Put down your pickleball paddle and pick up your cowboy hat, because the Potomac ladies are headed to Texas! The Real Housewives of Potomac Season 8, Episode 5 brought the ladies on their first cast trip of the season. It couldn’t have come at a more chaotic time. The RHOP cast is extremely splintered right now because of drama both new and old. Last week, Karen hosted a pickleball party to try to bridge together the gaps in their relationship. That was easier said than done.
Nneka and Dr. Wendy used their time to battle it out over whether or not Wendy’s mom, Iyom Susan Okuzu, had been doing witchcraft against Nneka. By the end of the party, everyone felt puzzled. Was Wendy’s conducting spiritual warfare or is Nneka was just a random clout chaser looking for a ticket onto RHOP?
This week, Ashley planned a cast trip to Austin, Texas. With the cast so divided, it’s another opportunity to bring the ladies together, and she said it’s the perfect city to “let your hair down.” Karen had similar hopes for her pickleball event, and that literally ended in disaster. So, what’s going to happen when the ladies take their messiness to the weirdest city in the Lone Star State? Here’s what went down on RHOP Season 8, Episode 5: “Pie in the Austin Sky.”
Whose shrine is it anyway?
The episode kicked off with Ashley, Mia, and Gizelle meeting up to go “shopping for their trip to Austin.” Did they even buy anything? Probably not. In actuality, they just needed a reason to hang out and talk about the messy pickleball event. With accusations of witchcraft being thrown around in the group, you can’t blame these girls for needing to meet separately to talk about the mess. Gizelle asked the ladies, “Do you think Nneka could be lying?”
Although the ladies just met Nneka, they all made it clear they believed her over Dr. Wendy. Ashley said that there was so much conviction in Nneka’s story that it was hard not to believe. They all agreed that with Nneka’s legal background, it would be odd for her to come on the show and blatantly lie. She’s too smart for that, right?
“I don’t feel like Nneka would come to this group and make up such a lie,” Gizelle explained. “I 100% believe Nneka.”
Then, there was also the fact that Happy Eddie unfriended Iyke on Facebook. For Gizelle, something just isn’t adding up, and she doubled down on the notion that Wendy could be hiding something. She theorized, “You know exactly what your mother is doing. You know what your husband is doing. They’re all working together for evil.”
With this type of energy floating around the group, it’s very obvious that this Austin trip is going to be a mess.
Couples therapy with Mia and Gordon
This week, the cameras followed Mia and Gordon as they went to a couples therapy session. We know that they’ve separated, and this episode gave us more information on what drove the wedge between them.
Of course, they’ve been dealing with their financial issues. G has been working double to try to keep them afloat. Mia told their therapist that the busy schedule and financial burden have caused tension in their marriage. She retained a divorce attorney because she was ready to call it quits.
Gordon didn’t realize that things in their marriage were at that point, but Mia explained how she didn’t want their kids to see them arguing. Because of the abusive home Mia grew up in, she said she’s extra sensitive to the type of environment she raises her kids.
Mia wants Gordon to settle down, retire, and be present with the kids. On the other hand, Gordon explained that he still wants to build wealth for his family. He said that there’s a legal battle ahead of him to fight for his old company. Mia just wants them to move on and have a peaceful family life.
On top of the financial issues, Mia shared a shocking story about a crooked lawyer they worked with to facilitate a sale. The lawyer kept some of the proceeds from their sale and never gave it back. With the money in limbo, G filed a complaint against the lawyer. As a result, the lawyer was disbarred and later committed suicide. Mia said this just happened a few weeks prior, and no one knew that she was dealing with such a disturbing incident.
Later in the episode, Mia confided in Robyn to talk about the anxiety, grief, and guilt she’s been feeling since the lawyer’s suicide. Robyn endured a very similar situation with a family friend, so, it was sweet to see the two of them confide in each other. Despite the current toxicity in the group, at least there are still some real moments of friendship happening.
Karen’s peacemaker pie
As the Grande Dame of Potomac, Karen holds an obligation to ensure there’s peace in her friend group. Right now, they’re dwelling on the past and they need to move forward. It’s good for their relationships. It’s good for the show. Everyone wins when the ladies aren’t holding grudges, so Karen is trying to lead by example here.
Of course, she tried to bring the group together with the pickleball event, and that didn’t work out as planned. So, on the Austin trip, Karen wants to do what she can to get the rest of the ladies to move past their issues from seasons past.
Karen already made a ton of progress in repairing her relationship with Mia. They’re no longer just on handshake terms. She also took a few baby steps with Robyn at Ashley’s housewarming party, so she’s hopeful they will be in a better place soon. In true Karen fashion, she had a unique metaphor to describe her status with Robyn. She said their friendship is like a pie.
“With Robyn, I cut the pie in half and put the other half in the freezer,” Karen explained to Gizelle, as the shady editors put it a graphic to help us follow along.
