“How Low can you Dubrow?” | RHOC RECAP with Alexis Janssen

Reality with The King

Carlos King and Alexis Janssen break down the latest RHOC episode, analyzing the reunion seating chart, Heather's emotional backstory involving

Key takeaways

• Vicky and Tamara earned first-chair status at the upcoming reunion, with Carlos suggesting Emily should sit next to Shannon instead of Gina due to stronger personal storylines.
• Heather's cold demeanor is contextualized by her upbringing under emotionally restrictive parents, a point Alexis relates to after losing both parents to illness.

Main topics

• RHOC reunion seating chart analysis
• Heather Dubrow's family history and emotional upbringing

Notable quotes

"I didn't go on a press tour and I'm not looking for fame."

Conclusion

The episode offers fans an unfiltered look at reality TV mechanics, bl

Transcript preview

Speaker 4 (0:00) This is an iHeart Podcast. Speaker 4 (0:02) Guaranteed human. Didn't catch the latest Roland Martin Unfiltered podcast? Speaker 2 (0:07) Here's what you missed. There should not be a single law enforcement agency that does not have body cameras. It's real. Black farmers have been under attack. This is just the latest example of them just slapping DEI on anything. It's raw. And I'm sitting here going, they are playing y'all for fools. Catch Roland Martin's daily commentary on the Black Information Network. Speaker 4 (0:27) And download Roland Martin Unfiltered on the iHeartRadio Speaker 2 (0:30) app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. you Speaker 3 (0:38) Reality with the King is hosted by me, Carlos King. I'm an executive producer who have produced some of your favorite shows from the Real Housewives of Atlanta, New Jersey, and my own creation, the Love and Marriage franchise and Bell Collective. Every episode, we recap reality television from the Real Housewives franchise to The Bachelor or Selling Sunset, in addition to celebrity guests. whether in the unscripted space or scripted Speaker 2 (1:07) as well. Speaker 3 (1:11) Oh, raindrops. This is the episode of all episodes. Alexis Jansen and I are back to recap the Real Housewives of Orange County season 20. This is the episode that we have been waiting on. And guess what? We're so blessed. Not only is it my birthday, we also get a special gift. We get two parts of Alexis in next week's episode. Speaker 1 (1:34) Oh, good God. Carlos, first of all, we'll never forget your birthday and my anniversary because my anniversary is tomorrow for one year. I know. So that's exciting. So this is actually a celebratory, although it's not, but it's a celebratory podcast today. So yay. Yay to Carlos. Happy birthday. I'm glad you're turning 29. Next year, we'll celebrate your 30th. Thank you. Speaker 3 (1:55) Thank you. Thank you. And I can't wait to celebrate 100 years of you and John's wedding. Speaker 1 (2:02) Good God, I don't want to make it to 100 years. I do not want to be 149. I mean, listen, Speaker 3 (2:07) listen. Speaker 1 (2:08) That's how long the housewives would be on. So we need somebody. Well, as long as I get facelifts and Botox, I think I'm good. Speaker 1 (2:19) I just don't know if my organs are going to sustain. Okay. So this podcast, Carlos is going to be really hard for me because if you would have told me, you know, anytime in my life, I'd be podcasting about a show that I was on. I would like a podcasting about myself. Cause I have to be very objective when I'm with you. And now I just watch it. And now I'm like, this is just going to be hard, but I, I don't know if I can be objective about myself. Cause it's me. So it's like, I'm going to tell you my feelings and how I feel and the truth behind the, behind the scene. Okay. Yeah. Speaker 3 (2:48) No. And I think, listen. I just watched it because I like to watch it right before we recap because I like to make sure it's fresh and I have all the emotions and the feelings. And I have a lot of questions. I have a lot of questions for you. Yeah, and the fact that this is just a piece of what we're going to see next week. But obviously, Raindrops because Alexis is a professional. We are only going to talk about what we saw this week so that next week, okay, she can give us the additional parts of the story based on the scene. So, Speaker 1 (3:30) there's no reason. Oh, go ahead. Sorry. No, no, Speaker 3 (3:34) please. Speaker 1 (3:36) There's no reason to talk about anything next week because we don't know what they're going to air. You don't know what's going to air of