If you listened to
my first podcast, then you know that I have good taste in TV. OK, so I don't 'get' the Homeland praise, but I'm right there with the rest of the world in loving Mad Men, Boardwalk Empire and all those other HBO/Showtime greats.
Clearly, my TV palate is refined enough to enjoy those wonderfully scripted, brilliantly acted shows - so why is it that I enjoy the Real Housewives franchise just as much (if not a bit more)?
I watch Real Housewives of Beverly Hills because I genuinely love it. It's not a guilty pleasure. I am not watching it ironically. Honestly, nothing beats sitting up in bed with a mug of tea, a toasted bagel, and the latest installment of RHOBH.
My theory is that reality TV actually really helps me switch off my manic brain. When you stare at a computer all day pretending and then eventually convincing yourself that the work you're doing matters, it's hard to stop caring at the stroke of 5:10 (yes, my job bizarrely ends at 5:10). But the Real Housewives, their odd lives and (probably fake) drama is like a vacation for my brain. I don't get that from more 'serious' shows, like The Wire or Mad Men. Those shows are great, but their characters' lives stress me out. Not true of RHOBH, RuPaul's Drag Race and Geordie Shore.
Season 3 airs TONIGHT, which means I'll be able to watch it tomorrow (time difference). Cannae wait.
Do you watch any Housewives? Which ones? I watch New York, Beverly Hills and occasionally Orange County. I also watched Washington D.C. for the one season it was on.
Cheers,
Margaret
