Why ‘The Kardashians’ Is A Better Show Than ‘Keeping Up’ Used To Be

Wnow it’s four episodes in The KardashiansThe Frankensteined revival of the Kardashian-Jenner reality TV empire begins with Keeping Up With The Kardashians in 2007. And like the monster at the heart of Mary Shelley’s novels, it is a sentient monster of its own, forever oscillating between hilariously awkward moves and serious crimes. important to humanity.

Series premieres — a term I’ve used very loosely since their last show went into the dark less than a year before their silly slick Hulu partner debuted — opens with a shot by an amazingly long drone through the rich and unique parts of Los Angeles directed by Michael Bay working on Ambulance embarrassing. One by one, we were watched as nausea and smooth-motion subscriptions on The Femmepire to see what each of the Kardashians and Jenners have been up to now, and it’s like we’re counting in the millions. There may also be a cumulative net worth in the corner of the screen for the first five minutes.

Kourtney appeared on one of the many balconies of her massive estate. Khloé received a call while she was remodeling her twentieth home of the last decade. Kendall showers herself with a sound bath in her backyard the size of a public park. Kris wraps up a deal in her office on the other side of the Kylie Kosmetics warehouse, where Kylie presides over a photo shoot. Kim finished her own photo session at the SKIMS offices and left the studio in a car that was more expensive than the average rent in every city in the country. In short, nothing has changed.

But everything has changed since the first time the Kardashians rode a woman-made wave of Kris Jenner to the scene in the late last decade. The world seems to be a much darker place now as daily atrocities are amplified by social media and the Kardashian families have reached enormous levels of wealth, unpredictable to the point of presence. Theirs in the reality TV world doesn’t look like escapism anymore but a manicured middle finger for the rest of us as we try to outrun the horror fireballs The latest shoots at us everyday.

This has never been clearer than the moment on Monday night when tweets about Kim Kardashian wearing Marilyn Monroe’s infamous “Happy Birthday, Mr. President” dress to the Met Gala were interspersed with reactions about draft Supreme Court decision to overturn Roe v. Wade. This entire current Kardashian era resembles the moment in the original series when Kim lost her diamond earring at sea, to which Kourtney later replied, “Kim, there are people dying”—just for the sake of it. with one hundred after each family member takes turns pressing the kill button.

Watching these billionaires go about their mundane life decisions is not only boring but also offensive. To counter that, the Kardashians have had to put a fresh coat of polish on the complex nature of their reality TV characters. It has somewhat made them more watchable than ever.

If Keeping up with the Kardashians allows for a satisfying viewing experience as the audience watches all the exorbitant fame riches and privileges that only multiply as the years go by, then The Kardashians exists as a new wave surrealist study of those things.

What would life be like when you reached such a level of complete cultural saturation, with more money than you could ever dream of and every experience you could imagine at your fingertips? It’s pretty boring – and that’s what’s fascinating. It is Jeanne Dielman effect. And I will accept the stones for comparison The Kardashians to a beloved 1975 Belgian historical film in a second. Listen to me first!

There are still a lot of people who call the Kardashian-Jenner family incompetent, which is simply untrue. They are the most talented people in showbiz. You just need to know how to spot it.

Are they popping out irresistible music or compelling movie performances? No, of course not – although I’d love for Kim to release another awful one of a song after she invents hyperpop and Kourtney will step in. into another soap opera. Of course, their talent lies in their business savvy, but they also exist in moments of complete absurdity. These women are so isolated from the sense of community that they don’t understand how real life works.

During the premiere, Kim threatened to sue Robloxa game platform that allows users to create highly customized worlds, for some unique jokes about an in-game design that users have made of unreleased footage from tape her sex.

While no one can blame her for wanting to end the revenge porn story that followed her at the beginning of her career, any normal person would simply understand that it was just a stupid internet joke. . No one has any additional footage.

But not Kim! At the end of the first episode, she asserts that she will “burn them all down”. And by the third episode, she’d turned herself into such a mess that her ex-husband, the artist formerly known as Kanye West, managed to get a computer from Ray J’s house (in the suspicious cases are never explained) and verify that it is the only thing. Other scenes of Kim from the tape are some of her B-roll at a dinner party. The length at which they will be absolutely nothing is extreme. This show, somehow, has a draw from every frame.