the 25 minutes of the rest of the party or 30 or an hour. I don't even know how long was left that I was there. You don't know what they're going to air. So that's why we can't even talk about next week because we don't know. Speaker 3 (3:50) Yeah. But I would love to get in your headspace just based on what happened between you and Heather and Tamara. Because as a producer, I have a feeling because guys, Alexis and I don't talk before we hit record. Like we literally be like, save it for the pod, save it for the pod. So as a producer, there's tons of questions I have, but also. theories that I have based on your commentary to Tamara. So again, stay tuned for that, Raindrops. Before we get into the recap, today's my birthday. Tomorrow is Alexis' anniversary with John. But today is also the day they are taping the Real Housewives of Orange County reunion. Speaker 3 (4:37) Okay. So what we have, Alexis, as we look into... I'm Speaker 1 (4:47) going into my feed of what I've gotten sent to me today, and I'm hoping you're going where I'm going. Speaker 3 (4:52) Yes. Okay. So we are going to talk about the seating chart of the show. And first chair belongs to Vicky and Tamara. Speaker 1 (5:06) Yeah. I was going to ask you what you thought about this if you didn't go there. What do you think? Speaker 3 (5:14) Makes sense to me. Speaker 1 (5:16) I think. Speaker 1 (5:18) I think the entire seating chart is okay, except the fact which I shouldn't be speaking so low. Let me Speaker 3 (5:23) do you want me to? Well, let me tell the raindrops in case they have. Speaker 1 (5:26) Oh, yeah. Yeah. Yes. Let me Speaker 3 (5:28) tell them the entire seating chart then. Okay. So here is the entire Speaker 1 (5:33) screen so that they can see it and then you can talk about it. So if they're watching Speaker 3 (5:37) for audio listeners. Okay. So Andy's left Vicky's first chair next to Vicky is Shannon. Then it's Gina. And end of the couch is Emily. On the other side, first chair is Tamara. Then it's Heather. Then it's Jen. And last chair is Carmela. Alexis, go first. What are your thoughts on this current seating chart? Speaker 1 (6:07) I mean, you can go first, too. What do you think? Speaker 3 (6:15) What do I think? Okay. Speaker 1 (6:17) What do you think? Speaker 3 (6:19) I think the standing chart makes sense. Speaker 3 (6:23) I think this sitting chart makes sense. Vicky and Tamara, to me, deserves first chair. Vicky, listen. Love her or hate her, this season would be a doll without Vicky. And I think we can all admit that. Without Vicky, this season would not be what it is. Whether you love her, whether you hate her, she's the reason for this season. Okay. So with that being said, additionally, when it comes to Vicky's side of the couch, look, to me, it also makes sense. Shannon next to Vicky makes sense. They're friends. Um, Speaker 3 (7:02) Look, Gina had... Speaker 3 (7:06) some great scenes. Although I will say this, I will say this. I may would have put Emily next to Shannon. Emily's scenes with Shane, she's giving way more interesting personal story than Gina. So if I had to make a change, I would have swapped Gina and Emily, right? If that was me. But I'm not mad at the current position, but I do feel like Emily's personal storylines were stronger. Now to Tamara's couch. Look, I understand because Carmella's a newbie that you're going to stick her in the end, but I would have swapped her and Jen. Speaker 3 (7:47) That's me. Speaker 1 (7:48) Okay. You would have gone on Tamara's side, it would have gone Andy, Tamara, Heather, Camilla, Jen. Speaker 3 (7:57) Correct. Speaker 1 (7:59) OK, so what I think it should have been is I think Carmela and Shannon should have switched places and Jen and Heather should have switched places. So I think Carmela should have been next to Vicky. Well, oh, no, they're not friends. OK, so let's just say let's say Heather and Carmela should have switched. It should have gone Tamara, Carmela, Jen, Heather to me. Speaker 3 (8:25) Oh. Okay. I Speaker 1 (8:27) feel like, or maybe Jen at the end and Heather next. I feel like Carmella should have been either next to Vicky or to Tamara because Carmella brought more than any of the other rest of the girls that were there, like as far as freshness, which is hard for me to say being objective after she just bashed me without knowing me and I've been sticking up for her the whole season. Who Speaker 3 (8:45) bashed you? Speaker 1 (8:46) Oh, Carmella. On this episode. You did not hear that? Oh, she goes, oh, I'm