Image Credit: Andrei Jackamets/BravoAfter we learned that Teresa Giudice and her husband Joe had filed for bankruptcy, thinking about her lavish housewarming party a few episodes ago makes me sad. What makes me even sadder? Last night it was apparent that Teresa did know the extent of her family’s debt, solely from her reaction to a single word: Foreclosure.
Of course this word was uttered by Danielle Staub, which adds to the already tense subject (Did you notice Joe’s complete avoidance of the question? Is this Lynne and Frank all over again?). Teresa got extremely defensive when her finances were put into question (We’ve watched her build and move into her dream home, of course she doesn’t want to be revealed as a fraud.). Given what we know now, this was a low blow from Danielle that obviously pushed Teresa’s hot button, but I will say this, and you can hold me to it: Danielle was the victim of the fight.
Don’t pull my hair extensions out just yet. Yes, Danielle is her own special brand of Cuckoo for Cocoa Puffs, but she was unfairly attacked at the fashion show. She took a page from the Book of Paris Hilton and was ignoring the ladies across the room, while Teresa made a point to say hello. Even though she usually provides comic relief and insists she’s a “nice person,” Teresa is not an innocent, harmless housewife by any means (see: table flipping). Also, she’s from Paterson, DID YOU FORGET? (What was with her spastic chicken strutting and finger waving?) Well apparently Danielle did, and Teresa wanted to remind her how tough she was long before $5 million mansions, new bubbies, and kids with potential modeling careers. You’re not just going to say hello to someone you’ve publicly called a “prostitution whore.”
Her “honey” may not have been “I’m going to f—— kill you,” like Danielle believed it to be, but it was definitely a condescending, “Honey, I’m better than you and I will take any opportunity I can to remind you of that. Look at my chinchilla!” Danielle responded with the only dirt she knew about Teresa, and expertly used it just as she was bragging about her expensive home. And with that, Teresa chased her out of the building, Kim G. ran around screaming, Danielle broke a heel, Ashley pulled Danielle’s weave, and we lost at least one soldier to the stampede. Whether preplanned or au natural, the chaos that ensued (crazy enough to illicit a “this is f—— b— s—!” from an unidentified attendee), Danielle came off looking slightly better than her opponents. Or did she?
Danielle is so dramatic all the time — she wasted more energy by screaming “Get me outta here!” over and over than she would have if she simply walked home from the North Jersey Country Club — that maybe this was all a calculated attempt to make her look like the sane one in a room full of crazy (a difficult feat). Like us Housewives fans, the police officers seemed well aware of the Danielle Staub story, and basically rolled their eyes at description of her alleged assault (for now; next week appears to be different). In Danielle’s world, Ashley’s hair pull left her with so much physical harm (doubtful, a bruised ego is more like it) and those who cause you to break your heels belong in jail.
Some of the best insight from the night:
“Technically I didn’t grab her hair, I grabbed her extension, so that’s not really a part of her” — Ashley, to the police officer when asked about her role in the fight. For future reference Ashley, if Lindsay Lohan can get time in jail, so can you.
“[If I was there] I would’ve been back in jail!” — Danny, who is nothing if not honest
“Who’s Kim G.?” — Joe, who finally asked what we’ve all been thinking
“She ripped the hair literally out of my head, literally. And all I can say is that takes a lot to take this kind of hair out, I mean these are beaded in to my real hair, that’s my real hair that you ripped out of my head with this [shakes hair extension]. And it hurts like hell…and there’s a small bald spot on the back of my head” — Danielle, who was nice enough to bring her fallen weave to show and tell
Sure yelling, screaming, and hair pulling are the ingredients for a delicious slice of Real Housewives pie, but watching this one gave me reason #13907 to get a job, hobby, or a life. These women are obsessed with Danielle and their only pleasures come from hearing about her pitfalls. Cue Alex McCord: You are [Mean Girls] and you are in high school. Teresa, keep insisting you’re classy [shudder] and Danielle is garbage, but you’re the one with potty mouth who smiles when Jacqueline’s 18-year-old daughter recounts her great hair pull and doesn’t reprimand her! (And to Kim D. who told Ashley, “It’s okay [that you pulled Danielle's hair] you have to protect your mother,” do you have kids? That’s questionable parenting… violence is never the answer.).
