We’ve crafted a list of the 10 best ‘Real Housewives’ episodes. Please remember that this list is our “opinion!”
Bravo’s most notable franchise, The Real Housewives, has been “embedded” in fans’ brains since Andy Cohen launched it in 2006. Housewives are undoubtedly a significant part of the network’s success, as thousands of fan accounts, podcasts, and books are dedicated to Andy’s girls.
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The Real Housewives has stamped itself into pop culture history through many memorable moments across the 11 cities within the franchise. And with new cities and countries joining the fold, there seem to be no plans to end the insanity of the reality TV empire.
Although there are thousands of Housewives episodes, there are a select few that fans reference when thinking about the franchise.
We’ve made our list of the best Real Housewives episodes of all time, though we know there will be much more to come!
10. 'The Real Housewives of New York City' Season 9, Ep. 10, “Black Out and Get Out.”
We’re kicking off the best Real Housewives episodes of all time list with two former ‘wives who have a history of shaking the table — Bethenny Frankel and Ramona Singer.
During Season 9 of The Real Housewives of New York City, Bethenny and Ramona’s issues over Ramona exposing Bethenny’s nude video came to a head when they had a chat about Ramona refusing to tell the entire story of Bethenny’s parlay into adult films.
As their confrontation continued, Bethenny said her iconic phrase, “Mention it all!” Bethenny then spread her legs on Ramona’s couch to prove her point further. The chaotic showdown is one of Bethenny’s most memorable quotes before she left RHONY in August 2019.
9. 'The Real Housewives of Potomac' Season 5 Reunion, Part 2
Season 5 of The Real Housewives of Potomac had many shady moments we could mention. Still, none are more iconic than Monique Samuels's receipt binder that was colorfully tagged with each of her cast members’ business. While Monique, who left RHOP in 2020, has said she had tea on everyone, including then-newcomer Wendy Osefo, she spent much of her time on arch nemesis Gizelle Bryant.
During Parts 2 and 3 of the reunion, Monique accused Gizelle of orchestrating a fake relationship with her ex-husband, Pastor Jamal Bryant. Gizelle and her ex had shared they were back together, but Monique claimed her ex was throwing his “big d—” all around town, which Gizelle knew. Then, Karen Huger tapped into the fight when she asked Gizelle if Jamal would be joining her at the reunion, and Gizelle had to confirm he wouldn’t be there.
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8. 'The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills’ Season 5, Ep. 16 “Amsterdam-damn!”
The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills Season 5 “Dinner Party From Hell” from Ep. 16, “Amster-damn” is easily one of the show’s most memorable episodes. The chaotic dinner birthed Eileen Davidson’s hilarious reaction to Kim Richards calling her a “beast” (I say ‘beast? How dare you far too often in passing).
The scene in the episode also humanized all of the ladies more as they expressed their concern for Kim’s sobriety, and Lisa Rinna discussed her sister’s death from a drug overdose.
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7. ‘The Real Housewives of New Jersey’ Season 1, Ep. 7, “The Last Supper”
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6. ‘The Real Housewives of Miami’ Season 2, Ep.6, “Sexting Candles.”
Marysol Patton’s mother, Mama Elsa Patton, was practically another cast member during the early days of The Real Housewives of Miami. Her reaction to Elaine Lancaster hanging out with the group is one of her more iconic moments. As Elaine, a drag queen who has also been on RuPaul’s Drag Race, sits down, the camera frequently pans to Elsa’s stunned face. At one point, the two engaged in an incredibly awkward showdown where Elsa threatened to hit Elaine with her pocketbook before exiting the function.
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5. ‘The Real Housewives of Potomac’ Season 4, Ep. 8, “Sex, Lies, and Butter Knives”
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In Season 4, Ep. 8, Ashley and Candiace fought after Ashley accused Candiace of telling their friends that she and her husband, Michael Darby, lied about them suffering a miscarriage. The fight escalated after Ashley told Candiace she was living off of her mother, Dorothy, whose name was on Candiace’s mortgage. When Candiace reacted by stabbing a butter knife into the table, Ashley dragged Candiace by saying, “Don’t mess up your mama’s table.”
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4.’The Real Housewives of Atlanta’ Season 6. Ep. 13 “Pillow Talk or Pillow Fight.”
Season 6 of The Real Housewives of Atlanta has remained one of the franchise’s most highly-rated seasons of all time, and the “pillow talk fight” party certainly helped its reputation. The fight occurred with the cast and their plus-ones at NeNe Leakes’ hotel party. The party was chaotic initially, with Kandi Burruss stating NeNe was “on one” as she pranced around the room. NeNe also threw shade at Kenya Moore for arriving at the party late.
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The party went from odd to violent when Kenya’s friend, Brandon, defended her against R&B singer Christopher Williams. As Brandon and Christopher argued, Phaedra Parks’ ex-husband, Apollo Nida, stepped in, and all hell broke loose. The brawl also included Kandi’s now famous line, “I will DRAG you in this b---h,” and birthed her nickname, “red-haired Kandi.”
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3. ‘The Real Housewives of Orange County’ Season 14, Ep. 20 “Whooping it up for Wedding Bells”
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2. ‘The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City Season 4, Ep.16, “Mysteries, Revealed?”
The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City’s Season 4 finale will remain a part of the show’s history. The finale included a shocking dinner in Bermuda when the cast celebrated Monica Garcia’s birthday. During the dinner, Heather Gay said she knew Monica was behind a RHOSLC gossip Instagram account, Reali Von Tease, and said she had the receipts to prove it.
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Monica eventually confessed to being one of the people behind the account. As Heather slammed Monica for betraying the friend group, she also admitted former RHOSLC star Jen Shah was responsible for her black eye in Season 3. The scene was possibly one of the messiest dinners in Housewives lore.
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1. ‘The Real Housewives of Atlanta’ Season 9 Reunion, Part 3.
The Real Housewives of Atlanta Season 9 ended with a bang that Housewives fans will never forget. After a season of allegations about Kandi Burruss’s sexuality and her husband Todd Tucker attempting to drug Porsha Williams, the reunion finally revealed: “Who said that?” Unfortunately, the culprit was Kandi’s former BFF, Phaedra Parks.
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During Part 3 of the reunion, Porsha shared Kandi and Todd’s cease and desist and said she wasn’t allowed to discuss the case further. She then shared that Phaedra was the one who told her about Kandi and Todd’s alleged plans to drug her. The reveal sent Kandi into a frenzy, saying now memorable lines like “the lies, the lies, the lies!” The emotional special resulted in Phaedra being fired from RHOA and Kandi refusing to ever film with the attorney again.
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