After fourteen seasons,The Real Housewives of New Jerseyhas had a plethora of wild and crazy moments. Many of these have gone down in reality television infamy. Some of these moments helped to define the series, thrusting it to the top of the genre. But some episodes coming out of the Garden State are just so dark, twisted, and bad that some might consider them “the worst.”
To be considered for this list, we are tackling episodes that went there. They’re the worst because of what happened on screen. From brawls to hair-pulling, over-the-top events to the most boring episode in the history of the series, these are the worst simply because of what the viewers experienced. It’s time to dive into these moments that live in infamy.
The Real Housewives of New Jersey
10Jennifer Aydin Is Carried Out of the Pool Party
No matter the franchise, viewers have had a history of watching the drunken antics of some of their favorite stars. They love to see them having the time of their lives! But sometimes, when the booze is overflowing, knowing just when to stop can be hard. Such was the case forJennifer Aydin.Teresa Giudicehosted a pool party at her home and Jennifer Aydin was just loving all that tequila that was filling her glass.With all the guests having fun in the sun, Jennifer was going down. She went into the pool to play tequila pong. And according to Jennifer Aydin,it was the last thing she remembered.
For viewers, they remember everything. Though rivals,Margaret Josephswas the one person who seemed to be the most concerned for Jen’s safety. At one point, Jen just went down. And everyone came to her aid as she couldn’t stand up straight. In the end, Jennifer had to be carried out by her husband,Bill Aydin. Even though she was giggling and making outrageous comments, it was a serious situation.Of course, the parting image, and sound, was hearing Bill laughing at his drunken wife as you heard Jennifer possibly puking in his beautiful Ferrari.Many of her fellow Housewives felt Jennifer’s behavior was awful. This event caused Jennifer to temporarily be nicknamed “Tequila Jennifer.”
9"Here she comes. My b**** wife."
The relationship between Teresa andJoe Giudicewas rocky as viewers were tapped into just how much Teresa may or may not have known about Joe’s illicit ways. Whether it was through business practices or accusations or alleged affairs,when the cameras are rolling and the mics are hot, they will pick up everything.The cast were taking a trip to a stunning winery. Teresa was trying to rebuild her friendship withJacqueline Laurita. And as she was doing so, it allowed her husband to take a call. Who was on the other line? That’s where things get messy.
Viewers were able to overhear Joe on the line say, “Here she comes. My b**** wife,” in reference to Teresa.Joe tried to play it off as a worker, starting to speak in Spanish.But it would be many years later before the truth was revealed. It was another woman. Despite standing by his side for years, the reveal was not that surprising as viewers believed the identity was another woman. This episode illuminated the duality these people have.
8Teresa the Body Builder
Teresa Giudicehas been through a lot. When she got out of prison, Teresa had been doing everything in her power to better herself. One of the ways she did this was entering the world of bodybuilding. Yes, that’s right. Working withFrank Catania, Teresa set herself up as a competitor in bodybuilding competitions, and the viewers bore witness to every single inch of it. The amount of body tanner that Frank had to apply onto her.
Viewers welcomed this disciplined side of Teresa, allowing her to be focused on her betterment, but at the same time, it was a very jarring scene.Perhaps she was gearing up to be able to do more than flip tables! Teresa’s bodybuilding era can be considered the worst simply because this was the alternative to feuding with her family. It was a great storyline, and the fact that it all went to the wayside for unnecessary drama was unfortunate. Oh, it should be noted, this was the episode when, during the infamous Cabo trip,Margaret JosephscomparedJennifer Aydin’s lip liner to a monkey’s….well, butt.
7Danielle Staub Accuses Jacqueline’s Daughter of Pulling Her Hair Out
Kids are off-limits, right? Maybe only for Teresa because back in the day, the children were the target. Spanning a pair of episodes, the infamous Season 2 spat occurred at the always-eventful Posche fashion show. Everything came to a head whenAshlee Homes Malleo, the 18-year-old daughter ofJacquelin Laurita, pulledDanielle Staub’s hair after believing she heard Danielle threatening to kill her mother, in addition to calling her fat online. The altercation outside first began after Teresa Giudice chased Danielle out of the country club, calling her a bitch as Danielle accused Teresa’s home of being in foreclosure.
The height of the name-calling caused Danielle to panic and cower in a corner, asking to go believing Teresa was coming for her. But it would not be Teresa who attacked, it was Ashlee.Viewers saw her take a tug at Danielle’s weave, and then, at the reunion, Danielle presented said weave.Years later, Ashlee confirmed the longstanding rumors ofDanielle pulling out her own hair to make Ashlee look bad were true. No matter what, this was mild compared to some of the other fights and brawls this show has seen.
6Teresa’s Wedding
Teresa Giudiceis the star ofThe Real Housewives of New Jersey. As the sole castmember who’s been part of the program since day one, when a milestone in Teresa’s life occurred, Bravo was there to capture it. Whether it was her journey through prison or her extravagant nuptials, the cameras have been rolling.
In the case of Teresa’s wedding, the special,Teresa Gets Married, was over-the-top, just like that hair. Part of what made this special so cringeworthy was how it blended a positive moment in her life, paired with the brutal realization that the Gorgas would not be attending.Watching Teresa go through the emotional struggle, as well as her daughters trying to hype her up while putting their aunt and uncle down, was painful.Sure, it was incredible seeing all the Bravolebrities in attendance, but it was nothing short of cringy.
