Real Housewives - General Discussion

I’ve just discovered this! I’m from Jersey so this is a scream. Gonna keep an eye out for a cameo from my mum. I couldn’t run away from Jersey fast enough when I turned 18, so I’m screaming at the glamorous elite calling likening it to Ibiza.

Episode 1 and Tessa saying we might know her daughter as Tessa Storm. “she’s a singer”. No, dear, we don’t.

I had never heard of Jersey in the UK before so it was interesting to see the scenery (even if they use the same establishing shots multiple times...)

I like Kate so far, she is a bit of an odd ball and I love her voice!
 
I had never heard of Jersey in the UK before so it was interesting to see the scenery (even if they use the same establishing shots multiple times...)

I like Kate so far, she is a bit of an odd ball and I love her voice!

I hated Kate the moment I saw her on that speedboat but then everything she's done since I now really like her.

Can't stand Tessa, can't stand her. Can't stand her. Can't. Stand. Her.

Ashley seems sweet but very unsure of herself.

I like Mia.

Margaret is such a prude. Like Tessa you can tell she thinks she's amazing. She was horrible to Jane who also seems lovely and not at all confident enough. Probably because of people like Jane.

Hedi seems OK.

Also one of the token gay best friends always messages me on Grindr when I go and visit the parents.

I'm laughing so much at them trying to make Jersey look glamorous. I have a slightly biased point of view I suppose but to me it looks nothing of the sort, especially the Lido wow I cackled so hard at that. And they're all feeling their arses off.

I'm also slightly confused as to when this was filmed. August by the look of it when I think Jersey wasn't doing too badly with COVID cases, but even so...
 
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Also one of the token gay best friends always messages me on Grindr when I go and visit the parents.

I'm laughing so much at them trying to make Jersey look glamorous. I have a slightly biased point of view I suppose but to me it looks nothing of the sort, especially the Lido wow I cackled so hard at that. And they're all feeling their arses off.

I'm also slightly confused as to when this was filmed. August by the look of it when I think Jersey wasn't doing too badly with COVID cases, but even so...

Not Jono and Cisco looking for a fifth person in the relationship. Kii.

I actually think they’ve done a good job of making Jersey look gorgeous. I think it was filmed over the summer and I do appreciate them not including Covid has a storyline, unlike every other franchise airing now.
 
Whenever the editor thinks what someone has said is savage they put this sound effect over the top which feels so out of place. It's hilarious. Is this something other Real Housewives programmes do?
 
Whenever the editor thinks what someone has said is savage they put this sound effect over the top which feels so out of place. It's hilarious. Is this something other Real Housewives programmes do?

They can do but ITV really ham it up for their installments.
 
Hello girls!

I've been slow to the general fold of Housewives: I pretty much exclusively watched Beverly Hills for a couple years before my best henny got me to dive into New York and it's been snowballing since then. My boyfriend and I are fully caught up on Beverly Hills, got caught up on New York through Season 11 and now we're watching Salt Lake City live while binging Potomac (started Season 3 last night).

All this to say, I have a general question out of curiosity about the success of the different installments but sort of have my hands tied until I'm able to catch up for fear of spoilers. What are considered the most 'successful' installments and have any of them turned around after shaky starts (I recall someone mentioning Season 1 of Potomac was rough)? I know that's a very general question but I'm a bit of a ratings nerd and I'm interested in seeing how the installments may have grown, especially after seeing social media blow up after the Season 5 Potomac reunion (all I know is there's a binder).
 
She/Her/Queen
The one that has grown, been amazing throughout after Season 1 and consistently provided the laughs, CHARISMA, UNIQUENESS, NERVE AND TALENT, will always be:

Real-Housewives-of-New-York-cast-pic.jpg
 
I hated Kate the moment I saw her on that speedboat but then everything she's done since I now really like her.

Can't stand Tessa, can't stand her. Can't stand her. Can't. Stand. Her.

Ashley seems sweet but very unsure of herself.

I like Mia.

Margaret is such a prude. Like Tessa you can tell she thinks she's amazing. She was horrible to Jane who also seems lovely and not at all confident enough. Probably because of people like Jane.

Hedi seems OK.

Also one of the token gay best friends always messages me on Grindr when I go and visit the parents.

I'm laughing so much at them trying to make Jersey look glamorous. I have a slightly biased point of view I suppose but to me it looks nothing of the sort, especially the Lido wow I cackled so hard at that. And they're all feeling their arses off.

I'm also slightly confused as to when this was filmed. August by the look of it when I think Jersey wasn't doing too badly with COVID cases, but even so...
If it helps, I spent a few months in Jersey last summer and I felt it's honestly a lovely place with some beautiful beaches, scenery and towns. I understand you might be biased as you're from there, (I'm the same when it comes to Manchester), but as a visitor I felt it's a lovely place. The weather was great too, although, come September its literally wind and rain non-stop...
 