What’s even worse is that all of these women have daughters. What kind of female role models are they? How can Ashley be expected to control herself when her Jacqueline and Co. anxiously await their next run in with Danielle, so they can agonize over it and laugh about it for weeks? Ashley is completely disrespectful and ridiculous (Housewives poll: Who is worse — Jacqueline’s daughter Ashley, or Lynne’s daughters Raquel and Alexa of Orange County?), but if this is what’s deemed acceptable (or what’s she’s believing is acceptable, even though her mother won’t admit it), how can you not expect her to make I Hate Danielle Facebook groups, or go for one big weave pull when everyone else is screaming and running around? If anything (I’m not condoning this…) her hair pull at least put an end to things, Teresa just wanted to keep going.
At least we have members of the Laurita family, specifically Caroline (Manzo) and her brother Chris, who provided some actual insight and make some kind of sense out of this ridiculata. Jacqueline and Teresa were eager to rehash the previous night’s events, but Mama Manzo put it all in perspective. “She got exactly what she wanted…you gave it to her!” she said. Thank you, Caroline. Again, ladies who claim to be so far above the dregs of Danielle are constantly talking about her. Get a life! Chris did the same for Ashley, this time equating The Hair Pull Heard Round the World to some of Danielle’s mysterious past. “All you’re doing, your life is becoming her!” Seriously, it’s true. Ashley has such a warped sense of what’s right and wrong, paired with a nasty case of entitlement, that I wouldn’t be surprised if she and Danielle end up shopping and get their nails done at Chateau together, while they come up with ways to take over Wayne and Franklin Lakes one strip joint at a time.
Things that are more love and light: Albie met with his lawyer and is trying to apply to a new law school!
Did this episode live up to all the hype? Who do you think is responsible for the fight? Will we ever get rid of Danielle?
These shows are supposed to be fun, but last night’s episode was seriously disturbing. What was with the lurking around the chaffeured car? They ALL came across as seriously unhinged.
I totally agree — I know that Danielle is a little skanky, but the attack was insane. It’s down to the point where I’m almost falling out of love with Jacqueline.
Aw, c’mon, you gotta love Jacqueline for stringing along Danielle’s “energist” (WTF?) on the phone and pretending to go with the flow. I thought that was spot-on.
I think Danielle and Mel Gibson would be a perfect couple.
I would watch that reality show!
I think Teresa and Mel Gibson would be a perfect couple!!! LOL
Dan and Mel!They should get together. Mel will finally meet his match. That ought to teach him a lesson.lol
I think Teresa and Godzilla would be a perfect couple. Teresa – the chinchilla-clad fireplug. Teresa – the woman for whom the word “skank” was coined.
I think there are quite a few similarities between Danielle and Mel’s Oksana. They both live off of men and they both know how to push buttons and bring normal people to hysterical levels. I think Oksana and Danielle should get a show on how to make a living manipulating people
Danielle is a FREAK OF NATURE! Her schlubby bodyguard and her immature actions…If I were Teresa I’d knock the crap out of her any chance I got. Seriously, Danielle needs a shrink.
Disturbing is exactly the word for it.
I agree. I watched this with a horrifued look on my face. I think between Dannielle and Kelly on RHONYC Bravo needs a reality check and needs to better cast their shows.
Are you kidding? Bravo loves that people tune into this cr@p. I have never watched a single episode of this show (I watched like the first 3 of the LA show to see what it was about and lost interest) but I can’t watch any Bravo show or log into EW.com without seeing everything that happens. i read this review to see what the promo on Bravo was about and was instantly annoyed. Seriously people – we ALL need to take a long look in the mirror and figure out why all of this dysfunction is considered “entertainment”. I personally don’t have the desire to revel in someone else’s mental instability (that means you Mel), and these “housewives” are no exception. It’s just gross that these people are being celebrated in any way, shape or form.
