There are countless reasons why the Kardashian-Jenner family’s reality television show is problematic. While I am not one for snobbery about what people do or don’t find entertaining, when people point out its incessant use of the word ‘literally’ and the promotion of unrealistic beauty standards and materialism, I, too, want to hate Keeping Up With The Kardashians. Still, I cannot deny that the show is my guilty pleasure, and the first port of call whenever I am hungover, bored, fed-up, or stressed. Bible: I even found myself having a little sob when Kylie announced the birth of Stormi via Instagram. Embarrassing. Still, whether you love or loathe it, KUWTK has become a generation-defining television show that has changed social media, and celebrity and influencer culture, forever.
This year, the famous family are celebrating the show’s final season after fourteen years of filming births, break-ups, and everything in-between. When the cameras stop rolling, they’re obviously going to continue doing amazing, sweetie, but the close of the long-running series marks the end of an era for reality television. The last twenty seasons contain a myriad of iconic on-screen moments and quotes; the highs have come in the form of engagements and business launches, and the lows have seen robberies and cheating scandals.
Here are eight of the most iconic moments from Keeping Up With The Kardashians.
Season 2: Kim arguing with Kourtney and Khloe over a Bentley
“Don’t be f*cking rude!”
Having made a resurgence on TikTok recently, even those who weren’t around for the original scrap in 2008 will be familiar with Kim’s mighty handbag swing. After a Bentley salesman rudely spoke to Kim’s sisters in her presence, Khloe and Kourtney felt offended that Kim didn’t stick up for them. The feud lasted for at least a few episodes, but a casual, all-inclusive trip to New Orleans brought the girls some perspective and quickly resolved things. Obviously.
Season 2: Kim throwing Kris’s phone over off a balcony
“It’s what she deserves.”
Is it a real Kardashian family fight if it doesn’t end with Kim smirking directly into the camera? I don’t think so. Season 2 saw the family on holiday together again, with the atmosphere still a little sour, after the Bentley situation mentioned above. In an attempt to get Kim to engage with the family, Kris jokingly tossed her phone over the sofa. In response, Kim quoted the Bible (obviously) saying “do unto others as you would have them do unto you” before launching her mum’s phone off a balcony and down some stairs. Iconic.
Season 3: Kim taking selfies on the way to take Khloe to jail
“Kim, will you stop taking pictures of yourself? Your sister’s going to jail.”
Arguably the show’s most famous scene, watching Kim and Khloe snapping selfies on the way to a fourteen-day prison sentence is the exact kind of blissful ignorance that the world has been channeling throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. Also, remember taking selfies with digital cameras? Ah, simpler times.
Season 4: Rob accidentally taking Caitlyn’s Viagra
“What’s the harm?”
I still can’t believe that this actually happened… Season 4 saw Kris spiking her husband’s coffee with viagra to improve their sex life. When Rob accidentally drank the wrong morning cuppa, all hell broke loose: crotches were reluctantly iced from behind bedroom doors, and Scott Disick was called in for help. The whole palaver ended with Kris looking into the camera and announcing that getting over this was going to be “really hard” for her. For her!
Season 6: Kim losing her diamond earring in the ocean in Bora Bora
“Kim, there’s people that are dying!”
Watching the stark change in Kim’s facial expressions in this episode will always cheer me up; in a matter of seconds, she goes from flirty, child-like giggling with Kris
Humphries, to her now iconic ugly crying face and wailing “Seventy-five-thousand dollars!”. Kourtney brings her back down to earth with her infamous quick dry wit, and Kylie saves the day by finding the missing earring. Phew.
Season 12: Khloe, Kylie & Kendall get a make-under
“I don’t want to talk about those Kartrashians!”
In a bid to make Kylie’s desire to be ‘normal’ for a day come true, Khloe and Kendall hired a team of make-up artists to put prosthetics and wigs on them, meaning they could go out in public unnoticed. The first port of call was to order a Subway (standard procedure), before hopping on a rooftop bus tour of LA. The tour guide stopped at what he believed was “Kim Kardashian’s favourite restaurant”, and Khloe mockingly shouted that she didn’t want to talk “about those Kartrashians”. I didn’t think that I’d ever hear Kendall Jenner order a toasted meatball marinara sub either, but here we are…
“The lengths that this family will go to for a laugh knows no bounds!”
Season 17: Kris getting tackled by Kim’s security
“I can’t believe I pulled off the prank of the century!”
The show’s audience watched with bated
breath as Kim received a distressed phone call from Khloe, who quickly recounted watching her sister’s security team tackle Kris in her back garden. I prepared myself for a full-on fight when Kim ran out of her car shouting “I’m gonna kill this guy!” and was ultimately left a little disappointed when it was revealed that Kris had meticulously planned out the whole thing as a prank. The lengths that this family will go to for a laugh knows no bounds!
Season 18: Kim & Kourtney’s fight
“I will literally f*ck you up.”
Only those with sisters will truly understand how the Kardashians can go from physically fighting one another to being each other’s staunch defenders. After Kim told Kourtney that she doesn’t work as hard as her and Khloe, for the first time since the earlier seasons, a fair bit of slapping and scratching ensued, ending with Khloe having to clean one of her sisters’ foundation off her wall with a wet wipe. Cleanliness first!
Words by Morgan Hartley
This article was published as part of The Indiependent‘s May 2021 magazine edition.
Support The Indiependent
We’re trying to raise £200 a month to help cover our operational costs. This includes our ‘Writer of the Month’ awards, where we recognise the amazing work produced by our contributor team. If you’ve enjoyed reading our site, we’d really appreciate it if you could donate to The Indiependent. Whether you can give £1 or £10, you’d be making a huge difference to our small team.