What a world. The Real Housewives have seen us through it all—the 2008 financial crisis, Obama’s historic victory, Trump’s presidency, the COVID-19 pandemic—and here we are, at the inception of a second Trump presidency, welcoming in another episode of The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City, a show that premiered the week after he lost in 2020.
There’s a strange comfort to the cinematic universe that Bravo houses. No matter how truly terrible the world is, the Housewives understand better than anyone else the art of compartmentalization. Even though this episode was filmed in the spring, back when Joe Biden was still the candidate and this entire election seemed miles away, it might as well have been filmed today.
RHOSLC exists entirely out of the zeitgeist, in a deeply insular bubble protected by the power of timeless television. After all, the world may exist in a constant state of uncertainty, but at least we can let the joint slay of Heather, Meredith, and Lisa’s trio of terror guide us into a new age. No one looks more at peace than these ladies in their robes surrounded by a fire and the snowy mountains of Salt Lake City.
Though, that’s all a ruse. They each have an ax to grind, as Heather stews over missing out on the Palm Springs trip while Lisa and Meredith prepare for the battle ahead. The hierarchy has shifted, and Bronwyn has found herself in a surprisingly strong position. What was once slated to be a season for the alphas to dominate is now one in which the newbie is driving the narrative—or, flying the private jet, I should say. She loves herself a power trip.
It turns out, Bronwyn was the bossy kid in second grade who kept an eye on things while the teacher went to the bathroom. Away from Salt Lake City, Bronwyn’s lucidity seems to have all but dissipated, leaving behind a delusional chaos that finally matches the energy of her peers. Sure, she’s funny and relatable (if you too have dog poop on your floors and a husband twice your age), but hidden behind that perfect smile and always refined bob is something much more sinister.
Quite like Heather, Bronwyn loves to create a narrative and work her way back, rather than react naturally to the chaos around her, a la Lisa Barlow. On the flight over to Palm Springs, Bronwyn confides in Meredith and Lisa about her strained dynamic with Heather, in which Lisa advocates for Heather’s role as a friend.
To Bronwyn, this means Lisa thinks she’s a two-faced gold-digger, too, and it’s all the ammo she needs to complete her transformation from ally to enemy. It’s abundantly obvious Bronwyn entered the show desperate to excise herself from the Lisa connection, likely in an attempt to prove herself as a true power player. She doesn’t want to be a sidekick like Angie K.—Bronwyn wants to rule the world.
Personally, I’d rather be Angie K. Not only does she have fun in the sun playing a slew of sports with her hunky husband, but against all odds, she snagged center snowflake. She’s the poster child for the perfect Housewives run, unburdened by all of the mayhem around her.
Angie has a good day every day, but her arch-enemy Meredith can’t say the same, fighting her absentee husband for planning to ditch the trip early. It’s reminiscent of Season 1 seeing Meredith and Seth bicker surrounded by their close friends, the Barlows, and it’s a rare moment of déjà vu on this unpredictable program (not just because the editors oddly used the same shot of Meredith shaking her head twice).
It’s kind of nice to be back in a space where the identical twins are radiating above Whitney and her horde of misfits, who vie for approval from the queen bees by prodding them endlessly. This time, Heather and Jen have been swapped out for Angie and Bronwyn, but the end result is the same.
Except, it’s not the same, as Heather still exists, despite Bronwyn’s best attempt to slay her. In fact, cutting Heather from the trip simply creates a vacuum that invites the conversation in her direction. Lisa calls up the bad Mormon for a quick hello, inciting a level of violence in Bronwyn we’ve never seen before.
It’s a great turn of events that Bronwyn is now holding rank with her alleged underlings, despite being a first season Housewife on a cast of pros. Her bravado knows no bounds, and the beast inside of her that has fought so hard to stay hidden has emerged in all its glory.
Like, I don’t know Bronwyn. Maybe they do miss Heather. I know I do! I like Heather Gay and want her presence on this cast trip. I want her to tell me how Palm Springs relates to her as an ex-Mormon finding her way in this world.
For, as strong as Bronwyn seems to find her friendship with Lisa to be, we simply don’t have the context to support the backlash. Neither was ever loyal to the other. Big whoop. Of all Lisa’s most egregious actions, is FaceTiming a friend really in the top 10?
Bronwyn’s brand of delusion is entirely different from Lisa’s, but the two both share a love for being loud and ignoring what the other’s saying. It’s interesting in that sense, as Bronwyn essentially reflects the fighting style of whoever she’s dealing with, last week throwing passively provocative shade Heather’s way, and this week commencing a screaming match with Lisa.
Bronwyn certainly has a point that Lisa has double standards with her friendships. She’s right that Heather is a power player who resents any challenges to her throne. But, she’s still too eager to go to court before setting up a good case, and that’s costing her. Ultimately, she’s not some master manipulator, but a hot-headed, fame-hungry Housewife who wants to fill Monica Garcia’s void and slaughter the RHOSLC establishment. That’s a good thing.
Finally, Bronwyn has come undone. It’s fun and frivolous that she dresses so bizarre, sure, and I certainly admire how she lives in a home some would describe as prison-like in appearance. It’s bold. But RHOSLC isn’t a cast of cutesy little influencers. It’s a group of America’s most morally ambiguous, where each lady proves that those syrupy Salt Lake sodas should be studied for their effect on human nature.
Take, for example, Whitney. Her stance is “if Lisa could just stay out of it, this wouldn’t even be a thing.” Of course, this confessional comes as Whitney confides in Bronwyn, decidedly not staying out of it. Not everyone can float between allegiances with the poker face of Angie K., but there’s truly something hilarious about Whitney’s unsung lack of subtlety. No one lays their cards on the table like the Wild Rose.
Bronwyn’s a bit more complex, and so is her husband Todd, surprisingly. Disgusted by the drama of a cast trip, Todd gives her game away ever so slightly, offering to punt Lisa from the trip for her unruly behavior. It’s not the Housewives spirit, but it’s such a blatant power trip it ends up being captivating.
Bronwyn has her eyes on the prize, and her bloodlust has proven especially blinding. She could’ve stopped after ousting Heather, soaking up the Palm Springs sun in a prideful victory lap. And she could’ve pocketed Lisa’s betrayal, saving it for a prime opportunity to move away.
Instead, she’s gone mad with power, trying to rewrite the rules of cast trip history and prove she’s not one to reckon with. It simply can’t be a coincidence that this cast trip brouhaha comes after Heather decisively kicked Monica out of Bermuda, and off the show in the process. Bronwyn is the fan resentment towards Heather and Lisa personified, coming to serve a powerful mandate against the bourgeoisie.
She’s proof positive no Housewife can stay atop the throne for too long, and even moreso, proof that there’s no rational coalition in this sordid franchise. For, as deluded as Heather has come in drinking her own kool-aid, Bronwyn has entirely ceded the moral high ground. Everyone’s screaming into the void in a tireless pursuit of their own self-interests, and I hope that never changes.
Of course, thanks to the trickery of last week’s preview showing an explosive round table that has yet to air, we do know Lisa survives the attempt to send her home. It’s a bit odd that scene just… wasn’t in this episode, as RHOSLC hardly needs deceptive editing when it’s consistently the best show on Bravo, but what a fitting end to a head-scratching week in America.
Perhaps the bait-and-switch of expectations vs. reality was Bravo’s empathetic attempt to foreshadow the surprise election outcome. Maybe it was the canary in the coal mine. Just like the Housewives, I can delude myself to believe the most outlandish narratives, too.
