Vicki's Oklahoma Visit Was Stormy In Many Ways

So Tamra's "sex" themed Cut Fitness party ended with Meghan & Jim agreeing to leave Brooks' cancer plans alone while Vicki's hatred for Meghan only continued to grow, the reality show equivalent of two boxers heading to their corners to spit blood into a bucket and dab towels on their sweaty foreheads. So The Real Housewives of Orange County were due for a break, as Meghan & Jimmy regrouped alone at home while Vicki visited her daughter, Briana, in Oklahoma City. To be honest, it seems like Briana is kind of miserable about the move, and my heart went out to her. Every time Ryan was talking about how happy they are out there, I sensed that she was feeling a tad disappointed about spending her twenty-eighth birthday and one-year anniversary of moving without a single new friend while her husband recovered from major back surgery. Not that festive.

The symbolic resonance of there being a major tornado warning during Vicki's trip was so perfect, I'm can barely believe nature cooperated with Bravo so perfectly. Because just like the storm threatened to blow away Briana and Ryan's new house, talk of Brooks threatened to blow up their peaceful trip. But before that, things were strained slightly when Briana almost rebuffed her mom's offer to buy her a brand new car. But, of course, Briana wound up accepting her mom's offering, and the Brooks argument was pushed off to later in the trip.

The peace didn't last for very long, and to close out the episode, they got in a big fight about Briana and her kids staying with Vicki. Briana didn't want to stay with Brooks, and dropped some knowledge about how Stage Three cancer patients don't usually travel — so Brooks would probably be in the house with them. Ever since she grew up and started working, Briana has wound up as one of the most responsible and rational Housewives kids. So it was fascinating to see that Briana was insistent on describing exactly why she didn't want to stay in Vicki's house while the camera was on, making it impossible to edit it as anything but a rational preference.

It looks like Brooks' health continues to come up in upcoming episodes, so ultimately Vicki wasn't able to resolve anything. Since Vicki & Brooks broke up in real life some time after the season filmed, hopefully her relationship with Briana has recovered since. Her appearance on Watch What Happens Live suggested that the two are closer — and after this emotional trip, I hope they're finally in a better place.

Image: Charles Sykes (2), Screenshot/Bravo