We made it, folks. After nearly three months of #Scandoval consuming our screens, feeds, and lives*, we're finally on the other side of the Vanderpump Rules Season 10 finale. This is how I feel:
It's been a wild ride so far, and the finale was 54 straight minutes of pure adrenaline and unbelievable moments. I laughed, I cried (like, A LOT), and I wondered why Tom Sandoval still INSISTS on wearing that godforsaken white nail polish.
But one of the most iconic moments was a surprise visit from someone we haven't seen on the show for quite some time. Someone who probably knows Sandoval's crusty, cheating ways better than anyone. Someone who isn't afraid to wear open-toed slides on camera...
That's right, I'm talking about KRISTEN DOUTE.
Kristen hasn't been seen on VPR since Season 8, because she was fired in 2020 for falsely reporting fellow former cast member Faith Stowers to the police in 2018.
BUT that doesn't change the fact that Kristen coming back on the show to support Ariana in her time of need isn't a RBFD (Really Big Fucking Deal™), and I'm sorry but it absolutely MUST be talked about!!! So let's get into it, shall we?
Right off the bat, there's the intricate web that is the dynamic between Ariana Madix, Kristen Doute, and Tom Sandoval. If you've made it this far in the post I already know I don't have to tell you, but these three have HISTORY.
In case you don't recall, Kristen and Tom dated for nearly six years before he and Ariana got together. They lived together and literally entered the show together as OG cast members in Season 1. It was a toxic, dysfunctional relationship for the ages that I'm thankful I can stream/relive anytime I want (sorry, Kristen). During their time together, Tom cheated on Kristen multiple times (and she did the same to him, but that's a different story). One of those times was when Tom famously cheated on Kristen with Ariana at the Golden Nugget in Las Vegas.
There may or may not have been other trysts between Tom and Ariana, but they both SWORE up and down that nothing happened. Ariana especially went to bat for Tom, basically pushing Kristen to the brink.
And once Kristen and Tom finally broke up for good, Tom and Ariana immediately started dating. Like, IMMEDIATELY. And here we are, nine years later.
Tom's actions and reasoning for cheating on Ariana and blowing up their life partnership are almost IDENTICAL to what he said and did to Kristen. I don't have time to pore over every little detail, so please watch and enjoy this lovely comparison video by TikToker and fellow Bravohead, Stephanie Tlejii:
TLDR: Kristen GETS IT. And in the years since Tom and Kristen's breakup, she and Ariana have actually become really good friends. She was literally WITH Ariana the night she found out about Tom's seven-month affair with Raquel. So who better to come and console her in her time of need??? Who better to bond over the collective trauma caused by this "worm with a mustache" who calls himself a bar owner???? No one, that's who. Not a single soul in all of WeHo or Valley Village. We see this immediately when they lovingly refer to Sandoval as "OUR ex-boyfriend."
This is the part where I'm gonna say there will be absolutely NO comments on this post being like, "How you get him is how you lose him!!!" when talking about this, because...stop it. First of all, gross. Second of all, Kristen literally shamed y'all for saying that on WWHL, and third of all, Ariana immediately acknowledges this after they sit down. It wasn't that Kristen was "nuts" or that Ariana was super special (even though she is, obviously). It's a pattern of behavior!!!!
Then, Ariana literally acknowledges that she spent years defending Tom against Kristen when she should've been doing the exact opposite. A huge moment of self-awareness and clarity!!!
And then Kristen is essentially like, "IDC about that, at least we're both rid of him." We LOVE women supporting women!!!!
After their chat on the couch, the two go into the backyard to do some kind of self-love spell. Kristen brought a shit ton of crystals and some kind of vibration tool, naturally.
For this Witches of WeHo ritual, Ariana writes down something she wants to manifest for herself: "true self-love." I'm not afraid to admit that this moment made me tear up.
Then, she burns and stomps out what's no longer serving her, aka "unrequited loyalty."
Finally, Ariana and Kristen close the spell with this iconic line:
And then they embrace!!! Two women who've been screwed over by the same narcissistic man, coming together to lift each other up and look forward to the days ahead, WITHOUT THAT LOSER.
