Mention It All - Carl’s Soft Opening & Phaedra’s Hard Launch

Episode Date: July 31, 2024

With RHODubai on pause for the Olympics, it’s a grab bag episode, with a big dose of breaking news to kick things off. After six seasons away from RHOA, Phaedra Parks is a peach-holder once again—what does that mean for the upcoming season, and is it a good idea? He also has an update on Carl’s non-alcoholic bar (and cafe?), and why its aesthetic might be more misguided than its shady name. Then, Dylan answers some listener questions, from his RHONJ casting prescription to which Bravolebs could possibly replace Andy Cohen. He also decides which Bravoleb he's sharing a cider with, sponsored by Angry Orchard Hard Cider. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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Betches Media presents Ha ha ha laugh funny Mention It All A Bravo by Betches podcast We don't say that But now we said it With me, Dylan Hafer We're going to check me both

Hey everyone Welcome back to the Mention It All podcast It's Wednesday And we don't have an episode Of Real Housewives of Dubai this week They are taking a week off due to the Olympics I'll talk about that

A little bit Because I do think it's an interesting decision Especially at this point in the season But that means that we have a little bit of free runway to talk about whatever I want to talk about, because I make the rules here. And I decided that in addition to a couple of news items that we must get to, including Fadra Parks' long-awaited or maybe long-feared return to Real Houseways of

Atlanta, depending on where you fall on that. Carl Radke, we have an update on his non-alc bar and cafe. We will get to it. And then I was thrilled to have time to take some of your listen to questions because I feel like there have been times in the past where I'm like, I'm going to answer your questions. And then there's a deluge of breaking news. And then suddenly there is no more time to take the questions. So I have a great list of questions here. You guys really came through when I put the call out. So thank you for that. And I'm excited to talk about some stuff that I feel like some of them are very topical and very, very, you know, kind of obvious questions, not in a bad way. Like every question is great. But some of them really

really got me thinking about Bravo seasons past, some nostalgic little items. So I'm excited to get to those. But speaking of the Olympics, somebody in the question box was like, can you recap the Olympics? And I'm like, I mean, I suppose I could. Like, Simone Biles landed her tumbling pass. Like, I don't really think that the Olympics recap is what you need for me. I have been watching a lot of Olympics. I was very excited. I'm a gymnastics fan for a long time. I was very thrilled to see the U.S. women win the gold in the team competition yesterday. And then I was even more excited. Well, maybe not even more excited. That makes me sound like I'm just like a, you know, shitty person. But Simone Biles' Instagram post after she won the gold medal was just fully a clapback at

this other girl, Michaela Skinner, who if you're not like steep, in gymnastics lore, good for you. You've done something good with your time in the last 10 years. But Michaela Skinner is basically this other young woman who was an elite gymnast for a long time. She and Simone Biles were teammates many times. And she is just kind of like a hater. And she just kind of sucks. And on her YouTube channel after Olympic trials, she went on this long rant about how, you know, she thinks that the current crop of girls, you know, they're just, they don't have the work ethic. They're just like, they're not hard workers. And the, the, the, the talent just isn't quite where it used to be.

And basically she's like, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah. The team was better when I was on it. Well, baby girl, the team, you weren't on the team when they won a gold medal. So that's tough. So Simone Biles' Instagram caption is just lack of talent, lazy Olympic champions. And that's that on that. What a mic drop. I also loved Michaela Maroney.

Importantly, a very different gymnastics, Michaela. She's the one that in 2012 was at the Olympics and she did that like, ridiculous vault that is like, you know, just pretty perfect. And she just said, it doesn't get more iconic than this. She effed around and found out for real. Feels like I need to apologize just to redeem my first name. Oh, so fun. I am really into the Olympics. I don't think that this is particularly the place for me to be like recapping, you know, like a rugby game or, you know, three on three basketball. But maybe slide into my DMs if you want, if you want more Olympic thoughts. Because I certainly do have them. But in the meantime, I think it's the Olympics thing that ties in a little

but here is our week off of Real Housewives of Dubai. And here's the thing with Dubai this season. First of all, it's not weird for a Housewives show to take a week off at some point in the season. In fact, almost all of them do. I got a couple comments that were like, why are the shows suddenly taking random weeks off? And it's like, if you go back and look, it's most Housewives seasons at some point in the season

will take a week break, whether it's for holiday, whether it's for holiday, whether it's for, you know, the Super Bowl or something like that. Like, they're just our calendar moments where it makes sense for them to just take a week off. But I think with Dubai, it's not really an ideal time for them to have a week break in their season because I do feel like the season has been picking up a little bit of momentum, both in what they're showing us on TV. They're, you know, they've just arrived on their trip to Bali.

