17 replies to this topic

[Schemer20]

Married to the Army: Alaska - About the Show

Being a military spouse myself (Marines, thank God), I'm not sure why I thought it would be a good idea to watch a reality show about other military spouses, but I did. Thank goodness I was only lobbing invisible daggers at my TV, otherwise it wouldn't have survived the viewing!

Lindsey Bergeron (AKA: used to be fat Army wife, but got the Army to pay for gastric by-pass and then upgraded her meal ticket to a Major) -- she can just GTFO my TV right now. Her reading of her Army wife handbook and then going around telling everyone how to act appropriately made me stabby. Then, when these totally normal people take offense to her being the congeniality monitor and tell her to eff off, she responds with, "This is why we (officer wives and enlisted wives) don't associate." Okay, that's not an O/E thing; that's an asshole/non-asshole thing -- her being the former. Also, I don't feel an ounce of pity for her marrying a man who absolutely can't leave being Major Douchecanoe at the door and shows his dog more affection than his wife. That's why you don't marry for rank or status, bricks! I cheered aloud when that girl came on and said that she was no better than her (especially given Lindsey's messy past as junior enlisted wife and mother) and telling her on the phone to go fuck herself. That made the 50 minutes I endured of Lindsey worth watching!

I really liked Rynn Randall and Blair Flanagan -- "Ever been in a Turkish prison?" Very down-to-earth and more mature than your typical military spouse. Though, I'm not sure I would've gone lingerie shopping and filmed it for TV like Blair did, but I was more shocked that Lindsey was with her and didn't find it inappropriate! Anyway, I'll probably keep watching just for those two, but if Lindsey starts in again with her brand of bullshit, I might have to pull the 'chute.

Edited by Schemer20, Nov 20, 2012 @ 8:45 PM.

[JanetMacklin]

I really enjoy this show. Lindsay is the kind of snob that an audience (and her army-wife peers) probably don't take seriously. Not to mention the fact that she married up the ranks and her emotionally unavailable husband paid for her gastric bypass. The woman who met her husband at Hooters seemed sweet. And I love Blair and Rynn - When Rynn confided that she was to see the base psychologist and Blair let Rynn know that she had been treated for postpartum, it was touching. Blair seems like such a fun person - and I believe she said she'd chosen to live "off post" to escape Army wife drama. I loved her lingerie shopping, describing her husband coming home and how it was like hooking up with someone you'd only just met. Her reunion with her husband actually made me teary-eyed, and he was so sweet and goofy with her. I'll be watching the rest of the season for sure.

[Schemer20]

Lindsay is the kind of snob that an audience (and her army-wife peers) probably don't take seriously. Not to mention the fact that she married up the ranks and her emotionally unavailable husband paid for her gastric bypass.

I'd bet my entire savings account that the Army did the gastric by-pass and she had it done when she was still married to junior enlisted husband #1. Then, she got 'hot' (in her mind) and decided to trade him in for a better model. Also, she's getting ripped on pretty good by the military spouse community on the "Married to the Army: Alaska" Facebook page, so I would hesitate to say people just brush her elitist bullshit under the rug. I'm an audience member and a military wife and I know I didn't. She gives spouses a bad name!

[cissyboo]

Oh, lord. As an Army spouse (17 years and counting), and former service member (8 years), what can I say. Other than what a bunch of bullshit. Most of us military spouses, or at least those of us who care about the career path of our spouse, wouldn't be caught dead on camera/a reality show. Then again, I've known plenty of trash-tastic military wives (and husbands) whose only redeeming feature is their antics weren't filmed-unless PD dash cams count.
Don't worry about Lindsey-her Major will trade her in for a new trophy as soon as her behavior/attitude gets him into a world of hurt with the chain of command. She wears her husband's rank as her own, but that won't fly for long with women whose husbands out rank hers. Sad, but true.

[JanetMacklin]

I'm not on Facebook but that makes me wish I was. You're totally correct, my gastric bypass timeline assumption was probably backward. It was so strange how needy she was with her husband. Not that she needed affection, human beings do that, but the way she was whining. One of the other, older wives explained that husbands are surrounded by chaos and part of R & R is actually just rest. I doubt her husband got the chance to relax.

