Did VPR pour their final cocktail?

With all the horrible events going on in the world, I thought it would be super out of touch to write blog posts to my, at most, 10 readers. If I’m being honest, I had zero interest in watching Bravo (I know, blasphemy) let alone write about it.  Then, about two weeks ago, Bravo announced the glorious, yet long-awaited, firings of four main VPR cast members; Brett, Max, Kristen, and most shockingly, Stassi.  There is so much to unravel here, so let’s start with the overall vibe of the season.

For those who know me, Vanderpump Rules quickly became one of my favorite shows on television and introduced me to the Bravoverse in 2012.  I genuinely looked forward to every season premiere and counted down the days between each weekly episode.  

Side story: While at Bravocon, me and my friend, Mary Ann, were most excited for the VPR panel and may or may not have pushed down a barricade to get a good seat.  At the panel, they premiered the first episode of season 8 with all the main cast members on stage.  Me and Mary Ann were a few cocktails in by this point and beyond excited to preview the episode two months before it aired.  However, after the premiere, there was a noticeable ‘let down’ type vibe that neither of us commented on at the time.  If my tipsy memory serves me right, I believe we clapped with the audience, got up and went to the bar to forget about what we just watched.  Me, being an all-weathered fan of the show, talked myself into believing that the reason I was let down was because I hyped the season up too much.  Fast forward 4 months and 22 episodes later, I can assure you the season did not get any better and required a steady pregame before pushing myself to watch each week.

Now, let me preface this next part by saying that before a few weeks ago, I was a huge Stassi fan.  I pre-ordered her book last year, purchased $200 meet & greet tickets to her podcast show (I like to believe I had a stroke before buying those) and even gave her self-indulgent podcast a weekly listen.  I am ashamed to admit that I did hear her comments about Faith Evans, BLM and the #MeToo movement when they were initially said, but always brushed it off as her, well, just being a bitch.  

Over this past month, I have been self reflecting and educating myself on the Black Lives Matter movement.  I realized that not only were Stassi’s comments and actions cruel, they were also flat-out racist.  I have come to the disappointing realization that I have been very ignorant and compliant towards racism with people I look up to and support monetarily.  While what Stassi did is terrible, me being complicit and continuing to support her, even with the knowledge of her statements, is equally as bad.  

I am also not typically one to support ‘cancel culture’ if someone screws up once and actively tries to change their behavior and do better.  However, someone who continually spews hateful, sexist and racist comments while also putting others in imminent danger, is simply inexcusable.  For that, I FULLY support the firing of Kristen and Stassi. 

I also support the firing of Brett and Max, but for slightly different reasons.  When their racist tweets became public before the season aired, I personally believe Bravo should have fired them on the spot instead of waiting for social pressure to do so.  The subsequent firings of Stassi and Kristen would have been taken more seriously, even at the risk of losing two cast members (which would have actually been a blessing in hindsight) before the season aired.  I don’t believe Max and Brett brought much to the show besides being major fuck boys with superiority complexes.  I am now going to step off my soap box, but needed to address this giant racist elephant in the room before progressing into my thoughts on the future of VPR.

Given the fact that the three part reunion was done exclusively on Zoom, Bravo and the production team did an excellent job executing and producing the show.  However, that was about the only positive takeaway I have from the three hour recap of a subjectively boring AF season.  The cast has gotten a taste of fame and are now unwilling to share their nitty gritty, shit show moments that originally made them famous.  The majority of them are engaged or married and planning to have children in the near future. Stassi’s PR pregnancy, announced right after the demise of her career, was timed better than all of Kris Jenner’s publicity stunts combined.  The fans don’t want to see this.  We want to see alcoholic benders in Mexico, Adderall and tequila infused fist fights, and Lala talking about giving BJs on PJs.  Another major issue this season was the drama involving the now fired editor, Bri Ellinger.  She broke the third wall and admitted that she purposefully edited Scheana’s story line to make her appear clingy, needy and out-of-touch.  While all of those attributes are probably true, the viewers were given a glimpse behind the manipulation tactics reality shows use to gain viewership and drama.  

Between the stale storylines and the racism now attributed with the show, I truly believe we have seen the last of Vanderpump Rules as we know it.  However, with the extended time off due to COVID, the VPR producers have the perfect opportunity to make a spinoff with some MUCH NEEDED DIVERSITY.  I would love to see a Tom/Tom spinoff since Schwartz and Sandavol’s friendship is the heart of the show.  They can bring back Dayna, Charli and Danica but then clean house and start from scratch, by, let’s repeat for the people in the back, HIRING MORE DIVERSE CAST MEMBERS. 

I have also heard rumblings of a Vanderpump Vegas spin off.  While I can see major potential with this idea, they will have to bring back a few OG’s to help retain their audience and provide viewers some semblance of the VPR we all knew and used to love. 

Only time will tell what lies ahead for this hot mess express…Stay tuned.