This Lisa and Ayan thing, which I think is one of the more anticipated storylines of the season is just sort of starting to to take off. But also just in the in the fan consciousness, I do feel like there, I've seen a little bit more of the, why are people sleeping on Dubai? This season is kind of good, actually. Like, should we be watching this? Why aren't people watching this? Those types of conversations, I'm not saying that it's like all of a sudden the buzziest

show on TV, but I do think that there is that kind of vibe around it where people are like, oh, it's, this isn't, this, this is watchable. I might watch this. I could watch this. And when shows take a week off, it can feel like a really long time that we're taking between these episodes, especially when this is not like the most, you know, famous online ever present group of women. Like, you're probably not going to think about them for two weeks. And then you're going to be dropped back in and it's going to be like, wait, what were they fighting about? I'm pretty sure last week's episode ended with a to be continued, which is just not ideal when you're taking a week off. It's like I don't need to be dropped back into like the middle of a dinner two weeks later.

But anyway, you know, there's nothing wrong with Dubai. They're taking a week off. It is the Olympics. NBC and Universal are like literally like dumping all of their resources into blowing out the Olympics. And I think they're doing a good job so far. So I won't fault them on that strategy. but I will be curious to see kind of if people are paying attention to Dubai when it's back next week. But the big news, the big, big, big, big news of the week so far is that Fadre Parks has reclaimed her peach and she will be on season 16 of Real Housewives of Atlanta.

Now, season 16 of Real Housewives of Atlanta has been a little bit of a tortured prospect thus far. Obviously, we got a cast announcement earlier in the spring. they were filming. Kenya was a full-time housewife. Kenya is no longer a full-time housewife. She is, she left the show under some contentious circumstances. Go back and do a Google or listen to some of my past episodes if you want the full details there. But after Kenya's departure, you know, they were midway through filming this season and all of a sudden there's a Kenya-sized hole in the middle of your cast. And especially in a cast that was, you know, heavily retooled for this season with new people brought on with only a couple of returning housewives. You know, we lost candy.

We, we lost Sanya. We really only had Drew and Kenya coming back this season. Losing Kenya was not something that was really, you know, get past a bowl for this season. And so immediately, it was like, okay, what do we do? What do we do? What do we do? And the first name that was on a lot of people's lips was Fadra. Fadra, obviously, going back many years, there's a lot of controversy in the past with the way she left Real Housewives of Atlanta. For a long time, it seemed like this was something that wouldn't be really on the table. Even as recently as 2022, Fadra was saying that she had no interest in returning to Real Housewives of Atlanta. This is a quote that she gave to Entertainment Tonight in

2022 that I forgot how certain she was that she wasn't coming back. She said, quote, I've made it very clear. That's not what I want to do. No, I will be yachting. Let them continue to sail away on the Titanic. Okay. I don't want to pick up a peach. If I wanted a peach, I would have a peach pie. Like, Fadre was out in the tabloids like shading real houseways of Atlanta. And obviously, I know that a lot can happen in two years. Like, returning to Married to Medicine and filming traitors and being a fan favorite on traitors and then, you know, filming another season of Married to Medicine, which by the way, season 11 of Married to Med is already in the can. So Fadra coming to film with Atlanta does not conflict with married to medicine

per se. I don't know if she'll have a future on that show if she's suddenly, you know, center peach on Atlanta. But Fadra in 2024 is a very different prospect than Fadra in 2022 or 2019 or 2017. You know, the last time she was on this show was like 2016-17, sometime around there. I think it's like six seasons, around seven calendar years since she was on this show. That's a long time. And I think, you know, based on the fan response, there obviously are some people who really still have a lot of weird feelings about her returning to this show where she, you know, was involved in this really salacious thing with, um, with candy and, with Portia and left the show because of it. And I wonder if they will address that at all.

When Fadra was on Ultimate Girls trip, the Berkshire season, she kind of shut that down. It wasn't really on the table. But I do wonder if being back on the franchise where it actually happened, if that will be kind of something to discuss a little bit more. I'm not really going to get my hopes up for that. I have a feeling they will, especially after the controversy of this season already with Kenya, I have a feeling they're going to kind of want Fadra to come in and be like a little bit of a, we still have the party kind of vibe because I think that's probably what they need. But interestingly, the big question here, so Fadra is reportedly coming back as a full-time housewife. She did this photo shoot with a peach