1st I think Danielle is a really BIG drama Queen, and yes Ashley should NOT have gotten into it like her mother told her “stay away from Danielle” but of course she did’nt listen. She is just like any other teen you talk but it goes out the other side, I raised two teens(now adults) and they were the same way, when it comes to Mommy you just don’t mess with her. But in any case last nights show was a Big Ole Mess, But I loved every min.
Pure drama with fake tears..Also, they should just let Ashley go to jail to teach her a lesson.
The entire NJ cast is totally out of control and I think they continue to make everything so dramatic. This is the worst of all the H/W, enough with all the grown up kids on this edition, Albie. Ashley, and Christopher, enough is enough with all this drama.
Danielle was definitely the victim in this situation and Ashley deserves to be placed in a holding cell so she gets the message. She is a blatant liar re: her mother getting hit, her step dad Chris is right, Jackie can handle herself.
The Producers are making this group of H/W so destructive and dispicable, it’s almost irritating. Dina got out at the right time.
I cannot believe that this so called “country club” would allow behavior like that. Just like the table flipping incident from last year where are the employees of these places throwing everyone out? Is this what happens in New Jersey? Do people really act like this?
Because at the majority of country club events, heck even middle calss event places, you don’t see low class people like this.
And what is the common denominator in both incidents? out of control teresa, and her psycho/anti-socialbehavior. She claims to be nice (ain’t she?) – not, claims to be classy – not, claims to be wealthy – not, again!!!
Well, PaulaHart, although Teresa is the common denominator so is Danielle. In both examples, she said something that just made Teresa snap, making her get to a violent point. They both don’t have class, but I just felt like pointing that out.
I am from NJ and people do NOT act like this, hence the wise woman who said “This is F*cking B*llS*it! I was shocked that grown women would act like this. tisk tisk
I am sure most people do not act this way in NJ but people are being portrayed as angry, loud mouthed, hot tempered, jealous idiots in a lot of the reality shows based out of NJ. This is not the only show like this out there. Not a very fair portrait of your state.
NOOOOO. I am from NJ born and raised. Most people in NJ are normal human beings. We don’t have Sopranos accents. We aren’t guidos. We don’t throw tables or pull hair. NJ is a beautiful state that gets a bad rap because of the turnpike and shows like this. I can’t stand these women portraying our state like this. They make me sick. I only wish I would run into one of them one day so I can tell them how ashamed they make me of NJ.
I’m from Atlanta & feel exactly the same about the women on the Atlanta version. They actually don’t live in Atlanta. They live in Duluth in Gwinnett County. That’s not even a part of Atlanta.
You guys have to understand….The how they cast them, they HAVE to fit the “stereo type” for entertainment purpose. The stereo typical New Yorker, jersey girl, and so on. That’s showbiz for you, if you don’t like it, don’t support it by watching it.
I remember when I first met my now fiance, I was really turned off when I found out he was from NJ. This was before RHONJ or Jersey shore, but that stereotype of loud mouth and crazy was in my mind. But he is nothing like any of those people on the show and neither is his family and friends from NJ. It is sad that this sterotype is even more out there.
I think that in this instance, there are allowances because camera’s are around. Otherwise, they would be thrown out.
I’m a born and raised Jersey girl. This show as well as Jersey Shore makes me embarrassed to admit it. I’ve gone to a lot of these places they frequent. The only reason they get away with this behavior is the show.
So do people socialize with these kind of trashy women, or do they pretend they are with the elites? It just shocks me because it seems for all the money they have no class.
Well Christine, I believe it WAS another Housewife who reminded us that “Money Can’t Buy You Class.” So true Countess. So true…
I’m sorry, Ms. Exton, but if you think Danielle was the victim, you are seriously deranged. She “acted” for all she was worth. Screaming and crying like that – it made me nauseous. Yeah, the others should have just left her alone, but Danielle’s over-reacting was just so desperate and pitiful. But I agree that Ashley needs to be taken down a notch or two. Kudos to Chris for saying “You need to mind your own business.”
