“Vanderpump Rules” —after two fallow seasons of grim plots and uninspired storylines —has risen from the ashes in Season 10, and its ratings are spiking as a result.
The show’s 10th season was already filled with old school “Vanderpump Rules” drama, caused largely by fallout from breakups among the core cast. That resurgence was before the March 3 revelation about the show’s cheating scandal —aka, the #Scandoval — made international headlines, with even the New York Times offering an explainer for its readership.
Now, Bravo is further stoking the fandom’s ardor for more, dropping the show’s midseason teaser, and within it revealing the first look at the episode filmed earlier this month: Production restarted on Season 10 after the news broke about Tom Sandoval and Raquel Leviss’ months-long affair, which blew up his nine-year relationship with Ariana Madix.
This week in Los Angeles, cameras will also roll on what Bravo hopes will be a three-part reunion, hosted by Andy Cohen, with the whole cast attending in person — despite the fact that Raquel has gotten a temporary restraining order against fellow castmate Scheana Shay. (According to Raquel, Scheana physically assaulted her after learning of the affair, which Scheana has denied.)
The teaser — cut up into tiny, enticing moments — starts with Scheana’s wedding. We then see Katie Maloney and Ariana find a space for their new sandwich shop, Something about Her, which prompts Tom Schwartz, Katie’s estranged husband, to worry that they’ll open it before Tom and Tom’s new venture, Schwartz & Sandy’s. (Schwartz needn’t have feared, or at least he was worrying about the wrong thing: Schwartz & Sandy’s did open in early November, but now its staff, as reported by PvNew last week, is bearing the brunt of the #Scandoval.)
In the teaser, things get more ominous. “I was the OG homewrecking whore of this group,” Scheana says to Raquel as they make necklaces. “And then came Lala. And now here you are,” which prompts a giggle from Raquel. Schwartz and Raquel kiss, as has been foretold by the gossip press, at Scheana’s wedding. Presumably after that, Katie tries to appeal to Raquel, saying imploringly: “We’re not divorced yet. This is my husband!” Then, we see Raquel kissing Oliver Saunders, who works at Vanderpump à Paris in Las Vegas, and is the son of “Real Housewives of Beverly Hills” cast member Garcelle Beauvais. In voiceover, we hear someone —Katie? — saying, “He’s, like, married with kids,” which, according to Oliver’s estranged wife Samantha Saunders, indeed he was during Raquel’s dalliances with him.
We then see Raquel and Sandoval in a pool together, as her ex-boyfriend James Kennedy says to his new girlfriend Ally, “He wants to fuck the shit out of Raquel.” (All cursing is muted, but we get the gist.) Is James talking about Schwartz or Sandoval there? Presumably Schwartz, since we then see Katie say, “I want to light them both on fucking fire.”
As we start to get to the heart of the matter, Sandoval says to Ariana, somewhat rhetorically, “Having sex, like, four times a year?” If that was him attempting to open up their relationship, Ariana isn’t into it: “I cannot have sex with someone who feels like a stranger.” Schwartz then frets, “Open relationships are fucking tough.”
Finally, we see the footage from the #Scandoval episode.
“This is a full-blown love affair,” pronounces Scheana, sporting a bucket hat and a sweatshirt that says “idc” (she does care, though). An affectless Sandoval —in a move unlikely to go over well with anyone— says, “I wish we both would have tried harder,” to which Ariana responds, “You don’t deserve one fucking tear of mine.” Speaking to an unseen Sandoval, Raquel says, “I don’t fucking regret our relationship.” Bucket-hatted Scheana, now choking up with tears says, continues her account, saying, “I had so much rage in me—” is the end of that sentence Scheana confessing that she did hit Raquel, as alleged?
Over a montage of crying, hugging and screaming, a tearful Lisa Vanderpump, in a party scene shot earlier in the season, says, “You will learn how to deal with your problems.”
Which leads to the teaser’s kicker, from the #Scandoval episode.
Sandoval, opening a cabinet, asks: “You want anything?”
Ariana, wearing no makeup and glowing like a divine being, replies: “For you to die.”
To which we say:
“Vanderpump Rules” airs on Bravo on Wednesdays at 9 p.m.
