Monday, February 13, 2012

Mob Wives: Recap “Fights and Facials” Ep 206



The episode starts at Renee’s house with Renee talking to Junior. She tells him that she feels like “gloom and doom” with all the girls fighting. She feels distant from her friends. Renee keeps thinking about what Ramona said about Junior, that he married her for her father and would be a loser without her. She doesn’t want to confront Ramona at the spa party, but it is obvious that it is very much on her mind. Junior tells Renee she thinks about everybody else, but everyone else only thinks of themselves. Renee wants to focus on Junior and she is upset he is going back to prison in a couple of months. She feels like she is losing him again just when they are reconnecting. He says it’s only for 21 months and it will never happen again. Renee says she loves him and is depressed.

At Drita’s house, Drita is planning to have a long over due talk with Aleeya about the divorce. Aleeya talks to her dad everyday and Drita asks her if she wonders why she doesn’t talk to Lee. Aleeya wants to know why. Drita asks her if she knows what divorce means. Drita is sad about the divorce, no one in her family has gotten divorced, they work through things. Aleeya says when dad comes home he is taking all of them on a vacation and Aleeya wants to go to Hawaii. Aleeya is sad, Drita cries and tells her she is going to make everything good for her.

Karen arrives at Renee’s house for the spa party with Ramona and Adriana. She says “if I can’t have sex I might as well have a spa party!” Karen wants it to be fun and relaxing for everyone. Renee and Big Ang are already there. Big Ang wants a massage, a facial and a buzz. They all have drinks. Nikole is on her way. Carla said she was coming. Renee announces that she invited Drita…the room gets quiet. She says she didn’t want to leave anyone out like she did for her birthday and that’s it! Karen doesn’t look happy. Renee says it’s her house and she will invite who she wants.

Carla's not coming to the party? Big surprise there?


Karen says it’s her party and yes Renee threw her off her game. Ramona and Karen both say they will respect Renee, it’s her house. Renee says Carla told Drita about the party and Renee told her she could come. The women get spray tans and facials. Renee tells Karen that Carla told her she was afraid to go to the spa party for fear she would be ambushed. Karen says she doesn’t need to throw a party to ambush someone. Carla calls to say she isn’t coming, she is going out with Joe and the kids. Karen is very gracious and tells her she can have a rain check, but she wants to know if it’s because she thinks she was going to be ambushed like she told Renee? Renee says Carla would never have told Karen the truth if Renee hadn’t said something. Renee is upset that everyone doesn’t just say how they really feel.

Ramona says she doesn’t need to ambush anyone. Big Ang decides to leave, she doesn’t want to be involved with any drama. Ramona says she would never do anything in Renee’s house and feels bad that Carla wouldn’t come because of her. Karen wants Ramona to call Carla. Renee says, no don’t call now. Ramona says she wants to make peace for Renee’s sake because that is what she wants. Renee is still pissed about Ramona’s comment about Junior that he married Renee for her father and would be a loser without her. Ramona doesn’t understand Renee, and says you put me with “sh*t” (meaning Carla) and the other one is even a bigger piece of sh*t (meaning Drita). Renee says she didn’t put her with sh*t and she should stop defending her. Ramona says, no she won’t stop defending her. Renee gets very emotional and starts crying, saying she feels disloyal, like she is playing both sides of the fence. Karen says the spa party is dead, they killed it. So much for relaxation.

Another day Renee has Drita come over to do her makeup. Drita asks about Junior. Renee says that have had a fight the last three days. Drita says she should enjoy him while she has him. Renee says he is home every night and is doing all the right things, but Renee still gets upset with him. She thinks she is sabotaging her relationship on purpose, maybe because he is going away for two years and she can’t deal with it. Drita tells her not to sabotage it.

Karen and Ramona are out riding bikes. They talk about the spa party. Karen is fed up with the Carla thing. Ramona sees Carla as Drita’s puppet. Karen says she likes to address issues head on not by talking behind people’s backs. Ramona wants to talk to Carla and address the “archenemy” comments she was told Carla made.

