In Episode 8 of The Kardashians, the family yet again turns their personal mythologies into media events—and vice versa. From Kourtney and Travis’s wedding prep with Dolce & Gabbana in Milan, to Kim’s Rocky Balboa-esque training to fit into the Marilyn Dress—and intermittent intra-family buzzing about the highly publicized Blac Chyna trial—we’re not only getting the BTS of headlines we’ve been seeing all year, but we’re also learning just how far the family can stretch their content. (Across three episodes, to be exact—because every plot line that began in Episode 7 was continued in this one, and still without closure.) Here are three things that kept me up after Episode 8 of The Kardashians:
An Entire Scene Dedicated to a Photo Kravis Took in Front of Milan Cathedral
As quirky xylophone music plays, eliciting definitive “docu-series” energy, Kravis hops in the back of their big black SUV to embark on a mysterious mission. They emerge at Milan Cathedral, where Kourt promptly jumps into Travis’s arms for a kiss in front of the landmark, and someone from their crew snaps a picture—one that viewers of the show may well remember seeing on their feeds. The scene drives home just how much of The Kardashians is about going “behind-the-scenes” of even the most (apparently) casual Instagram shots, effectively documenting Kravis’s oddly memorable documentation of their travel memory. Yet if social media is gradually replacing more traditional forms, like movies and TV, is it so inconceivable that a reality show would offer further background and context on the content we consume most?
Ripley’s Said No—Until Kris Jenner Called
The primary drama of the past few episodes has been about whether Ripley’s Believe It or Not! would lend Kim the Marilyn Monroe Dress she wanted to wear to the 2022 Met Gala (narratively demoting the technically more scandalous Blac Chyna trial). A scene opens on Kim at the Florida location of the franchise, and she explains how she found herself there: “They weren’t going to let me try it on—until Kris Jenner called.” When a producer asks Kris exactly how she pulled it off, the iconic momager refuses to spill, instead citing one of her more famous catchphrases (which we last heard, quoted by Khloé, during Episode 4’s coverage of Kim’s controversial Variety cover shoot). “You know what I say: If somebody says no, you’re talking to the wrong person.” Kim fills in some funny details, describing whisper-begging her mom to get the dress as Kris continually muted the phone to tell her to shut up. With that, Kris lived up to what is arguably her most famous meme—the devil works hard, but Kris Jenner works harder—because Ripley’s caved, forever attaching a classic Kris Jenner triumph to one of Kim’s most major media milestones. Amid season-long storylines about the momager’s health obstacles and her pervasive existential gloom about aging, the sisters have found different ways to remind us just how indispensable Kris’s leadership is in scaling the family’s epic brand.
The Vastly Different Dress-Fittings
While Kim, the self-described “shapeshifter,” has embarked on a Rocky-esque training regimen to fit into The Dress, Kourtney has been depicted more like royalty, trying on crowns at the Dolce & Gabbana showroom in Milan and being regularly referred to as “my queen” by fiancé Travis Barker.
The sisters’ experiences during their respective dress-fittings are equally dissimilar. Domenico Dolce hand-tailors Kourt’s dress to fit her figure—a creative process we witness firsthand, as fabric flies and new shapes are made. “Domenico springs into action and starts biting bones out of my dress,” Kourtney tells us during a confessional, “and cutting things and completely building a dress on me.” Back in Orlando, Kim and her team strain to fit her into Marilyn’s dress, which absolutely cannot be cut up according to her shape. After all, the dress is, itself, history, and—though the Kardashians may be masters of narrative—the past is immutable. The camera zooms in on Kim’s curves, which are, at the moment, very inconvenient to the form she’s aspiring to fit. “Oh my God,” my viewing budding (my sister) exclaimed. “Is this about to be a SKIMS plug?” As the scene progresses, it seems it is.
“Do I need to put on another pair of shapewear?” Kim asks her team. Chris Appleton has a solution. “He lifted up my butt, in my SKIMs,” Kim narrates, “and repositioned my shapewear. Then it went up.” And just like that, one of Kim’s most successful cycles of media controversy was made possible by two cornerstones of her brand: Kris Jenner and SKIMs.
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