Vanderpump Rules Recap: Palm Springs And Tiffany Rings

James Kennedy did it! He finally popped the question to Raquel Leviss, and she said yes! He’s had one of the greatest redemption arcs, I’ve ever witnessed on reality TV. Incredible! Vanderpump Rules might be back in its Golden Era!

Raquel’s over the moon about this engagement. Considering the dark place she was in prior to the party, this is AMAZING. Let’s hope he doesn’t do anything to screw this up.

Ariana Madix tells Tom Sandoval she knows this moment has him written all over it. It’s the perfect amount of over the top. It’d be impossible to say no to someone proposing with this sort of flair. If the day ever comes for Sandoval to propose to Ariana, it’s going to be great.

Scheana Marie complains about sore boobs which means it’s almost time for Summer Moon to eat. I’m still not over that name. Anyway, Brock Davies makes a comment about “welcome to parent life” which rubs Lala Kent the wrong way. She knows the truth about his relationship with his other children.

Nothing about Brock’s explanation made sense. Why aren’t you putting in the effort to reconnect with your other kids? Something doesn’t feel quite right about this.

Sandoval dishes to Tom Schwartz that the “R Chella” moment cost nearly $25,000. HOLY SHIT. That’s a lot of money for something that could’ve ended in utter disaster. If Raquel would’ve turned James down, that’s a lot of money down the drain.

The dollar amount blows Schwartz’s mind because they’re trying to come up with money for the bar. If Sandoval’s supposedly looking for cash for this, this is not the way to do it. Getting a loan is the idea he’s going with which could bite him in the ass if the bar tanks.

However, Schwartz is also somewhat of an idiot. He makes no sense. He’s allegedly so blown away by Sandoval’s ability to put this together that he gives him carte blanche to name the bar. Wait until Katie Maloney learns about this. It’s another example of Schwartz having no balls and letting Sandoval steamroll him.

The next morning Katie’s blindsided learning Schwartz gave Sandoval permission to name the bar. He’s sliding a million steps back. All the “progress” he was making went to hell because he can’t tell Sandoval no.

James calls Lisa Vanderpump after the trip to share the great news. There’s some confusion about whether or not he actually got the ring from Tiffany or not. It sounds like it’s a Tiffany ring, but it wasn’t purchased there. He tried though!

Max Todd’s still done with James. He doesn’t want to listen to anything he’s saying. However, he could be a good ally for James right now. The stress that’ll come with planning this wedding could lead to some backsliding behavior. Max could keep James on the straight and narrow.

Katie & Tom have been trying to have a baby, but there’s been difficult succeeding. That has to be devastating because so many of their friends have become parents lately. They haven’t had trouble conceiving, but everyone is different. Seeing a fertility specialist should help them understand why it’s not coming as easily to them. Hopefully there’s nothing too serious that’s preventing them from becoming parents.

Lala & Katie go through the oddest workout I’ve ever seen. They’re strapped to this EMS machine thing which is supposed to heighten the experience. It’s supposed to make things easier, but it looks painful and confusing.

Katie confides in Lala about the struggles with getting pregnant. They’ve been trying for many months, but nothing’s happening. It’s weighing on her. How could it not? Most of the current and former cast have become parents in the last year.

Sandoval shows up with the craziest care package for Schwartz’s “sample” retrieval. That’s so uncomfortable on every level. After about 16 minutes, Schwartz emerges from a different room with the sample. There should not be this much buildup for a moment like this. Nobody wants to see it. Ever. WHY IS THIS A STORYLINE?

Lala brings up Brock’s issue with his kids to Katie. Here we go! Let the gossip flow. Katie’s just as stunned as the rest of us to learn about Brock’s four year “break” from his children. It doesn’t make any sense, but what do I know?

Lala’s correct to be worried for Scheana. How do we know the same thing isn’t going to happen to Scheana? In a few seasons it wouldn’t be shocking to hear her crying about the same thing. This guy has already ditched one family. Who says he won’t do it again?

