Since we didn’t have a new episode of Real Housewives of Potomac last week, I almost (key word, ALMOST) forgot about everything that happened in the last episode with Ashley Darby and her scorched earth approach to gossip. But two casualties that are not about to forget anytime soon are Robyn Dixon and Gizelle Bryant, who let’s face it, doesn’t really have a dog in the fight but just can’t steer clear of a chance to use her highly entertaining shade anywhere she can. And yes, I do find Gizelle to be petty and mean girl-ish but she really does make me laugh so I can’t help but have a soft spot for her whole overblown persona. What would the show be without her?
But back to the beef. Ashley has been running her mouth a little too much about what’s possibly going on with Robyn’s marriage/not marriage to Juan and OK, it is a little weird the extent of her interest in the matter. Why does she care if Robyn gets played a hundred times from Tuesday? Charrisse Jackson-Jordan and Gizelle also tried talking to Robyn about her situation but like true friends, they did it privately and while offering understanding and support.
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Which is I guess why Robyn brought Gizelle along to go confront Ashley while she’s pulling a double shift as a bus boy at Oz? Clad in a green lace mini dress, Ashley is rushing around the restaurant like an emu with its head cut off, trying to keep the place afloat on the one night they happen to have more than one reservation. She’s actually so busy that she seems to have lost her damn sense and was actually excited to see Robyn and Gizelle roll up, faces frozen in annoyance, and greets them happily.
Robyn decides she’s going to get right down to business and tells her to stay the eff out of her business. Well, ok then! Ashley is clearly taken aback but doesn’t miss a beat defending herself and uses some weak excuse about how if someone tells her something, she is going to say it. Robyn gets even more agitated and the second her finger goes up, Ashley is telling her to get it out of her face. This just makes Robyn angrier than a kangaroo getting its pouch grabbed and she bosses right up to Ashley, actually sticking her finger in her face.
They trade insults about the state of each other’s lives and Ashley claims she won’t be talking about them anymore because she’s in her own lane, where there is a lot of traffic. Gizelle and Robyn stomp out, with Gizelle pausing at the door to yell at the bar “Who eats emu??” and with that, the green eyed sisters are gone. Ashley immediately goes to call Crocodile Pervee and whine about the encounter.
Monique Samuels is taking a walk down memory lane and treating us to a tour of her humble marital beginnings. She brings her cousin/paid minion to one of her FOUR HOUSES (or is it FIVE HOUSES now that they dropped an all cash offer on a multi-million dollar home in Potomac?) in Ashburn so she can order him to fix thing up to rent it out. While the house isn’t anything to write home about, Miss Mo is hanging onto it for sentimental reasons because that’s where she lived with Big Drawers when they first got married. But the house has even more history since it also served as Big Drawers bachelor pad before she came along and he has the indoor hot tub on a screened in deck to prove it. Eeeesh. Either way, Mo is way too busy to continue being the Property Manager for the Hot Tub Time Machine and has naturally hired her cousin to take over, which he seems thrilled about.
But Monique has to put her marriage first and upon her Pastor’s orders, make more time for her and Big Drawers. So they go fishing by a lake and Miss Mo humble brags some more about how she manages to land such a catch in the form of her husband, who was the Player About Town before she came along. So how did she do it? Well, he kept telling her he didn’t want to settle down and she acted unimpressed and that was the end of that. That’s right people, it takes a lot to impress Miss Mo so don’t come at her with drawers any size below XXXXXXXXL, mmmmkay?
Karen Huger is spending some of her empty-nester free time for the greater good and she is busy working with a charitable organization called PAVE, which helps shatter the silence of sexual violence. It’s a cause that is near and dear to her heart because Karen herself was raped in college. Here we see a whole different side of Karen, one that is vulnerable and strong all at the same time. She explains that it almost ruined her life and how it caused her to build emotional walls to protect herself but ultimately, learned to forgive her attacker. Karen is completely stripped of all of her hard exterior in this moment and we are shown what could possibly be her true self – a woman who has survived something truly traumatic, but is finding the courage to turn it into something good.
Onto someone else who is showing her softer side, Charrisse is out with her daughter, Skylar, buying a fancy journal upon her therapist’s suggestion. She awkwardly tries to explain to Skylar how much her dad loves her but that he’s wavering on his love for Charrisse. I have to feel bad for Charrisse in this moment because she is clearly struggling on how to approach such a difficult family topic with her kids, who are certainly old enough to understand but still need to be emotionally protected nonetheless. Charrisse is also trying to set an example for Skylar, so she doesn’t think this kind of treatment in a romantic relationship is OK. When Skylar says she is used to her dad being gone and feels ok, Charrisse cries and embraces her daughter, feeling the weight of what is happening to her family.
Another family that is pulling apart at the seams is the Dixon family, regardless of how deep Robyn buries her head in the proverbial sand. But the scheduled basketball camp must go on and Robyn is at the helm of organizing it. Because of that, she says she is too busy to “bother” Juan with the rumors of him being out with another woman but we can all see it’s Robyn who doesn’t want to burst her own bubble. Juan eventually storms upstairs to complain to a producer that he’s too old for this and if it weren’t for his kids, he would be long gone. An oblivious Robyn wanders around the house with a smile plastered on her face and it’s right there that we see just how badly she is living in denial.
Despite that deep denial, Robyn has agreed to meet up with Charrisse and resident Bravo therapist, Dr. Jeff, for frittatas and free therapy. Robyn is still against going because she thinks it implies that there is something to fix (ummm there is!) but is willing to listen to what Dr. Jeff has to say. It doesn’t take long for him to crack Robyn and she cries when he gently explains to her that as her boys get older, they will see that their parents aren’t really happy. Therapy is looking better and better at this point and I hope Robyn uses it as an outlet for her feelings.
It’s time for the PAVE event and for Karen’s sake, I am really hoping the ladies can keep it classy, for REAL this time. Karen has the same thoughts and immediately puts Ashley on notice that there will be no tomfoolery tonight. Ashley promises not to start anything and then immediately approaches Gizelle and Robyn to play nice. A little too nice. She claims it’s in the spirit of being mature but come on, we all know she is poking the bear(s).
Karen gives a speech about her experience that is eloquent, heartfelt and empowering, all at the same time. The ladies are in awe of her strength and seem to leave with a newfound respect for the Grande Dame and its well-earned this time.
Unfortunately, Ashley couldn’t let an opportunity go by to make something happen and as the ladies are leaving, she attempts to speak with Charrisse, who is having none of it. She won’t even look in Ashley’s direction so Gizelle has to step in and tell Ashley maybe another time and place would be better. Monique obviously didn’t think that suggestion applied to her and then immediately tells Gizelle she wants her number so they can talk at a different time. Gizelle, being Team Petty For Life, says she will think about it. That was obviously not the response Miss Mo was looking for and gets defensive. Ashley snipes that the menopause is real and I have a little tip for Ashley – maybe lay off the menopause talk because last time I checked, you won’t be young forever. That’s the funny thing about aging – it applies to everyone! Monique whines to Ashley that Gizelle is obviously intimidated by her, which is the only card she can play when it comes to the other women.
Charrisse and Gizelle take off and yes, I know their reactions were childish, but to their credit, anytime someone says they want to talk about something, but not right here or now, it always opens up the door for it to happen right there are right now. So I don’t totally blame them for shutting it down and heading out, leaving a trail of frost in their wake.
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Photo Credit: Bravo TV/Real Housewives of Potomac