At the Drunken Monkey, Carla and Drita meet up with Big Ang. Big Ang says the spa party was really nice, but Carla did the  right thing going out with her kids. Drita agrees. Big Ang says Karen was disappointed that Carla didn’t come. Carla doesn’t like what Ramona has been saying and it wouldn’t have gone well. Big Ang says Renee and her wanted Drita to come, the girls were there. Carla says who was there, Adriana? And she laughs, another good reason for  her to have stayed away. Apparently, with one guess, Carla knew who Ramona’s friend was and, as it turns out, Carla had issues with Adriana and is even more glad she didn’t go to the party. Carla says everyone has a problem with her.

Drita visits Renee. Renee shows Drita Junior’s phone and she is going to break into it to see what he has been up to. Renee tries a couple of passwords and gets in. She starts checking messages. A woman leaves a message, but it’s just his cousin. Drita says she is having a heart attack. Renee says the other night his ex texted him and Renee found out about it. Junior walks in, Renee hides the phone. Then Renee calls Junior and tells him she found his phone in the couch. Renee and Drita have a laugh. 

At Carla’s place the phone rings and it’s Ramona. She wants to meet Carla, one on one, to talk. Carla is not interested in meeting Ramona, she doesn’t want to deal with a screaming match. Ramona says she only screams at her kids. Ramona wants to clear the air. Carla relents because she knows Renee wants everyone to make peace. They decide to meet and talk things out.

Drita meets her friend Bridget for lunch and they talk about Lee. Bridget said she heard that Lee is contesting the divorce and wants to know if it’s true. Drita says she didn’t hear anything about it, but it could be a rumor or true. In Staten Island people talk about everyone’s business. Drita says he better not contest it or she is going to be more angry than she already is. As far as she is concerned the marriage was over the day she found out he cheated. She is hurt and there is no forgiveness. If he contests it she won’t be nice any more, she will get ruthless in court.

Carla and Renee meet and Carla tells her that Ramona called to set up a meeting. Renee offers to go with her. Carla says it’s better if she meets her alone without a 3rd party. She doesn’t want Renee in the middle or defending her. Carla wants to confront Ramona and wants to see what she has to say. Renee says Carla should be afraid of Ramona because she fights hard. Carla just wants to talk it out and be done.

Ramona isn't buying what Carla is selling.

Ramona meets Carla for lunch. Carla says she is sick of sit downs, she has had one with everybody. Ramona wants to clear the air with her. She says she doesn’t know Carla, so she was surprised to hear from people that Carla was calling her her “archenemy.” Carla wants to know where she heard it and Ramona answers, from two boroughs, Brooklyn and Staten Island. Carla looks down and denies she ever said it, saying it wasn’t “her word.” Ramona knows she said it because it came from a very reliable source. Then Ramona tells Carla that Drita is a liar and she feels Carla’s brain has been molded by Drita. Ramona says all of Staten Island knows the history between Drita and Karen, Carla doesn’t know it. Carla only knows what Drita says and that’s why Drita can lie to her. Carla is offended at the “molding” of her brain insult and says she has a mind of her own. Carla looks down for most of the conversation. Ramona says she has no history with Carla so she should get to know her. Carla says that if she ever hears anything again she will call and ask Ramona herself in the future. 

My Two Cents: Where to start? A lot went down in this episode. First let’s start with Renee and Junior. This was filmed before all the news came out that Junior turned informant and Renee’s dad was arrested. Renee is under the impression that they are getting married and working things out at this point. (Let me make it clear, that right now, according to Renee, she will never forgive Junior for what he did and she is not on speaking terms with him.)  However, a relationship has to be built on trust if it is to go anywhere. It’s obvious that Renee will never trust Junior again. She will be questioning his every move and checking his phone, which she is entitled to do after all he put her through, but he would not have put up with that. Even if Junior had not cut a deal with the FBI, their relationship would have been doomed from the start…no trust means nothing to build on. Sometimes love just isn’t enough.

Drita finally tells Aleeya about the divorce. It was a touching scene, but it seemed like there was a lot missing to me, like Aleeya already knew or sensed this was coming. I do not think it would have been appropriate for Drita to address this topic with her daughter, for the first time, in front of cameras and common sense tells me she didn’t. Aleeya probably knew before now and they re-enacted it for viewers. That’s just my opinion. As for Lee contesting the divorce, I have to laugh. He has no grounds to contest it and will never get away with it. Why? Because I do believe that incarceration is very good grounds for divorce, PERIOD. Here is the NY State law: “Three Consecutive Years Imprisonment - This is a ground for divorce if your spouse has been in jail for three or more years in a row beginning after your marriage. Once your spouse has been in jail for three years in a row, you can file for divorce: while your spouse is still in jail and up to five years after s/he is released.” So Drita doesn’t have to lose any sleep over it and it’s something her lawyer should have already explained to her, don’t you think?