loyal to Shannon through and through. I will drop kick a house, old housewife if I have to. I'm like, I get it. She doesn't know me. Oh yeah, yeah, yeah. She doesn't know I've been sticking up with her this whole time and that I adore her and all that. Speaker 3 (9:02) Yeah, and that was, that was shot before we even did the podcast. So yeah. Speaker 1 (9:07) Well, yeah. And also she's being brainwashed by a couple of people that don't like me in this world when most of them do. So I don't know. It's like, whatever. But. I just feel like Carmella got the short end of the stick because she is new. I get that she has to be on the end. But yeah. Yeah. Speaker 3 (9:23) Yeah, I agree. We Speaker 1 (9:25) both agreed on that. Okay. Speaker 3 (9:26) Yeah. Speaker 1 (9:27) There you Speaker 3 (9:30) go. I'm expecting a great reunion. And I really want it to be good. I want it to be good. And I feel like with Tamara having first chair. she's going to make sure that it's good because Tamara is the best when it comes to reunions. So I'm definitely looking forward to that. Let's get into this episode. One of the scenes that opened up was Heather and Terry. So in this scene, we learn that Terry's mom, who is 92 years old. And suffering through Alzheimer's, which of course is very difficult for any child to have to have a parent dealing with that. She doesn't like where she's living. And obviously it's, you know, it's bothering Terry to a degree because he is somebody that loves his mom and want to make sure she's good. But he's also aware that, look, she's not in her right state of mind. In this scene, we also find out from Heather. She emotes on how she was raised by parents who would ridicule her if she even cried while watching a movie and that she wasn't really raised to be all warm and fuzzy. That's just how she is. And that's that sort of shape who she is. What I will say is this. One thing that I love about when people. on reality television, bring their parents on or talk about their parents. To me, it always sheds light on who they are as adults. And the thing with Heather, I find Heather to be very cold, right? I find her to be a cold person. There's nothing warm and fuzzy about her. She, to me, is an ice queen. And she's very hard when it comes to her heart. Right. That's my opinion based on me watching the show. I don't know her personally. Was she brought up or how she was raised? I said, OK, now I have a greater understanding on how you were raised. And unfortunately, that shaped who you are today. So I appreciated that because I know I'm hard on Heather. Speaker 3 (11:49) But there's this shed light on her to me. What do you think? Speaker 1 (11:52) A million percent. I got choked up on that scene a little bit. I didn't cry or anything, but I did get like, you know, I lost both of my parents and I went through one with cancer and one with some brain disease we don't even know yet. They still have her brain. Hopefully they'll figure it out one day. But anyway, it's like I. Had to be that sandwich that Heather was talking about. And I related so much because it's like you are a parent to your kids and now you're being a parent to your parent who parented you. It's the weirdest start like stage of life to be in. But I I thought both her and Terry are like really handling it well. And thank God they have each other. And it is so freaking hard. And I loved that they opened up to that. Neither of them had to. But I see. Speaker 1 (12:36) Heather, her mom, her, like her mom and her, like, she thinks she's all, she's like, I'm such a warm person. And I'm like, are you like, I don't feel, I don't feel like, like, like that from her either. So maybe other people in America do maybe other cast members do. I don't know. But, um, I do think she's, you know, her mom did, you know, create her and make her who she was. And, and it would really stink to be, have your feelings suppressed as a kid. Right. Yeah. You can't cry at a movie or whatever. That would be a really, if I was that kid, I don't know what that would have done to me. You know, I mean, I needed, my mom was all free and spirit and everything, you know, spirit, like, you know, hippie kind of like love, just everyone love. It doesn't matter what you love. I don't know what I'd be if my mom would have been like, stop crying. Is that a tear? Grow up. Get a muscle. Speaker 3 (13:25) No, my mom was the same way. My mother. Listen, my mother was somebody that... Speaker 3 (13:33) was she was to me the definition of love right oh and