Real Housewives of Orange County Season 18, Episode 12 Recap: An Elephant Never Forgets

This week’s episode of the Real Housewives of Orange County, “The Elephant in the Room,” picks up after Emily is seen storming out of the party. She is livid about being made to feel fat-shamed. Jen and Tamra try their best to find common ground even while their significant others are going toe-to-toe. Gina is reflecting on the news of her ex-husband’s engagement. And Shannon is hit with another article regarding another lawsuit. 

There is never a dull moment on the Real Housewives of Orange County

Things have not exactly simmered down after last week’s dress debacle because, as we learned, it is about the dress! Heather, however, is exhausted as she recounts the night to Terry. She makes a point to note that she has really been trying to figure out her steadfast friends but keeps hitting a brick wall. When it comes to Gina and Heather, there is a piece of the puzzle she doesn’t know about. I like Heather a lot. But I do think she sometimes doesn’t take accountability for how her entitled attitude comes off. In an attempt to lighten the mood, Terry jokes that his wife’s process is to “hash it out once, twice, three times ad nauseam.” But Heather takes offense. However, all this advice came as Terry was undergoing an echocardiogram. What a guy!

Gina gets some news of her own, and it has me thinking she is a role model for all Bravo housewives everywhere. Gina shared that her ex-husband Matt and Britt are engaged. After all, she’s been through, she could never imagine a better stepmom for her children. The sentiment was touching. However, Gina admits it is tough to watch Matt move forward since Travis and his ex’s situation is not improving. Gina shares that Travis is dealing with things outside his control: “When it affects him, it affects the family. I want it to be easy and okay. It feels unfair that somebody would work to take it from us.” Gina just about broke this viewer’s heart! 

Act your age and ignore the blinking red light

The episode then turns to Jen and Ryan as they shop for Ryan’s upcoming trip to Las Vegas. Ryan’s fashion choices are odd, but fans learned it all goes to the tailor—even the underwear. In a split-screen review, producers took us through the rollercoaster that was Jen and Tamra last year. It’s clear that Jen is happy where she and Tamra are in their friendship, but it’s all about to change. Eddie and Tamra are then caught talking about how Ryan betrayed them while on a podcast. The turmoil seems to stem from the fact that Eddie is not happy about the podcast trying to paint a picture of him as a bad guy and inferring that nobody liked him. I don’t know Eddie, but I think it’s safe to say all viewers like Eddie. He is Tamra’s rock.

The man has had to carry a lot of baggage, and he does it with a smile on his face. The cameras cut back to Ryan acting a bit “douchey” Tamra’s words, not mine, as he stated that Eddie “is not a dude I’d hang with. He’s not a dude.” But the whole interaction has me thinking about the fallout. Are we being duped by Tamra’s fake reality, or is Ryan lying? It all got a bit murky, to be honest, and the tension seems to go deeper than a podcast. Eddie isn’t willing to talk to Ryan. And while Tamra hopes Ryan makes an effort and apologizes, she still calls him a “little bitch” (let’s hope Shane doesn’t get wind of that insult.)

Hold onto your dinner napkins

The men of Real Housewives of Orange County aren’t playing around. Usually, it’s the women who bring the drama. But today, it’s the Stay Puft Marshmallow Man literally wearing burnt sienna, aka Ryan. It seems Eddie was highly insulted that Ryan would think a hug was okay upon entering the party. Eddie aggressively walks away, and it’s uncomfortable. There is not enough mac and cheese in the world not made by Katie to make this better. Eddie is hiding in the kitchen when he jokes he doesn’t drink unless he “has to tolerate the environment.” I’d say this is the time to take a few shots, Eddie

As the group works on keeping Eddie and Ryan separated, Matt asks the all-mighty question viewers have been wondering: What does Ryan do for work? Ryan seems confused at his own answer, sharing, “Real estate development. I do all projects in California and/or flips, work from home.” The lack of structured sentences aside, Ryan clearly needs to work on his made-up CV. The elephant in the room is finally brought up. Tamra isn’t pleased about being talked about as a mom and Eddie as a businessman. The arguing escalated, but Ryan was validated. It turns out that it was the host who mocked Tamra’s parenting, not Ryan. Naturally, my mind was blown, but it didn’t clear Ryan totally.

Tamra has quite the foreshadowing moment

Tamra feels like the conversation is going in circles. It could be that she has been overserved, especially since Eddie had her cut off. But she starts to lose her patience and lets slip the she knows the FBI raided Ryan. Woah, baby, bring that popcorn on over here! Eddie immediately silences his wife, but she opens up in her confessional. Tammy Sue shared that she had heard the raid had to do with an illegal gambling ring. The resident former lawyer of the group, Emily, notes she has heard the rumors, too, sharing, “Where there is smoke, there is fire.” Sadly, another dinner ends with a major storm off. Ryan gets one final jab and says, “Eddie is soft, their marriage is a sham, and Tamra can’t handle it.” Projection is a thing, and so is deflection…

But Tamra has the last laugh as she walks out on production. She notes, “I don’t think anyone is prepared to see who the real Ryan is.” The goosebumps from that one sentence are still on my skin. 

 The Real Housewives of Orange County continues on Thursdays at 9/8c on Bravo.

TELL US – DO YOU THINK TAMRA KNEW ABOUT RYAN ALL ALONG? WAS EDDIE RIGHT TO KEEP TAMRA QUIET?