Gasses make you (and others) nauseous. Disgust makes you nauseated.
As much as I hate to say this (and believe me, I do), I have to agree that Danielle is the victim this time. She WAY over-dramatized the events and acted insane, but she didn’t start it, she didn’t chase anyone through the country club and she didn’t pull anyone’s hair. Theresa purposely waited for Danielle to come out of the bathroom to say “hello.” As much crap as Theresa has talked about Danielle all season it is abundantly clear that she didn’t want to say a friendly hello, she wanted to stir the pot. After she got it started, she then literally chased Danielle out of the building before Ashley pulled Danielle’s hair. Danielle may have acted as dramatic as if someone shot her and abducted her children, but Theresa really is completely responsible for this mess. This time.
I totally agree, Skipper. Danielle has some issues, clearly, but I think I stared at the television for about five minutes without being able to move. It was such sick behavior from Theresa and that pudgy-faced teen, it almost made Danielle seem to be in the right. And Danielle is clearly a troublemaker, but … well, there are things worse than troublemakers, apparently.
This comment was well written and perfectly worded. I could not agree more.
You can’t leave crazy people like that alone. They will find a way to get you involved and get your attention. Traumatized victims do not go out in Public the next day. She belongs in a mental institution not a reality show. Dina made the righ move. I feel sorry for Danielle not because she was attacked but because she is mentally ill.
I had to re-watch the whole incident to figure out what actually happened. I hate to say it but Danielle did the right thing by trying to walk away. The way both Tersea and Jacquelyn chased after her and stood by the car was menacing and made things worse.
Skipper and Barton Fink are right. Danielle is a drama queen, but Teresa was adding kerosene to the fire. You could hear Jacqueline telling Teresa to stop but Teresa kept going and later tried to paint herself as an innocent. You could see that Ashley was proud of her behavior and even said she could do what she wanted to Danielle. I’m not a big Danielle defender but the whole scene last night was unbelievable. Teresa and Jacqueline should have listened to Caroline but I think for all of their posturing about keeping away from the drama they really do love it. And, what do you think Joe will do when he sees how events went down and are different from who Teresa told it?
completely agree. Caroline was right.. they just justified everything Danielle wants to say about them. Caroline doesnt want to deal with Danielle, so she doesnt. Dina left the show to get away from the drama. But, noooooo Theresa has to get in the middle of it in her fake chinchilla. She and Ashley are a mess and they are completely at fault. I feel Jacqueline was trying to calm the situation and keep her daughter outta trouble.. and I completely appreciated the hard line they took with Ashley – I hope the stick to it and let her suffer the reprecussions… sigh. big ole mess.
Skipper, you are correct. This show is a guilty pleasure for me. A bit like watching a train wreck about to happen and yet being unable to move. They are all a bit loose in the gearbox except for Caroline.
I do not believe all people from NJ act like this. But then I’m from Mississippi, which gets the ‘supreme’ bad rap. Lol…let the stereotyping begin!
I agree with this 100%!!!!
Everyone keeps saying that Danielle is the victim because she was trying to walk away, but she DIDN’T walk away. She stopped and engaged with Teresa. I’m not saying the other women were right because they were all acting crazy, but if Danielle had literally just walked away when Teresa tried to say “hello” then there would have been nothing to show.
candacetx, for the record, it was real chinchilla, on loan from Posche. Jacqueline’s was, too, as a favor to Kim.
I agree. I think that Dannielle was rude from the get go. I mean Teresa’s temper may have exploded first but Dannielle instigated.
D did not – she walked away and Kim pulled her back and insisted she talk with teresa!
On watch whats happening. teresa and Jacqueline. Stated that Danielle was saying stuff and pushing Ashley’s buttons.
You are right. Danielle, the crazy one, came off as the victim. Of course, that is what she is good at. Theresa and Jacqueline need to seriously ignore Danielle if they truly want her out of their life. The whole episode was fabricated from the guest list at the “fashion show” to Theresa feeling the sudden need to be friendly and say hi to Danielle. Ashley is awful and needs some parenting from Chris and sent to school or made to get a job. Love Caroline, the only sane one on the show.
