Selling Sunset is unexpectedly relatable
It’s not just the drama that keeps you watching
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There is nothing I love as much as reality television. It’s my not-so-guilty pleasure – salacious, comforting and thrilling – somehow all at the same time. It’s a tried-and-tested format, you can always expect an underdog, the villains, and the quintessential hotties. And of course, to top all of that off, there’s DRAMA!!!!
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Selling Sunset S4
My every waking thought is a carousel of reality-tv moments. I’m constantly thinking about how my unathletic ass could *totally* win Survivor; how Molly Mae and Tommy Fury were ROBBED on Love Island (2019); that Abbie Chatfield and MGK(onrad) are my OTP; and that Michelle deserved way better than she got in The Circle S3. Comfort reality is literally my personality, which is why it felt like a sign when Selling Sunset came up on my radar.
The premise of the series is simple: luxury real estate sold by Los Angeles girlbosses. Think Million Dollar Beach House, but with all the spectacle of The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills. Cue: ALL of the DRAMA.
This fourth season follows the introduction of two new realtors to the Oppenheim Group – a bougie property brokerage run by two bald-twins (and no I don’t mean the Tweedle boys). The first is Vanessa Vilella, a former soap star from Mexico City, who dedicates her real estate career to her deceased sister Jackie. Then there’s Emma Herman, a Molly Mae x Paris Hilton lookalike who sells cheeseburger empanadas(?!) and has a conflict-filled history with resident villain Christine Quinn, foreshadowing the fireworks to come.
But while the drama might be the initial draw, Selling Sunset sucker punches you with a heavy dose of realness. Could I, an Asian man who spent many weekends at Salvos, have foreseen that I would be empathising with a self-professed ‘boss-bitch’ who brought a live sloth to her baby shower? Definitely not. Such is the power of Selling Sunset, which interjects celebrity cameos – no spoilers here! – and spicy catfights with surprisingly relatable emotionally compelling moments.
It’s this unexpected relatability that single-handedly carries this latest season. My priority entering parenthood probably wouldn’t be a shot of Botox, and Iggy Azalea might never gift me an elephant hedge, but behind the outlandish, over-the-top grandeur of it all, are scenes that make me scream “I FEEL YOU SIS”. Can I see myself in Chrishell Stause, who struggles to achieve housing security and independence? Or in Amanza Smith’s rags-to-riches climb to financial success? Do I relate to Vanessa, who’s struggling to figure out who her real friends are? To all of the above: Yes.
Selling Sunset uses the overblown Los Angeles backdrop and the promise of luxury real estate listings as a clever façade to pull you in, but that’s not what keeps you watching. While you might enter wondering what you have in common with a group of extravagantly rich bombshells in designer tracksuits, you’ll quickly be surprised that it’s more than you think.
All four seasons of Selling Sunset are streaming now.
Watch these too:
The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills for more dramatic reality television. This iconic series follows a group of affluent socialites as they fight, drink and throw shade at one another.
Keeping Up With The Kardashians, another quintessential reality TV experience. Take a peek inside the private lives of the Kardashian-Jenners, as they navigate fame, family, fortune and more in this genre-defining series.
Bling Empire if you can’t get enough of Selling Sunset’s setting. The eight-part reality series follows some of the wealthiest Asian Americans in Los Angeles, as they go all out with partying, glamour and, of course, drama.
Million Dollar Beach House which sees a group of determined real estate brokers try to close on some of the most luxury listings in the Hamptons.
I can’t stop thinking about:
Daniella Pineda, who steals the show as Faye Valentine in Cowboy Bebop. In an interview with ELLE, she describes what it was like preparing for the role, and discusses the changes to her character's costume. “I had so many male interviewers be like, ‘Yeah, she’s like, totally desexualised.’ And I’m like, ‘Um hi, I’m a sexy human being’.”
Adele, who released her new album 30 and successfully asked for Spotify to remove the shuffle feature from albums. “Our art tells a story and our stories should be listened to as we intended,” she wrote in a tweet. It quickly rose to the top-selling album of 2021, but is anyone surprised???
The Grammy nominations! You can view a full list of them here, but Jon Batiste killed it with 11 nods, followed by Justin Bieber, Doja Cat and H.E.R with eight apiece. Also our own Bo Burnham with his first two – both for Inside! Multi-talented KING.
How NASA is launching a spacecraft into an asteroid as a planetary defence strategy. Does this mean we’re gonna see Meryl Streep as the president soon?
Benedict Cumberbatch who took method acting to the next level for The Power of the Dog. According to an interview with NME, he refused to speak to his co-star Kirsten Dunst the entire time they were on set together, and gave himself nicotine poisoning three times after smoking filterless rollies all day. He also went six days without showering...