RHOC Season 16 Sizzles
Seasons 16 of BravoTV’s “Real Housewives of Orange County” starts off with a bang. Photo credit BravoTV.
Real Housewives of Orange County returns tonight with new castmates, new drama, and a spectacular new piece of OC property to ogle. It also includes an Irvine cameo! Veteran Housewives Shannon Storms Beador, Gina Kirschenheiter and Emily Simpson return and Dr. Jen Armstrong and Noella Bergener join the cast, but the biggest buzz is centered around returning Housewife Heather Dubrow.
The supersized episode (54 minutes without commercials) opens with a reintroduction to Heather, a Housewife last seen on the show in 2016. During her five year hiatus Heather has launched a podcast (Heather Dubrow’s World) and settled into her family’s 22,000 square foot Crystal Cove home. With her return to the show, her four kids are growing up. Her twins are starting to look at colleges and find their own voices, especially Max who recently wrote a book for parents about teenage sexuality. After many years, Heather and Shannon reunite and instantly find themselves at odds over loyalty and betrayal. Heather also introduces a friend of hers to the group only to find out a shocking truth behind who she really is. Heather gives a detailed tour of her palatial home to Shannon and Gina, but Heather filmed an extensive home tour before rejoining RHOC. Curious about the Dubrow home, including the entryway, two home offices, family room, backyard, pool, bedrooms, bathrooms, laundry room, gym, music room, movie theater, garage, kitchen, garden, pantry, and basement? You can see it all on her YouTube channel.
Heather is not the only busy Housewife with drama on the horizon. Shannon’s business is on the rise and her relationship with John is thriving, but she questions who her true friends are in the group after she finds herself in hot water with Heather. The initial confrontation leads to issues of trust with Gina and Emily. With her oldest daughter away at Baylor and the twins prepping for college, she is starting to fear her looming empty nest.
Gina is looking to the future as she works to launch her own skincare business. With boyfriend Travis’ unflinching support, Gina continues to co-parent her three children with her ex-husband Matt. While still tight with Emily, Gina becomes fast friends with fellow New Yorker Heather and the two take a trip to the Big Apple. As Gina puts her hardships behind her and her self-esteem grows, the ladies wonder if she is coming from a place of confidence or arrogance.
Emily began last season with hip replacement surgery after living for many years with rheumatoid arthritis. This season she has recovered from two plastic surgeries for a new jawline and bustline. With Shane busy working after finally passing the bar, Emily finds herself with more time on her hands to dedicate to her daughter Annabelle’s upcoming Mormon baptism and to helping wrongly convicted individuals in the justice system. Emily often inserts herself in the middle of conflicts during the season and is accused of being an instigator when she asks Noella about her looming divorce.
Aesthetic MD Dr. Jen Armstrong launches herself into the RHOC cast by performing cosmetic procedures on the ladies. Emotionally guarded at first, Jen develops a quick bond with Heather but has trouble making a real connection with Noella. An OC native who grew up in Laguna Beach, Jen is married to her husband Ryne and is a mother to three children. She runs her own practice and provides for her family while helping her mom prepare for a move to OC. During the season Jen launches a division of her practice that specializes in TMS, a magnetic brain treatment for depression.
Noella Bergener’s world is turned upside down when her husband unexpectedly files for divorce. Her lavish lifestyle gets ripped out from underneath her as she cares for her children. While her shocking predicament makes the others question the details, Noella finds solace in her friendship with fellow divorcee Shannon. After the news of a recent death in her family, Noella finds her emotions, patience, and friendships tested.
About 13 minutes into the episode, Dubrow meets Nicole for a walk and Irvine makes its season 16 debut. The women stroll through Quail Hill and remark about the oppressive heat. The weather may have dampened the womens’ enjoyment of one of Irvine’s many walking trails, but our city still looks her best. Hopefully this will be the first of many scenes featuring the true star of RHOC, the city of Irvine.
RHOC airs tonight at 9 pm on Bravo. Can’t wait? Watch a trailer for the season here.
Want to know what it’s like to produce RHOC? We got a behind the scenes sneak peek with RHOC producer James Lee.
"The Real Housewives of Orange County" is produced by Evolution Media for Bravo, with Douglas Ross, Alex Baskin, Thomas Kelly, Brian McCarthy and Apryl Richards, along with Scott Dunlop, serving as Executive Producers. Andy Cohen also serves as Executive Producer.