The ladies of the Real Housewives of New York are back and better than ever. The addition of Eboni K. Williams has breathed new life into a stale franchise. Leah McSweeny was a decent newbie last season, but Eboni is “IT”. It remains to be seen what her full dynamics with the rest of the group will be. She and Leah bonded almost immediately, but there will undoubtedly be clashing with the other women.
One thing that stood out on the premiere episode of RHONY was the animosity toward Sonja Morgan. Why do Ramona Singer & Luann de Lesseps suddenly have such deep contempt for her? What exactly did Sonja do wrong? If she wants to distance herself from the rest of the group for a while, so be it. Why crucify her for taking some personal time? This unholy alliance between Luann & Ramona is going to be the wildcard this season.
Leah stops by Eboni’s for a visit, and Leah’s fashion choices this season are already too much for me. She’s trying way too hard to be “that girl”, and it shows.
Eboni’s apartment is breathtaking. Everything about it is beautiful and puts some of the other women’s spaces to shame. It’s a little off putting that it’s the space she was suppose to share with her ex, but such is life.
Leah says she would be taking full advantage of the apartment if her ex was paying for it. The quarantine made it apparent to Eboni and her ex that they weren’t going to workout. He chose his existing family over her, and that was the end of that.
Eboni tells Leah she did a great job at describing Ramona, Luann, and Sonja. They were exactly as advertised. Is that a good thing or a bad thing? If what you see is what you get with those three, we’re in trouble!
I love that Eboni pronounces Sonja the same way Luann does. That’s clearly not how you’re supposed to say it, but at least she’s no longer alone in her mistakes. That’s the one blunder Eboni’s made so far, but it’s so harmless.
Eboni found Ramona to be pleasant on the surface, but it felt a little unjustified. They’d barely interacted, and Ramona was going on and on about the deep connection. It doesn’t make sense. She’s trying too hard to be the best friend of the new face of the group.
Leah is hosting a Burning Man dinner for the group because she wasn’t able to go to the actual event. That doesn’t seem like Ramona or Luann’s scene, so I’m excited to see them in that environment. That won’t exactly be your typical Hampton’s stuck up ladies who brunch bulls**t.
Sonja realized something was off with her spiritual energy, so she invited a healer to her home. She’s going to help Sonja get back on the right track. She honestly gives us the wackiest moments, but I’m here for all of it. She’s nothing like the woman we first met all of those years ago, but I love every moment of it.
The healer says they need to get into the deep stuff to do the real work. Sonja comes across too disconnected from reality to do that, but let’s go. Toaster oven anyone?
Sonja starts to cry talking about the failure of her marriage. Honey, please move on. It’s been over ten years since Sonja first came on this show. This relationship has been dead for so long now. Is anyone else sick and tired of hearing her going on and on about it?
There’s a lot going on in Sonja’s mind because she doesn’t know where the money will come from. With her clothing line falling through, that’s a large chunk of her income out the window. She has so many bills to pay, but there’s no way to make it happen. She’s collapsing inside with no relief in sight.
Ramona invited all of the women over for FIVE DAYS. My actual idea of hell is spending nearly a week in Ramona’s home. It sounds horrible. Like getting waterboarded actually. I never want anyone to force that upon me.
Leah’s grandmother is extremely sick right now, but she’s going through with the trip. She can’t be by her side anyway, so she might as well go. She’s on edge right now which might spill over into her interactions with the other women.
Luann’s hoping the trip will help give her insight into what’s really going on with Sonja. It’s really the same issues she’s been going on about for so many years. She has to learn how to help herself. I hate being harsh about Sonja because she’s so sweet, but DAMN GIRL.
Leah & Eboni are the first to arrive to Ramona’s, and Leah’s impressed with her Burning Man look. She’s going all in for this dinner, and it’s a little surprising. It’s somewhat of an olive branch to Leah after their tumultuous past. We’ll see how long it lasts.
Ramona’s thrilled to have Eboni in attendance for the trip. They connected sooooo fast, so why wouldn’t she? We wouldn’t want to keep Ramona away from her new friend soulmate.
Ramona makes a comment that rubs Eboni the absolute wrong way. While trying to communicate with her staff, Ramona says she “gets her help wrong”. OOF. Ramona, please understand why that’s so offensive to hear. That’s just NOT okay.
Sonja isn’t sure about hanging out with Luann, Ramona, or Leah, but she’s going to. These are the women are care about her the most, so she needs them. With friends like these women, who needs enemies though?
Ramona springs on Leah & Eboni that she invited Heather “Hey Mamma” Thomson to the trip. Immediately the expression on Leah’s face changes. Did something happen to make her not want to f**k with Heather? Her reaction is a bit strange.
Leah’s confused about why they’d invite Heather after she said negative things about Luann. Telling people on a podcast that she knows Luann does hard drugs is too much. Leah knows her to constantly talk s**t about the group in the press, so why would they want her there? Ramona must have an agenda of sorts with this.
Right now, Eboni is torn when it comes to Ramona. The jury is out because she’s done both positive and negative things so far. It’ll be curious to see which one outweighs the other. This comment about “the help” might be a game changer in their friendship.
Luann & Sonja finally waltz in hours late, and Luann finally gets a decent room. She went from the “lower level” last season to a nice room! This newfound alliance is already proving to be fruitful for Luann. Sucking up to Ramona has its perks!
Leah is thrilled to see how hard Ramona showed out for this Burning Man party. She is showing off all of her assets, and it’s working. How many women look like that in their mid 60’s? I mean, COME ON.
Luann is in a different place with the other women, and she’s ready to have fun. She doesn’t need alcohol to have a great time. Good for her for coming this far. Although, I low key feel like she is doing this not drinking story line to sell her upcoming faux wine.
Ramona doesn’t fully understand the concept of a sound bath (same), but Leah shuts down her questions. I know Ramona’s often rude and abrasive, but I think Leah looks for conflict with her. I think things are specifically said and done around Ramona to get a reaction from her. Period.
Leah opens up to the group about the impending death of her grandmother. This is going to be a major blow to her life because that’s who she’s the closest to. She hopes the healing will set her free from that pa, in.
Eboni’s grandmother is also sick, and she’s only one of two blood relatives she has. Eboni wants to expand her definition of family to make it looks differently. She apologizes for breaking down in front of the group, but everyone is so open and welcoming.
Luann’s been seeking spirituality fork many years, and she wants help with being shown the way. Ramona says she wants to pay attention to the REAL friends in her life. It didn’t come across that genuine, but what can you expect from her?
Sonja wants to be able to trust her friends with her feelings. She’s going through so much, and being able to tell everyone will be good for it. Bottling it up inside is causing her so much damage. That’s not going to help her move forward and heal.
Leah starts screaming at the top of lungs which ultimately leads to a full breakdown. She’s purging all of the emotions inside, and even Ramona joins in to help. This has been a whole new side to Ramona tonight that I’d like to see more of.
Eboni dips out in the middle of the party, so Leah leaves to check on her. She felt so free and wanted to bask in the experience. She doesn’t want to shade the women, but she can’t be around that type of energy too much.
TELL US – WHAT DID YOU THINK OF THE SOUND BATH? IS EBONI A GOOD FIT WITH THIS GROUP? ARE YOU ENJOYING THIS SEASON OF THE REAL HOUSEWIVES OF NEW YORK?
[Photo Credit: Bravo]
