Much to our relief, a feud between Vicki Gunvalson and Kelly Dodd is finally brewing
On the heels of the worst season of Real Housewives of Orange County ever, the first ladies of Bravo are making a concerted effort to shake things up for Season 13. Viewers around the country were heard applauding and cheering as Lydia McLaughlin and Peggy Sulahian announced their departures, while Meghan Kind Edmonds has confirmed she’s going to back to St. Louis to dote over her daughter, Aspen King, and prepare for her twin baby boys.
So who’s still behind the gates? We’ve heard that Tamra Judge, Vicki Gunvalson, and the newly single ladies Shannon Beador and Kelly Dodd have begun filming for the new season, and every relationship you thought you knew has already made a 180 since last year.
As seen during the Season 12 reunion, Gunvalson has made amends with Judge and Beador, and this has apparently stood the test of time, as seen in some recent lovey-dovey Instagram comments. Meanwhile, Dodd is taking to Twitter to call Gunvalson a “pig” after the O.G.’s boyfriend Steve Lodge introduced Dodd’s ex to a new woman. Confused yet?
The Morning Breath‘s Jackie and Claudia Oshry wholeheartedly agree that a percolating feud between the shopworn Vicki Gunvalson and outspoken Kelly Dodd would be the saving grace that RHOC needs to win back its fatigued fans.
“It’s just making me realize that the women of Orange County are in tune with what’s necessary,” says Jackie, “because the only thing that can save this show is a [breakup] between Vicki and Kelly.”
We’re willing to cut the blonde and bronzed housewives a break, considering it’s hard to top a season of cancer-scam drama, but Season 12’s snoozefest was a crisis that even Andy Cohen acknowledged during a Radio Andy episode a few months back, hinting that the franchise was in need of a tuneup.
The manufactured storylines from the Sulahian camp, coupled with Lydia McLaughlin dwelling on her husband’s overhyped vasectomy, was enough to make fans to call B.S. on the show’s authenticity while the wives were presumably irked enough to make some lasting changes. Bidding “balls-voyage” to Sulahian and McLaughlin will surely allow for the core cast to unearth deep-seated contention between Gunvalson and Dodd, whose deleted tweet has already made the tabloid rounds.
No word yet on who the new wives will be, but here’s hoping the unconfirmed newbies don’t get in the way of lingering drama between longstanding cast members. Jackie explains, “The problem with bringing in new people is that the fights that have been brewing for years — they get displaced onto a new person, and we don’t get to the core of the issues.”
