Oh, the drama of ‘Southern Belles’
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The thrills of the “Real Housewives” series on Bravo have little to do with geography. Women of arriviste position and little self-regard are capable of internecine warfare regardless of whether they live in New York, Atlanta or Orange County. Outburst-inclined women: Move freely! Peers and cameras await you wherever you may roam.
Except, perhaps, in Louisville, Ky., where tongues are bitten and hostility sublimated into unhealthy romances. At least, so it is on “Southern Belles: Louisville” (Soapnet, 10 p.m. Thursday), a soft-focus show in the “Real Housewives” mold that nevertheless treats its stars -- Shea, Emily, Julie, Kellie and Hadley -- more like the fetish objects of “The Hills” than the demolition-derby vehicles of the “Real Housewives” series.
In Louisville, putting on airs is exercise, though in the case of “Southern Belles,” it might not matter: Whatever drama there is among the show’s five women is minor and therefore feels genuine, not contrived. Little quibbles get swallowed whole, hidden behind broad smiles.
(Photo courtesy Soapnet)