Unfortunately for fans of crumbling friendships, delicious smacktalk, and the Miami sunshine, Basketball Wives is on a one week hiatus this week for Independence Day. Due to the U.S. government’s heinous disregard for my need for weekly trashy reality shows (I kid; save your hate mail), I thought we’d take a look back at the previous five episodes to catch up on the constantly shifting social dynamics of “the circle” and see if we can’t prognosticate the rest of the season.
Meeka: When we first met Meeka, she seemed like a slightly nervous but mostly well-intentioned motormouth who just wanted to get on the good side of as many people as she could. It wasn’t a horrible idea, as we know how rough some of these ladies can be if you get on their bad side, but eventually, Meeka got in on the mudslinging just like everybody else. Initially, I kind of thought she would be good company for Suzie in the neutral zone, but with Meeka’s prejudice against Royce’s occupation, her constant need to poke the sleeping bear that is Tami Roman, and the obvious search for acceptance, it seems that Meeka’s pretty much alienated at least half of the girls already. What’s ironic is the same people she’s trying so hard to impress were giggling about her behind her back to her “arch nemesis”. Will she find an ally during the rest of the season?
Evelyn vs. Tami: Arguably, Tami and Evelyn are the two most explosive members of Basketball Wives. Yes, everybody’s indulged in their fair share of foolishness over the past two-plus seasons, but when it comes to really popping off, these two women are the ones to watch. It was no surprise that they eventually started butting heads, but what was actually surprising is that they, well, squashed their beef. Shocking, I know, but the last new episode saw T-Shirtgate 2011 put to rest with a mature compromise and a few drinks to boot. I don’t buy that this is a complete hatchet burial, mostly because these two have way too strong personalities not to butt heads again, but it was a refreshingly adult way to end what could have been the black cloud hanging over season three. Now that this rivalry is done, I think Tami’s focusing her energy on Meeka in what will likely be The Rivalry for the rest of the season.
Independent Ladies: It only makes sense that the independent ladies of Basketball Wives get the day off for Independence Day, right? While women on this type of reality show have gotten reputations for being lazy, gold diggers, or lazy gold diggers, multiple members of the Basketball Bunch have actually undergone some personal changes. While it was a little disappointing to see Royce boo-ed up so soon after breaking up with her boyfriend from last season (play the field, girl!), this has been Jennifer’s main storyline and one that has made me empathize with her more than I have in the past. To be blunt, divorce sucks and a lot of people understandably don’t take it well, but it seems that Jen’s doing fairly well for herself. She’s still mending a broken heart (one that still has feelings for her ex, if you believe her ridiculous feelings on Royce and Twitter), dipping her perfectly pedicured toe into the dating field. Her “prince charming” from last episode didn’t seem like he could keep up with her, but it was nice to see Jennifer trying to open back up after such an emotionally trying experience. I have a feeling that it won’t be too long before we have another Basketball Boyfriend joining the cast.
Slight Changes: In terms of the actual group dynamics, it’s looking like the inner circle may have the advantage, at least for the time being. The season started with Royce, Suzie, and Tami on one side of the aisle and Shaunie, Evelyn, and Jennifer on the other with Meeka’s allegiance an uncertainty. After Suzie has decided to become reality TV’s Nelson Mandela and Tami may have gone back on her words to Royce, the dynamic seems to be Jennifer, Evelyn, Suzie, and Shaunie together with Tami inching closer to them, Meeka on the outside looking in, and Royce the odd woman out. Suzie and Tami have really disappointed me, though. I mean, I understand Suzie’s need to minimize drama (despite the fact that she seems to always be in the drama herself) and I respect Tami’s desire to squash beef with Evelyn, but you can clearly see how Suzie’s hurt Royce’s feelings with her newfound “neutrality” and Tami may have gone over to the dark side for good. It’s all good to be civil and cordial, but they both need to remember who hasn’t wrong them and who’s had their back.
But what else?: If you thought the issues above (that were laid out in the premiere) were the only things this season would be tackling, you’re sadly mistaken. This season has been a perfect storm of sociological weirdness, ranging from Twitter beefs over complete non-issues to the desire to have children to defining what a friendship is/isn’t to issues of money, sex, and moving on. We’ve seen glasses thrown, polo matches attended, and the first steps to letting go commence; we’ve seen bonds broken, bonds made, and enough tension to cut an even bigger engagement ring for Evelyn. There’s been puppies, armloads of Maxi dresses, and some pretty delightful shade being tossed about. And we still have a month to go.
Are you watching Basketball Wives this season? What are some of your favorite moments so far? What do you hope happens for the rest of the season?
Shouldnt the old ass fake rihanna lookig but 20 years from now chick b on football wives.