on like the steps of a private jet, which just like I love that for her. But coming in, they've been filming for two or three months. Being a full-time housewife, it's like, okay, so where are we in the season. How much are we going to see that they've already filmed? Is Kenya going to be edited out in a major way? Are we going to get the controversy with Kenya? Or is it just going to kind of be like, Kenya had to go somewhere. So she's not going to be here anymore. So that's something. I don't know how they're going to handle that. I don't think anyone knows how they're going to handle that. I'm sure that they have not, you know, edited the whole season yet. But it seems like if Fadra is a full-time housewife that they are going to have to extend filming in some direction,

because otherwise, it looks like they might be on a cast trip right now as we speak. Cynthia Bailey posted an Instagram story of a plane touching down on a runway somewhere that looks islandy. I haven't seen any more like evidence or photos or anything from this trip they're on. But what I would guess is that if this was supposed to be kind of like the end of season trip or the late in the season trip, I bet that this trip will kind of be Fadra's big reintroduction to the group. And then they likely will just extend filming for another month maybe once they get back from the trip. Like a lot of the time you go on your big trip, you come back. There's like one or two episodes.

There's a big finale party. You're done filming probably a week, maybe two weeks after. after you get back from the trip. I think this will probably be extended a little bit into the fall, but they can make up a lot of ground if they have people that are really willing to get to work. And I think Fadra is, Fadra's probably that person. I mean, it makes sense for them to turn to someone who is not just somebody who's been on housewives before and like knows about that. But Fadra is like primed, ready to go. She's current talent in the Bravo stable. She knows. She needs. knows what the job is going to do. She's going to go in there kind of with like the full briefing,

I'm sure, from production. And like, I think that they will be able to get a lot out of her in probably not that long of filming. And then we'll see what we get. I don't think we're, I would be surprised if we see this show before the end of 2024. So, you know, we've got a little bit of time to kill before it comes back. But thankfully, we have other stuff coming down the pipeline. I was looking at the calendar yesterday and I'm like, we don't have premiere dates for really anything yet. But knowing that Potomac is done filming, Salt Lake is done filming, New York is done filming. Now Southern Charm is done filming. There is a lot of material, Beverly Hills done filming.

So there is the fall, unless they really just decide to torture us, the fall should be looking good. So good, so good. Everything you want for summer is at Nordstrom Rack. now and up to 60% off. Stock up and save on the brands you love like Vince, Sam Edelman, frame and free people. Join the Nordi Club to unlock exclusive discounts,

shop new arrivals first, and more. Plus, buy online and pick up at your favorite rack store for free. Great brands, great prices. That's why you rack. Girl, winter is so last season. And now Springs got you looking at pictures of tank tops

with hungry eyes. Your algorithm misfeeding you cutoffs. You're thirsty for the sun on your shoulders. That perfect hang on the patio sundress. Those sandals you can wear all day and all night. And you've had enough of shopping from your couch. Done hoping it looks anything like the picture when you tear up on that envelope. It's time for a little in-person spring treat. It's time for a trip to Ross. Work your magic. The other news to get into before we tackle some listener questions is Carl Radke's non-alcoholic sports bar, which Lindsay said, Lindsay said would never happen. Couldn't be. Well, it's been soft launched in Carl's phrasing on Instagram. And speaking of soft, the title, the name of the non-alcoholic

location is soft. It's the soft bar and cafe. And according to the Instagram, what's the description, the profile, it's a non-alc bar and cafe for mindful consumption. And it also says that it's popping up around New York this summer and coming soon to Brooklyn. Carl doesn't really strike me as like a Brooklyn kind of guy. So this is interesting to me. Not to get to like, you know, inside baseball New York neighborhood talk. but I am a little bit like, I feel like if you're going to have a bar in Brooklyn, like it makes sense for the face of the bar to be somebody who just kind of like is a Brooklyn person.

And I don't think that Carl and Lindsay's like $13,000 like, what is it? Like Kipps Bay apartment really screams, you know, trendy Brooklyn spot to me. But I could be wrong. But the thing that people were really up in arms about is the name here. Because soft, you know, for. First, it could be a reference to the idea that if alcohol is hard, you know, Mike's hard lemonade or a, you know, hard liquor, that this is soft. You know, we're going to have macktails. We're going to have non-alcoholic beer. We're going to have macho lattes. I don't

know what we're going to have, but it's going to be soft. It's going to be gentle on the body, gentle on the spirit. But also, soft is famously what Carl was asking for. from his partner Lindsay on the most recent season of Summerhouse, he just wanted her to be soft and tender and gentle. And that was that was not what Lindsay was offering up to him. And it did seem like him asking for this from her was a little bit just like, yeah, it's great to say what you need from your partner. But also like, we're not going to stop having a conversation we need to have