Emily Exton – YOU ARE A FANTASTIC WRITER!
Your work is brillant, and made me laugh out loud.
As for the NJ Housewives, only Caroline has one lick of sense. You don’t see her kids fighting with trash like Danielle !! They are too smart !!
I thought this review was terrible.
Me, too! I like Karen Valby’s recaps a lot better. Karen is a treasure.
thank u, thank u, THANK U for acknowledging that while Danielle is not innocent and is indeed a troubled person, Teresa especially and Jacqueline came off looking so tacky and terrible, that as Chris said “you are just making a crazy person crazier!” Chris Laurita is AWESOME! Jacqueline definitely married up. Ashley is a brat that even Danielle said was going down a bad path. She deserved the speech she got and HOPEFULLY got her ego knocked down a bit.
Teresa classed it up by cursing someone out of the country club! I was mortified and entertained at the same time. Poor Joe looked embarassed and hurt by the “foreclosure” comment and Teresa just couldn’t tell. That mess is embarassing!
Ugh, embarassment to grown women. They really are obsessed with Danielle. That’s all they could talk about even on the aftershow and make fun of Danielle. Like, ugh. U r right- they need hobbies and jobs.
Chris Laurita’s smackdown of Ashley was the highlight of the night! It’s about time someone said SOMETHING to Ashley about her juvenile behavior and her disrespectful ways.
I love how Joe didn’t say a peep when Teresa was like “She said our house was in foreclosure!” “We’re not in foreclosure.” HAHAHAHA
I actually thought that thier marble house wasn’t in forclosure.
Aw, I thought that was a sad moment. He looked so sad and defeated. I can never revel in someone else’s foreclosure, even if they were irresponsible …
The national news did say the house that Joe and Teresa live in is in foreclosure, then Caroline said to Andy Cohen on his show about their home was an investment. This made no sense. Apparently, Joe’s partner messed things up but it did make national news and was printed in most metro papers across the country. So in essense, Danielle was right!!!
Joe’s facial expression while sipping wine said it all!!!
it’s no different than when the RHONY gang up on Kelly at the reunion and Andy pointed out: “Let her [Kelly] speak. You do look like bullys when you keep talking over her”. When you keep feeding the crazy – it only makes it worse. Keep Danielle’s name outta your mouths and stay outta her orbit..and get a hobby of some sort (or in Theresa’s case.. a job).
I agree Brooke! It was out of control! Teresa certainly instigated everything with her snide, rude remarks and made it worse by “chasing” Danielle through the establishment. Jacqueline was creepy just standing and watching Danielle’s car. Ashley of course takes the cake for being the idiot of the night. This is one time I can say that Danielle didn’t deserve what came to her. Caroline was right! Teresa and Jacqueline made a fool of themselves and I’ve lost respect for both of them. By the way Teresa, we know about your debt! Why deny it? Or does the truth hurt?
I like how as the episode progressed Danielle kept adding injury to the hair pulling – her neck hurt, her eyes twitch. This show is becoming a sh*t show. These are grown women. They all need to get their acts together.
Danielle is the QUEEN of overreacting/dramatization. It’s sick.
Wow, she really overreacted, didn’t she? I mean, she took it further than I thought she could go. It was like she planned this moment all along and finally got what she wanted.
I am more interested in the Albie law school thing
Albie totally lost all respect from me using the “P” word. He disrespected his mom and all women. Shame on him and shame on Bravo for not editing it out.
I agree, but I think that it’s just ignorance. A lot of people use words like that without thinking about what it means. Hopefully someone will educate him.
Exactly. He’s out of his teens and he wants to be an attorney, and the only word he can think of using in that instance is the “P” word? No wonder he was expelled. Since when is the “P” word allowed anyway? I’ve heard the “D” word lately too. What’s up with that?
P and D word?
Dodecahedron
Posche?
I completely agree that Danielle was the victim in this fight. I’ve been a professional therapist for 8 years and my personal opinion is that she’s suffering from PTSD on some level. The way her brain elevates small physical threats into death threats is really telling, and I personally (obviously I’ve never met her – it’s just commentary) think she is genuinely terrified.
