What’s a better way to celebrate Memorial Day weekend than with the ladies of The Real Housewives of New Jersey? Some call it the kick off to summer, but for these ladies, summer is well underway and so are the grudges and alliances. Rachel and Margaret aren’t quite sure what to do with Jen Fessler since it seems as though she is getting closer to Teresa. Dolores holds her annual charity softball game, bringing everyone together amidst all the drama. What could possibly go wrong?!
After a lovely motorcycle ride with her hubby, Joe, the Marge opens up to him about how everyone in the friend group is seemingly losing their marbles. She is mad that Jackie didn’t give her a copy of her new book, but did give one to Jen Fessler and Melissa(who, according to Margaret, doesn’t even read). Margaret goes on to say how lousy of a friend Jackie has been to her, since she didn’t even touch base on the one-year anniversary of Jan’s death. Margaret hasn’t quite moved past losing Jan and wishes that she had support from her friend.
Rachel explains that she hasn’t heard from Jen Fessler since they left the shore, so she has asked her out to chat about where they should go from here. At the restaurant, they get right down to it. Rachel starts to get choked up explaining her angle and tells Jen that she feels hurt by her. Jen doesn’t really understand why a 32 year old woman could be this upset about this, and I mean, rightly so. Jen clarifies that when she sat down with Teresa, it was NOT about Rachel. But once the convo did turn to the Fudas, Jen “advocated” for them, and to Jen, that seems like a victory.
Rachel is still disappointed by Jen’s behavior, but Jen makes it clear that she isn’t Margaret, heading into situations ready to fight, blind with loyalty. Jen is still unsure why Rachel is so mad at her and Rachel claims that she is “mourning the loss of what their friendship used to be.” Jen eventually tells Rachel, “you know where my heart is,” essentially ending their beef.
The subject changes to Jennifer Aydin’s dog party. Rachel is not ready to jump into a situation like that and Jen is actually happy that her friend will be absent from the event because now she can be herself around “the enemies.”
Things must be pretty tough for Jen Aydin if she is hosting a birthday party for Biscuit, her new dog. This is what it has come down to for her. Dolores brings one of her ten dogs and Olivia, Jen’s daughter, is just happy to say b*tch over and over, since it is technically a noun for a female dog.
It’s quite the crew at this party. We have Teresa and Gia, who is apparently auditioning to be part of RHONJ by sitting at the big girls’ table. Speaking of Gia, no she is not engaged yet, but her boyfriend does work with Louie. Jackie and Dolores are there, and of course, so is Jen Fessler. There’s a dog fashion show and Biscuit takes the crown.
There’s also a rando friend there named Lina, who happens to be a hairdresser for some of the women in the group. Lina is spilling the tea about Danielle‘s “incident” at a charity event. Apparently, Lina did Danielle’s hair, but when Lina was asked to leave the event, Danielle did not jump in to help her. According to Jen, things have been brewing with Danielle that people in the group may not know about and Jen is LOVING that she is bringing all Danielle’s sh*t to light.
Jen then shares that she did invite Margaret and Teresa muses what dog Joe would bring: Margaret of his real dog? Ouch. This does not get one chuckle, which is shocking. It’s then brought up that Rachel is not here because of Teresa. Messy Fessy spills the beans and tells the group that Rachel felt betrayed by Jen when she hugged Teresa. Dolores sits there in absolute confusion watching these friendships take major turns. Dolores feels like she is in the Twilight Zone, especially when it comes to Jackie and Teresa, since a year ago, Jackie wanted nothing to do with Teresa.
Even though she was essentially told to stay out of it by Rachel, Jen Fessler is hopeful that Louie and John can talk and Dolores suggests that they talk at her upcoming charity softball game. Dolores needs those men to be civil at the event and she recommends that they talk before the game.
Watching Antonia move into the dorms at my alma mater, the University of Delaware, brings back all the feels. We learn that Antonia will be rooming with her long-time friend and Joe has of course gotten some help moving the ladies in. Joe swears he took a page out of Louie’s book and has hired investigators to follow Antonia everywhere (lol) and it’s an emotional moment watching them say goodbye to their daughter.
Later, Danielle talks about her upcoming New York fashion week show. No family will be attending the event and Danielle is bummed that she cannot share this big moment in her life with special people. Danielle’s feud with her brother has really upset her, but she prefers the new family that brings her joy.
It’s the day of Dolores’s softball game and almost 4,000 people will be in attendance. Dolores realizes that she is putting everyone in the group in a “pressure cooker,” but alas, it’s for a good cause. Dolores is excited to show Paul her success on the day of the charity game, but it’s going to be hard to keep the peace. Melissa is still p*ssed at Jen about spreading rumors on cameras last season and she says it feels like even now Jen is trying to find reasons to stay mad at her.
Once in the locker room, the fighting begins. Danielle asks Jackie, “Who invited you to Jen’s puppy party?” and Jackie schools her when she says the only one who doesn’t like her is Danielle. Jackie says that she has been friends with Jen since 2018, so why wouldn’t she be invited? Jackie points out that she was the only one not invited to Danielle’s party and is annoyed that Margaret is not taking her side in this moment.
Marge asks Jackie what she has ever did for her and goes on to point out that she didn’t even call her on the one-year anniversary of Jan’s death. Jackie is tired of feeling like part of Margaret’s entourage and therefore, she did not give Marge a copy of her book. Jackie storms off and Margaret lets her know that she is ‘self-centered’…and also a “disgrace.”
Adding to the tension, it’s beyond awkward when the Gorgas and Teresa’s fam roll in pretty much together. But all of that gets pushed aside as this game is for a good call. This year, Dolores is playing for her friend Guerdy, who is battling breast cancer. All are pretty involved, except for Rachel, as her RA flare up is getting worse.
Jackie tells Teresa, Jen, and Fessler that she can be friends with whoever she wants to be friends with. But once again, Jen Fessler is stuck in the middle. When Marge looks over and sees Jen all up in that group, she goes off on Jen, letting her know that she doesn’t like that she’s associating with those people. Jen says if people are nice to her she is nice to them, but Marge claims she can’t “connect with people” who behave like Jen.
Joe reports that he had a happy talk with Bill, and Jen feels like it looks as though Bill doesn’t respect him. It feels like Jen forgets why she is mad at Melissa, particularly when Melissa invites her to a shit-down in hopes of clearing the air and Jen agrees.
In the end, RHONJ wins by 1 and over $200,000 was raised. It was a great night, so long as no one paid attention to all the drama that was unfolding between the ladies…
Tell us your thoughts on this episode of The Real Housewives of New Jersey.
Julia
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