[yogajen]

I am not an army wife but a Vietnam army step daughter. I could not believe how selfish, officious and needy Lindsey was. It is clearly all about her "status." Which off the base means nothing. So superficial.

She has to take care of a baby and clean the house (for a baby and herself - hardly anything) and he is negotiating bullets, supervising multiple staff, missiles, IED's, etc..

This clearly set up to be a franchise a la housewives with Alaska after the colon. Next up Texas, Carolinas and California and Oprah has another multi-city franchised hit.

Other than Lindsay, I liked the other women. Loved the reunion at the airport with the blonde woman, bald husband and the baby. Too soon to remember any names!

Rest is what I meant to add. I don't think they care about going out to a movie or the Olive Garden. They just want to relax, have peace and quiet (and sex), watch a movie, order take-out and play with the kids.

[Schemer20]

Blair was the one at the airport and, I agree, she is my fave at the moment!

Cissyboo -- good to see you from the "Whale Wars" thread! Hope your PCS turned out okay!

[cissyboo]

Hey, Schemer20-the PCS went ok, dog got sick after three days in the car, and the movers lost a $900 futon frame and a bag full of military gear (almost $3000 worth!), but all the Tupperware lids arrived. And we get to do it all over again next June.

Lindsey is just terrible, but I've met wives like her in the past (one of the reasons I try to avoid military wives!), and she will either learn her place in the hierarchy or get replaced. Just because she's the youngest field grade wife doesn't mean her shit doesn't stink, it just means her husband is led around by his lower brain.

[shreha14]

I have been "Married to the Army" for 17 years as well. I know the Army paid for that gastric bypass. Every military spouse that I have known that has undergone that surgery has totally went off the rails. A few have left their husbands. Some have left their husbands and children and almost all have developed super inflated egos. The Army also pays for tummy tucks and breast lifts post weight loss. Not that I'm against it, by all means, but it seems to really take a mental toll on the recipients. That being said, as soon as Lindsay said she used to be overweight but then had gastric bypass surgery etc. etc., I was like "yep, that's about right". Lindsay is not typical of the wives of higher ranking officers that I know. Rynn, on the other hand, is very much representative of these wives. She's been married and around the Army long enough that she's no longer concerned with rank and status and all that silly bullshit. ( And maybe she never was) She appears to be just living her life and raising her kids and trying to be there for the other spouses if and when needed.

Now, where do I get this Army wife handbook? I can always use a good laugh.

[meatball77]

Lindsay is the type of officers wife that ruins her husbands career. In my world if a wife pulled that crap with an enlisted wife the enlisted wife would tell her husband who would tell his sergeant who would pull it up the chain of command until the husband of the bitch gets pulled into his commander's office and gets told to get his wife in control and/or she's banned from all events.

I've known one or two Lindsay's. Generally they're either LT's wives or they're like Lindsay, wives who get married later and think they're hot shit for having married an officer and think of being an officer's wife as a job. After my husband's command I decided to stay away from the whole wives thing. We currently live an hour and fifteen minutes from post and I love it. I don't have to deal with that stuff and neither does my daughter.

It was all in all more positive than I expected and I was entertained.

[dad2two]

Best part of last night's show, NO LINDSEY. So glad that none of the wives portrayed were affected by the tragedies causing the black out. BTW, that baby, Colin I think, is absolutely adorable.

[Schemer20]

I think this show is doing a great job conveying the whirlwind of emotions that military spouses go through when their husbands, both, leave and return home. Both situations are equally difficult and, usually, the media just likes to show the teary homecomings, not the conversations that happen in the days after, behind closed doors.

Yolanda's intelligence and level-headedness should impress me, but for some reason, she leaves me cold. I think she's saying things that would normally be perceived as emotional statements, but she's not able to convey the emotion as she's saying them. I don't know whether to admire her sacrifice of only taking a 10% share in her marriage, while giving her husband and, subsequently, the Army a 90% share or feel bad that she's so emotionally shut down, that she doesn't require much more than that.

Blair is still my fave!

Edited by Schemer20, Nov 27, 2012 @ 4:02 PM.