just because you're like, maybe be softer. Maybe. can you just like can you just love on me a little bit so we think it's a little strange that the the aesthetic of this bar and cafe which first of all people are like so it's a glorified coffee shop and i don't like i don't really have an issue with the concept itself like it or not non-alcoholic drinks are like i mean i do it's a good thing that non-alcoholic drinks are like available but the idea of like bougie moktails. Like if you go to a bar, like a nice cocktail bar in New York, if a cocktail is like $18 and then they have a moktail section of the menu,

trust and believe those mottails are going to be like $14. Like the moktail isn't just like a glass of juice. I mean, it might actually just be a glass of juice, but they're certainly not just charging you for a glass of juice. Well, actually a glass of juice in New York is like eight bucks. If you live in the Midwest, stay there. You'll come to New York and you will be horrified by the prices we are paying for the absolute bare minimum. But anyway, no, I think that it is smart that they've added this like cafe vibe to it. Because to be honest, even if you're putting out the highest quality mocktails and you're charging people 15 bucks for them, which I believe they probably will, if this is anything like something about her, they're not going for like the budget friendly play here. but I think that adding the cafe, knowing that you could go there and maybe get a sandwich or like a, you know, some bar snacks or whatever.

I think that'll make it a little bit more of like a food and beverage destination versus just like, oh, I can't wait to go to this bar and drink a non-alcoholic beer. I think that's like a good pivot. I do feel like the aesthetic that is portrayed in this Instagram, there are like three pictures so far. One of them is just of like a cardboard coaster. So, you know, I don't know if the space actually exists yet in terms of the aesthetic. But it's very brown and like beige. And it's that kind of like millennial color palette font vibe where it's like you feel like you would see an ad on the subway for like a toothpaste company. But it's like organic toothpaste and it comes in a biodegradable container.

and like, I thought that the idea here was a non-alcoholic sports bar. I think that's how Carl described it on the season of Summerhouse. And like, it's not giving sports. It's giving like Earth Cafe, you know, like brunch spot with a macktail. And I don't, I mean, maybe for like the Summer House girly audience, that's somewhat of a fit. But I do think when you think about like the lover boy brand, like they're going out to real bars and rooftops and they're having, you know, the lover boys are in the like metal bucket and you're like grabbing one out of the ice and

you're like cracking it open. And I feel like this feels like a much more of like a lifestyle kind of play. And I'm like, I want to go to like a fun bar and not drink. I want to go somewhere and watch the game and not drink. I don't want to be like at another annoying Brooklyn brunch spot where I'm overpaying for a non-alcoholic beverage. So I think the branding, the branding might need some work. But hey, I won't knock it until I've tried it. And of course, I would try it with an invitation. So Carl, hit me up. Anyway, let's get into questions. Like I said, you guys really came through. And first of all,

the question that I got by far the most is just, what are we doing with Jersey? And look, I know. And by that, I mean, I don't know. And by that, I mean, nobody knows. This is a question. I just picked one because, again, like I said, lots of you asked this. But I thought this is from Nick Cagiano on Twitter or X, if you're nasty. Truthfully, if you were in charge of R-H-O-N-J casting, how would you handle it for next season? Who would you keep? Pink Slip, Upgrade, et cetera. I've always been of the mind that healthy, evolving ensembles make a show survive rather than one or two people.

I think this is like a spot-on read of what I think makes an ensemble show survive too. So that's kind of why I pulled this one out of the pile. And before I get into my thoughts about this, I want to share what Andy said on the radio this week because we're always getting Andy on the radio making sort of vague comments about Jersey. But something he said in this one made people's ears perk up a little bit more. And basically a fan had called into the show and was just complaining, complaining, complaining about the season of Jersey. And he was like, babe, like we've said we're, we're.

We've said changes are coming. We know. We know it's not working. But this is the quote. We are rebooting the show. We're going to reboot it. We're going to do something different. We're going to see what we do.

We'll see, I don't know, maybe just all fresh faces. And so here's the thing. Andy said this quote and people were really fixating on those last three words. All fresh faces. And all of a sudden, on Twitter, everywhere, I'm seeing Andy announces full cast reboot. Everybody's getting fired. Everyone must go. Real Housewives of New Jersey is getting New York treatment. All the ladies are going to be fired. We're going to have a brand new cast for season whatever's next. The numbers,

I just can't. But I don't think those are the three words in this quote that are the most relevant. The three words that I focused on immediately are, I don't know. Andy doesn't know. He just said it. And I don't think anybody knows. And you know what? I don't think they're in that much of a hurry to figure it out. because look, we've got one more episode of Jersey this weekend, the finale. And then we've got one glorified, you know, Zoom webinar of the ladies watching the finale. No reunion, it's over. They've done and dusted. They don't have to think about this season really anymore.

