On this week’s episode of The Real Housewives of Orange County, Vicki and Kelly’s feud went nuclear.
That’s how Shannon described things, at least.
With things between these longtime rivals looking worse than ever, you knew that Kelly would have a lot to say on social media.
Below, you can see Kelly’s opinions about the show, the Tres Amigas, and about Vicki herself.
You can also see that a lot of viewers are starting to agree with Kelly and side with her over her enemies.
Is this Kelly Dodd’s redemption arc?
Kelly is looking less like a menace and more like Vicki’s equal and opposite as this season goes on. Some of her detractors are siding with her.
This week …
On Tuesday night’s The Real Housewives of Orange County, Vicki Gunvalson ended up being carted off in an ambulance.
This was not Kelly’s doing
Unless Kelly was some sort of evil mastermind who tricked the Tres Amigas into drinking, going night-swimming in a hotel pool, and being chased off, Vicki fell all by herself.
Shannon showed her stuff
Specifically, her pair of spanx, which she elected to wear into the pool.
Tamra showed more
Tamra was instantly topless when they reached the pool, even though Vicki went in while basically still dressed.
But Vicki did more than just get injured
Many fans and viewers felt that Vicki really showed herself to be the season’s villain on this week’s episode, between the way that she blew up at Kelly Dodd (screaming that she’s a “slut”) to the way that she spoke about drag performers.
Obviously …
We all knew that Kelly Dodd was going to have something to say about the episode.
Kelly took to Twitter
At first, she just asked fans what they thought of the episode. She received both friendly and hositle reactions, but it became clear that a lot of Real Housewives viewers no longer see Kelly as the unstable villain of the story.
Kelly points out a pattern of behavior
She accuses the Tres Amigas of repeatedly claiming that they fear that she’ll become violent, while seemingly trying to provoke her legendary wrath at every opportunity — even when it doesn’t work. And then after Kelly threatened to get involved in Jim Bellino’s lawsuit against Shannon and Tamra, Vicki fully reaches out to a woman who is suing Kelly.
It’s not just Vicki
When one fan chimes in to tell Kelly that she can’t hold Tamra and Shannon accountable for Vicki’s shady behavior, Kelly says that all three have been in on it — to some degree.
People question the Tres Amigas solidarity
When a fan suggests that Shannon doesn’t agree with Tamra’s actions but goes along anyway so that her career and social life won’t face upheaval, Kelly’s “bingo” reply implies that the fan has hit the nail on the head.
Not like that
Honestly, Kelly’s example is a great reminder that people should never, ever including touching someone else, even indirectly, as part of a prank. If you want to tap on a bell with a magnet, wear it yourself. We understand Kelly’s impulse, but come on, folks.
Here’s where she gets more serious
When a fan accuses Kelly of playing the victim, she replies that she’s merely tired of “pre meditated ambushes” and of being gaslit. “Gaslighting” has become a misused (and overused) term in recent years, and is supposed to refer to deliberate attempts to dismiss someone’s experiences as either mental illness or part of their imaginations or poor memories. It’s an abuse tactic. It’s not the same as rich women being mean to each other.
Kelly maintains her sense of humor
As one fan praised Kelly for keeping her (relative) cool in the face of Vicki’s tirade, another fan noted that Kelly usually goes off. Kelly wants people to see that she’s making progress, at least.
Here’s where we really get into Vicki
A number of viewers were astonished and disgusted by Vicki’s comments about the drag performers and about the concept of drag shows. Vicki could have, you know, asked someone why it’s a thing or kept her opinions to herself, but she didn’t.
Instead, Vicki shocked fans
Even this dog was scandalized (disclaimer: this dog is just adorable and happens to look like this, and was probably not reacting to Vicki sounding a little like a bigot).
Kelly weighs in
We’re glad that she enjoys drag. We’re not sure if Sharon Needles is the best drag queen to use as an example in 2019. You know how RuPaul’s Drag Race no longer offers winners a lifetime supply of Anastasia Beverly Hills cosmetics? That is rumored to be Sharon’s fault. It turned out that Alaska was the real MVP in that couple.
And then there’s a finale teaser
Here, Emily is telling a fan to just wait for the finale for the real drama. Kelly appears to strongly agree.
That’s probably right
Fans won’t have the closest thing to the “whole story” until after the Reunion special ends and the Housewives can finally discuss some things that didn’t make it to air.