by the way our poll from last week about women yes Speaker 3 (13:44) 100 % said if they had a choice, they would be a stay-at-home mom. Speaker 1 (13:49) No, they did not. Speaker 3 (13:53) 100%. So Speaker 1 (13:55) if we had 49 comments, all 49 said yes. Said Speaker 3 (13:58) yes. Speaker 1 (14:00) Carlos, that is baffling to me because I have friends who would kind of make fun of me and be like, I would never get, I would never be a stay at home mom. I could not handle what you do. So I don't, I can't even believe that. That's incredible. Speaker 3 (14:12) Because I do think this, listen, I, I, listen, I'm a feminist and I want every woman to live their best life and to be everything God created them to be. I do think though, and the reason why I know this is because I've worked with Housewives. I've worked with other reality stars. My business is ran by women and some have children, some don't. And what I will say is I've always been told this. My friends who were raised by their moms or their grandmothers to be better than them and to be this working woman, they all said, Carlos, I woke up and I was 40 years old with no kids. And that's my biggest regret in life because I was chasing my career. And then for my friends who are career mothers, they have said to me, if I didn't have to work to take care of my family. Speaker 3 (15:12) I would be a stay-at-home mom. So I think, listen, and I'm not saying let's go backwards, or I'm not even saying that that's going backwards, right? I think it's your own individual choice. But what I am saying is, I think a lot of women, if given the choice at a certain age, I think you'll be surprised, and I was surprised, they all said yes. Speaker 1 (15:37) I wish America would take that poll, not just us. I mean, we got, you know, we have what, 2 million listeners. It's like, we're a little pea of the pot of everybody, but like, you know, I'm not a feminist. I'm not a manist. I'm an equalist. I want to, I think everything should be equality. It doesn't matter if you're a man or whatever, but I cannot believe that, that I cannot believe that poll. I'm baffled. I'm also loving it because I'm also thinking, you know, the pendulum always swings one way or the other. And so we went through this heavy feminist move where, oh, women should be working. They should never be. Maybe now everyone's like waking up and going, oh, well, we do like the stay at home mom idea. Maybe, you know, it's not that a man's better than a woman, but a man can be a breadwinner and the woman can stay at home and everyone's still, you Speaker 3 (16:19) know, Speaker 1 (16:20) that's it. That's Speaker 3 (16:22) how Speaker 1 (16:22) I feel. That's honestly how I feel. Yeah. Stay at home mom is a hard freaking job. I'm sorry. It is hard. You wake up, you never get off the clock. On a day-to-day job, you can clock out nine to five. You're done. Put your clock out and you're done. You don't get a day off or any moment off. You don't have time to be sick. You don't have time to do anything because you're doing all of it all day long with the kids. Yeah. Speaker 3 (16:42) Yeah. No, I agree with you 1000%. So I wanted to share that. But no, even when Heather said to Terry that she did not think she was smart until she met him and how Terry made her feel smart from their first date. And growing up, Heather was coined as the talented one while her sister was known as the smart one. And because they had those divine archetypes, their parents wanted their careers to be based on that. And she made a comment saying that you know, there's this old saying that you marry your unfinished business. So I want to ask you about that. Do you agree with that, that you marry your unfinished business? Speaker 1 (17:34) I wonder. I can't even place myself at my first marriage, like with Jim. I was too young to even, you know, and got married way too fast with my first little one-year blip. But for Jim, I don't even know. But with John, I definitely don't feel he's my unfinished business. I feel like I married him because, first of all, we just kind of completed each other. But we have such similar stories that it was like it wasn't that we, you know, completed each other's business. It's almost more like. No one can understand everything I've been through as much as him because he kind of went through the same. It's almost like we were, I don't know. So I don't know. I do. I can see though, in a marriage where you do marry your unfinished business. I totally, when Heather said that it was like