And then I don't think they're going to be in any big rush to get this show back into production. because if you look at the other franchises that have been through, whether it's a hard reboot like New York had, whether it's a little more of a retooling like Atlanta's getting this season, even O.C. They are taking their time with these shows. They are happy to let things breathe for a few months. I mean, Miami is a well-oiled machine, and they haven't filmed a fucking minute this year. I don't know why. Again, I have a broken record.

I know. But with Jersey, I don't think that it's likely that there's going to be Real House House of New Jersey filming happening until early next year, probably at the earliest. I would be, I think right now, I would say it's like 50-50, whether we get a new season of Real Housewives of New Jersey at any point in 2025. I just think the way that these shows work, if they know that they have big changes to make, they're not going to think about that until the chips have fallen, until things have settled. I think they are going to look at the fan reaction to the way this season ends.

I don't think that's going to be the only thing they're looking at. I don't think they're just taking a watch what happens live poll and casting the show based on that. But I also don't think they're really doing anything right now. The way that casting works, they're not, they're almost never doing it as early as we act like they are. And for Andy to straight up say, I don't know, maybe it'll be all fresh faces, but maybe it won't. And so I think how would I handle it for next season? I don't want to just like avoid this question. I again, I think the finale is going to be really interesting.

But I would say, I would say keep Dolores. I think that, you know, if anything, if anybody can work with anyone, I think that's Dolores. And in that vein, I would probably say keep Jen Fessler, even if it's as a friend. I think anybody that's kind of neutral right now is probably somebody that we want on the show. I think today, if I had to make the call, I would say you can get rid of Teresa and Melissa. I think we have gotten to a point where I personally am happy to admit that I like Melissa more than I like Teresa, but I don't think that this show would crumble into the ground if Melissa wasn't on it. And I don't think that it would crumble into the ground if Teresa wasn't on it. I mean, I just talked on Monday's episode about how Teresa spent her whole season teasing this bombshell about Margaret that then was like a little firecracker that you buy at the corner store on the 4th of July.

It didn't go off. And so I think that Teresa kind of, she showed her hand a little bit. It didn't pan out. And I think that I would be okay with both of them leaving. I would keep Margaret. I know that Margaret is controversial. I think that Margaret and Dolores are a fun little pair up. I think Margaret can mix it up with Jen Fessler a little bit.

I would keep Rachel and Danielle because I think, frankly, we need fresher faces on this show. And I think they've both proven in their first two seasons that they have the juice, even if you don't love them. I think they are good housewives. I think we've seen enough from Jackie. I think we've probably kind of come to the end of the road with Jennifer. there's all that stuff kind of, you know, off the show with the fan accounts and all of that. And she was finally allowed on Watch What Happens Live. So she's out of like publicity jail just a little bit.

But I just think like in terms of getting a fresh start, I think it would be hard to do that with Dolores or with Jennifer still on the show. So yeah, I mean, I guess I'm kind of arriving at this in real time. I mean, I did prepare for this. But I think that I would probably get rid of Teresa, Melissa, Jenner. Jennifer and Jackie and kind of start with that unit, find a couple new people. I think if Dolores has any friends, they could be something to look at. I think Danielle and Rachel, obviously, as like the newer women in the group, I'd be interested to see some of their friends. Maybe somebody that the cast doesn't know that well could be kind of like an interesting

dynamic to bring. But yeah, I think that's where I would land. And I think that might, in terms of like the discourse, I think that might be like the, the easiest way to just kind of like move on. But I don't know. And Andy doesn't know either. And remember that. Andy doesn't know. When you finally find your thing, you want the whole world to know about that thing.

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Learn more at Windows.com slash student offer. While supplies last, ends June 30th, terms at AKA.m.m.S. College PC. Somebody asked, this one just made me laugh. Has there been a more annoying house husband than Sergio? I love it. Just the matter-of-factness of this. I don't know. Annoying, maybe not.

I think there have been worse house husbands, certainly. Like in terms of toxicity, in terms of bad vibes, in terms of seeming just kind of like douchebags, we've seen much worse. I mean, think of, think of Jim Bellino in Alexis's first run on OC. Think of Marquesie. What's Amber Marquesie? Is it Jim Marquesie too? What's with the gyms? No gyms.

No, Jim Edmonds? Fuck that. No more gyms. That's. We should be able to stick to that. Guys, just don't fuck a gym. It's not going to go well. Somebody's going to be like, Jim, so-and-so is amazing.