The “spa party” was shot to hell the second Renee invited Drita. That was the bad omen that things were not going to go well. Even though Carla and Drita weren’t there to create any tension, drama still exploded at Renee’s house. I’m sure Karen and Ramona both felt blindsided hearing for the first time that Renee invited Drita. Personally I would have flipped out if I were either of them because Renee didn‘t mention it ahead of time, but they both said they would respect Renee and her house. Sure Renee can invite who she wants to her house, but under the circumstances, she maybe should have given them a heads up? Renee is very on edge. It’s not just that she upset over what Ramona said about Junior, but she explained to me yesterday what was going on (See blog “Renee Speak On Disloyalty“) and that she was on pain medication and not thinking clearly. Big Ang ran out of there as soon as things got a little heated. Carla called and cancelled. I’m not sure if she was really going out with her kids or just chickened out. I am going with the latter. Once again Karen extends an olive branch by inviting Carla to the party (like when she gave Drita the first chapter of her book) only to get a slap in the face for it. I can hear Ramona’s words, “STOP…BEING…NICE echoing in my head.

Now the best for last, Ramona and Carla’s sit down! Carla says everyone has a problem with her…when someone says that, they need to look at themselves because it means it’s either you or it’s everyone else and chances are it’s you. Carla definitely wronged Renee twice in a big way: once with the boyfriend and once by not calling or seeing her at the hospital. Karen was pissed with Carla for running around Staten Island spreading lies about Drita beating her up and putting her in the hospital. Karen also has some personal issues with Carla that goes back to their families and Carla knows what they are because they had words on Twitter about it. Now, Ramona has an issue with Carla, who she doesn’t even know, calling her her “archenemy.” Maybe Carla needs to look at herself in the mirror and ask why everyone has an issue with her? But if she can’t find the answers in the mirror, she can read this blog.

Hey Carla, You can't hide your lying eyes...or so the song says!


I hope everyone noticed that 90% of the time, when Ramona was asking Carla about the “archenemy” statement, Carla could not make eye contact with her. She was looking down. That is body language for lying and guilt. Carla should have just admitted it that she said it and looked Ramona in the eye. Ramona would have respected her for doing that and would be more prone to believe her in the future. However, Ramona knows Drita is a liar and now, as far as Carla goes, she has just lied. Not much hope for a budding friendship is there? 

NEWS: I’ll try to blog “The Sitdown” later today so watch for my tweets. Also Karen Gravano will be on The View at 11 AM ET today and I will blog about that! Karen’s book, Mob Daughter comes out tomorrow, so be sure to get your copy early. Everyone will be talking about it. The Mob Wives: Big Ang, Drita and Renee will be on Rachael Ray this Thursday, set your DVRs!

9 comments:

Anonymous said...

I spent the entire episode thinking WTF! There was an ambush alright, but it was Karen and Ramona that got ambushed. I know Renee was on medication, but I can't stop thinking that part of her behavior is just plain old fashion guilt. Part of her knew she wasn't playing fair (another example wanting to go to the sitdown with Carla and Ramona) and being a good person and friend it was eating at her. I also can't help but not like Big Ang. I gave her the benefit of the doubt after the party, but now I'm convinced she's trouble. Where exactly were Karen and Ramona acting immature? Big Ang is a wolf in sheep's clothing and I hope it doesn't blow up in her, Drita, and Carla's faces later. It still seems that Karen and Ramona are the real deal and as Renee said "bite hard" so I really don't want to know what happens when they "stop playing nice" for their own sakes, especially Karen who seemed to have moved past all of that in Arizona.

Chiara Soprano said...

You make some very good points Anon. I had similar thoughts to Big Ang and one of these days one of her "innocent" comments might just start a war. I thought Karen and Ramona handled the news about Drita very graciously and maturely. I would have been pissed. But we always have to remember that editing makes a big difference at times between what we see and what really happened.

Mob Mistress said...

I shared Anonymous' take, "WTF!"

Thanks for the recap Chiara.

Anonymous said...

