Instagram/@ashleyboalchdarby
Ashley Darby from ‘The Real Housewives of Potomac’ has been quite a talk of the town after her recent visit to ‘Watch What Happens Live!’ The episode featured Darby alongside Jeff Lewis as the co-guest and the teaser post for the episode instantly sparked a lot of comments with a good number of people expressing their disapproval over Darby’s current story arc and behavior on the show.
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A publication from the official ‘Watch What Happens Live!’ account released a video giving a sneak peek of the episode with the words, ‘CLUBhouse tour! #WWHL with Ashley Darby and Jeff Lewis TON!GHT @ 9!’ The video accurately and beautifully showed a very quick but captivating stunning view of the set, and indeed it was quite the place from where an entrance that would definitely be a hot topic among the people could be. Although some were very eager about the episode, the comment section became a ground for a much larger conversation about the character of Ashley Darby on ‘The Real Housewives of Potomac’ this season.
The comments were mostly very negative and the main point was the supposed relationship between Darby and her co-star. One user very bluntly stated, ‘Your addiction to Stacey is something that needs to be looked at. Please get help, get voice lessons, and get a better storyline.’ Another one supported the same idea and went on to say, ‘Ashley has morphed into a vile creature and is as unwatchable as Gizelle,’ thus, letting it be known that she considered Ashley to be just another traffic victim in the house. Criticism did not stop at that point, one more user severely questioned the foundation of her plot and stated, ‘So, once again, are you saying that your entire story lies in the business of others???’
The dissatisfaction was of such a type that it put Darby in the spotlight as asking to shift the attention from others to her past. One long but very captivating comment reversed the role of victim and victimizer: ‘Could you PLEASE do me one more favour and bring up the incident with your husband just the same? It looks like you are so absorbed in other people’s lives… Let’s get into that and then we can stop barking up the wrong trees. It’s really not interesting to watch HW if you don’t stop making those mistakes.’ This is a case of some viewers having a very bitter feeling towards Darby and seeing her not as a person trying to be the life of the party by creating new drama with others but rather as someone who is trying to hide the past by not talking about it.
Undoubtedly, not all viewers’ responses were negative. In fact, there were still people who support Darby and they voiced their opinions in the comments section. One of the followers just stated, ‘Ashley’s sooo beautiful! She is always forgiven for everything,’ indicating that the loyalty still existing is the kind that overlooks the current trouble. Another fan drew a parallel between her and the whole cast, tagging one of her character traits—’Ashley D. did not come to play this season,’ thereby making a big noise for the drama that she was creating. An anonymous one, on the other hand, was very personal when he/she/they complimented and questioned, ‘What have you done you look great,’ redirecting the attention from the battleground to the surface amidst the heated debates.
There was also a very meta level discussion regarding a viewer’s comment pointing out the episode’s timing and asking, ‘Wendy’s arrest not even mentioned. That must be a pre-recorded. Just stop using the word Live in the title. @bravoandy This is absurd.’ This comment brings to light the sometimes difficult situation of pre-taped programming in the reality TV world which is quite fast-paced, where real-world happenings can easily make the content seem outdated.
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The very strong and divided reaction to a piece of an ordinary promotional post highlights Ashley Darby as one of the most controversial figures in the ‘Real Housewives’ universe. Her ability to garner and hold attention, whether through love or hate, is still very powerful. The clubhouse tour sneak peek was not merely a way to promote an episode; it was the moment and the place of the audience’s real-time focus group and their opinion about Ashley’s current journey was strongly divided. The question of whether this negative feedback will influence her future storylines or if her loyal fans will continuously outnumber her critics is a major off-screen drama unfolding. It is evident that the issue of Ashley Darby is still very much alive and far from settling down. Ashley Darby continues to be a central figure in the franchise. Additionally, her husband Michael Darby remains a topic of discussion among fans.