Holy first season unseen footage, Batman! After last night’s episode of Southern Charm, I’m sure some residents of the Holy City are thinking, “Holy crap!” Whitney Sudler-Smith is either brilliantly weaving some amazing drama or doesn’t have the final say when it comes to what makes it on (or stays off) the show. Either way, yowsers! After the great bourbon debacle of this decade, Craig Conover has changed direction. His new mission isn’t Gentry, it’s getting to the bottom of Whitney’s intense distaste for Kathryn Dennis. What better backdrop for the ensuing bombshell than Shepard “Shep” Rose’s Blue Ridge Mountain home? Throw in some Thomas Ravenel drunk dancing (to quote a friend, “Seems like a dream…it can’t be real!”), and we’ve got ourselves a stellar installment!
As the Charmers rise and shine in the Lowcountry, Cameran Eubanks is channeling her inner domestic goddess with a crock pot meal while Craig and Shep opt for beers and bar food a fruit plate at Fuel. Craig admits he had a rough night with Naomie after falling from whiskey’s grace. Shep invites Craig to join the crew in Linville and ticks off the guest list. He’s decided not to include Kathryn (even though he’s Mr. Inclusive) after lunching with Whitney and Cameran–they won’t come if she attends. Craig informs Shep that Kathryn is on bed rest, so she won’t be able to come regardless…so an invitation can’t hurt and will only make her feel good. Shep dials up Kathryn who is excited to be invited even though she has to decline. Shep sends up a thank you to the bed rest gods for saving the day. In I’On, Thomas stops in to see Kathryn’s place, and she shares her conversation with Shep. T-Rav responds that he was planning on going, but maybe he won’t since she can’t. Or maybe he’ll just go for one night, nothing major…he’ll play it by ear. He feels the need to be vague when it comes to the details of Shep’s excursion because T-Rav is worried Kathryn will turn into T-Rex if he seems too excited about the trip.
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Cameran is meeting with a therapist to discuss her fears about starting a family even though her husband is ready for a baby. She is trying to figure out if she’s not maternal or if her worries are rooted in anxiety. The therapist asks about Cameran’s relationship with her mother, and Cameran cites her mom as her biggest role model. She worked hard, had her daughters in her thirties, and Cameran respects her mother’s dedication to her career and her family. When asked if she feels like she’d be giving up something or gaining something with a baby, Cameran admits that she likes her life the way it is, and she’s concerned a baby would change it. Ultimately, Cameran reveals she is struggling with control issues which seem to indicate she’s dealing with anxiety. As someone who has struggled with anxiety the better part of my adult life, I can totally relate to the analogy of needing to drive instead of being the passenger. It’s also why I hate to fly, so I apologize if I ever end up next to one of y’all on a plane!
Prepping for his hosting gig, Shep call his mom to discuss the trip. She’s stocked the fridge and scheduled a housekeeper to clean upon their departure, so I’d say she’s prepped very well for his hosting gig. Across town, Landon Clements bikes over to her sister Bam’s house. Over wine, she discusses her plan to have the Internet company to build her website while she provides the content. Her sister refrains from commenting before the conversation turns to Kathryn. Landon doesn’t like to talk badly about anyone, so she pays Kathryn a compliment…she’s very good at being on her back. Ouch, Regina George! Speaking of Kathryn, Craig goes to visit his friend and play Sherlock Holmes. How could two people who used to be such good friends morph into mortal enemies just because one hooked up with the other’s friend? It begs the question that if T-Rav can get over it, Whitney should too, right? Kathryn hints that her relationship with Whitney may have been more than pals who had a one-night stand. She remembers hooking up once with Thomas before basically moving in with Whitney for a week and hanging out with him and house guest Robert (what happened to that guy?). Normally, this would be where it becomes Kathryn’s word against Whitney’s, but Bravo is a sneaky little minx.
Enter the unseen footage from season 1 which shows Kathryn’s clothes littering Whitney’s bedroom floor as Patricia Altschul orders them moved to the laundry room. Whitney is then featured speaking to Robert about his recent slumber party companion and her impeccable lineage. The cameras are always rolling, people! It’s rule number one of reality television, isn’t it? Kathryn asserts she didn’t see Thomas until a week later at the pool party where we first saw their spark, and while she’d been shacking up at Mrs. Pat’s, she only had eyes for T-Rav. Bravo then treats us to Whitney storming down the street the evening of said party after Kathryn left with Thomas. She recalls getting a nasty text from Whitney the next day stating her stuff was outside the house for her to collect. Of course, the viewers were somewhat privy to Whitney imploring Kathryn to stay mum about their tryst when they saw each other at the Carolina Day ball. Whitney claimed he didn’t want to hurt his friend who was now in the throes of a hot and heavy romance with his former fling. Sacre bleu! It all makes perfect sense now. Craig is beside himself for cracking the mystery. Move over, Ned Nickerson, Nancy’s got a new handsome sidekick!
