Shannon Beador Is Lost on Bravo’s Love Hotel — and It’s Setting Her Up for a Major Emotional Meltdown

On paper, Bravo's Love Hotel sounded like a perfect little paid vacation and escape for Shannon Storms Beador.

A departure from the drama she is so well-versed in on The Real Housewives of Orange County, the new dating experiment seemed as if it could afford the long-time star an opportunity to experience love in a new setting. That is, if she took the challenge for what it's worth.

So far, Shannon's stay at the stunning getaway has been a mix of not understanding the rules of the game, diving too deep into personal trauma without anyone else quite grasping the reality of the situation, and her tepid dip into the dating pool. At the rate she's going, by the time she realizes the point of Love Hotel, she's only going to have herself to blame when she's left alone and hurt in the end.

Was Shannon Storms Beador Ready for 'Love Hotel?'

When the cast was unveiled for the inaugural season of Bravo's Love Hotel, it seemed like an interesting decision to include Shannon Beador in the mix. Originally a part of RHOC since its ninth season, like many other Housewives, Shannon has had a roller coaster of a journey. Whether it was an ill-fated dinner party, being kicked out of Heather DuBrow's home, or her complete annihilation of Alexis Bellino, Shannon's tenure on RHOC has not been short of major moments. But Shannon's story will forever be linked to her toxic and troubled marriage to David Beador. Oh, and then there is the John Janssen of it all. The show had showcased so much of her troubled romances, that many fans were hopeful that Love Hotel would give Shannon a new lease on love.

Shanon has seemingly been afraid of being hurt after the torment that David Beador put her through with his infidelity. And because of this, she hasn't quite been able to play Love Hotel the way it was intended. In the first episode, the quartet of Housewives had to pick a favorite, and Shannon's inability to pick made many ponder whether she was fully open to the experience. Earl "The Pearl" Thompson or Ralph Mastrangelo. It should have been easy! She ultimately will lean toward Earl. But that relationship was doomed when they bickered pettily over his lack of eating vegetables. The tiff exploded until something that should never have escalated. It revealed a part of Shannon that was distant to the experiment. They did acknowledge they were triggered, something dating adults should discuss.

But throughout the first block of episodes, there was a side of Shannon that was exposed. One that some might see as manipulative, self-victimizing, petty, self-centered, and cruel. Shannon, who is present at the hotel as she honored her DUI anniversary, had a very difficult year. She used Love Hotel to celebrate herself. But perhaps she was too willing too soon. To make the situation worse, watching Luann de Lesseps, Gizelle Bryant, and Ashley Darby essentially coddle her is not helping her repair and grow.

How the Shannon Beader-Joel Kim Booster Beef Alters 'Love Hotel'

Now that Love Hotel is out for public consumption, fans have the previously teased feud between Shannon and host Joel Kim Booster to rely on as context to the series. After filming, the comedian shared on his Instagram story, “Just because you’re a pathetic drunk on a reality television show best known for a string of failed relationships and a DUI does not make you a star and does not give you license to treat the people you work with like they are subhuman.” Though he was forced to delete the Instagram story, he did share another linking Shannon to the insult. "Don’t regret it. Hope you screenshot it. Hope she suffers.” Then wrote, “I can’t imagine what John Janssen went through. Poor guy.” For her part, while appearing on The Viall Files, she said, "We all get tired. Each one of the points were like, ‘Ok, I haven’t eaten, I’m exhausted, or I need to walk away,’ but it wasn’t like berating and screaming. All I can say is I didn’t do what he said. I don’t treat people subhuman.”

While he did apologize to the cast, the allegations that she was a terror are not lost. As seen in the first batch of episodes, Shannon has been dealing with the aftermath of her DUI. With filming coinciding with the one-year mark of the incident, the evening triggered her and caused a major reaction to occur. Casting Shannon at that time may not have been the wisest for all parties involved. Though she said it was right for her, what we've seen so far isn't the experiment that was intended. She has teased that she will walk away from someone in the end. Perhaps it's hard to imagine how. And right now, with whom? We've still got a lot of time to go, so maybe a different side of Shannon Storms Beador will emerge.