All of those, yeah, just bad guys. And I grew up rooting for Jim Edmonds as a St. Louis Cardinals fan. And so do you know how hard it was to see on Real Housewives of Orange County and subsequently that he was like an asshole? It wasn't fun. But Sergio, yeah, it's tough. And I think if he was. was a little bit less present on the show.

I think that he could come across really, um, really sweet and really earnest in a way that we don't, we don't get a lot of husbands on housewives who are like, golden retriever energy, just kind of like really lovable. And I think that Sergio like is, but just like it's a little too much.

And also you can, the way that it feels for Caroline like it's too much, I'm like, okay, it's one thing if you guys have this dynamic that's working for you and I find it a little bit much, but I don't think Caroline likes it either. And so I'm like, yeah, it's, it's a little much. I was extremely relieved that he did not actually go on the trip to Bali because when he showed up at the airport, I was like, you've got to be fucking kidding me.

We cannot be doing this. We just can't. But Sergio, you know, good guy. I've met him. He seemed nice. This one, I really like random but fun. Rank each house-wise. City's Season 2, which had the best and worst. This was fun because I feel like everybody, there's always like, what's your favorite franchise, who's what's the power ranking right now, who's having the best season. People talk about season one. Season two, this was interesting. I had to dig back a little bit because to get my memory jogged, it's been a long time since I've seen a lot of these season two seasons two, if you will. So some of these I'm a little fuzzy on. So if there are specific moments I'm not remembering or that I don't include, that's okay.

Feel free to let me know. Maybe in a five-star review, let me know what your favorite season two is of a housewives franchise. But what I settled on, I think bottom of the, bottom of the rung, oh, C, it just wasn't, it wasn't like a real housewives show yet. It was before Tamara's arrival. The seasons were still kind of disjointed. Joe was still on season two. She got dumped by Slade at the end of the season, so I guess that's fun.

But just like, it wasn't really like a factor yet. This might be a hot take. My next worst one, I think is Rony. Season two of Roney, it was, we met Kelly Ben-Simone, which, you know, very important, of course, running in the street. Can't endorse it, but I do enjoy watching her. It just wasn't, it wasn't that special of a season. They didn't take any big trip that I don't think. A lot of charity events, fashion shows.

It was when New York was still very like, we're on the Upper East side and we're doing Upper East Side things. And there are a lot of moments within that that are like funny or enjoyable and kind of, it feels like it's almost like voyeuristic in a way because you're watching this like society thing that you're not invited to that you wouldn't normally be privy to. But it's just in terms of like drama and stuff, it's not like an all time season. And New York certainly has better. And then I said Potomac, not a super memorable season.

Monique arrives in season two. So we get her telling Josel she has four homes. Great moment. It was like a decent season. I think Potomac was kind of on an upward trajectory. And I think by sort of like season three, four, five was when it really started to peak. Candice arrived. Cherise left.

And it was kind of on the way to where it was. Oh, also I just like forgot to do Dallas. I think Dallas season two was good. I don't know. Sorry ladies. I also didn't include Dubai because I'm like, it's airing right now. And also it's just not enough material. Atlanta, kind of middle of the road. I think season two of Atlanta is a little slept on. It's Candy's first season. So she has that like spiky red hair, which is fun. She and Kim are like working on music together. This is when we get Don't Be Tarty for the party, which obviously iconic. Also, the she by shiree original run. The fashion show with no fashions. That's season two of Real Housewives of Atlanta. alone that I think makes it iconic. This is like Nini and her prime. Salt Lake City, it's up there. Season two, Jen Shaw's arrest, just iconic.

You know, there's no way to, there's no way to understate the, the iconicity of the beauty lab and laser parking lot, raid by the feds. Season two is a little weird other than that, though. This is when we have Jenny Wynn, who ended up being a racist flop. Angie Harrington is like chomping at the bit to get in there and it never really takes off for her. Mary skipped the reunion this season. That was annoying. This is, yeah, there's a lot going on. But we have, you know, Meredith in the bathtub and Vale finding out about Chen Shaw's arrest, which is a lot of fun.

Jersey season two, really great. This was Danielle's last stand, Danielle Stob. She flamed out after the season. She had big drama with Teresa, with the Manzo's, with Ashley, Jack Glend's daughter. This is when she was like chasing her through the brownstone, like ripping out her extensions in the parking lot. Really, like fake and square tits. Really great. Kim, Kim G was in this season. Shout out to Kim G. I don't know where she's at, but I hope she's doing well. Dina left halfway through that season, though. So it's a little weird. Like you only have four housewives at a certain point. And I don't know if that's sustainable. But the best season two, I think, from my for my recollection this morning, it's got to be Beverly Hills. This was classic Beverly Hills.

