Mob Wives: Recap "New Blood," Ep 401

My Two Cents…mingled with a little recapping and "bridge selling".

Let me just start out by saying that I love Mob Wives and have watched the show from the very beginning. We even started this blog before the show even aired. I cannot help but be disappointed that Karen Gravano is not on this season. When season one was being promoted, the Gravano name was the only one I, and many other viewers, recognized. I am sure that is what pulled a large share of the audience and maybe sold the idea to the network. I never heard of Facciolo, D’Avanzo, or Anthony Graziano for that matter (which is a credit to him, having an allegedly high ranking position and staying out of the news.) However, who hasn’t heard of Sammy “The Bull” Gravano? Enough said. Now, if Karen had walked away from Mob Wives of her own accord, to pursue other projects, then I would have to accept it and move on and wish her well. But that is not the case and we haven’t gotten the whole story. I heard it was about money. That may have been a part of it, but money matters can always be negotiated. I heard it was about Alicia’s husband not wanting Karen on the show. Maybe there was a clause in Alicia’s contract stating she would not be in the cast if Karen was, and a decision had to be made. Who chooses a Philly mob wife over THE New York mob wife who made the show a success? Who chooses a Philly mob wife and then uses the mob history of the father of that New York mob wife without her being on the show to respond? We don’t have a full storyline, we have a new season that is out of line.  I should get to the show before I start rambling…

The “Old Blood” is doing just fine. Renee has her son, AJ, home again, her father is getting out of prison soon and her Mob Candy brand is all set to go. Big Ang is glad to be back from Miami, where she opened a Miami Monkey bar. Drita and Lee are still together and she seems happy.  And then we are introduced to the “New Blood,” when we find out that Renee’s friend, Alicia, and is having a “roaring twenties” party in Philadelphia, and she invited Renee. Naturally, Drita and Big Ang are also going. And Renee says Alicia’s husband, Edward “Tall Guy,” is one of her dearest friends who she has known all her life. This is Renee’s way of supporting Alicia during her husband’s arrest and sentencing because “when one of us is in trouble we protect each other.” Well according the news I have read, Edward has been allegedly locked up since 2010...so it took three years and a party to get the support rolling? Convenient timing for a party, don’t you think? And then Big Ang springs the news we already know, there is “Bad Blood” between the Garofalo family and the Gravano family. Ang and Drita are both glad Karen is in Arizona. But they forget to mention that the only reason she is in Arizona is that she isn’t on the show, not on vacation…I have to wonder where her support went? And it also turns out that Anthony Graziano and “Tall Guy” are in the same prison and they hang out like family. That paints a warm and cozy picture in my mind. Alicia “Wise Gal” Garofalo says, in her sweet, soft, innocent voice, that she pleaded guilty to embezzlement to avoid a trial…not because she is guilty, like the Feds want us to believe…and she is awaiting sentencing herself. Of course, the old blood defend Alicia by saying the Feds are only doing this to get Edward to “flip,” and, if you believe that, I have a bridge in Staten Island to sell you.

The old blood get back home after the party and they rave about how great it was, what a wonderful person poor Alicia is, how she is out on $50,000 bail, and all the suffering she is going through. About that suffering, I read an article not that long ago that said Alicia lied to a judge in order to get him to lift a travel ban on her. She said she was going to help her son move into the dorm at the University of West Virginia. But, somehow she took a detour and, this little lost kitten, ended up in Las Vegas tweeting pictures about the great time she was having instead. I wonder why they Feds didn’t believe she was innocent?

Now for a totally ridiculous scene…I had to replay it because I thought I was hearing things…Neil wants a son and Big Ang is considering it. Really? She is 53 years old. Maybe a surrogate? Big Ang is serious. Are you buying that? If you are, that bridge in Staten Island is still for sale. Now if Drita had said this, it might at least be credible.