The crew is packing for their mountain weekend when Cameran receives a call from her husband Jason. When he asks who is tasked with driving to Asheville (and then Linville), Cameran explains that Shep, in true Shep fashion, has chartered a party bus. One by one, the ubers convene on Hanover Street with the party goers, and no one is shocked to see how much Craig and Naomie have packed. En route, a few of the Charmers pop open beers, Cameran struggles to stay awake, and Craig tries oh so subtly to find out what’s new with his friends. Unfortunately for Craig, the conversation doesn’t turn to Whitney’s jilted heart, but instead to Bailey, Shep’s kind of, pseudo girl friend who isn’t quite a girlfriend but is more than just a friend. She’s not on the bus because Shep is a firm believer that any girl who is worth his time will be cool with him ghosting for a weekend with no explanation. Craig neglects to tout his intelligence when he mistakes their destination for Nashville. You’re about four hours and two states off, my friend. The gang arrives at the hotel and are met by Thomas who clearly smuggled some of JD’s finest with him on his ride up to North Carolina.
While the group wonders around Asheville, Thomas decides to approach random girls on the sidewalk, questioning their interest in body piercings and the grunge movement. He’s all charm, for sure. As Thomas pickles himself with craft beer, he and Whitney make fun of the scene. Are they at a lesbian establishment? Thomas sure hopes so as they are the best places to get laid. Shep is too engaged in a game of life-sized Jenga to notice his friends cackling. Not surprisingly, the Jenga game invites plenty of “pull it out” jokes to entertain T-Rav. Shep and company continue their bar crawl before meeting up with Shep’s good pal from college (and also his pre-21 identity). JD and Elizabeth join their friends just in time for dinner where Thomas regales the table with his best French accent. Cameran asks Shep’s buddy who he pictures Shep with in the future. He jokes that he doesn’t envision Shep with just one lady, and Cameran sees Landon perk up a bit. Cameran is convinced someone may have a bit of a crush on Shepstradamus.
As the night rolls on, Thomas announces that he wants to make things right with Kathryn, or at least not have her shunned by his friends. Whitney interrupts to say he didn’t come all this way to hear about the dreaded Kathryn…why does T-Rav care so much? Craig interjects that they have children together, so there’s that tidbit, but Whitney is unrelenting. Why so sour, puss? At the next bar, Thomas comes on a bit too strong with a girl he likens to a vampire. She threatens to cut him with a pocketknife before seeking safety from Shep. The next morning, Thomas explains why he is leaving after one night. He rehashes a conversation with Landon where she admits to lying about inviting Kathryn to Shep’s birthday party. Shep is disappointed to learn that Landon was dishonest with him, but he realizes she has a catty side that sometimes rears its ugly head. Cameran and Whitney have opted for a rental car as her anxiety won’t allow her to traverse the windy mountain roads in a party bus. I can’t say I blame her, but Shep’s feelings are a tad hurt at this turn of events.
Oh how I love Linville–I adore seeing the scenery almost as much as I love getting a glimpse of Bravo’s version of Charleston every Monday. Shep’s family home is stunning, and everyone is in awe of the accommodations…and the view. He shows his friends to their quarters, and Cameran marvels at how humble Shep can be when it comes to his family’s treasures. The girls read and relax as JD pulls Craig aside for a discussion about his role with Gentry. He wants to bring Danni on board to helm the bourbon line, but she’s apprehensive about potentially stepping on the toes of Craig’s dream job. JD hopes that Craig will express to Danni how valuable she’d be to their team and that he would love to work with her.
Back in Charleston, Jennifer Snowden visits a home bound Kathryn, and she can’t hide her disgust when Kathryn relays the effort that Thomas has been making lately, especially defending her after Landon manipulated the truth about Kathryn’s party invitation. Because she’s such a supportive friend, Jennifer can’t fathom why Kathryn would still be in contact with such an arse. When is someone going to trademark the sarcasm font? The magic of editing allows us to segue back to Linville where Shep approaches a sweatshirt clad (but sans pants?) Landon for being less than truthful with him about including their sometimes volatile counterpart. She plays coy, promising Shep that she included Kathryn until he calls her out for telling T-Rav otherwise. She admits that she neglected to send the text invitation to Kathryn, and he implores her to just be honest with him going forward. As the episode draws to a close, JD tends bar, and Whitney micromanages Craig’s grill skills. The banter turns to Kathryn and Thomas’ dysfunction, and Whitney spews some venom. Craig gets it…he’s be pissed too if the girl he really liked started hooking up with his best friend. The clouds roll in and Whitney is about to start a shiz-storm…so obviously we’ll have to wait until next week to see what happens!
TELL US – WHAT DID YOU THINK OF LAST NIGHT’S EPISODE? WERE YOU SURPRISED BY THE UNSEEN FOOTAGE FROM SEASON 1 AND WHITNEY’S REACTION TO CRAIG’S ACCUSATION?
And in case you missed it last night, Kathryn was Tweeting during the show. Here are our two favorite Tweets of the night:
[Photo Credit: Bravo]