James enlists Raquel in giving a gift to Max to make up for his past actions. Getting him a virtual reality headset is a bizarre way to make amends. I don’t really know their dynamic though, so it’s hard to gauge.

James goes on a rant to Raquel about making sure she avoids hitting her ring off of things. He’s almost enraged about her wearing it into work. There’s something about his level of paranoia that seems fishy. Is the ring not what he’s claiming it is? Shouldn’t a ring that expensive be a little bit more durable? Hmmm.

Schwartz handing Lisa his fertility specimen is more cringe than the scene at home. THANK GOODNESS IT WAS JUST A GAG. There’s yogurt in the cup. I’ve never been more happy to not see sperm in my life.

I couldn’t imagine pranking my boss with fake sperm. How do you even get to that point? SO GROSS. I really want to move past this storyline because it’s eww.

At a baby store, Lala straight up asks Scheana about how she learned Brock’s situation with his kids. Scheana says Brock’s been open since Day 1. Okay Scheana. You can’t be this desperate because the signs are everywhere. Holy shit.

How is this not a red flag to Scheana? How’s she not asking a million questions about this story. If Brock is such an amazing father, why’s he not making a larger effort to reconnect with his kids. Girl. You CANNOT be this delusional.

Watching Scheana tearfully plea to Lala that Brock’s upset about not seeing his kids is awkward. I think she believes everything Brock’s spewing at her. She yearns so much for a family and a man that she ignores warning signs. This man is giving off every bad vibe and red flag, and she can’t see it.

It’s nice to see things have improved between James and his mother. We’ve seen them have knockdown fights in the past, so the positive shift is welcomed. She makes me squirm a little bit watching her because her energy is so chaotic. That might just be me though.

James tells everyone at the family lunch about his drama with Max. Raquel’s sister calls him out for causing issues sober the same as he does drunk. James definitely has a lot of the same tendencies. He’s trying to be better, but there’s still a lot more work to be done.

Raquel’s sister is clearly on guard when it comes to James. She doesn’t understand why Raquel’s the one giving Max the gift from James. She doesn’t want James to make Raquel clean up his messes.

Raquel’s her own person, but her sister’s on to something. Raquel’s always in the middle of different messes caused by James because he can’t help himself. Eventually that needs to come to an end.

Lisa questions Katie about why they’re already going to a fertility doctor. She didn’t realize how long they’d already been trying. Everyone wants Katie & Tom to keep trying, but there’s a lot of pressure on them now. Eventually it’ll happen for them. I hope.

All of Katie’s friends are becoming moms right now. That has to heighten to negative feelings surrounding not being about to conceive. To see everyone around you accomplish it so easily must be soul crushing. My heart’s breaking for Katie in this episode.

Lisa asks what Katie’s role will be in the business, but you can see Sandoval stewing. He’s on the verge of blowing up on her. Lisa gets up from the table after stirring the pot. Shocker. Lisa is the master at stirring shit up and walking away after the chaos has begun.

Sandoval brings up a situation from last season when Katie yelled at him in the restaurant. Why is he harping on something from two years ago? Even Ariana’s fed up with Sandoval bringing this up out of nowhere. Katie hasn’t gone on rage texting benders in YEARS.

Ariana questions why Sandoval’s choosing to die on this hill still after two years? He won’t stop attacking Katie for being entitled and making him feel like a psychopath. HE IS THE ONE BRINGING IT UP, BUT OKAY.

As of now Sandoval’s alienating everyone on his side. Both his girlfriend and his best friend are asking him to walk away and collect himself. Is Sandoval are narcissist? Asking for a friend because it’s looking that way.

TELL US – TEAM SANDOVAL OR TEAM KATIE? IS LALA RIGHT TO QUESTION BROCK? DOES SCHWARTZ LET SANDOVAL STEAMROLL HIM? ARE YOU ENJOYING THIS SEASON OF VANDERPUMP RULES?

[Photo Credit: Bravo]