You still have the full original cast. And then in season two is when you meet Brandy Glanville as a friend and also Dana Pam Wilkie. The $25,000 sunglasses, the game night where brandy's on crutches, the slut pig. Like great, great, great, great classic Beverly Hills stuff. But this is, it's crazy. This is the season that they filmed. And then like a month before it premiered was when. Taylor's husband, Russell, committed suicide. So they re-edited some of the season. There's this like really,

I mean, there's a darkness to this season that is, it's kind of shocking to watch. And knowing where Taylor kind of, where her trajectory takes her, I think is maybe a little easier to watch because you know that she's going to be okay and Kennedy is going to be okay and all that. But man, just like a wild time, this was like Camille's kind of readjustment after season one aired and everybody was like, like Camille's evil. But yeah, just a great classic season. Beverly Hills, I think more than most franchises, kind of hit the ground running and didn't have that kind of weird first season where everybody was kind of getting their sea legs. Like if you look at, if you look at Potomac, if you look at Dallas, if you look at even, you know, Jersey, Atlanta, all of those franchises, season one and maybe

even season two are a little bit like we're all still, we got training wheels a little bit, we're learning how to do this. There's probably not that many episodes. Season one of Beverly Hills is like long. Season one of Beverly Hills is the dinner party from hell. These ladies from day one knew what they were doing. Kim and Kyle in the limo. I mean, that's season one, but season two, also great. Great question. That was fun. What a little walk down memory lane. Now I'm like, I need to rewatch season two of every Housewives franchise. This one, pretty easy. What are the top three iconic moments across all Housewives franchises that have aired this year. I gotta be honest, there's not a lot of Housewives to choose from this year.

Beverly Hills and Miami were still airing at the beginning of the year. So one of my three is the Real Housewives of Miami gondola ride from hell in Mexico City. When Gertie was having her health problem, when Lisa was freaking out over not being able to find her lip gloss, when there's just like a full on meltdown happening in this like island of the dolls. Just truly chaotic. I feel like we've already sort of memory hold this in a way that I can't abide. But that was great. That aired like end of January, February.

And also at the beginning of the year, reality vantis. I mean, that's the one. The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City trip to Bermuda. January was a ripe time for Housewives this year. And it has been a bumpy one since then. I couldn't really I couldn't really stir up much love for Jersey this season. I don't think the top three moments. I don't think it needs to be represented. So this might feel like kind of a cop out because OC just started. But I'm going to say the Shannon and Alexis of it all. I think is that first scene,

there's the door, Shannon Bedore yelling at the at the Balboa Bay Club and the women crowding the window to be able to watch them. You know, I hope OC hasn't peaked yet this season, but I think right now that's up there. Yeah, God, we need some more iconic moments this year. This won't do. And then I think to round it out, got a lot of great questions. I don't want to go too long with this. But this one, it made me think. And it also made me a little scared because the question is,

if Andy wants to take a sabbatical, who are the top three Bravo Labs that you want hosting reunions? This is from KM. Cookie on Instagram. I was racking my brain because I was like, okay, the first one came to mind. writer Kate Chastain. First of all, what are we doing with Kate Chastain? Since she left below deck, she was on the group chat, whatever. She's been on traders twice. We got to find like a home for Kate Chastain. And that can't be watching below deck with Captain Lee and like recapping it.

That's not, we need something a little more like mainstream. Kate Chastain, I think would probably be the answer, but you asked for three. Realistically, it would be somebody who wasn't a Bravo Lab. That's just the right answer. but wouldn't it be kind of fun of Heather Debrough hosted a reunion? Because I feel like she's, I feel like she's like impartial enough. She doesn't care enough about this stuff. She'd be like, I'm sorry, you're fighting about what? What is this?

Where am I here? I'm not getting paid enough for this. I think that Heather would be mostly fair, but would also offer a little bit of commentary, a little bit of side eye, a little bit of eye roll. She would really be, you know, giving us the reactions that we want. And then the third one I came up with, just for fun, Rin Whitfield, I feel like she'd have fun at a reunion. She'd be like getting the tea from everyone.

She'd be there for a good time. I feel like we'd be laughing. The vibes would be high. When I was coming up with my answers for this question, I was like, oh, there must be someone that I'm not thinking of who's like, like maybe there's a man who's like, Andy vibes, kind of fun, like has their shit together, knows about Bravo. And I just, I couldn't think of a damn thing.

