Closure With The Kardashians

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2007 marked the early beginnings of the Kardashian family’s journey towards becoming cultural titans. Initially, they were reality TV personalities, showcasing their pursuit of fame. This documentation unexpectedly propelled them into a significant impact on our society. However, this influence wasn’t primarily driven by dramatic fights or sensational scandals but rather the everyday aspects and peculiarities they revealed to their audience – from the unique way they mixed their Health Nut salads, using “Bible” instead of “promise,” to demonstrating how to access a boyfriend’s voice-mails. These glimpses into their lives provided an intimate perspective.

Over 20 seasons, their talent lay in maintaining approachability despite their increasingly luxurious lifestyle in Calabasas. This demonstrated that quality reality TV thrives on details, not broad strokes, and E!’s Keeping Up With the Kardashians capitalized on these details to the show’s and the family’s advantage.

Introduced in 2022, Hulu’s The Kardashians might have appeared as just a rebranded version of its predecessor, Keeping Up, aiming to secure a better deal with a new network. However, over the past five seasons, it has demonstrated itself to be a distinct show, catering to the level of fame the family has attained since their rise to stardom. As they’ve evolved in their relationship with the medium that propelled them into fame, The Kardashians has been designed to reflect this change. Unlike its predecessor, which was primarily about the family’s personal dramas and relentless pursuit of fame, The Kardashians presents a more polished and refined image. Instead of being narratively driven like most reality shows, it feels more like an Instagram post, sharing career moves and life updates in broad strokes, similar to a monthly photo dump where we swiftly move from one glamorous highlight to the next: a luxurious vacation, a magazine cover shoot, a birthday party, a White House visit with Kamala Harris, the Met Gala, or most recently, a high-profile reunion with an ex.

As a fan, I can’t help but see the strategic side of “The Kardashians” given that it seems to revolve largely around the family’s calculated business and public relations decisions. The choice to kick off season six with Khloé reuniting with her ex-husband, Lamar Odom, is no exception. It’s a move that generates buzz, reminiscent of Sweeps Week if it were applicable to streaming platforms. Their seven-year marriage, extensively covered on “Keeping Up” and their spinoff “Khloé & Lamar”, legally ended after Lamar’s overdose at a brothel in 2015. This episode marks the first time they’ve met in nine years.

Restaging Lamar’s appearance in this scene seems more like a last-ditch effort by production to reawaken the initial interest of the audience, an idea that originated from a creative brainstorming session and was proposed to Khloé by the production team as a nostalgia tactic. However, the execution feels forced and artificial, with little attempt made to disguise its contrived nature. For instance, it’s revealed that Khloé has some of Lamar’s belongings (from nearly a decade ago) she wishes to return. As the meeting approaches, Khloé herself admits that she would rather avoid this face-to-face encounter, which adds an unusual element to the situation, as she is under no obligation to do so! It could have been easily resolved by sending the items back in the post! The entire scene feels unnecessary and unjustified, other than a desperate attempt to reignite the audience’s connection with the show, not between Khloé and Lamar, but between viewers and the program itself.

It becomes more evident that this get-together primarily concerns us rather than Khloé, as she repeatedly expresses having no feelings for Lamar, a statement that seems oddly contrasted with the show’s increased emotional intensity. They even dig up old clips from E! featuring them on Keeping Up and Khloé & Lamar, set to heartwarming music, to emphasize our connection to this narrative. These scenes aren’t just memorable moments from their relationship; they also underscore the family’s reality TV legacy, offering a glimpse into the genuine, vulnerable aspects of an actual relationship that developed and flourished under the spotlight.

By displaying these nostalgic moments, they’re subtly highlighting the gap in transparency we’ve experienced from the Kardashians lately. It appears that neither Kylie nor Kim seem eager to replicate their past behavior of publicly documenting their romantic escapades, such as bringing Timothée Chalamet on a cast trip or openly discussing their love lives like they used to. This shift is understandable but seems to contrast with their earlier openness, which captured our hearts and sparked our interest in their lives. That candidness was not only endearing, it also fueled the Kardashians’ cultural impact. As that candor has faded, so has their influence. In an effort to rekindle our curiosity, The Kardashians dusted off a plotline from a decade past, one they knew we were already invested in. And while this tactic worked, as evidenced by our current discussion, it’s telling that the show assumes its audience is more intrigued by the family’s past than their present lives.

Despite being stiff and deliberately planned, the dialogue between Khloé and Lamar wasn’t dull. The solid wall of emotion Khloé maintained throughout was the most genuine aspect, making it captivating to listen to her discuss the painful demise of their relationship, although she did so with a sense of detachment. Yet, the underlying question that hovered over the entire interaction persisted: “Why are we doing this?” It’s portrayed as a pursuit for long-overdue closure, but for whom? Khloé didn’t appear to yearn for or require closure, while Lamar seemed to view it more as an opportunity. At best, it offers closure for the audience, wrapping up the threads of a marriage we have followed closely over the years, watching its unfolding in our homes. This peculiar journey back in time serves as a reminder to the audience that the Kardashians, whom we grew fond of, have progressed to greater, if not necessarily superior, matters.

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2025-02-20 03:54