Karen said she doesn’t want to fully commit to a friendship with Robyn the same way you wouldn’t just devour an entire pie in one sitting. Karen needs to take slices out of the freezer, let them thaw, and enjoy it slowly until the pie is completely gone. That’s a fair point, but at some point, even stuff in the freezer goes bad. She can’t wait too long to thaw out the pie and eat it.
Can Gizelle and Candiace just get along?
The ladies made the trek to Austin. When they arrived, they gathered poolside at their hotel to kick off the trip. There’s no better feeling than when you’re finally checked into your hotel after a long day of travel and can finally enjoy some peace. However, this is The Real Housewives of Potomac, so peace is rarely achieved.
When sitting poolside, Karen had it on her agenda to try to get Gizelle and Candiace to stop icing each other. Karen needed them to take their pies out of the freezer and let them thaw — even if it’s just one slice! That’s easier said than done. Candiace is mad that Gizelle said her husband made her uncomfortable. Candiace ruthlessly body-shamed Gizelle. Neither of them can see a way forward.
Candiace explained, “[Gizelle] does not want to acknowledge me because she thinks that if she doesn’t speak to me, I will disappear. But my black ass is still sitting here.”
On the flip side, Gizelle said that she doesn’t have any desire to be friends with Candiace after all of the horrible, insulting things from Candiace. Gizelle even attributed it to the “safety” of her children.
“Nothing good will ever come from me speaking to Candiace,” Gizelle admitted in her confessional.
The Grande Dame is having a hard time wrapping her head around the fact that Gizelle and Candiace can’t just move past their problems. Because Karen and Gizelle have moved past their problems, she has a pie-in-the-sky idea that Gizelle and Candiace could someday achieve the same level of mutual respect. At this point, it doesn’t seem possible, but maybe the weirdness of Austin will somehow work some magic on these two.
Round 2 with Nneka and Wendy
For the second week in a row, the episode concluded with a back-and-forth exchange between Nneka and Wendy. Everyone has been gossiping amongst each other about the witchcraft accusations, and there’s obviously still a lot of tension from the pickleball event.
Nneka admitted in her confessional that she felt bad for not talking to Wendy about the shrine privately, but her emotions got the best of her. So, in Austin, Nneka and Wendy took another stab at discussing their issues with one another. This time, it got way too convoluted as they dove into talking about cousins-in-law, sisters, and other characters who don’t hold champagne flutes on RHOP. They argued about the timeline of when Nneka’s cousin-in-law Lebe first started hearing rumors of Susan’s witchcraft.
Once again, Wendy accused Nneka of lying. This time, Gizelle intervened and brought up the fact that this wasn’t the first time Susan involved herself in RHOP drama. Thank goodness for Gizelle’s memory, because this was a deep cut. But last year, Wendy’s mom went off on Mia on Instagram. She insulted her appearance and ranted about hellfire and holy ghosts.
For some reason, Wendy had a screenshot of the interaction saved and ready to discuss in Austin. She read it off to the group to prove “there’s no witchcraft” coming from her mother. However, the other cast members thought that her mom’s comments seemed a little unhinged and threatening. Seriously, why can’t Susan just stay out of it like literally every other parent to the Real Housewives?
As the conversation continued, Wendy introduced a new version of the story into the timeline. She said that Nneka’s name was never submitted to a shrine because her family’s issue was never with Nneka. She said there was a falling out between Lebe and Wendy’s sister.
Unfortunately, the argument continued to get more and more confusing, Wendy backtracked and said that she didn’t even know Lebe. She claimed it was just one of her sister’s friends. Then Nneka slapped Wendy with a major receipt. She said if you don’t know Lebe, why was she at your sip and see?
The producers rolled some never-before-seen footage from Wendy’s Season 5 sip and see, and sure enough, there was Lebe. Not only was she there, but Wendy was fully honoring her during a speech. So, does that seem like someone that Wendy doesn’t know? Either way, the situation gets more and more confusing with each moment.
For the first time in this conflict, Nneka and the other Potomac ladies finally broke the fourth wall and admitted that this beef is just about the show. Most of them are starting to believe that Wendy just didn’t want Nneka to join the cast. If they would just say that, we’d all be in a better place to enjoy the Austin trip. Until then, Dr. Wendy and Nneka will continue talking in circles.
The Austin trip continues next week. New episodes of The Real Housewives of Potomac air Sunday nights at 8/7c.
TELL US – WHAT DID YOU THINK OF REAL HOUSEWIVES OF POTOMAC SEASON 8, EPISODE 5? SHOULD CANDIACE AND GIZELLE BURY THE HATCHET? DO YOU THINK WENDY AND NNEKA’S BEEF IS BECAUSE WENDY DIDN’T WANT ANOTHER NEWBIE COMING ON THE SHOW?
