I never want to hear the word “pigeon” again.
The Real Housewives of New York City has emboldened its biggest detractors with a farce so offensive that it leaves an unbearable stink atop the season as a whole. Last week, I erred on the side of caution, waiting to see how this pregnancy prank plays out before making a true judgment. Unfortunately, I have only soured further.
Tricking your audience to think that a storyline is actually interesting, only to pull the rug out from under them with “Surprise! This show would never have a plot this good” is… not smart. It’s simply a disservice to the viewers. Here’s the thing: The prank itself would be fine, if you include the audience in the joke from the start. Had it been presented to us as an elaborate ruse, it wouldn’t seem like such a cheap shock. Maybe it would’ve been interesting.
But when the trailer hinges on drama that doesn’t even exist, how do you expect audiences to put faith in the show at all? Does Bravo even believe in the new RHONY if they felt the need to bait-and-switch its viewers? These are questions that naturally arise after such a prank, and it’s a shame given it all overshadows an episode that is pure, inoffensive fun.
Let’s start at the beginning. Having duped the entire group, Rebecca and Erin roll back up to the dodgeball game to get one last laugh before revealing their pretty little lie.
“Interesting, this was clickbait,” Jessel replies monotonously. Correct!
It’s then revealed that Racquel was also in on the joke, which ends up being moot given she did nothing with it. I wouldn’t want my fingerprints on a prank this lame, either, but like… I don’t know. Do something.
Obviously, the prank has a purpose. The duo wanted to find the “leaky pigeon” in the group, although they didn’t need to enact such an elaborate prank to do so, given you can see from a mile away that Brynn spins the truth everywhere she goes.
It is pretty funny watching the prank land flat on its face, admittedly. Truly, this whole farce would be more good than bad with some minor tweaks, as the fallout is far better than the prank itself. It’s classic Erin that her humorless stank attitude led this entire situation to blow up in her face, giving Brynn a rare moral victory.
Before we can get there, the ladies take us on some solo journeys centered around the pursuit of pregnancy. Jessel is still yearning for a third child, and she meets with Brynn, who’s also parent-curious. The two pick a great setting, meeting by the docks during New York City’s fleet week. RHONY naturally has fascinating scenery, so it’s always nice when the show leans into it.
Jessel and Brynn have nice on-camera chemistry, and it’s a genuinely fun scene. Brynn is a curious character, one whose baby voice and put-on persona distracts from her true charisma. When she can just be more herself, she’s actually enjoyable to watch.
It’s here we learn that Brynn thinks Carrie Bradshaw’s one true love is Aidan, which does show how little she understands the human experience. You simply can’t argue with a straight face that Carrie made the “biggest mistake of her life” ending her engagement with Aidan, given she treated him like an inconvenience the entirety of their relationship. Go watch those countryside Sex and the City episodes, Brynn, and get back to me.
While Jessel’s road to another child is simple (convince her husband who does not want to have another kid that he should have one, even though the two are clearly on the brink of divorce), Brynn is taking the scenic route. She has invited over her ex-fiancé Gideon to babysit a 2-year old in hopes of convincing him to co-parent a baby together.
Now, I’m skeptical at best that Brynn actually means any of this. She’s definitely a Sonja Morgan 2.0 in the sense that all her solo storylines are completely fake. But whatever, points for trying. Pretend to find your long-lost sister next season, Brynn. That one’s always a riot.
Meanwhile, Racquel is planning an engagement party with her fiancée Mel. Once again, Racquel is on an island of her own on the show, comprising almost only solo footage while her group presence is blink-and-you’ll-miss-it. It’s too bad, since she’s actually pretty interesting on her own. She should be a good fit for the group.
At the Museum of Sex, Brynn gathers the troops to spin the web against Erin. Apparently, Brynn never believed the rumor about Rebecca, and just spread it to be silly. A flashback actually advocates for Brynn’s side of things, given she did tell Ubah it’s a prank before the reveal. Congratulations Erin! Your prank was such a flop that it united the audience against you and has led to a revolt by your own cast members, accidentally vindicating Brynn as a truth teller in the process. That’s my girlboss.
The Housewives gather for a pigeon picnic—because production apparently wants to go all in on the very dull pigeon motif—where Brynn continues to rally her cast members on her side. Moral compass of the group, Brynn, is sick and tired of Erin’s blatant lies. And honestly… maybe she should be. It kind of does seem like Erin’s overreaching pretty hard here to prove Brynn is a shady gossip, which is hilarious given this is the worst possible example of that.
This is why I like Erin. She’s humorless in a funny way. She’s calculated, yet inept. She is the only new RHONY that embodies the ethos of this franchise—unaware delusion—and for that, I salute her.
Yet, it’s frustrating to have a second episode in a row end on a cliffhanger over a prank that was ridiculous in the first place. If RHONY returns for another run with this new cast (which I do expect), it’s more than just their performances that need a rejuvenation. Production would be wise to realize that insulting your audience is never the move, and neither is unnecessarily dragging drama week-after-week. Have faith in the show and let its storylines speak for themselves, for better or for worse.
As I said, there’s a version of this story that’s entertaining—and it’s not the one that’s airing. Can we really blame Erin for that, when she didn’t edit last week’s episode in such a pointless manner? No, not really.
Maybe we’re over the hump and can progress into the meat of the season. Or maybe, the calculated filler is all we’ll get in the second half, too. It’s not a great sign that the midseason trailer features three separate fourth-wall breaks calling for no cameras.
On the bright side, Brynn seeking morality in reminding her castmates that her kids will watch this one day is funny. As long as the humor outweighs the annoying, we’ll be alright. There truly are enough pieces to complete the puzzle, if only the show would get out of its own way.