5Danielle Staub Pulls Margaret Joseph’s Hair
Remember how we just discussed the traumatic experienceDanielle Staubwent through when she got her hair pulled? Well, apparently she learned nothing! During Season 10, the women were going shopping. Nothing should go wrong when you’re buying clothes! But the long-running feud betweenMargaret Josephsand Danielle Staub escalated.Danielle was not happy that the other ladies were talking about how their spouses were talking about Danielle’s porn past.She took her frustration toTeresa Giudice, where she was accusing them of bullying her. So Teresa attempted to have the air cleared, but instead, Danielle took to name-calling, throwing out “trout mouth” at Margaret.
With accusations that Margaret was the cause of the divorce between Danielle andMarty Caffrey, things took another turn when Danielle got into Margaret’s face, mocking her for marrying the contractor working on her house. After mocking her breasts, it was the final straw for Margaret, who dumped a bottle of water on Danielle’s head. Danielle then took Margaret’s purse and started dumping items out. Childlike buffoonery at its finest.Margaret called Danielle a drowned rat, triggering her to come behind her and pull her by the ponytail.Danielle dragged her until security had to step it. It has later revealed thatTeresa influenced Danielle to engage in this action. To think no matter where they are, these women will physically fight.
4Joe vs Joe Fight At the Retreat
Here is entry number one for theJoe GorgaversusJoe Giudicephysical fight.The Gorgas and Giudices had not been at peace for a long while.The family was crumbling, and it was hurting Joe Gorga andTeresa Giudice’s parents. The families, along with cousinsKathy WakileandRosie Pierri, went on a family healing retreat during Season 5 in hopes of mending fences. Unfortunately, it just continued to heighten the family feud. Ten years of family problems continued to escalate.
Brother and sister were fighting. For Teresa, she lives a life of loyalty. She expects everyone to give it, despite her rarely reciprocating. Perhaps in her attempt to break up his marriage, Teresa told her brother that he should stick with family, and he told her that he was not sticking with scum like her. Listen, siblings bicker and say things in the heat of the moment. But this did not sit well with Teresa’s husband. Sometimes prophecies come true. Just moments before being alerted of the word, Joe Giudice said to cousin Rosie,“One day it’s gonna happen: he’s gonna get me f—– mad, I’m gonna f—– flip.“Joe Giudice stormed back in trying to get his brother-in-law to apologize, but instead, Joe Gorga charged at his brother-in-law, causing a physical brawl to break out. Kathy’s face watching from the corner was exactly how viewers were feeling. It didn’t need to reach this point.
3The Christening Fight
Here we go again! This time,it was the first time the Joes had battled on the show.There had always been animosity between the siblings,Joe GorgaandTeresa Giudice. There was a time before the show when they were at peace, but that’s not the storyThe Real Housewives of New Jerseytold. It was a family affair at baby Joey’s christening.Melissa Gorgahad opinions about Joe Giudice’s fit as an uncle. He didn’t come to the hospital when baby Joey was born or attend the Christening at the church, but he did engage in a strange little dance with Teresa as he held the baby.
Joe Gorga and Melissa were complaining about how Melissa wasn’t able to hold her niece at her christening. Joe wanted his wife to speak up. Oh, that was the wrong thing to say. Well, when Teresa finally came around to say hi to her family at their dinner table, Joe was not thrilled with her timing and told her to walk away. They started to bicker, with Joe calling her garbage. If there’s one thing you don’t do, call Teresa names. Out of nowhere, Joe Giudice came in on the attack.Both men had to be broken up by anyone who could get a hold of them.This might have been the absolute worst place to engage in a physical brawl.
2Strippergate
Rumors and allegations have been the source of immense drama onThe Real Housewives of New Jersey. Especially if it’s occurring at the Posche Fashion Show. While it was only the second season with the families appearing on the show together, there was a moment when it looked like there was some semblance of peace betweenTeresa GiudiceandMelissa Gorga. That was until strippergate.Rumors were swirling that Melissa used to be a stripper.It was a damning accusation, but when it was revealed that the accusations came from the evilKim DePaola, with aid from Teresa Giudice, any hope for family peace was out the window.
At the fashion show, Teresa tried to play the innocent sister-in-law by pulling Melissa aside to question how she knew Angelo Vrohidis, the man at the center of the rumors. Well, Melissa was only a bartender at the venue he owned, so that’s how she knew him. But for Teresa,“I never believed Melissa was a stripper, but it just seemed like a coinkie-dink.“Well, Angelo just so happened to be at the salon that Kim D brought Teresa to get ready for the event. It was massive set up that was meant to sow seeds of doubt about Melissa’s integrity. But it backfired. It got to the point where Joe Gorga felt immense betrayal, jumpstarting the family feud again, sending Teresa a text stating, “You are dead to me.”
1Off the Rails
Season 14 ofThe Real Housewives of New Jerseywas one for the history books. The cast was completely divided, asTeresa GiudiceandMelissa Gorgavowed to never speak to one another ever again. The season had its moments of drama, mostly centering around Teresa attempting to take downMargaret JosephsandDanielle CabralandJennifer Aydin’s physical encounter. But it wasthe Last Supper, the final episode of the season, when fans learned that this version of the show was done forever. WithDolores Cataniahoping to bring everyone together to find peace,what instead happened was proof that this group would never be able to be together ever again.
Because the disastrous final episode caused Bravo to cancel the typical reunion, instead,viewers were given a viewing party special.Yes,the women were split up into two groups at Rails to watch the final episode.What occurred was nothing exciting. In fact, it destroyed any momentum the season ended with. Teresa continued to live in her delusional state. No new insight came to light. Fans have called it a complete waste of time. If this is how this era of the show ends, fans will know why.It was called “Off the Rails,” but it was anything but.
KEEP READING:The Last Supper on ‘RHONJ’ Was a Hot Mess Express
