Reality on Bravo

The cast of The Real Housewives of New York City, Bethenny Frankel, Alex McCord, Countess LuAnn de Lesseps, Ramona Singer, and Jill Zarin.

For a group of women who seem to think they’re on top of their game, the five cast members of The Real Housewives of New York City certainly are trying to be someone else — at least if tonight’s episode was any indication. Each week, I find these women more and more entertaining. It’s just almost too ridiculous for words. But I’ll try.

First you have Bethenny Frankel, my personal favorite, who wants to be some kind of Rachael Ray … only maybe without quite so much girl-next-door quality. It seems she’s trying to land a wedding ring, not because she loves her boyfriend, but because she’s at a point in her career where it seems best to be married. Of course, this may not really be the case … it could have just been the booze talking tonight.

Alex McCord, who spent much of her childhood growing up in Kansas, has struggled to find her place in the mainstream acting world. She and her husband, Simon, both are trying so hard to be anyone but themselves. Really, it appears Alex wants to be fellow Housewives castmate Jill Zarin … or at least have Jill’s connections. That way, at least her children would be guaranteed a spot in a top Manhattan school.

Speaking of Jill, she may be the most sure of herself and the most comfortable in her own skin. I think she probably looks at herself in the mirror and says things like, “Wow, I’m perfect.” She does, after all, only vacation in the hottest spots when hotel rooms cost $2,000 a night. She’d never only spend $300 … that would just be tacky. (Sorry, Jill.)

Countess (I can’t get enough of that) LuAnn de Lesseps proved tonight she wants to be her 23-year-old niece. Why? Because when you have a housekeeper at home to raise your own children, you can go downtown and watch hip bands with people half your age and not have to face the fact you really should grow up. This is, of course, why I watch this show — for the comedy.

And, finally, there’s Ramona Singer. I’m not exactly sure what’s she’s trying to prove, other than the fact she thinks celebrity is everything. She clearly wants to be her daughter. Her daughter, clearly, wants to be a regular kid. She doesn’t want to miss school so that her stage mom can be satisfied by having her working as a child actor. No, she wants to get an education … and clearly that’s wrong. Right Ramona?

Maybe I’m wrong about these uptown gals. This is, after all, reality television. And, if you know anything about the creative editing that can go on behind the scenes, these would could all be being cast in a completely different light than what it appears … of course, it’s pretty hard to choreograph this kind of jealousy.

Real Housewives of NYC, Ramona Singer, Bethenny Frankel, Alex McCord, LuAnn de Lesseps, Jill Zarin

Bethenny Frankel

She’s Bethenny Frankel, and she may be the least offensive of all the Real Housewives of New York City. And here’s why she’s my favorite — she has the best one-liners of all of the ladies.

On tonight’s episode, as she and Alex were getting ready for the Pamella Roland runway show during New York Fashion Week, Bethenny delivered this classic line — “Tell him he’s in a deep homosexual depression, and he should go with his instincts.” I’m still laughing at that line.

Bethenny delivered the punch after Alex’s husband sent her a text message debating what kind of boots to wear with his outfit. It was certainly the best line of the episode.

The newest episode of the NYC Housewives further proves these East Coast ladies are a little more sassy than those gals from the other side of the country. With a stage mom in training, a cranky gal or two and at least one woman who’s trying entirely too hard (c’mon, Alex, pull yourself together!), this season of Housewives is guaranteed to continue bringing joy and entertainment to my life.

So, do you have a favorite?

Bethenny Frankel, Real Housewives of New York City

Alex? Bethenny? Jill? Luann? Or Ramona? Perhaps you’ve fallen in love with the Real Housewives of NYC just like you did with the women on the East Coast. But which one would you be?

Among the many features at the Bravo Web site is a 10-question quiz that will help you determine the NYC housewife you would be.

Chances are, if you’re watching the show, you can’t get enough of the women getting at one another. They’re all trying to get their time in front of the camera. Whether they’re sending their daughter to detox (health detox, which happens to be kind of boring it turns out), hanging out at parties or taking on one another in a “friendly” tennis match, they always have some of the most ridiculous things to say. It’s perfectly mindless TV.

I’m not certain this pack of high-class (or so they think) ladies have the name-dropping down as well as the Orange County ladies that came before them, but they certainly have some interesting lives to follow. If you’re into that kind of thing.

So, which housewife did you turn out to be?

Real Housewives of NYC, Real Housewives of Orange County

In case you’ve been a reader of this blog before, let me catch you up on a few things:
1. I’m new to realityonbravo.com. But I’m old to watchingamericanidol.com.
2. I know far too much about reality TV, because I watch far too much reality TV. This should be my claim to shame.
3. At this site, you can expect to read all kinds of things about all kinds of reality shows that appear on Bravo. I guess that’s pretty obvious, considering the title of the blog.

Anyway, I have plenty to say about Project Runway, Make Me a Supermodel and Real Housewives of NYC. Plus, I’ll be sure to say a few things about the other shows on Bravo, too. It’s all coming soon, I promise. So, stay tuned.

Oh, I also have a really good story or three about my failed attempts to interview that crazy Kathy Griffin. She’s amazing, and so not D-list. Otherwise, I would have interviewed her. That’s my theory, anyway.

Bravo, Project Runway, Make Me a Supermodel, Real Housewives of NYC