The ‘Southern Charm’ Peter Pans Are Here To Replace the ‘Vanderpump Rules’ Peter Pans

With the news of a Vanderpump Rules cast overhaul, I was left wondering where I’d go for my fix of 40-year-old men behaving badly. Sure, they gave us The Valley, where the Peter Pans of West Hollywood go to retire, but those guys are all married. Well, except for Jax Taylor at this point, but he’s too much even for me.

But, silly me! I forgot about Southern Charm.

If you don’t know, Southern Charm is like if Vanderpump Rules and Summer House moved to South Carolina and had a baby. Yes, it’s just as problematic as it sounds. Over the years, its cast has been a revolving door of generationally wealthy trust fund kids, and its plot has been … well, mostly those kids getting drunk. But much like Vanderpump Rules, those kids grew up, and most of them are still doing the exact same thing. Getting drunk, that is. The men, that is.

Chief among the drunk Peter Pans of Southern Charm is Shep Rose, who famously went on a bender last year at BravoCon in Las Vegas, prompting an intervention of sorts at the season nine reunion, in which his fellow Peter Pans, Craig Conover (reformed) and Austen Kroll (working on it) were like, “We’re done with you.” Thursday night’s season 10 premiere saw the three musketeers reuniting at Shep’s family farmhouse for a heart-to-heart, in which Shep opened up about his Ayuhusca trip, where he experienced “empathy and tears flowing out of him” for his friends. So, all forgiven. But if I know my boys, this peace won’t last.

In the meantime, don’t fret! Peter Madrigal, the literal Peter Pan of Vanderpump Rules and somehow still the general manager of SUR, recently said on a podcast that he’s sticking around for the next season.

“The one that’s still there is yours truly,” he said.

Poor Peter. He’s been there since season one, but he’s never been a main cast member, just the guy with the ponytail lurking in the corner of every scene. He’s 40 now, and the new cast will presumably be mostly young servers. Does he really want to be part of that? If so…why?

I’m not holding out hope for Peter or his buddies in the San Fernando Valley. I’ve got Shep and Austen and their self-destruction back. Life is good.