Just when I was working on a piece asking whether if the Real Housewives of Miami should return for a second season, the Hollywood Reporter's Jethro Nededog finally blessed us with an answer whether you liked it or not. The mamacitas of the Real Housewives of Miami will be making a return to Bravo's line up sometime soon, but is this announcement cause for celebration and/or should we even care anymore?
The show, which premiered last February, didn't leave too much of an impression on fans of the Real Housewives franchise except for having the first ever live reunion show of the franchise. Plus with the Miami branch being the last city ever for the franchise (at least domestically), you would think the show would have come harder than their predecessors to live up to a name brand like The Real Housewives. Unfortunately, that wasn't the case as the Real Housewives of Miami premiered with little promotion, a last-minute spot on Bravo's schedule, and little chemistry among the women during its six episode first season. In short, saying the show was 'lackluster' is basically an understatement.
The fact that the Real Housewives of Miami got a second chance is a marvel in itself, especially after the other low rated entry into the franchise's canon, The Real Housewives of D.C., was given the boot after not bringing in record shattering numbers. The other weird thing about RHOM's return is that their ratings were slightly or way lower than RHODC's numbers in terms of viewership. So the remaining cast (more on that in a sec) of the Real Housewives of Miami better thank their lucky stars that someone at Bravo thought highly enough of them to bring them back into the Housewives fold.
Now that the Real Housewives of Miami has a big chance of returning from the brink of death, the show is going to have to 'bring it' to sustain viewers this time around, and according to Mr. Nededog, Bravo already has a plan and it might just work. For starters, the show will get a "makeover," which I consider much-needed. The cast will be shaken up, of course, especially with Larsa Pippen moving back to Chicago. Another cast member who might be on the outs is Cristy Rice, whose only alliance within the group was Larsa. Without Mrs. Scottie Pippen at her side, Cristy is only a mean girl with no bark, bite, or anything to offer.
The second part of the revamping will be another production team and Bravo has hired the Purveyors of Pop to work their magic again. If you're not in the know, the Purveyors of Pop are responsible for the New York City, Atlanta, and New Jersey branches of the Real Housewives franchise, which means they know damn well how to produce a show. But if I was in Andy Cohen's stylish loafers, I would send Evolution Media to bring in the bling and glitz that made the Real Housewives of Beverly Hills the juggernaut it is today.
So should the show get a second chance? I'm still on the fence about that, but only because I have no clue on what The Real Housewives of Miami 2.0 will look like. It could be the best damn thing Bravo has done for the franchise since The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills or it could be a complete and total disaster. I'm down for whichever way the chips may fall.
UPDATE: Bravo has officially released a press release touting the return of the Real Housewives of Miami and revealing which of the ladies would be returning for a second season. As predicted, Cristy Rice and Larsa Pippen are not coming back for a second round of Real Housewives drama, but the surprising news is that Alexia Echevarria will not be returning this go round. However it's not that far fetchecd given that Alexia's oldest son was involved in a car accident that nearly took his life. She might didn't want all the cameras there getting in the way of his recovery, which makes total sense if you ask me.
As for a premiere date, we are still in the dark about that bit of news, but we do know that production officially starts this month. Not last fall as previous reports on the net have led people to believe.
So we the returning Real Housewives of Miami are Lea Black, Marysol Patton, and Adriana de Moura. Marysol's involvement means more Elsa Patton and more reasons for Andy Cohen to squeal in glee. However, the remaining three women have a serious task on their hands: lead a new crop of women and a completely revamped show. Are they up to the task? Let's hope so, because if The Real Housewives of Miami is going to be the last installment of this popular franchise, it really needs to wreck shop on all cylinders.
What do you think about the departures and returns of the Real Housewives of Miami? Are you happy of the show's return? Or could you care less?