This is getting to the point where it almost doesn't make sense anymore. I really don't get why anyone would care about trying to be friends with Carla. She and Renee may have a hundred years of history, but it just seems like Carla doesn't care about anyone. And like with Karen, Carla admitted she spreads Drita's lies around, Karen got mad and aggressive, Carla didn't like that, they said they moved past it and were gonna try. Then Drita orders Carla to not be friends with them, and Carla's back to being mystified why anyone has a problem with her except they're all jealous, running her mouth behind their backs and not wanting to be friends with them. It's like, okay, you tried, you made the effort, she's not interested, move on. I wouldn't make this much effort with someone who actually has a personality or is trustworthy. They don't know this girl, she's not worth knowing, it seems strange to try so hard.

I also agree about Big Ang. The only person who made a big deal about Drita being invited and Carla not showing up was Renee.

I also don't why geting in someone's face is now such a huge deal. Of course nobody likes that, but they all do it to each other. Drita did it to Renee, Renee did it to Carla. Back then it was not such an unforgiveable offense that it needed to be discussed for 4 solid weeks, even when it led to a physical fight.

Great recap, thanks.

JW said...

JW here - it's been too long! I've been working crazy hours but I still make a point to pop by and see what's new on the blog.

I'm convinced that these "sit downs" with Carla have to be encouraged by the producers. And by producers, I would think it would be the other people with whom Jennifer works on the show. I imagine that Jennifer has input but there are probably other voices that trump hers - much like Shaunie O'Neal's involvement in Basketball Wives.

I think Big Ang is a riot but I've seen one too many scenes with her stirring the pot with Drita and Carla for me to believe that she is a neutral party. I think you can be neutral without giving a play by play of your conversation with Karen and Ramona. She calls Karen and Ramona immature but I actually think that behavior is quite immature.

I know the ratings are great but personally, I've found this season to be exhausting. I don't re-watch episodes or save them beyond one play on my DVR like I did the first season.

The show will certainly get a third season and if there are no plans for a major overhaul in these story lines, I may be done for good. This recently happened with the Real Housewives of New York where the drama/negativity became so off-putting to viewers it resulted in a major cast overhaul. I actually liked when the four women were interacting with each other so how about we bury the hatchet and bring on a patsy to be the bad guy against whom they can all rally? I know, wishful thinking.

On another note - I HATE the sit down/after show. I guess I'm expecting too much but it seems like it could be a great opportunity to play back the tape and call people out on their inconsistent stories. Perhaps if put on the spot, there would be more pressure to be sensible and amenable to a resolution. I really hope they don't let Carrie host the reunion - please bring Wendy back. We need someone that is not going to giggle with them as they watch their nasty comments. We need someone that is going to call them out on their crap and push back.

Rosey said...

The first sit down was just plain boring. Last night was a little improvement. They need to mix it up and have a one on one with Drita and Karen only first! Then have one with Drita and Ramona about the issue of whether it is true Ramona talked about Renee's ex-husband Junior which is currently making Renee upset at Ramona. Big Ang to me is funny but I feel she is just there to go back to Drita and Carla and tell them what was said or done behind there backs.

Deana3452 said...

Was it just me or did anyone else almost have a heart attack when Renee was looking at Jr's phone and you could see his shadow at the door...lol

Anonymous said...

I loved Drita last year, but now I think it would have been so much better if Ramona had taken her slot last year and she never came on. This show needs to be more about loyalty and less about fighting and being messy. It's getting really old. The Fan/fame thing is going to many cast members' heads and as long as it sells you'll never get a real, relaxed moment out of them again.

Noshiz80 said...

I honestly don't think that Karen and Ramona were goi g to start a problem or ambush Carla on purpose. I do, however, think that Carla made the right choice. It sucks that Karens party got ruined and Renee cod have used better judgement. Not that I think her intentions were bad, just that we have seen how explosive the situation is and it probably wouldn't have gone well had Drita shown up. Just the mention of Drita being invited set off a little boom. I think that Karen and Ramona handled it well so I would have to agree. I really wish they could all move on, either all friends or not. They are still fighting abt the same things! But, I guess there wouldn't be a show worth watching if everyone got along.
I am curious to see where this Renee and Ramona thing goes... Thumbs up to Renee for keeping it on the low at the spa party.
I don't know if Carla will stay on good terms with either Karen or Ramona. I guess time will tell.