Teresa should be ashamed. Why did she CHASE her through the building?
PTSD from what?? What traumatic event with any of the other ladies led to this? After the events portrayed tonight, her fear is mildly reasonable. But prior to this? Nothing (that we’ve seen) substantiated her fears of these women.
Also, Danielle officially has the WORST bodyguards ever! The new, “more professional than Danny” (talk about a low bar) should have dragged her out as soon as Teresa started calling her a b*tch.
Danielle probably is suffering PTSD from the severe sexual abuse she suffered as a child and the physical violence she suffered at the hands of her ex-husband. This is why Danielle is crazy. I know it makes people angry to see her play the victim. However, she is a victim. She has been her whole life and probably always will be. That is all she knows. I’m not saying that is admirable. Some people have the mental resiliency to overcome stress and trauma. Some do not. Danielle clearly does not and needs professional help. I agree with this post. I honestly felt that she was terrified last night. She probably didn’t have a logical reason for feeling so afraid but Ashley reinforced her fear by physically attacking her. I hope Ashley pays for what she did. I hope Teresa gets what is coming to her because she is a shameful human being. I hope Jacqueline is a better mom to her boys than Ashley.
Yes, I didn’t mean that the other housewives had caused her possible PTSD. You can have it from past events that traumatize your brain, which literally rewires your brain, altering what you perceive as threatening and how threatening you think it is.
I agree that this is part of Danielle’s mental illness – this hair trigger reaction to the merest slight. PTSD or whatever, the fear part of the brain lights up at virtually nothing. Sad, not amusing. And she has no sense of humor whatsoever.
Danielle likes to be the victim. She is the victim in every relationship she has ever had. She chooses to be around people who will make her a victim. She has a string of ex boyfriends and husbands who hate her…no real women friends…no one. she gets close to people and then she does things to make them run away from her. That is her M.O. She needs help to understand why she does this and how to set a better example for her girls. Danielle loves drama and does everything she can to drive everyone away…then we can play victim get close to someone else and repeat the cycle
Danielle did get exactly what she wanted in last night’s episode: all of the “ladies” came off as ridiculous, mean and incredibly childish. Danielle did blow this somewhat out of proportion it was clear that they were playing into it without thought. These women should be ashamed of themselves for that kind of behavior. Seriously-GROW UP! As for who’s worse, Ashley or Raquel and Alexa, I’m going with Raquel and Alexa by a slight margin. Ashley seems to actually hear what Chris says though she doesn’t always put it into action.
Without a doubt, Raquel and Alexa. Ashley’s just a lazy, egotistical teen with poor female role models. Raquel and Alexa are the most reprehensible brats to hit reality TV.
I agree, Raquel and Alexa are two of the stupidest little girls I’ve ever seen. Dumb, superficial, and they only see any worth in themselves when they are attractive to men and/or drunk. And they both say “like” entirely too much. God, it is staggering how stupid they are. Ashley is spoiled, but she has Chris to slap some sense into her every once in a while, and sometimes she gets it. Raquel and Alexa con their parents on a daily basis. They remind me of Veruca Salt.
what was the name of the game jacqueline was playing on her iphone? she seemed really into it
I didn’t know you could f— coke.
How did Danielle get the extension? I would think Ashley would have it, since she pulled it out. Just stupid stuff I notice…
Probably because she ripped out a piece herself to have “evidence.” I wouldn’t put it past her.
I wondered about that too.
and didn’t the hair color look lighter then the hair on her head or was that just me.
that was definitely not danielle’s hair. what a joke.
I thought the exact same thing.
It doesn’t matter how Danielle got the hair. That child had no right putting her hands on another human being. Period. She needs to stay in a child’s place. And Teresa was just made because Danielle exposed her brokeness infront of everyone. I’m not really caring to much for Jacqueline anymore either.
I don’t think Ashley pulled it all the way out. I think she yanked on it & it was probably hanging there or something.