Moving on, I am getting a little irritated. Renee is launching her new brand and invites Alicia, from Philly, to help her out. Is there no one else? Well, that’s one way to get her into New York City and more involved in the show. I am anxious to see how they work Natalie in. Maybe someone needs a funeral consultant? Oh I see, none of the models have “the look” Renee is looking for and guess what? Alicia has someone for her…you guessed it, Natalie! They bring Natalie in and dress her up for a photo shoot for Mob Candy. Renee decides Natalie is going to be the face of Mob Candy.  Later on Renee arranges a lunch, that she doesn’t show up to, so Natalie can meet Ang and Drita. Natalie, aka Princess Funeral Home, should not order or drink multiple cocktails at any time. Even Big Ang, who is used to drunks at her bar, gets fed up. Natalie slurs her words and eats off Ang’s plate. Ang and Drita are out of there. Finally, we get to Renee’s launch party for Mob Candy, where Alicia sees a different “Carla” (ugh) who used to date Eddie. (If you are married, beware of Carlas!) The models strut their stuff on the catwalk. Natalie does her walk and then falls off the catwalk on her way out…oy vey! Maybe Renee needs a new face for her line? Natalie is “on probation” with Ang, she is a “loose canon.” Ang has concerns about Renee hanging out with a drinking funeral home princess who she feels is unstable. Ang thinks Natalie should stay in f*ckin’ Philly. Drita isn’t thrilled with her either. Oh, did I mention I wasn’t impressed? The incomprehensible, garbled, conversation should have ended on the cutting room floors, not in our living rooms.

Oh Lord, Aleeya is being bullied in school! Drita tells Lee. He is pissed and thinks she should break the girl’s “f*ckin’ face.” Hello? Did anyone think about going to the school authorities?  I’m not sure I believe this either. Is it me or was Drita just a little too calm about her daughter being threatened? Once a girl pushed my daughter for no reason and I went ballistic, but that’s just me.

Alicia lies about Vegas but her instagram does not!

Can I just say I am already fed up with all the sympathy poor Alicia is getting from the Old Blood? If she committed a crime she should be doing the time. She plead guilty to taking people’s pension money. Money they need for their future and old age. Money they worked for. Then we see her living it up in Las Vegas on Twitter? Boo f*ckin’ hoo…I learned that from Mob Mistress, my mentor. So now Alicia is supposed to be visiting her husband, Eddie, in the Brooklyn prison and stops over to visit Ang, with Drita there. More sympathy, ugh. Hold up…Alicia says she was kept in the dark by Eddie about the embezzlement and she is “madly crazy in love with him.”  I still got that bridge if you are interested.

And now we get to the meat of this season. Alicia drops the “bomb” that Eddie was sad because the other day was the anniversary of his dad’s death. OPEN the DOOR for the Gravano name to be trashed. Big Ang says it was years ago, 23 to be exact. Drita, however, has to ask how it happened because she is clueless. I guess she really doesn’t read our blog? Drita asks, “Who killed him?” Alicia says “Sammy “The Bull” was responsible for that.” Drita is shocked…yeah right. I got three words: Bridge for Sale! Big Ang remembers the hit well. Now Alicia launches her attack on Karen and her father about the 19 murders Sammy committed or arranged, which he confessed to and wrote a book about. Then she says Karen shouldn’t be “bragging” everywhere that Sammy is her dad. Well guess what? I never heard Karen “brag”  or “prance around” or condone what her father did. I have heard Karen say she loves her father, she didn’t know the “mobster” side of him and doesn’t condone what he did. And as for what Karen wrote in “her” book, that’s Karen’s business. She wrote about her life, not her father’s. He has his own book “Underboss” and maybe Alicia should read that one. Big Ang makes the most sense. It’s NOT about Karen, it’s about the two men, Sammy and her father in law. It’s about John Gotti who ordered the hit. It’s about mob business…the men’s business…so why it is on Mob Wives? I don’t blame Alicia for not wanting to be in a room with Karen under any circumstances…enough said. However, having said that, why isn’t Karen getting the opportunity to present her side or address Alicia on national television? And why are they exploiting Gravano mob history?

Alicia thinks she needs to speak to Renee, after dissing Karen to Ang and Drita, because Karen is Renee’s friend. Good thinking. And now Alicia is going rehash the bashing. Wait...did she really say Karen “gloats” about the victims her father murdered? This is really unbelievable! Thank you Renee for saying you and Karen are friends and Karen did a lot for you. Where was Alicia when you needed support? Surely she knew what you were going through from watching Mob Wives and reading the papers? Plenty of Renee’s trials and tribulations were in the news. And yet Renee’s answer to Alicia makes sense, you do not visit the sins of the father on the child. Karen is not responsible for anything Sammy did in the past.

I am going to wrap this up with my final thoughts. How can there be any good reason why Karen is not in this season? Someone in our blog family, MobBaby, suggested we should count all the times “Karen’” “Sammy,” and “Gravano” are spoken in the show. I am not rewatching the show to do that, but since Karen is an “unseen character,” maybe she should be paid a nice amount for each time each of their names come out of a cast member’s mouth? Because, after all, without her name, what else do they have to talk about?

And next week the fighting and brawls begin…grab your popcorn and see if any of it makes sense.

Picture credit: Alicia's Instagram