Real Housewives of Orange County Season 18, Episode 17 Recap: Trust Your Gut and Tamra Judge

3 weeks ago 3

Welcome to the recap for Real Housewives of Orange County Season 18, Episode 17, “Unfinished Business.” Last week, the ladies were winding down their trip to London. Shannon’s birthday didn’t go as planned, as she had more fallouts than late nights. After getting into yet another fight with Tamra, Shannon decided to cut her losses and head home early on a flight alone back to the OC.

What happened on Real Housewives of Orange County Season 18, Episode 17?

The RHOC ladies are back from across the pond. Shannon left her birthday trip early, which actually kind of sucks but is unsurprising for the mother of three. Nine days later, the women are still confused about how she snuck out of the hotel. Shannon, however, apologized to Gina for her part in the plan to dig up legal information about her. Jenn is engaged, and no one is impressed. The ring is huge, but it reminds me of one of those toy rings you got for surviving a trip to the dentist. But maybe instead of an engagement ring, Ryan could have just paid Jen’s rent.

The Real Housewives of Orange County finale had a lot of moving parts

As the episode starts, we immediately see that Alexis is shopping for an engagement ring. John pops in beside her in their confessional, noting, “I’ve never been more confident in anything in my life. We will be together the rest of our lives.” Now, where have I heard this before? John has a script, and he sticks to it. He verbatim said the same thing to Shannon only a few years earlier.

Bravo editing did this weird chat roulette, which almost made me sick as they quickly flipped from house to house. The editors thankfully stopped at Gina’s home, and she shared that she and Travis are moving forward but ever so slowly. It was sad to see how they both were broken, but the decision to live apart. Travis admits the stuff they have to deal with is complex, calling his ex-wife’s antics “toxic scary, and aggressive behavior.” But Travis still doesn’t believe living apart was a good decision. Maybe Gina is self-sabotaging a bit. And Travis isn’t happy but the two are committed to working it all out. Travis is a solid dude, but I love how Gina still stands behind her decision. To couples therapy, they go!

Party crashes and tacky bridesmaids on Real Housewives of Orange County

I didn’t think the women could pull off the ’80s bridesmaid look, but they did all right. Just like in the 80s, some RHOC icons are making an appearance: Vicki and Jo!! Is this a bit of foreshadowing for the future? Is Jo back? God, I hope so.

Okay, someone has to say it. Heather looks like she is going to Taylor Swift’s concert in her Fearless Era dress choice. If anyone should have nailed tacky, it should have been Alexis. Yet she looks the best in a pretty normal one-shoulder dress. But Jenn—Jenn looks like a Madonna-morphed Barbie. And I’m here for it.

John Janssen has entered Real Housewives of Orange County

Shannon is all about her healthy boundaries. When Shannon says she’s done, she’s done. Tamra hasn’t even said a word to her, and Nine Lemons Beador decides to storm off. Alexis doesn’t care and tells her to have another drink. Thankfully, Shannon doesn’t hear that rebuttal. As if the night can’t get any weirder, it does. Like Ken pulling up to Barbie’s Mlibu mansion, John exits his limo in slow motion like the belle of the ball.

For a man who doesn’t want to film, Johnny J is all about it. And he is wearing the Ferragamo shoes (we don’t see them, but I can sense it). Shannon did okay, though. She didn’t fall apart or crumble. But John has to have the last word as he states, “Shannon absolutely creates a narrative out of one side of her mouth…I just want people not to believe lies about me.” Again, at the end of the day, the guy deserves to defend himself.

The FBI fallout on Real Housewives of Orange County

The finale ends with a whimper but jumps to an ominous three weeks later. Cameras catch Jenn yelling at Ryan for all the tabloid scandals. But the (insert whatever job he does here) doesn’t seem phased as he notes, “Life throws things at you that you can’t control. That’s why it’s called life.” Clearly, the man is unphased.

However, if we look back at the party, we see that Ryan’s friend, Matt, is in attendance. He is the friend Ryan mentioned was having many legal issues a few episodes ago. The RHOC husbands knew to keep their distance and even joked that at any point of the night, the fed could have raided the party. Microphones caught Matt saying, “You know the people I’m friends with, I’m not going to rat on.” Matt then jokingly pointed at Ryan and said, “Yeah, here’s my money launderer.” Naturally, the women are befuddled. Jenn must have some idea of what is going on. She isn’t dumb.

However, one crucial lesson we learned is that Tamra’s gut is never wrong.

The Real Housewives of Orange County continues on Thursdays at 9/8c on Bravo.

TELL US – HOW DO YOU FEEL SEASON 18 WENT? DO YOU THINK JENN WILL MARRY RYAN?

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