What counts as an "explosive" episode of reality TV? What's something that could happen in a "Real Housewives of New York City" finale that we've never seen before? This week, Bravo promised us something original: A shocking, dramatic episode of the RHONY reboot.
Did they deliver? I suppose so—the show's cast members seem authentically shaken by the events in the season finale, enough to cancel their final day in Puerto Rico and head home early, with just one post-vacation scene to tie up loose ends.
But what Bravo failed to deliver, once again, was a compelling reason to keep watching. In fact, the final episode of RHONY season 15 made me feel like shit. It made me think about the difference between pre-baked, TV-friendly drama and actual trauma—something other Housewives franchises have handled with, if not more grace, at least a little more depth and weight. But most of all, it left me with the feeling that all of this is a lot of work—work on the part of the Housewives to reveal and conceal parts of their lives in order to keep audiences following them and brands sliding into their DMs; work on the part of the production team to cobble together a coherent "storyline" for the season; and work on the part of viewers to engage and to try to have fun, because isn't that the point of all of this?
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