Disclaimer: Spoilers for this episode of VH1's "Daytime Divas" after the jump! If you haven't seen it, do not click any further (until you've seen it, then definitely read!). Thank you to VH1 for the pictures!
With the Nina and Shawn affair in the public eye now, Maxine is running damage control. She hires Isabel, essentially Daytime Divas' Olivia Pope, to manage the situation and spin it in their favor. She convinces Nina to discuss it openly on the show, as long as Maxine pivots the conversation to the topic of gender politics. Everything is going good and well until Anna, in an attempt to stir the pot and solidify her place on the panel, continuously takes shots at Nina's credibility. Fed up to the max, she throws a fit on camera and storms off. She grabs a muffin and a bottle of water and vows to Shawn that she's leaving and won't come back to the show until Anna is off.
Maxine meets with Nina, after her secret boyfriend tells her that she has to play nice with her. Maxine wonders why she cares about Andrew's feelings so much and Nina questions why Maxine cares so much about protecting Anna. The two of them form an alliance and essentially agree to pull a "Strangers on a Train" and take care of each other's problem. Anna has been milking her deal with Maxine, stirring up the pot and being rude to the fellow co-hosts because Maxine can't get rid of her. Nina comes back to the panel and absolutely drags Anna, exposing her police report for stalking her former co-worker and attacking his wife. She had a complete meltdown, throws a mug at the camera and Maxine has grounds to fire her. Anna vows to get her back but Maxine is sitting pretty. Maxine leaks fake nudes of Andrew, ruining his campaign. Nina agrees to come forward and tell the public they aren't his nudes if he will stop threatening to ruin her with whatever he has on her. Andrew goes on the show and Nina clears the air, on air. After the show ends, Andrew plants seeds of doubt it Shawn's ear by telling him to ask Nina about her Pulitzer. Nina eventually reveals that she stole a missing reporter's unfinished article, finished it, and published it with her name on it then won the prize for it. When she refuses to come clean, he angrily leaves her alone, effectively making Andrew's plan to put a strain on their relationship work. This plot is the main focus of the episode, but although the stakes are high, Shawn and Nina are just too bland to anchor the storyline for the moment. It has potential but I really just don't care about them right now.
Heather and Brad are still playing as if things are going well in their marriage, resorting to aggressively making out with each other and obnoxiously flirting with each other on the talk show while he's advertising his underwear. After Brad Jr tells her that he wants to be on the girl's baseball team but is pretending to have fun on the boys team, just like his parents are pretending everything is okay, Heather realizes she's setting a bad example by lying to her kids and tells them that she and Brad are having issues and that they are going to be moving out of the house for a little bit.
Kibby's sober coach convinces her to go back to school after she makes herself look like a moron by not knowing what the Scarlet Letter is. She enrolls in a community college class, then ends up sleeping with her teacher. I guess this means Kibby is bisexual? I thought she was a lesbian after seeing her hookup with that girl in the pilot but I guess not. When she spots the teacher being nice to another female student she gets jealous and makes a scene in class (and gets expelled). Her sober coach tries to get her to see the light after she tells him she slept with her teacher, resulting in her throwing him out and sobbing (because he's probably right that she slept with her teacher because she has emotional issues). Although last week's episode didn't particularly give any substance to Kibby, it was fun and played to the campiness of the show in an entertaining way. This week it felt a bit forced and annoying.
Anna tries to sell her book to a publisher but after her meltdown, she's just going to look like a crazy woman running her mouth. Desperate, she turns to Maxine's neighbor and the two of them bring a tape of Maxine screaming at her deceased husband to the cops, blaming her for his death. Anna is no Mo, but she's the most fun thing about the show right now. Speaking of Maxine, when she finds out that a shawn told her boyfriend about the baby before telling her she blows up on him. He leaves her, reminding her that her acting like this is probably why Shawn never wants to tell her anything.
EPISODE GRADE: B-
Stray notes:
-Most shows benefit from speeding through so many storylines and some benefit from a slower pace. This show doesn't know how to balance. Although I like the faster pace, it's kind of a headache with all of these characters.
-Most shows benefit from speeding through so many storylines and some benefit from a slower pace. This show doesn't know how to balance. Although I like the faster pace, it's kind of a headache with all of these characters.
-Me and Brad Jr. want to know where our Auntie Mo went. :/
-Shawn called his mama a bitch like he was shocked she was acting like a bitch.
-Shawn called his mama a bitch like he was shocked she was acting like a bitch.