The one that has grown, been amazing throughout after Season 1 and consistently provided the laughs, CHARISMA, UNIQUENESS, NERVE AND TALENT, will always be:

Real-Housewives-of-New-York-cast-pic.jpg

I agree but I was talking about ratings specifically since that seems to be a talking point each week in the Salt Lake City thread.
 
he/him
I started Jersey and I’m pleasantly surprised! It does feel like a lower tier franchise but it’s still entertaining. I absolutely hate Ashley, she needs to go if there’s a season 2. She makes me uncomfortable. Tessa is dark sided and those horrendous outfits she put Mia in for that photoshoot... ffffffff

Jane and Kate are my favorites at the moment.
 
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Also one of the token gay best friends always messages me on Grindr when I go and visit the parents.

I'm laughing so much at them trying to make Jersey look glamorous. I have a slightly biased point of view I suppose but to me it looks nothing of the sort, especially the Lido wow I cackled so hard at that. And they're all feeling their arses off.

Dying at this entire section...but especially that first part. I told you that you were quickly becoming one of my favorites. Idk how I would feel if they did one of Glasgow...I mean granted I’ve only been back so many times since moving to the States. I know some stories of some folks with money that would definitely make interesting tv...
 
Hello girls!

I've been slow to the general fold of Housewives: I pretty much exclusively watched Beverly Hills for a couple years before my best henny got me to dive into New York and it's been snowballing since then. My boyfriend and I are fully caught up on Beverly Hills, got caught up on New York through Season 11 and now we're watching Salt Lake City live while binging Potomac (started Season 3 last night).

All this to say, I have a general question out of curiosity about the success of the different installments but sort of have my hands tied until I'm able to catch up for fear of spoilers. What are considered the most 'successful' installments and have any of them turned around after shaky starts (I recall someone mentioning Season 1 of Potomac was rough)? I know that's a very general question but I'm a bit of a ratings nerd and I'm interested in seeing how the installments may have grown, especially after seeing social media blow up after the Season 5 Potomac reunion (all I know is there's a binder).
As an obsessive Housewives nerd/historian, I love questions like this! @teddienono is also very brilliant on this topic (despite ha shit taste and Beverly Hills stanning!)

It's difficult to answer, however, as television ratings have been rapidly declining for years. Ratings are also nearly impossible to measure accurately nowadays as well, as so many people turn to streaming or continue using their DVR. Based on Andy saying Bravo is "thrilled" with RHOSLC and the amount of promo it continues to get, I would say it's a strong force on streaming, despite live ratings being questionable.

Potomac is one franchise that has steadily grown in popularity and ratings, however. It gradually picked up during season 3, which is when the quality also started to really become excellent. However, it really gained during season 5 in a major way, and now it is a big ratings contender for Bravo. It seems to be the one exception, as former ratings (and cultural) juggernaut Atlanta has been steadily declining, as has Beverly Hills, New York, Orange County, etc.

Beverly Hills is generally seen as being shit now, quality-wise, beginning with season 8. However, social media engagement with seasons 9 and 10 was pretty significant.

Dallas has always had shit ratings and I don't see it lasting much longer, unless it moves to streaming. However, most Housewives franchises still outperform most of Bravo's other programming, aside from the Below Deck shows, which are ratings gold right now.

RHONY had its highest ratings through season 4. It actually stayed strong following Bethenny's departure. However, it started to drop with the mass "re-casting" for season 5. Quality wise, however, it's seen as picking up during season 7 again and seasons 8 through 10 are generally beloved by all. Season 11 had a mixed reception and season 12 is a love it or hate it type of season.

Altanta's "glory days" left when season 9 ended and Orange County has been a "hate watch" type of show for a while, with season 10 being a cultural touchstone. I personally loved season 14 of OC, however, as did many of us here.

Again, Potomac is really having its moment right now and it's fun to watch along!
 
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As an obsessive Housewives nerd/historian, I love questions like this! @teddienono is also very brilliant on this topic (despite ha shit taste and Beverly Hills stanning!)

It's difficult to answer, however, as television ratings have been rapidly declining for years. Ratings are also nearly impossible to measure accurately nowadays as well, as so many people turn to streaming or continue using their DVR. Based on Andy saying Bravo is "thrilled" with RHOSLC and the amount of promo it continues to get, I would say it's a strong force on streaming, despite live ratings being questionable.

Potomac is one franchise that has steadily grown in popularity and ratings, however. It gradually picked up during season 3, which is when the quality also started to really become excellent. However, it really gained during season 5 in a major way, and now it is a big ratings contender for Bravo. It seems to be the one exception, as former ratings (and cultural) juggernaut Atlanta has been steadily declining, as has Beverly Hills, New York, Orange County, etc.

Beverly Hills is generally seen as being shit now, quality-wise, beginning with season 8. However, social media engagement with seasons 9 and 10 was pretty significant.

