Skip to main content

Why 'Cancer-Gate' Was Such An Iconic & Pivotal RHOC Moment

In the long and iconic history of The Real Housewives of Orange County, which was the very first Real Housewives show, the may have been a turning point that began Vicki Gunvalson's downfall. While the show has stood the test of time, recent seasons haven't been quite as well-received as previous ones. However, the show continues to hold the attention of franchise fans everywhere. One particular moment in the show had an especially big impact.

Audiences were introduced to Vicki Gunvalson's boyfriend Brooks Ayers in The Real Housewives of Orange County season 7. Vicki seemed to be in love, and at the start, even her best friend and fellow housewife Tamra Judge approved of him and enjoyed his company. Fans were very glad that Vicki was happy after her marriage with Donn Gunvalson broke down, but it wasn't long before cracks in her new romance started to show.

Related: RHOC: What Happened To Vicki Gunvalson After Season 13

Season 10 signaled the end of everything for the couple. When Tamra's psychic told Tamra, Heather Dubrow, and Meghan O'Toole King that he didn't believe Brooks was sick with cancer, the rumors began, and Brooks' credibility began to be questioned among the rest of the housewives. Meghan was dealing with her husband's ex-wife's cancer diagnosis during the same season, so she was perhaps the most cynical about Brooks. Meghan constantly tried to get to the bottom of things, and began to see many holes in Brooks' story, such as his treatment methods. When asked about this, Vicki was defensive, assuring the women that they had no reason to be suspicious. Many fans believe this was a pivotal moment where Vicki began to lose her shine as a housewife on RHOC.

After an entire season of Vicki tirelessly standing up for Brooks, and telling the women to stop assuming the worst about him, Brooks eventually revealed that he had forged medical records relating to his diagnosis. This confirmed many viewers' and RHOC cast members' suspicions. It also tarnished how the rest of the cast saw Vicki, and created a visible divide between them. Among other moments, in season 11, at Shannon Storms Beador's Seventies-themed party, Shannon's then-husband David Beador confronted Vicki for being complicit in Brooks' cancer scam.

Vicki's final seasons on The Real Housewives of Orange County were definitely tainted with moments that reflected poorly on her as a cast member. When season 13 concluded, Vicki was demoted to a "friend of" role, before leaving the show completely from season 15 onwards. Many feel that the iconic 'Cancer-Gate' situation, and all of its after-effects, were one of the early signs that Vicki had gotten too big for her britches. In her very last reunion in season 14, she made a dramatic exit, calling RHOC "my show," and storming off the set.

Next: RHOC: Why Vicki Gunvalson Can't Fill Up Her 'Love Tank'



Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

CBS' Ghosts: Every Main Ghost Time Period & Backstory Explained

One of CBS' newest sitcoms,  Ghosts , features a cast full of spectral characters that each hail from a distinct time period and come with their own unique backstory and death. Though each of the eight ghosts has a wildly different perspective based on their different experiences throughout history, they nonetheless form a sort of family, which is one of the show's greatest charms. After all, being stuck with the same people for all of eternity allows for plenty of time to get to know each other. Ghosts , which is an adaptation of a BBC show of the same name, stars Utkarsh Ambudkar and Rose McIver (who played Liv Moore on five seasons of  iZombie ) as Jay and Sam, a young couple who inherit a mansion in upstate New York. To their surprise, however, the house also comes with several ghostly inhabitants, who Sam is able to see after a near-death experience. These are Thorfinn (Devan Long), Sasappis (Román Zaragoza), Isaac (Brandon Scott Jones), Hetty (Rebecca Wisocky...
Post a Comment
Read more

The Hateful Eight's Original Ending Explained (& Why Tarantino Changed It)

The Hateful Eight has an ending full of blood and betrayal, as expected from any Quentin Tarantino movie, but this wasn’t the original ending – here’s why he changed it. Tarantino has explored different genres throughout his career; though he’s best known for his crime movies like Reservoir Dogs and Pulp Fiction , he's also visited genres like martial arts (with both Kill Bill  films) and black comedy ( Once Upon a Time in Hollywood ). In addition, he's shared his version of westerns with Django Unchained and The Hateful Eight , with the latter going through some problems and creative changes even before it began shooting. Set in 1870, Tarantino's The  Hateful Eight follows eight strangers, all with different (and secret) motivations, who end up in a stagecoach lodge after seeking refuge from a blizzard. These characters are Major Marquis Warren (Samuel L. Jackson), John “The Hangman” Ruth (Kurt Russell), Daisy Domergue (Jennifer Jason Leigh), Chris Mannix (Walton Gog...
Post a Comment
Read more

Why Spider-Man 3's Uncle Ben Retcon Doesn't Change Peter's Origin

Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man 3 is often criticized for a major retcon made to Uncle Ben’s death , but this retcon ultimately doesn’t change Peter Parker’s classic origin story. Raimi’s third film in the iconic Spider-Man trilogy is often criticized, perhaps unfairly. While the film suffers from too many character arcs and plot threads and would have been better as two or three separate films, it does a more than adequate job adapting the Spider-Man comics and telling a sincere story about relatable, flawed, characters who are intertwined with the extraordinary, just as Stan Lee and Steve Ditko intended when co-creating the character. Uncle Ben’s retconned death may alter classic elements from the comic version, but it retains its most important aspects in regards to Peter’s characterization. 2002’s Spider-Man is, for much of the film’s first half, a faithful adaptation of Spider-Man’s 1962 origin story in issue 15 of the Amazing Fantasy comics. An awkward social pariah, Pete...
Post a Comment
Read more