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| TV Reviews | |
of O.C,' been there Truth is, the spinoffs are more entertaining to watch Nov 5, 2009
The reality series, which purportedly documents the lifestyles of wealthy women in Southern California, has spun off versions set in New York, Atlanta and New Jersey, all of which have featured more memorable characters than the five (soon to be six) women who will be the focus of “Orange County” in its fifth season. What’s more, with all those versions out there, it has become increasingly difficult for the producers to come up with new storylines. This season’s premiere episode, airing on Bravo tonight at 10 p.m., inspires many moments of déjà vu. For example, flighty Lynne says she’s having a “show” of her jewelry designs at a local hotel, so she invites the other series regulars to come and to have dinner together afterward. Since two of the other housewives, Tamra and Gretchen, haven’t spoken since Tamra made some scandalous allegations about Gretchen during the season-ending special in February, the real purpose of this invitation is clear: to set up another “Real Housewives” catfight. What makes this clearer is that the “show” turns out to be one display on a table in a small room, and no one attends except the other housewives. The catfight, moreover, can’t hold a candle to the table-slamming brawl that ended the first season of “Real Housewives of New Jersey,” which occurred at a similarly pointless dinner party with an equally incompatible group of invitees. The episode begins with another made-for-TV scene. Vicki decides to celebrate the fact that her two kids are all grown up by going skydiving. Though she screams convincingly, nothing else in the segment feels real. Adding to the hall-of-mirrors quality, Gretchen, whose much older boyfriend Jeff died of leukemia last season, is now involved with a man named Slade, who has dated two former cast members. He and one of those former girlfriends appeared in another Bravo spin-off, “Date My Ex: Jo and Slade.” Nonetheless, Gretchen keeps thanking Jeff in heaven for bringing her Slade. When Tamra tells Vicki that she’s seen risqué pictures of Gretchen on the internet, it all starts to blend with the scandals surrounding Danielle on “Real Housewives of New Jersey.” On the plus side, Tamra does have a unique take on the photos: “I’m like, ‘Holy Mother of Gynecology, who has a vibrator with a cord?’ ” The spendthrift Jeana, whose finances have been suffering in the recession, decides to sell her mansion and downsize, telling her much more sensible son, “I could be happy in a 5,000-square-foot house.” The entertainment value of shows like “Real Housewives” isn’t in the drama but in lines like that, as the participants attempt either to be good television or to appear less foolish than they are. Whether Vicki is truly unhappy in her marriage doesn’t matter when she comes up with gems like “My love tank was empty.” And even if her husband is playing to the camera, it’s fun to hear him say, “Oh, I’m so tired of your damn tank.” Nonetheless, the casts in most of the other locations have generally been more entertaining, either because the producers have gotten better at casting or because those versions have focused on more distinctive socio-economic groups. According to a preview at the end of the premiere, a new character, Alexis, whose distinguishing characteristic is unusually puffy lips, is being added to the mix sometime this season. Since she’s just one more blonde with at least one surgically enhanced body part, it’s doubtful she’ll bring anything new to the party. But she probably will help the show achieve what seems to be the primary goal of all the “Real Housewives” franchises: enabling viewers to look down on the more fortunate. In hard times like these, that’s not such a bad thing.
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