrated masterpieces with knockout reunions. The feud between de Moura and Krupa not only transcends cultures, but manages to be one of the most vicious fights in Housewives history. De Moura’s charisma as she bemoans Joanna’s insistence that she wants her husband Romain is so beautifully done. “Why would I want a man with a limp peh-nus? I like my men hard, Andy!” is the kind of quote that you need effortless charm to pull off, and de Moura most certainly has that.
5. Kim Richards Gives Back the Bunny (RHOBH)
Yes, every great Beverly Hills reunion moment involves Kim Richards, and that’s just a fact. The bunny is one of those Housewives moments that’s referenced ad nauseam, yet hasn’t lost its luster because it’s simply worth the hype. The silence that overcomes the room as Kim says, “I brought the bunny… because I never gave it to my grandson” is palpable, and just a masterclass in sound-editing. Lisa Rinna surely can still hear the crinkling sound of that wrapped bunny in the dead of night.
Not only is the moment itself iconic, but Rinna’s single tear and sorrow-filled stare, along with Eileen Davidson’s “send it back in the mail” quip and Kim telling Eden Sassoon “I’m healed!” after being offered a crystal are all social media reaction staples, as is Rinna telling Kim, “I think you’re a sick woman. To do something like that… is sick.”
4. The Entire New York Season 4 Reunion (RHONY)
There isn’t one single moment you can cherry pick from the RHONY Season 4 reunion. It’s two episodes of going to the gutter in every which way, leading to a mass exodus of ladies in the first-ever Housewives shakeup. Maybe it’s Singer saying Jill Zarin’s stepdaughter has such “poise” in italics, or Alex McCord huffing like an attack dog before Cindy Barshop imitates it. Maybe it’s Kelly Bensimon interrupting McCord attacking her to tell her to cross her legs, to which McCord obliges. All in all, it’s just complete insanity and it’s easy to see why Cohen never wanted to film with that exact group again.
3. Vicki Gunvalson vs. Tamra Judge (“That’s My Opinion!”) (RHOC)
Every once and a while, a Housewives moment transcends the fanbase and enters the general zeitgeist, leading our non-believer friends to ask, “What’s going on here?” That’s the case with Judge belligerently shouting at an obtuse Gunvalson, “THAT’S MY OPINION!”, shaking the entire soundstage and creating a crack in the Earth’s core, while Shannon Beador mutters “And I yell… And I yell.” Say what you want about Tamra Judge, but most of it’s moot when you realize this woman can raise her voice to unprecedented decibels in a dramatic display of friendship. She makes good TV, and that’s not something all of us can accomplish. And we thank Jesus Vicki Gunvalson in advance for her beautiful assist.
2. The Cast Exposes Brooks’ Cancer Scam (RHOC)
The Brooks era is RHOC at its finest, and it all comes crashing down with a masterful Season 10 reunion. After a season pulling back layer after layer, culminating in the cast accusing Brooks of faking cancer and Vicki being complicit, the cast systematically tear the duo apart. And Beador enters with a Newport Imaging scan and a dream, making sure to prove Brooks is a fraud in a riveting fashion, with Gunvalson slipping up that she “fabricated” her story. It’s rare reality TV has such satisfying arc conclusions, given it’s the real world and not a carefully plotted drama.
1. Phaedra’s Big Lie is Revealed (RHOA)
There’s a reason RHOA Season 9 was the first four-part reunion (and should be the only, quite frankly). The explosive reveal that Phaedra Parks started the rumor that Kandi Burruss wanted to drug and rape Porsha Williams is a genuine gut-punch and one that has the entire room in shambles. It’s simultaneously tragic, dramatic, and even hilarious as Kandi runs off in tears while Williams feigns shock, Parks sits emotionlessly, and Sheree Whitfield bursts into tears, for some reason.
