The Peer Review is a collective review platform. This is 3/4 of The Kardashians correspondence. Catch up on the first two instalments here.
MasterClass x 1000
June 3 2022
Hey Quinn,
I just watched the most recent episode and totally get what you mean about the new show being overly sanitized. There hasn't even really been any conflict, apart from Scott no longer feeling welcome at family events. The preview for next week features like there will be some gossip about Tristan though, so I'm staying tuned for that.
Honestly, the reboot just feels like a way to show off their brands and businesses. I feel like I know more about 808 Tequila than I actually know about Kendall, which is a shame because she seems the most down to Earth out of all them, or as down to Earth as a literal supermodel could be. In the last episode, Kris Jenner said the word "MasterClass" about 1000 times. It gave me the feeling she was being paid a certain rate for the amount of times she was able to drop it on the show. Also, her drinking a martini in the bathtub just felt like totally playing to the camera.
There was some interesting fourth wall breaking though, when Khloe and Scott are talking to Kris about how she'll often hang up when they call them by saying, "I'm busy, I'm filming." Both Scott and Khloe point out that it's a reality show and they can easily film the conversations. But it's clear that Kris has a narrative and a brand she wants to push.
One interesting thing to note though is that in one of the recent episodes, Kim did use the show to bring awareness to her work with prisoners on death row. A lot of the episode actually focused on her work to raise awareness about Julius Jones, an American man who many believe to have been wrongfully imprisoned for a murder he did not commit. The episode showed how she was able to use her celebrity connections and public profile to pressure the governor to grant him clemency so that he wouldn't be executed. It was a very powerful episode and quite different tonally from the rest of the reboot. I wonder if you had any thoughts on it?
It's funny that you mention the ABC Special because I also watched it LMAO. It was so scripted and corny and weird. It really felt like a TV product from another era. Something I find really strange too is that they often misgender Caitlyn by saying her former name or using the wrong pronouns. Caitlyn Jenner's politics are, uh, pretty fucked up, to say the least, but I do find it odd how they continue to misgender her on the show. I just feel like it sets a bad precedent regarding how to refer to someone you know who's transitioning/transitioned for the relatively mainstream audience watching.
In other topics of conversation, we finally got the Pete Davidson boyfriend reveal in this episode. Out of all the boyfriends, I think he's at the top of my list?!
All the best,
Alanna
Justice Warrior Schtick
June 5 2022
Dear Alanna,
Just finished watching the latest episode. I agree that the fourth-wall breaking has ramped up over the course of the season; but like you pointed out with Kris' supposed refusal to field certain phone calls while filming, the Kardashians seem to simultaneously be opting for a more selective approach to how they present their narrative on-screen.
For example (and to respond to your question about Kim's prison reform work): I think it's great that the show has been able to bring some attention to the gross inequities of the US prison system. HOWEVER, I think Kimmy's justice warrior schtick would be a lot more powerful if she backed up her supposed views with affirmative actions that address the systemic root cause of some of these problems. Instead, Kim recently endorsed a Los Angeles mayoral candidate who has been a critic of criminal justice reforms designed to reverse mass incarceration and whose "tough on crime" campaign focuses on Angelanos' frustration with the ever-growing homeless emergency. She has said she "believe[s] in the rights that the Democrats want, but... the taxes that Republicans want." None of these political views is particularly surprising—she's a billionaire who sells her used clothes at a profit (rather than donating them) and makes "charitable donations" to a church founded by her mom (which some have speculated to be set up as a tax haven). However, it does make me side eye her prison reform work a bit since she seems to focus most of her efforts in ways that will bring her media attention/acclaim as opposed to the less glamorous work of long-term actual reform.
On a different note, I'm curious to hear more about your (ranked?) list of Kardashian boyfriends and baby daddies. Why is Pete at the top of it, and what do you think of the other men in their lives (especially with the latest Tristan Thompson scandal teased in the preview for next week's episode)?
Best,
Quinn