[JanetMacklin]

Heads up to any viewers - there are two episodes on tonight at 9 and 10 pm, EST. Both are new, I think. And they're the last ones my DVR lists. Don't know if it's been cancelled or if OWN is just fussing with the schedule. I don't typically watch OWN, but really enjoy this show.

[Schemer20]

I read that OWN was messing around with the schedule and the show will air on Friday nights from now on.

[dad2two]

Traci is starting to seem more and more like a bitch every week. Lindsey only knew about your dumb fire because she was driving by. Blair does not live on base, so perhaps she didn't know about your fire. Did you call and tell her? No. Oh so you were relying on the gossip train that Blair tries to avoid by living off base to spread your news.

BTW, who doesn't know you should not put groceries on your stove?

I felt bad for Blair and her party, but, Lindsey was right, you don't come to our social gatherings so why would you expect everyone to jump to yours?

I guess this was supposed to be a Bravo production originally based on the RHO Ft. Richardson glass in Yolanda's house.

[JanetMacklin]

Fascinated by Blair's husband's bravery in the face of that attack. It's really amazing to hear what these soldiers and their wives face on a daily basis. I thought Yolanda's interaction with her husband on R & R was sweet. Her husband's obviously a very compassionate person. To see him cry over not being able to attend to his troop, and about the lives lost, was touching.

Blair is someone I really root for. I understand why she lives off of the base (especially seeing personalities like Traci and Lindsey's - both of whom I think she can only handle in small doses). I sympathize with her and agree with some posters that if she wants interaction/ to be less lonely, she has to get out there. But she does have a sort of sarcastic, no-nonsense way about her that could hurt the feelings of someone like Traci, the most special of special snowflakes. Your friends don't constantly attend to your needs because this isn't high school, sweetie. When she spent the entire fashion show episode whining about how Sarah didn't defend her for calling the fashion show director a bitch at top volume, I had to laugh. At best I would try to lead a friend away from the situation if she was acting like that much of an idiot. But that would really take some trying.

Lindsey really is an obnoxious, rank-obsessed social climber. She was running around the army ball like a maniac chatty cathy. I don't think she's really creating the great impression she thinks that she is.

[Schemer20]

Lindsey really is an obnoxious, rank-obsessed social climber. She was running around the army ball like a maniac chatty cathy. I don't think she's really creating the great impression she thinks that she is

I totally agree and I think the editing of that whole debacle was hilarious, what with all of her imitations of 'getting down' and 'boogey-ing.' I am the spouse of an enlisted Marine, so I don't know if this is an O/E thing or maybe an Army/Marines thing, but when my husband is deployed, I don't attend the Marine Corps Birthday Ball. In fact, that's kind of an odd thing to do unless you're going with multiple spouses whose husbands are also deployed with your husband. But, even then, we tend to toss it aside in favor of a girls' night out at someone's house or something else a little more laid back and, oh,....fun! She was right when she said going to those things are work. I can see that Yolanda would attend as the Brigade Commander's wife -- she is in a much more high-profile position with the unit. But, Lindsey's husband is kind of a field-grade nobody, so no one would speak ill of her if she didn't attend because they probably would never notice. She's really not as important as she seems to think she is.

I agree that Blair shouldn't expect a high turnout if she were inviting people from the same group of people who attend the FRG events she makes a point not to attend, but I was kind of under the impression that she would be inviting the girls from the show and a totally different group of people who she might associate with off-base. Didn't she mention some neighbors or something? I felt bad for her. And, the weeping, chain-smoking, maniacal-laughing, crazy-hair, and wine-guzzling, in an outfit that really looked like it needed to be paired with some pants or leggings, did her no favors. That was the most unstable I've ever seen her look on the show. But, who knows at what point in her husband's deployment this was filmed and what else might have been going on, so I am going to cut her some slack.

Traci's speshul snowflake-ness had to be defended by, no other than, her very own husband on the Married to the Army: Alaska Facebook page. Evwyone was being mean to wittle ol' Traci. Barf. What nutjob tells a pregnant woman who is about to pop Labor & Delivery and newborn sleep deprivation horror stories? She has no filter. Trashy.

[meatball77]

Anyone watch the last three episodes? My tivo picked them up randomly some morning over the holiday.

Lindsay got a boob job so her husband would pay more attention to her and Tracy continued to be trashy.