[PREVIEW] 'RHOSLC' Season 2 Is Like The Hunger Games Set In Narnia

It’s Monday morning! My coffee is hot, but not as hot as my takes on “Real Housewives of Salt Lake City.” (I invite you to picture me twirling in a silver cocktail dress as I deliver this line, winking glamorously.)I firmly believe that my life is only big enough for one extended cinematic universe, and The Bachelor franchise is happily devouring all of that space. We haven’t even done a cast bios episode for Michelle’s season yet and the women from [INSERT MYSTERY BACHELOR HERE]’s season have already been released?! Slow down!!But Bravo was gonna get me in the end. Emma convinced me to watch the first two episodes of the second season of “RHOSLC” last week, and then she patiently talked me through all of my confused feelings at being flung into the maelstrom of backbiting, statement puffer coats, shady Twitter likes, and shifting alliances. The show is an unsettling blend of aspirational fantasy and dystopian realism, from the witchy intro package in which the women hold hovering snowflakes in their hands and the literal ice palace which appears in one episode to the exhausting, circular arguments about whether Jen Shah can make peace with assorted other housewives. Everyone appears to live in a gigantic, chilly mansion or ski chalet, where a spread of snacks ever awaits a strategic guest, and they all either hate each other or are dear friends with someone whose other dear friends they hate. Someone possibly leads a cult. Someone else is being hunted down by the FBI. Yet someone else is rebranding her skin oils line in order to be a good role model to her slightly younger stepsons. The wintry setting and strong religious themes evokes Narnia; the viciousness and murkiness of the feuds evokes high school; the fact that it’s all televised evokes the Hunger Games. Bravo may not be my drug of choice, but I can recognize the potency of this kind of hard-edged fantasia.In our conversation, we discussed all of this, plus how the show made me think, in a twisted way, about how hard it is to build community when people are flawed and selfish and hurt each other. We hope you enjoy this subscribers-only pod, for which I gave up my Bravo celibacy! -ClaireShareWe’ve been watching…“The Morning Show,” which my household did not watch when it first came out to tepid reviews. I’ve heard that it gets better, so we decided to give Jen and Reese a chance; the first episode was certainly watchable (with talent like that, you’re at least going to get flawless performances). I hate to say that a #MeToo storyline is tired, but mostly I think the execution, from framing to characterization to dialogue, is fairly rote — the women victimized are thus far off-screen, the main players are stereotypes, the script is hardly revelatory — but we’re going to keep seeing where it goes. -Claire“Scenes From A Marriage,” the HBO remake of Ingmar Bergman’s 1973 mini-series. It stars Jessica Chastain and Oscar Isaac as Mira and Jonathan, a married couple whose relationship is bound to go through a long and painful dissolution. The acting is superb and mesmerizing. -EmmaWe’ve been reading…“Image Control” and “Great Circle,” as previously mentioned here, plus Justin Taylor’s barnburner of a rave review for Joy Williams’ new novel “Harrow” that led me to immediately put the book on my TBR (for the next time I’m emotionally ready to read truly grim climate fiction and confront some despair). -ClaireI’ve been reading “We Are Not Like Them,” a novel about interracial friendship written by Christine Pride and Jo Piazza, in preparation for an upcoming Rich Text Book Club pod we’ll be recording! -EmmaWe’ve been listening to…I’ve got nothing this week — just the same old roster of pods! -Claire“Life After MLM,” a podcast from Roberta Blevins, one of the former LulaRoe retailers featured in “LulaRich.” Literally inject MLM content straight into my bloodstream. -EmmaWe’ve been buying…The new Glossier retinol cream, after The Ordinary’s squalane-based retinol serum gave me some truly heinous cystic breakouts. I’ve only used it a couple of times, but the composition seems much more friendly to my oily skin, and my face feels velvety soft after I massage it in. -ClaireI caved and ordered a few items from Target’s latest designer collection. I’m particularly excited about this Rachel Comey denim jumpsuit and this Sandy Liang gingham shirtdress. -EmmaShareGive us feedback or suggest a topic for the pod • Subscribe • Request a free subscription