After the cast trip for Season 14 of Real Housewives of New Jersey was canceled, Dolores Catania and Jenn Fessler came up with an alternative. If the property you planned to stay at burns to the ground, that might be a sign. Or as Teresa Giudice says, “An om.” Sigh.
So, Dolores planned a sit down at The Rails, with the hope that everyone would share their feelings and move forward peacefully. Puh-lease! That did not happen. After this dumpster fire of a finale, Bravo opted not to have a reunion. Instead, viewers will be treated to a special as the cast watches the finale and reacts. Yay?
Plus, the finale was teased as worthy of serving both as a finale and a reunion, all rolled into one. But after a season plagued by low ratings and dissatisfied viewers, the finale was also a flop save for one actual bombshell. Here’s why the RHONJ Season 14 finale was a low point for the franchise.
Teresa Giudice and Melissa Gorga’s interaction was toxic
After refusing to interact all season, Melissa Gorga and Teresa finally spoke. After Teresa yelled at Danielle Cabral for pushing some tabletop items at Jennifer Aydin, Melissa called her out. She called Teresa “white trash.” Then Teresa repeatedly called her a “whore.”
Melissa responded, “I’m Antonia [Gorga’s] mom. I’ll let her know you think I’m a ‘whore.’” I’m sure that Melissa’s daughter and Teresa’s niece Antonia probably baked Auntie Teresa some sprinkle cookies after she dissed her mom.
The divide between these two sisters-in-law can never be bridged. The damage is irreparable. But I do applaud Melissa for imitating Teresa’s poses.
Jennifer Aydin body-shamed Danielle Cabral’s husband, Nate Cabral
The feud between Jennifer and Danielle smoldered all season. At Teresa’s Tulum party, Jennifer accused Danielle of stealing money from a charity event. Then she claimed that Danielle tried to sabotage her own hairdresser. Danielle exclaimed, “You’re dirty! You’re dirrttyyy!”
Then Jennifer pushed Danielle, so Danielle hit her plastic cup against Jennifer’s face. These actions resulted in a suspension for both women.
At The Last Supper, Jennifer started to poke Danielle. She accused her of being jealous of her life. When Danielle stated, “You know what? I know I go home, and my husband is waiting for me at the door.”
Then Jennifer said of Nate Cabral, “Your husband with the boobs, and you got the brawn, honey.” Danielle launched herself across the table at Jennifer, but she was held back.
After a brief time-out to collect herself, Danielle returned but sat far from Jennifer. This is another low moment for this once mighty franchise.
Margaret Josephs opens the vault and reveals Jackie Goldschneider’s secret
Teresa spent all season hell-bent on proving that Margaret Josephs was involved in her husband, Luis Ruelas’, court case with his ex. Margaret eventually admitted to speaking to Luis’ ex. But she did not leak stories to the blogs about Luis, as Teresa suggested. Teresa’s big reveal with her attorney James Leonard was a bomb, not a bombshell.
Then Margaret dropped an actual bombshell. She revealed that Jackie Goldschneider, who decided to be Team Teresa this season, had met with Luis’ ex. At first, Jackie took a page from Teresa’s book and denied, denied, denied. But finally, she admitted it was true. Miss Merriam Webster had a stealth dark side.
But since Jackie did this after Teresa spread a cheating rumor about her husband, Evan Goldschneider, Teresa wasn’t angry. Instead, she still blamed Margaret. I don’t know why Teresa isn’t spitting fire at Jackie.
As for Jackie? She let Margaret take the fall for her actions. Of course, Jackie and Margaret’s friendship is over. And it doesn’t look like anyone else will trust her again. Jackie trudged out of the restaurant alone.
Dolores Catania noted that it’s the end of an era in RHONJ
RHONJ cannot move forward with a cast so divided and spiteful. Andy Cohen made it plain that the show is going to undergo some casting changes. While viewers are frantically trying to mentally arrange a new Jersey cast, the process will take some time. And we don’t know yet whether the show is facing a complete reboot, like Real Housewives of New York. Or a soft reboot, where some cast members will mingle with new faces.
At The Rails, once everyone had departed, Dolores stayed at the table. A moving montage of happier times with the Jersey housewives played. It was sentimental and disappointing at the time. How did we get here?
Dolores pondered the same thing. “It came out of really just people don’t know how to stop hating. And everybody cuts so deep. It’s toxic,” she stated. “I look at this sit down like a death.”
Dolores is right. This finale is probably the final time that we will see this version of the cast together. The RHONJ Season 14 finale was a low point for the franchise and a letdown for fans. Let’s hope that Season 15 of the show brings back that Jersey magic.
RHONJ can be streamed on Peacock.
TELL US – DO YOU THINK THAT THE RHONJ SEASON 14 FINALE WAS A LOW POINT FOR THE FRANCHISE? WERE YOU DISAPPOINTED WITH THE FINALE?