I was like, Reza, no, not quite right. None of the, I don't know. There was that rumor that at BravoCon two years ago that Andy was going to like step down and appoint Craig Conover as his like successor on Bravo, which was like a stupid rumor to start with. But also I'm like picturing Craig hosting a housewives reunion, that's a disaster. Nobody wants that. If you want that, look in the mirror. Ask yourself the hard questions. But yeah, I mean, if Andy wants to.

take a sabbatical, man, we're in trouble. And people complain. People are like, Andy's, Andy's not nice. Andy's not fair. Andy built this. You know, it's like, be grateful for what you have. But if you're not, it's okay. I love you too. This episode is brought to you by Angry Orchard. Picking the right drink for your party can be overwhelming. The grocery store coolers are just spilling with different options and it can be tough to please. everyone. That's why my go-to is Angry Orchard Hard Cider. They have a variety of offerings for any taste, and they're all crazy crisp and madly refreshing. This summer, I've been trying to switch up my drink choices a little bit, and Angry Orchard has so many great options. They always have the right

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honest. I did not watch this whole season of Love Island USA. I spent a lot of time watching Bravo. And I also, I do my best to have a life outside of watching Bravo. And so watching like six hours a week of Love Island USA is a tough ask for me. Unfortunately, I have heard, though, that this season was by far the best season of Love Island USA. And I don't know if that was because of Ariana's hosting gig, but certainly she benefited from it because this season, it was breaking ratings records on peacock. It was what everyone was talking about. I had co-workers coming up to me being like, please, please, can we talk about Love Island USA? And it pained me to say that I wasn't caught up. But Ariana, it's so funny because for such a long time, Love Island USA was like the ugly step sister

of Love Island UK, that people would be like, oh my God, do you watch Love Island? And you'd be like, oh, which one? And they're like, UK, obviously, the US one is like lame and you can skip it. and they literally did their COVID season on like the pool deck of a hotel in Vegas, bleak stuff. But this season, this season, Love Island USA in Fiji, it just popped off every week, every, every day. People were talking about the show nonstop. And Ariana spent the whole time in Fiji. She was turning out looks.

She was living her best life. Following her on Instagram over the last month and a half has just been like, I've been so jealous because it's like, you are living your best life. You're on the beach. When you're not filming, you're just hanging. hanging out by a pool, by a beach, her boyfriend came and visited. Just like truly the gig of a lifetime. And I don't know if she will be back to host next season. But if she wants to, I have a feeling they'll have her back because it literally, it's kind of like everything she touches is turning to gold right now.

And as we speak, as you're listening to this, Ariana Maddox, it doesn't stop. She's already back in New York and she's back in Chicago on Broadway for the entire month of August. Obviously when she was in Chicago earlier this year. It must have been selling well. It must have been making money because for them to invite her back essentially right away. She took some time off. She filmed a reunion. She went to Fiji for however long. And she's straight back on Broadway. I think she had like one week of rehearsals to get back in. It's wild to me. As somebody who grew up doing musical theater, the fact that you can just be in Fiji one week hosting Love Island USA and then be back starring in a Broadway show the following week, it's pretty mind-blowing. And I'm glad that she has this month to, to, you know,

rekindle her connection with the Broadway stage. But then I really got to wonder, what's next? What's next in the life of Ariana? Are they getting back into filming Vanderpump Rules this fall? We do not know yet. And even if they are, will she return? I don't know. I don't have a crystal ball. I don't know what she's thinking about Vanderpump Rules. I don't know if she's thinking about Vanderpump Rules. And I think that's the biggest flex of all is that at this point, does she need it? Does she want it. Who cares? She's very busy. She's booked and busy and I can't wait

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Dot com slash locations. Angry Orchard Cider Company, LLC. Angry Orchard. Please drink responsibly. Angry Orchard is a hard cider with other natural flavors. Thank you so much for all these questions. This was really fun. We got to do this more.

And, you know, based on what's happening in the schedule, perhaps we will. Stay tuned. But thank you so much for listening. to rate review and follow the show wherever you listen. You can follow us on Instagram at Bravo by Betches. If you have more questions, anything evergreen especially, these are just fun to talk through. Slide into the DMs, leave in a five-star review, wherever you want to just like chit-chat. I'm down to do it. But until next time, be cool. Don't be all like uncool. Mention It All podcast is produced by Dylan Hafer and Bell Roman. Editing by Bell Roman,

social media by Dylan Hafer and Candace Maniga, guest booking by Ali Friedlander. VP of podcast is Chris Allen. And be sure. to follow Bravo by Betches. All. Pay off your home, travel for life, drive a Ferrari. In celebration of the world premiere of the Monopoly big board buck slot machine by aristocrat gaming, Yamava Resort and Casino at San Manuel

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