Dallas has always had shit ratings and I don't see it lasting much longer, unless it moves to streaming. However, most Housewives franchises still outperform most of Bravo's other programming, aside from the Below Deck shows, which are ratings gold right now.

RHONY had its highest ratings through season 4. It actually stayed strong following Bethenny's departure. However, it started to drop with the mass "re-casting" for season 5. Quality wise, however, it's seen as picking up during season 7 again and seasons 8 through 10 are generally beloved by all. Season 11 had a mixed reception and season 12 is a love it or hate it type of season.

Altanta's "glory days" left when season 9 ended and Orange County has been a "hate watch" type of show for a while, with season 10 being a cultural touchstone. I personally loved season 14 of OC, however, as did many of us here.

Again, Potomac is really having its moment right now and it's fun to watch along!

Bless you sis, this is incredible and exactly what I was looking for! It's fascinating, especially with the 'casserole crew' that seems to keep Beverly Hills performing well despite diminishing returns.

I'm glad to know we went with Potomac then, it definitely feels like Season 3 is the perfect groove so far despite me loving both of the first two seasons as well. The most surprising of the above is RHONY performing so well during Season 4: I enjoyed Seasons 3 & 4 but really feel like the shakeup was needed and gave the show a much needed rejuvenation. My henny that got us into the series has been trying to get us to watch either Dallas or Atlanta next so I'm thinking Atlanta is going to be the best route.
 
As an obsessive Housewives nerd/historian, I love questions like this! @teddienono is also very brilliant on this topic (despite ha shit taste and Beverly Hills stanning!)

It's difficult to answer, however, as television ratings have been rapidly declining for years. Ratings are also nearly impossible to measure accurately nowadays as well, as so many people turn to streaming or continue using their DVR. Based on Andy saying Bravo is "thrilled" with RHOSLC and the amount of promo it continues to get, I would say it's a strong force on streaming, despite live ratings being questionable.

Potomac is one franchise that has steadily grown in popularity and ratings, however. It gradually picked up during season 3, which is when the quality also started to really become excellent. However, it really gained during season 5 in a major way, and now it is a big ratings contender for Bravo. It seems to be the one exception, as former ratings (and cultural) juggernaut Atlanta has been steadily declining, as has Beverly Hills, New York, Orange County, etc.

Beverly Hills is generally seen as being shit now, quality-wise, beginning with season 8. However, social media engagement with seasons 9 and 10 was pretty significant.

Dallas has always had shit ratings and I don't see it lasting much longer, unless it moves to streaming. However, most Housewives franchises still outperform most of Bravo's other programming, aside from the Below Deck shows, which are ratings gold right now.

RHONY had its highest ratings through season 4. It actually stayed strong following Bethenny's departure. However, it started to drop with the mass "re-casting" for season 5. Quality wise, however, it's seen as picking up during season 7 again and seasons 8 through 10 are generally beloved by all. Season 11 had a mixed reception and season 12 is a love it or hate it type of season.

Altanta's "glory days" left when season 9 ended and Orange County has been a "hate watch" type of show for a while, with season 10 being a cultural touchstone. I personally loved season 14 of OC, however, as did many of us here.

Again, Potomac is really having its moment right now and it's fun to watch along!

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C'mon thesis! I agree with everything you've said, this is a great overview.

Chronologically, it was New Jersey that was the first Housewives "rating juggernaut" for Bravo, and easily the most popular early franchise (purely in terms of ratings), although certain Housewives from OC, NY and Atlanta would have you believe otherwise.

However, Atlanta quickly eclipsed NJ and by season 5 was easily the highest-rated franchise, pulling in well over 4 million live viewers by season 6 - which was never bested. From then on Atlanta remained the highest-rated, although it lost around 20% of its live viewership on average between seasons each subsequent year. It's now rating lower than the once #2 franchise - Beverly Hills - did this year, but BH may slip under Atlanta again by the time season 11 starts airing.

It's important to note though that the live ratings (which are all we have to go off in these threads/the fandom in general) naturally do not include DVR/streaming figures, so while the Housewives brand has inevitably lost some popularity since its 2012-14 peak, it is still very much a phenomenon - and possibly even more so globally, thanks to the likes of Hayu, etc.

Looking to the future, there is talk that some cities will be axed in the next 2 years as live figures continue to dwindle. If NBC Universal play it right regarding streaming services, I can see the brand bringing in a lot of revenue for the next 5 years or so.

There's also the inevitable All Stars iteration, which I feel will certainly happen and will more than likely be a streaming exclusive. I don't think it will be what Bravo stans fantasise it will be though, as many of the big-name Housewives (Nene, Vicki, Bethenny, LVP etc) have left on bad terms. It also, to me, doesn't make a lot of business sense to have talent that isn't featured elsewhere on Bravo/NBC star in a spin-off because they can't cross-promote (and a lot of that talent has "aged out" of what the network sees as bankable.) In short, who knows what the future holds!

Thank you for taking the time to read my whitepaper.

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