Bravo"Jacqueline is a great friend," gushed Teresa Giudice early on in tonight's episode of the Real Housewives of New Jersey.
Ruh-roh. Sounds like the reality show kiss of death, right up there with talking about winning a Quickfire challenge or bragging about your tribal alliances.
Sure enough, by the end of the show, Teresa's declaring Jacqueline a "psycho" and comparing her to "Heckyll and Jive." (That's Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde for those of you that don't speak Shore.)
So, how did they go from friends to frenemies in an hour? Let's dive in...
From In Touch to Life & Style, the drama in this week's episode was fueled by an article that suggested Teresa might be going to jail just like her hubby Joe.
"I know you can't always believe what you read, especially when Teresa told me that there's certain things she puts in the tabloid herself," says Jacqueline. "So is she profiting from people's pity or is she really hurting and not admitting it?"
Since Jacqueline started the day with a slug of Baileys in her coffee and a disappointing conversation about Ashlee acting up, she must have figured the day was already shot so why not hash things out with Teresa.
But a little Irish whiskey liqueur wasn't the only thing fueling this fire.
Cut through all the yelling about tabloids, attorneys and bankruptcy and Jacqueline is upset because Teresa was tweeting with the enemy, Danielle Staub. (Cue ominous second season music.)
But peel back Teresa's layers and bluster and everthing comes back to her sister-in-law Melissa Gorga. "Everyone else sees she's full of shit, why don't you see it?" she screams.
By this point, Caroline Manzo has joined the action on Jacqueline's deck and it takes all of two minutes for her to lose her cool and start screaming right back at Teresa. (Does anyone else think a Bravo producer must've had Mama Manzo on speed dial? "The s--t's hitting the fan tonight, get over here and air your grievances!"
And because Caroline's still hung up on Fabulicious, we got a rehash of the cookbook feud. We don't often agree with Teresa, but... "Holy s--t, are these bitches really role playing?" hit the nail on the head.
As for where the friendships stand at the end of the hour. Caroline's done but that's been clear since the beginning. As for Jacqueline, she's still on the brink. "For my health, I'm going to distance myself from you and your family," she tells Teresa, but scenes from next week's episode prove she doesn't really mean it... yet.
So what do you think, was Teresa ambushed or was this a necessary intervention? Were you shocked that Jacqueline finally found her voice? Doesn't Chris Laurita come across as the sweetest, most supportive hubby ever? And were you feeling Lauren Manzo's hunger pains while her brothers were chowing on that delicious-looking pizza?
Grab a slice and sound off on all things Jersey in our Comments section below!