Hostile Takeover Takes Center Stage on The Real Housewives of Potomac
At the moment, my favorite non-reality television series is HBO’s Industry. I love it for all the reasons everyone else does, but beyond that, I’m enthralled by the premise of a show led by a woman who we know from day one is committed to improving her life at the world’s expense. She is willing to claw her way to the top by any means necessary alongside a caravan of Machiavellian schemers she calls colleagues and mentors. Without a doubt, Harper Stern is my favorite evil Black woman on television right now. When she peers down in slight aggravation as a client strokes out in front of her, I can only gasp in awe at her and her boho braids of doom.
Gizelle Bryant and the Misery of Poorly Executed Scheming
While Harper represents Machiavellian plotting wielded for maximum enjoyment, Potomac’s Gizelle Bryant shows how the same kind of scheming, when executed poorly, results in misery for everyone involved. It’s remarkable how she can take an incident that rightfully frustrates her, subpar accommodations from the host, and become so insufferable about it that she still ends up in the wrong.
Being annoyed with Angel over hosting failures is completely fair. Sitting in a private jet and berating her for over 30 minutes without allowing a single word in response is not. Her lack of tact and consideration causes her to escalate a solvable issue into something excessive and unpleasant.
Gizelle’s Power Over the Cast
This is the central dilemma of the show. Gizelle is the most propulsive cast member and its anchoring force. Without Karen present to keep her in check, the overall tone of the group bends to Gizelle’s whims. Several women later admit, mostly in confessionals, that the pile-on against Angel was overkill, but very few are willing to say it to Gizelle’s face.
Angel is left to absorb the criticism while attempting to apologize, with Wendy chiming in with unnecessary jabs. The result is not entertaining television but a reinforcement of Gizelle’s position as the gravitational center of the cast for the foreseeable future.
Angel Backed Into a Corner
Angel certainly made unforced errors, but she is now completely cornered. She’s criticized for not being open about her marriage, yet anything she says about her family is dismissed. She’s accused of forming alliances, something every cast member does. She’s dragged for caviar bumps, an existing trend, being labeled unhygienic and classless.
She’s also blamed for trusting staff when told the water was back and for not hearing otherwise from the women. While that’s a hosting failure, it’s far from the most egregious offense imaginable. The punishment simply doesn’t fit the crime.
Delusions of Luxury and the Absence of Karen
All of this outrage would make more sense if Potomac had a reputation for glamorous cast trips, but it doesn’t. The show continually recycles footage from Cannes and Nevis while Gizelle insists her standard is the Four Seasons, a hotel chain we haven’t actually seen her stay in for years.
The cast humors these delusions because no one wants to confront her directly. Moments like this make it abundantly clear why Karen is a necessary oppositional force, someone willing to shut things down before they spiral.
A Trip That Should Have Worked
On paper, Angel’s plans were lovely: a private jet to Aspen, a private whiskey tasting, shopping at Kemo Sabe with a catered lounge, and an extended hangout with Mo. The women even debated whether they valued a friendship with Kyle Richards more than a night with Aspen’s most eligible midlife crisis.
Conceptually, this should have lifted everyone’s spirits. Instead, the women committed to tearing apart every detail. From interrogations about Angel’s marriage during their second meeting to Gizelle staring past her in disgust as she cried, nothing about this was enjoyable to watch. By the time the shopping trip begins, it feels like everyone, including the audience, is ready to go home.
The Final Power Play
As the evening winds down and Angel outlines the next day’s itinerary, Gizelle makes her final move. She announces that the group will go to the Four Seasons and then fly back to Maryland after brunch, putting the decision to a vote. It’s a shameless and unearned power play.
If Gizelle didn’t leave Miami after Mia assaulted Wendy, or Austin when Ashley had them dancing with literal chicken waste while staying in a glorified budget hotel, it’s impossible to believe she can’t tolerate one more day in Aspen. Left unchecked, Gizelle’s power threatens to corrupt her entirely.
Looking Ahead
While most of the season has been genuinely entertaining, this episode highlights the downside of Gizelle’s dominance and sets the stage for Karen’s inevitable return. The trip comes to a miserable end next week.
Cherry Blossoms
Even in an episode that doesn’t focus on Stacey, she steals the spotlight. Accidentally eating her contacts is a truly singular experience, and “20/20 bootyhole” will live rent-free in my mind.
Ashley casually revealing that she met her ex-husband at a “membership lounge” was… enlightening. For a brief moment, it felt like she was trying to reintroduce Mia into the group.
Jassi’s attempts to use her marriage as a reference point consistently trigger secondhand embarrassment. There’s simply no comparison between managing co-parenting logistics for a husband’s extended family and a breastfeeding mother scrambling to adjust childcare.
Wendy’s fashion choices have largely worked, but the stiletto boots were the final straw. Colorado is not a runway. Sensible heels exist for a reason.
Finally, I was genuinely surprised by how affordable a short chartered flight can be. I’m not about to fly to the Hamptons every weekend, but it’s far more attainable than expected.
