When Bravo tried to give The Real Housewives of Atlanta a soft reboot last year, no one would have predicted just how off the rails things would become.
You had Porsha in the throes of a divorce, unable to film the show inside her home. A scantily clad insurance agent threatened Kenya with a gun, and that escalated into a revenge porn saga that is still playing out in court. It was a mess, but at this point, we’re considering it as a test run for the greatness that we seem to have in store for Season 17.
The Real Housewives of Atlanta Season 17 Episode 1, “A Warm Welcome,” kicked off another new era for the beloved franchise, and they really mean it this time. They’ve got reality TV vets, shady songstresses, and a bankrupt restaurateur ready to give us everything that we need. Let’s dive into it!
What happened in The Real Housewives of Atlanta Season 17 Episode 1?
RHOA Season 17 kicked off in style with Porsha inviting everyone into the mansion that she won in her divorce from Simon. After fighting tooth and nail for this house and the right to film in it, she wasted no time throwing an over-the-top “Mystic Island” dinner party. That’s where she introduced Love & Hip Hop’s K. Michelle to the group, but a little bit of Season 16 drama still lingered in the air. It’s a new season, but not everyone is starting off with a clean slate.
Welcome to Bravo, K. Michelle
The worst-kept secret in the Bravoverse was K. Michelle making the unprecedented jump from Love & Hip Hop to Housewives. We’ve certainly strayed far away from the gates of Coto de Caza with this casting choice, but in the premiere, K made it clear that she’s in a different place than the last time we saw her on TV.
These days, she’s focused on her country music career. Also, plot twist: She’s married. Two weeks before filming, she tied the knot with her on-again, off-again boyfriend, Dr. Kastan. After seeing her try to find love on Queen’s Court, he apparently realized it was time to commit for real.
Porsha met up with K at a photoshoot and extended an invite to the Mystic Island party, setting up her first introduction to the rest of the Real Housewives of Atlanta cast.
Although K didn’t specifically mention L&HH, she said that she felt a little nervous about being introduced to a new group of Atlanta reality stars. She’s been burned in the past—is it going to happen again?
Shamea has a new BFF
Watching Porsha and Shamea’s decades-long friendship implode last season felt like watching a slow-motion car crash. But when they dropped that bombshell that their moms also have beef, it all started making a lot more sense. This breakup was a long time coming. Things only got worse after the reunion.
Shamea explained that she had a delayed reaction to some of Porsha’s reunion shade. She watched it back and got in her feelings all over again. Rookie mistake.
Her second mistake was trying to reach out to Porsha to resolve it over text. That didn’t go well, and their last chat didn’t end on a positive note.
With Porsha on ice, Shamea came into Season 17 with a new BFF: Kelli, the Queen of Waffles! Somehow, Kelli has been promoted to bestie status, and that’s not the only person Shamea has in her corner.
In the premiere, Shamea introduced us to Season 17’s other newbie, Pinky. We’re still not quite sure if we should thank her for this or hold her accountable for this new addition. Jury is still out on that one.
Porsha brought a “friend friend” to her party
Porsha’s Mystic Island party, which she mistakenly called “Majestic Island,” was framed as a couples’ event. Everyone thought it seemed a little strange to host in the mansion she just got from her ex-husband. Is it too soon? Not in Porsha’s eyes.
With only a handful of actual couples in the group, some of these ladies were scrambling to have a plus one—including Porsha. She introduced us to a guy named Mike, whom she referred to as her “friend friend.”
Of course, this is the first time we’re seeing her with this “friend friend,” and surely, it’s just a coincidence that he’s an actor who previously appeared on the OWN dating series Ready to Love. We got to see his acting chops in action tonight, and it was fully giving Kenya and Walter energy.
Similarly, Kelli showed up with a guy that everyone said they recognized from dating other women around Atlanta. He’s a man of the community.
Phaedra also seemed to have brought some hired help. Her plus one was “Che Che,” aka Cheick Kone. She first met him at a speed-dating event on Married to Medicine, and he has since become a reliable, on-screen plus-one. Are they actually dating? Who knows.
Meanwhile, Cynthia and Drew brought their dates via FaceTime. Drew had her rumored boyfriend, Blakk, propped up on her phone, and apparently, he stuck around for the entire party. He kept that ring light plugged in and his smile on for three hours. That’s a good “friend” and a good battery on Drew’s phone.
Shamea landed in the hot seat at the Mystic Island party
With Shamea and Porsha’s relationship on shaky ground, she felt hesitant about the Mystic Island party. The fact that her husband couldn’t come because of a “rerouted” flight made things even more nerve-racking.
It turns out, Shamea didn’t have much to worry about with her former bestie. Porsha hugged her and said she felt a sense of closure after their last conversation. She was ready to approach their friendship from a place of “openness.”
Porsha also brought up that strange apology video that Shamea uploaded to YouTube shortly after the reunion. She thought it seemed sincere, but not everyone agreed with that take.
Drew jumped in and accused Shamea of taking shots at her in that YouTube apology. The RHOA editors put the receipts right there in the episode. Shamea definitely shaded Drew and accused her of having lying tendencies.
Cynthia asked Shamea if she wanted to pull Drew aside to talk about it. She wasn’t interested. Instead, Shamea turned things around by calling Drew out on something she said about Angela.
Season 16’s storylines are haunting the group
It turns out, Drew went to Phaedra after the reunion and said she didn’t believe those Junebug/Godfather of Atlanta accusations Angela threw out. The receipts weren’t “receipting.”
Drew admitted to saying that, but Angela already knew about it. Either way, this conversation reopened the floodgates for Angela and Phaedra to relitigate their drama and add new accusations into the mix.
At the reunion, Angela claimed to have been accosted by one of Phaedra’s friends at an Atlanta Hawks game, but at the Mystic Island party, Phaedra claimed she had video proof from the arena’s security cameras that this never happened.
That’s a pretty big claim for someone who says they aren’t the Godfather of Atlanta, but in a confessional, she admitted that she was bluffing.
“I didn’t look at the tapes, but I asked for the tapes to be reviewed,” Phaedra admitted.
Regardless, Porsha didn’t let the drama get out of control. She encouraged the ladies to table their shady debates for another day. After all, this is just the first episode. They’ve got plenty of time to work through all of this, and Porsha said in a confessional that more shade is coming soon.
“I feel like I was a gracious host,” Porsha said, reflecting on the Mystic Island party.
She continued, “I wasn’t very ratchet. I wasn’t reading anybody. I’m saving all of that for later.”
The Real Housewives of Atlanta airs on Sundays at 8/7c on Bravo. You can stream it the next day on Peacock.
TELL US – WHAT WERE YOUR THOUGHTS ON THE REAL HOUSEWIVES OF ATLANTA SEASON 17 PREMIERE? DID YOU ENJOY SEEING K. MICHELLE STEP INTO THE GROUP? DO YOU THINK WE’LL SEE SHAMEA AND PORSHA’S FRIENDSHIP RECOVER THIS SEASON?
