The three-part reunion for the Real Housewives of Atlanta wraps up, making season 16 one for the books. Shamea and Porsha continue to be at odds, citing a friendship full of cracks. The women are hopeful that this longstanding bond between Porsha and Shamea can heal, but some things are hard to come back from. When the Atlanta men join the set, Charles sets the record straight and shuts down rumors that have long been swirling.
Despite Porsha’s recent birthday post for Shamea, things are not “hunky dory” (thanks, Kathy Hilton) between the once-close friends. Posting about Shamea’s mom seems to have set Shamea off, and the backstory unravels, explaining just how things got so ugly.
Shamea’s mom and Porsha’s mom were best friends in the childcare industry. When Porsha’s mom’s business was going into foreclosure, Shamea’s mom allegedly swooped in and bought the business without discussing it with anyone. The beef only grew when Shamea spoke about their friendship with the other ladies.
Brit was the one who ratted Shamea out for showing Porsha’s text messages and for venting about her friendship with Porsha. Drew pipes up and explains that it seemed as though Shamea WANTED to share how she felt about Porsha — no one primed her to divulge into their friendship. Shamea made the girls “pinky swear” not to repeat what was said because she knew that if it got back to Porsha, there would be a problem. And here we are.
Porsha is annoyed because even their private friend group heard that Shamea said she did not want Shamea to be on the show. Andy disproves Shamea’s thoughts, reminding her that Porsha has always wanted her bestie to have a peach.
They continue to bicker about things from as far back as 2016 with Kandi, but through it all, Porsha claims she has never “disparaged” their friendship. Shamea promises that she never came on the show to sabotage Porsha.
Shamea felt as though Porsha was distancing herself from her, which is sad because they once had a strong bond. Kelli, a new ally to Shamea, claims that their friendship is real, unlike the new duo Porsha and Brit, which seems a bit calculated.
Cynthia feels like the healing between Shamea and Porsha has yet to happen and begs them not to throw their friendship away. In the future, Andy wants Shamea to vocalize her issues, as it would save a lot of headaches.
Drew now has her children in therapy, and it seems to be helping as she navigates her divorce from Ralph. Ralph is all over the place — one minute posting against her father’s legacy and disrespecting Drew’s mom on social media, and then the next minute creating cooking videos with Drew. Ralph is still court-ordered to the basement, but Drew explains he did have another woman down there recently.
When it comes to Drew’s divorce, it is interesting that there is not as much compassion from the other ladies. Kelli claims she wanted to connect with her, but when Drew did not buy something from her event, it rubbed her the wrong way. Drew clarifies that she DID purchase, but at a later date…
Shamea gets called out for twisting Drew’s words to Porsha. Oddly, Shamea owns being Porsha’s lapdog — in fact, she points out various times in which she behaved like one. She set up the Porsha/Ralph meeting (a petty and inconsiderate move).
Drew’s dating life is still a mystery. Dennis is not Drew’s type, and despite being on the phone with Ty for 3,000 minutes, she claims they are just friends. The same goes with Black, although when Drew hands out hookah from his business, it seems like more than just a promo…
The men of Atlanta make their entrance. Dennis is not matching with Porsha, and Ralph has a shirt on. Shamea’s husband is home with the kids, but Charles “the enforcer” is there, and he does a helluva job shutting down the women.
Dennis claims to have had a small conversation with Porsha about working with Drew and states he had a chat about it with Ralph. Dennis denies telling Porsha that Drew was trying to sleep with him. According to Ralph, Drew said that Dennis was trying to “holler at” her, but Drew calls him out for lying and playing the victim. Speaking of hollering, apparently Dennis DID talk to Brit in the past, but remains cagey when asked about Kelli.
Ralph denies that the woman Drew hinted at came INSIDE the house, but because they were working on a fitness program, it all happened outside. Right. Ralph just wants Drew to be who she is off camera, but Drew wants Ralph to back up his actions and quit tweeting things about her mom.
Charles explains that he does not put on for the cameras. He showed up for Angela and claims that he never hid the fact that he had a wife. Charles shuts Shamea up really fast, considering he did not know her, and so she could never say she did not know he had a wife.
Phaedra talks about Charles’ past relationship with Sheree and points out that she has been in his presence. According to Angela, Phaedra is just being shady, especially when she made the statement about “the secret wife of Charles Oakley.” Charles reminds the ladies that he is the only husband on the reunion set and questions where all their husbands are. Regarding Charles’ “outside baby,” he explains that it was just miscommunication thanks to Wendy Williams.
Charles states that the incident at Madison Square Garden definitely put a strain on their marriage, but he thanks therapy and Angela for staying with him as he navigated his feelings.
Kelli wonders what her ex-husband told Ralph and points out that Drew should be grateful to have Ralph since he still takes care of his children, despite the impending divorce.
The season 16 reunion ends with some closure. Drew and Porsha are in a much better place. Kelli knows she has to protect her friendships more than ever, and she really hopes that Shamea and Porsha can rekindle theirs. Phaedra refers to it as a “wild two weeks,” and Angela thanks all her “fan-gelas.”
Cynthia’s guidance helped the group stick together, Shamea understands that she needs to be more open about her feelings, and Porsha refers to the season as “transformative.” She hates the way things went with Shamea, but she states that she does love everyone on these couches. Because Andy did not come to Porsha’s birthday party, she has decided to add him to the fun with some fans.
Shamea choreographs a quick dance for Andy, and he even attempts to twerk, leaving the group in giggles. All in all, it’s a good way to end the reunion.
-1751518960-q80.webp "Y&R Twist: Holden’s Loyalty Is Tested — Will Claire Be the One to Pay the Price?")
