It’s no doubt that Season 13 of Real Housewives of New Jersey is another year centered around the family drama between Teresa Giudice and Joe Gorga. It’s always been the Tre show, to be fair. But this year does chronicle her royal wedding season, so it makes sense. As far as the subplots, Dolores Catania is going through her own transition this season and I’m sort of living for it. Well, when she and Jennifer Aydin aren’t at each other’s throats.
Dolo is in a new stage of life. Her RHONJ career has shown her to be a little stagnant for a while. Her ex-husband Frank Catania has always been a more constant person in her life than any of her old boyfriends. That is until Paul Connell showed up. Paul isn’t like Dolo’s old boyfriends who ended up more as friends to Frank. He wants to be the real deal with Dolores and be the No. 1 man in her life. Aside from all of the Toy Story-related disses, it’s creating major tension between Frank and Paul.
During the latest RHONJ episode, Frank confronted Dolores about his feelings. He chose to tell her them at her charity softball game and started tearing up about “missing” his ex-wife. It was even weirder because Paul missed the game due to a planned surgery, so it was just Frank’s word versus Dolo’s. Dolores kept it real during her confessional that it’s her time to focus on herself and not just Frank and her family. In a recent interview with Us Weekly, she elaborated more on how Frank’s sadness makes her feel.
Dolores recognizes that change is tough for Frank, and her moving into a serious relationship is hard for him. However, she doesn’t appreciate his approach. “I’m mad, don’t make me feel guilty right now,” Dolores said about Frank. “I’ve always been there for everybody. Just let me enjoy somebody who is giving me a lot of attention.” It’s true. Frank has his own girlfriend Brittany Mattessich to focus on. He needs to give Dolo some space.
Despite wanting some boundaries, Dolores recognizes that she and Frank will always be close as parents. “There’s a happy medium for everything and there’s compromises in relationships and we’re just not used to it,” she said. “In 25 years we’ve never had to do this.” It’s about time. I’m loving the growth this season from some of our RHONJ ladies. Dolo is setting boundaries. Tre is going to therapy. Maybe the Gorgas could learn to do a bit of self-reflection for once.
TELL US – WHAT DO YOU THINK OF DOLORES SAYING THAT FRANK MAKES HER FEEL GUILTY? DO YOU THINK FRANK NEEDS TO LEARN TO GIVE DOLORES SOME SPACE?
[Photo Credit: Greg Endries/Bravo]
