When Amanda Batula and West Wilson stepped onto the stage at the Summer House season 10 reunion, it soon became clear that the reality TV special would disappoint fans. Over three weeks, there was no real reckoning for Amanda and West’s controversial romance, as the pair’s emotionless affect and perceived lack of remorse meant there was no resolution, especially regarding Amanda’s betrayal of her “most loving, loyal friend,” Ciara Miller. But really, I should have known that Summer House was never going to dissect the duplicity to the extent that Ciara deserves.
Like most non-watchers who binged the Bravo hit after Amanda and West went public, I spent the past two-plus months rooting for Ciara to get her moment of retribution. For the past five seasons of Summer House, Ciara has been one of Amanda’s biggest supporters; she defended Amanda in arguments with her ex-husband Kyle Cooke and held Amanda’s hand through everything from identity crises to fertility issues. Ciara’s place in “Scamanda” also hit me, and countless other Black women, on a deeper level: We immediately understood the added layer of Amanda being white and Ciara being Black. While the average non-Black Bravo fan is experienced in sidestepping issues of race, Black women have kept their feet on necks since March 31, in hopes that the reunion would actually significantly address the elephant in the room.
