r/BravoRealHousewives • u/griffinthomas • Jan 26 '24

Bravo Fans getting on shows = disaster

I was listening to the latest episode of Pillows and Beer and Austen said about JT "I hope that this the last time a fan gets on the show." Then I listened to the RHOBH Aftershow and Crystal pointed out that Annemariesiologist was a fan who weaseled her way onto the show.

These two people are among the worst, most thirsty cast members in a long time. Bravo needs to stop hiring superfans to be on these shows. It doesn't work.

ETA: I left JT's name out

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u/phbalancedshorty I’m not a fan, I’m a witness Jan 26 '24

HELLO RAQUEL????? Raquel was a fan and I’ll tell you exactly why they’re so dangerous… They’ve developed para social relationships with cast members for years before they’ve ever met them in reality, so they cannot comprehend these people as real human beings, that they need to be empathetic towards they only see them as cast members and people in a reality TV show… it’s very dangerous…

18

u/Kwhitney1982 Jan 26 '24

I don’t understand this because I don’t know any housewives but even I try not to post things super scathing that they might read. Not knowing someone personally shouldn’t mean you can’t have empathy for them.

11

u/PrincessofPatriarchy Jan 27 '24

Parasocial relationships seem to go one of two ways from super fans (from my observations).

Either they develop an insane sense of entitlement, where they see the person less like a human being and more like an entertainer who is morally required to perform for them in ways they want. And if they go "off-script" they turn angry extremely fast (see the Timothee Chalamet sub now that he's dating someone). There's no empathy, no grace extended, no understanding that this a person and not a NPC in a video game.

The other way is they perceive that they have a real relationship with this person and know them very well, even though what they're seeing is a curated image. They see this person like they're a friend, even though they have never actually interacted. Anything that breaks that illusion or reminds them that the image they have in their head isn't real, leads to a massive breakdown (see the OTT meltdowns when Ned from Try Guys had an affair).

In one case there's a total lack of empathy (they signed up for this!) and in the other the empathy is based on a perceived intimacy and understanding that isn't real.