Much of that appeal comes from their great tactics in maintaining just vulnerable on camera as they like. Nothing makes it past the editing zone without their approval — all six of the main Kardashian-Jenner women are listed as producers of the series — but it won’t be a hit with a warm-up. Kardashian’s return if they refuse to resolve some of the thirty different controversies they’ve wrapped up in any given moment: Kim’s pursuit of sex tapes, her (reportable) couple therapy Khloé with Tristan Thompson, post by KimSNL relationship with Pete Davidson and the ongoing divorce drama with Ye, the works.

And then something happens that startles me. It pulls me out of the manicured, plastic-finished world and reminds me that this is all deeply staged, perhaps more than ever. They got better at hiding it.

There is little questionable footage of Kylie Jenner, almost confirming rumors that her plot was heavily edited after the Astroworld tragedy late last year. There are scenes that feel like they’ve been rehearsed days before, like when an army loyal to Kim’s charming minions gather around to pummel her with praise after the host performance. hers. SNL. Or, most jarring is the moment in the third episode when the filtered blur on Kris Jenner’s face is so heavy that her nose has almost completely disappeared.

And there still seems to be real growth here. Or rather character development, since that’s basically what the characters in this series are: characters.

Kourtney in particular came to life. It was as if she had awoken from a 15-year bout of pneumonia and had suddenly recovered, even though doctors told her she would never have feelings again. She has real light in her eyes! It’s really fun to watch.

In the original series, we spent a lot of time rereading the same grueling storyline between Kourtney and Scott Disick: they were together, she was pregnant, he was a mess, she was upset, he loves and apologizes, they are happy but still stagnant. And repeat. Now it’s like she came out of a trance that lasted more than a decade after someone said a long-forgotten key phrase that brought her out of her trance, leaving her exhausted while repeating. back: “Rock ‘n roll, honey.”

Sure, her entire plot could be centered around how much she wanted to stick her tongue down Travis Barker’s throat—and her so reality for that — but it’s also what makes her the most famous Kardashian on this list. Well, except for Kris.

Kris Jenner is still the sexiest woman on reality TV. And now we have Kris 5.0: an upgraded and finished new model, still with a lot of plans but becoming more and more like her mother as she gets older. But don’t be fooled, her conspiracies are always burning with ideas.

While speaking during a confession scene about Kourtney’s relationship with Travis, Kris looked into the camera and said, “He’s not just one of the most famous drummers, in one of the most popular bands. the world, but also the flip side, is he the best dad ever! “Not one of those THE BEST Drummer. Not one of those MOST TALENTED Drummer. One of the FAMOUS. If her daughter’s combination isn’t likely to allow her to increase the size of her comically large Scrooge McDuck golden doubt pool, Kris Jenner simply doesn’t care.

Her unwillingness to hide the fact that she always pays at the end of the day is what continues to make her the most arrested member of the family. It’s shocking how a little transparency can go so far when it comes to the endearing abilities of the disgustingly rich. The same can be said for the rest of her children.

Ensure, The Kardashians always talk about imitation. It’s a TV recipe made in a lab: automatic women walking with surgically perfected faces and robotic voices, like Stepford’s Wives on ketamine. But that’s what makes it so appealing! In the years since they changed reality TV for good, no one has been able to match their proprietary formula of rare vulnerability mixed with accidental stupidity.

It’s fitting that we spent the first three episodes of The Kardashians leading to Kim’s appearance on SNLbecause it’s really the only TV show I can think of that exists on the same plane as this rebooted series.

As SNL, the Kardashians’ presence in the television field has become such a cultural staple that even if it sucks, it’s inevitable. And when it’s good, it’s not really that much better. The pace of life that runs through it remains vibrant, even as its quality declines. It cannot be burned. It cannot be killed. I can not forget. If we’re going to be stuck with it forever, we can also try to find a way to laugh in it. I guess Kris Jenner’s disappearing nose is a good start for now.