REAL HOUSEWIVES OF BEVERLY HILLS – 2/13/12

I don’t really have an opinion on all this. Russell certainly had a history of abusive (physical and otherwise) behavior with the past women in his life, and there’s no reason to believe it didn’t continue with Taylor. So I assume there’s a lot of truth in all of this. I also would not be surprised if there’s a certain amount of “Million Little Pieces” creative manipulation of details so as to create a better narrative for the story. And overall I think publication of the book is self-serving and it’s silly to pretend otherwise. In my opinion, which of course does not matter to Taylor, it just makes matters worse for his kids, who as minors are at the mercy of what the adults in their life choose to do and how they elect to conduct themselves. I have no idea what I would do in her situation, but I like to think I’d take a different road. And that’s all I have to say about that.

So let’s wrap this up with a bow, shall we?

The scene opens on our faux drawing room, and I don’t think I have quite appreciated the size or exuberance of the purple rug before this moment. It’s mighty mighty, just letting it all hang out, that rug. Our final, final, final finale of the reunion offers four themes:

1. What’s left to discuss about Taylor and Russell
2. Dana/Pam is a bag of monkeys
3. Mauricio is Manly
4. Kim is Sober

Let’s begin with what’s left to discuss about Taylor and Russell. She offers us these few remaining nuggets:

· Russell recorded her day-to-day activities on small tape recorders affixed under her desk. I am picturing the kind of dictating device my colleagues occasionally use. Did it ever snap off when it ran out of tape?
· Russell also coerced her into taking a lie detector test, and then accused her of knowing how to fake it or paying off the test guy when she passed. Said test was about her “relationships”.
· After an evening with another couple, Russell appeared to leave to go home but instead hid in the bushes. When the male half of the couple offered to help Taylor leave Russell (her response was to ask them to “take care of Kennedy” if something happened to her), he jumped out, attacked them all, threw everyone in the pool (including the dog), nearly drowned Taylor, and at least the male friend required an ambulance, plastic surgery, and new veneers. No confirmation from these friends (as far as I can find, unless it’s in the book) about these events. Charges were not filed because Taylor asked them not to, as she didn’t know how she and Kennedy would survive. Financially? Or literally?
· Taylor explains the disagreement with Camille about whether or not she exaggerated what Taylor had said about the abuse as semantics over whether Russell had “broken” her jaw (as Camille said) or “dislocated” it (as apparently had occurred). Russell seems to have thought that as he had merely dislocated the jaw, they could make Bravo redact the segment in which Camille said he had “broken” it, and that’s what all that was about. Oh.