It’s the season finale of The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills. I don’t know about you, dear reader, but you know something good is cooking when Bravo throws up the end-of-season summaries with nearly 25 minutes left of the episode. As Kyle‘s marriage falls apart around her, she throws a banger of a white party to try and keep her mind off of her reality. If bringing in white palm trees and having a $400,000 budget helps her cope, it doesn’t seem like anyone else really minds attending the event on her account.
The “shishishi” king is back on our screens to help Kyle’s over-the-top vision come to life: Kevin Lee. You may have remembered him as LVP’s event planner, something that Kyle reminds us all of, repeatedly. Although Kyle still has beef with LVP, she is sure glad to have snagged Kevin because this white party is a far cry from her nostalgic, early days. First of all, it is going to be held at SoFi stadium, anddd the one, the only, Erika Jayne will be performing after a long-awaited four-year hiatus (thanks mainly to legal troubles). Erika likens this event to the “warm up” for her Vegas residency and knows she has to impress. There will be lights, there will be cheerleaders, and there will be dancing!
Sutton arrives at the jeweler with her daughter, Porter. She wants to celebrate her independence by doing what we all do (not) — purchasing thousand-dollar jewelry. She tries on a $9 million ring and instead purchases $68,000 earrings because #budgeting. Sutton is proud to show Porter that she works for the things she wants and tearfully tells her daughter to keep her independence always, no matter where life takes her.
The long-awaited white party is finally here. Kyle feigns embarrassment that Kevin Lee went ahead and personalized the dance floor with HER name and she pretends to dislike the attention. Seems like Kevin has a type he plans for, huh? Also interesting is that it appears as though this is a Kyle only party… whereas, in years past, the white party was a joint event thrown by both Kyle and Mauricio.
There’s a lot brewing backstage. Mikey, Erika’s creative director, reminds Erika that she hasn’t done a show in four years and not to be pressure on her, but there’s pressure on her. Speaking of pressure… Dorit is laying it on thick with PK. He has now been in London for “work” for 25 days, and although he knew about this white party, he will obviously not be in attendance. Dorit is bummed and still feels like PK doesn’t understand her PTSD, even after attending therapy together. Dorit keeps worrying out loud if they can even stay together, and this feels like she is just setting up her next storyline…
Mauricio is one of the first to arrive at SoFi stadium and is surprised to find that his wife is nowhere to be found. Maybe Kyle’s claims about lack of communication really are true… The Rams cheerleaders greet Crystal and her husband as they enter. Sutton is the next to arrive, followed by Garcelle, who feels like this wild party is a little bit of a contradiction of Kyle’s new lifestyle, but she isn’t complaining. The morally corrupt Faye Resnick is in attendance, and so are Cynthia Bailey and Jeff Lewis.
After what seems like quite some time, Kyle finally makes her entrance with her daughters in tow. Sutton wonders, “Where is Mauricio? We’ve been looking for him since the memorial service!” Welp, he is loading up his plate with food, completely oblivious. I wonder why…?? He runs over to meet his wife and daughters and tells them they are “slaying,” which is super cringey.
Dorit repeatedly tells people that PK is STILL in London, and Sutton gets to talking to Garcelle about her dating life. She explains that her date, Steve, ghosted her and she is ready to move on and search for the next guy… she owes a big thanks to her matchmaker and understands that she wants to focus mainly on her business.
At the party, it clicks with Kyle how much Mo really doesn’t listen to her. He has tuned her out so much so that he thought this party was going to be held in the parking lot of SoFi stadium, and this has set Kyle off. Luckily, it’s time for the entertainment to perform (or lip sync if you ask Denise Richards).
Backstage, Erika and her group huddle up and do a prayer circle. Erika feels like she is exactly where she needs to be, and she enters the arena, hood up, serious as can be. She needs it to go perfectly because everything is riding on this comeback. Kyle knows all the words to “It’s Expensive to Be Me,” and Erika drops down in splits and gyrates in a way only a woman trying to stay relevant would.
Erika is hopeful for more residencies in the future and feels like she is finally happy. Dorit is starting to understand that after PK has been in London for 39 days, he may never change and be exactly what she needs from him. Another relationship woe in Dorit’s life is the one she has with Kyle — they haven’t spoken since December.
Annemarie and Crystal haven’t spoken since the white party, and Annemarie claims that she wants to be a better person. Crystal has finally accepted that she cannot control her brother, and Garcelle has grown with boundaries and with momming, and she even won an Astra award for Black Girl Missing. Sutton went from a scared woman to an independent woman, thriving on her own to make things happen for herself. And it seemingly ends on a good note… until one month later when filming picks back up.
July 23, 2023. Breaking news: Kyle and Mauricio have officially split. The ladies learn this news the way many of us did: through PEOPLE magazine. Some never saw this coming, but others realize this didn’t happen overnight. Sutton points out the clues — the missing wedding band, the tattoos, not drinking, over-exercising — and she feels like Kyle was lying to them all the whole time.
One day later, Kyle and Mauricio put out a statement regarding their split. Mauricio was more concerned about who told PEOPLE magazine, but life as Kyle knew it is now over.
Erika pays a visit to Kyle’s to be her support person. Erika apologizes for not being the most attentive friend, but Kyle lets her know they have been dealing with things privately. Kyle states that there isn’t one big thing that was the catalyst, just small things that have added up over time. Kyle claims this has nothing to do with anyone else but Mo and her, but to split after 27 years raises a lot of eyebrows. They’ve been together since they were in their early 20s, and it’s something Kyle is very proud of, but now she has to figure out what makes her happy.
One week after the news broke, Kyle states that things have been awkward. Mauricio laughs, “I’m just glad it’s you out there having an affair,” which leaves a lot of questions for us. Because their daughters were blindsided by the severity of the marital issues, the couple calls a family meeting to discuss everything that has come out.
Kyle wants to clear things up for her girls, and Mauricio explains that he has been trying to protect them by not telling them everything. Kyle lets the girls know they haven’t talked about divorce, but the daughters are overwhelmed and worry about the next steps. Kyle talks about space while working through their stuff, and Mo looks beat up and over it. Portia becomes incredibly upset during this conversation, and Kyle tells them all, “We’re not broken, just bent.” Kyle promises that they always will be a family, but the reality is, she may not end up with Mauricio.
Thanks, Bravo, for the montage of all the happy moments Mauricio and Kyle have shared over the years. But despite all of those good times, in her confessional, Kyle hints at things that happened that made her lose her “trust.”
“I’ve come to realize that there’s a big chance that we’re not going to end up together,” said Kyle. “There were things that happened that made me lose my trust that I wasn’t able to recover from.”
She was unable to recover from them, and although she was able to reconcile with Kathy, she continues to live separately from Mauricio, allegedly even wearing her “friend” Morgan’s pants. Kyle breaks down at the end of her segment, and we are all left wondering, what will become of their marriage?
WHAT ARE YOUR THOUGHTS ON THE RHOBH FINALE?
