Holding Space For Vanderpump Rules

They were the best days of our lives.

Nov 26, 2024

This morning we mourned the loss of one of the greatest reality shows of all time. Vanderpump Rules, after 11 seasons, is coming to an end as we know it. The hit Bravo show is taking the RHONY road and doing a reboot, centered around new SURvers at Lisa Vanderpump’s restaurants SUR and TomTom.

What started out in 2013 as a spinoff of Real Housewives of Beverly Hills has become a world wide phenomenon, with multiple spinoffs itself, including The Valley, which should be gracing our screens with their 2nd season any day now.

Vanderpump Rules was lightning in a bottle. You had these hot, messy, poor 20-somethings (besides Jax because he was mid-30s dating a 22 year old…) who were so intertwined with each other’s lives but also beholden to this fabulous British woman who signed their paychecks every week.

SUR was like Disneyland; a revolving door of beautiful people with dreams of fame and grandeur waltzed in and out, sometimes on their own accord and sometimes they were forced to leave the premises.

The first three seasons of Vanderpump Rules was unlike anything we have ever seen on television, and we will never see it again. It was raw, real, emotional, vulnerable and incredibly messy. No one held back; they bled for this show. This was their real lives…this was as real as it gets.

From Jax following Stassi to Vegas for her birthday, to revealing that he did sleep with a girl in Vegas; from the back handed slap heard round the world, to Miami Girl and Laura Leigh. We were introduced to James Kennedy, to Good as Gold, to Madison Marie Parks Valetta and eventually Summer Moon Honey Davies.

We had some incredible times; some truly shocking moments, like Tom punching Jax in the face and Kristen’s green dress. We watched Jax continually make poor decisions, Katie continually accept the bare minimum from Tom Schwartz, and we watched Stassi find her happily ever after with Beau, a man who let her dark passenger be.

After the great firing of 2020, the show was never going to be the same. The plans that Bravo had for our original cast members died a quick death and we were left with lizard funerals and pickleball… that is, until Sandoval stuck his dick somewhere it didn’t belong.

Scandoval both saved and killed Vanderpump Rules. Without it, the show would’ve ended after season 10… a clean break on an even number but instead of literally going out with a bang, we were brought back and drug through the mud for one more farewell, which ultimately ended it all.

Lala’s inability to let Ariana heal, Tom’s inability to take accountability for what he did, and Ariana’s sky rocketed fame all contributed to what is happening now— a reboot.

A show that used to be about real friends and real relationships was burned down to the ground the moment Raquel and Tom started an affair. After season 11, there wasn’t a way in which any of this was organic anymore. We saw the fall out and now we need to let it die.

Season 12 wouldn’t have been natural, it would’ve been forced and messy but not in a good way. Season 11 should’ve been Lala, Scheana and Katie rallying around Ariana and lifting her up, celebrating her fame but also helping her mourn the partnership she had of over a decade. Tom’s feet should’ve been held to the fire a bit more, though that wouldn’t have worked because he’s a raging narcissist who refuses to take responsibility for his own actions.

Instead, we got Lala fighting for Ariana to move on from the biggest reality TV scandal ever, Scheana making Ariana’s relationship about her, and everyone besides Katie kissing Sandoval’s ass to keep the show going.

In my opinion, Lala was the nail in the coffin. Her outbursts, her desire to have Ariana be punished for creating space and boundaries by someone who hurt her deeply, and the refusal to understand where Ariana was coming from broke the show. Lala made it obvious that this was all for a check, that Ariana would be responsible for the cancelation and would be holding the last straw if Lala couldn’t put food on the table for her child.

The 4th wall was smashed through on the season 11 finale; I’d go as far to say that the show created a 5th wall and broke that too.

We were left with broken glass and no one to pick up the pieces.

We all should’ve seen the writing on the wall when they aired the finale montage, showcasing the cast member’s younger selves from their first confessionals, followed up by a split screen of some of the most iconic moments from the show’s decade long tenure.

There will never be another show like Vanderpump Rules and though they will try to recreate the magic with a new round of SURvers, we’ll never see these people in the same light. What made Vanderpump Rules so special and unique was that they were real friends, with real problems and relationships, who yes, wanted to be famous but weren’t quite aware of the cameras yet so they weren’t pandering to the audience.

In 2024, it’s hard to find that again because everyone is too focused on how they come off — it’s the problem with RHONY this season (though I’m still watching and enjoying!) and it’ll probably be the problem with the new Vanderpump Rules cast as well.

We will find time to analyze and criticize this new cast of characters soon but for today, let us remember the best days of our lives. Let us remember the people who raised us and gave us so many memorable, intense and hilarious moments.