Kendra Wilkinson & Louis van Amstel - Season 12

[nikkij_26]

Why do people like Kendra? It's simple. People like Kendra because she's open, genuine, sweet and real. She's opened her heart, mind, and life to people on-camera and off. She's inspired people who connect with her and have been in her position with what she has been through in her life in the past and present. There is more to Kendra than being a playmate or Hef's ex-girlfriend. She was abandoned by her father when her parents divorced. She had a troubled childhood where she was heavily using drugs, OD'd at one point, suffered from major clinical depression, was suicidal, and hospitalized for it. Kendra's relationship with Hef isn't just for money, publicity, or for show. She credits Hef with basically saving her life. He was a friend/psuedo- father-figure who looked after her at a time when she was the wild child and heading down a wrong path. He allowed her to grow and find herself, while still keeping her under some guidelines and guidance. Hef is very important to her and always will be which is why he is a huge part of her, Hank, and baby Hank's lives.

Kendra also went through dealing with having a long distance relationship, the trials and tribulations of being the wife of an NFL player with an uncertain future, and a new mom. She dealt with her clinical depression coming back post-partum and her issues of body image adjusting to her body after pregnancy. She shared and was open about her body not being what it used to be before pregnancy and her feelings about getting her body back to her pre-pregnancy shape. She's even dealt with naysayers thinking a mom shouldn't be sexy. Kendra has been through alot in her young life. Through it all she's been her same genuine, open, sweet, kind self.

Kendra has come a long way from her troubled past and the girl who couldn't look at herself in the mirror, to the wife and mother she is today. She is real, relatable, and has opened her life to people. Which is why she has inspired alot of people who have been through or experienced some of the things she has. It's why she was the most popular of the "Girls Next Door". It's why people who have never seen her on "Girls Next Door" like her after seeing her on her own show. It's why people who haven't seen her on either show like her. She's endearing, relatable, genuine and sweet. Kendra doesn't view herself as perfect or some huge role model. Kendra's fans view her as just Kendra, real, genuine, sweet, relatable, kind-hearted, and loveable with flaws and all. Kendra is just trying to continue to grow, mature, and be the best wife and mother she can be. She learning and growing as time goes on, like most young people, and trying not to judge other people as she''s been judged along the way. There are new moms, troubled kids, women with body image problems, people who suffered from depression/post-partum depression, people with abandonment issues, people in long-distance relationships, sports wives, and yes, guys who think she's hot, who relate to her and like her. There are also just people who like seeing a genuine, kind person, even with flaws, on tv. Everyone has a past. Everyone makes mistakes and not everyone has the same moral views on certain things in this world. However, a genuine, endearing person with a kind spirit can be appreciated any day of the week every day, IMHO. That's why people like Kendra.

I sometimes wish Kendra had been partnered with Maks. He has a knack for helping his partners who have internal issues. I know Louis has done alot with his partners as far as transforming their bodies. However, Kendra has always had stage fright and self-esteem/body issues. Alot of times people mistake the fact that Kendra was a playmate with her being confident in front of an audience. SHe's not into PDA and is always really nervous in front of an audience and concerned about being judged. She was the same way when she competed on the MC competition show on VH1, even though she loves hip-hop. Hopefully with time she will become more comfortable and just be able to let her fun side come out and enjoy things. However, she stayed nervous in the MC competition to the very end even though she came in second. Time will tell. I'm just glad she's gotten to be on the show, receive the benefits of being there, and has the support of her fans, friends, family, and Hank's family.

[Tobi]

I don't find her to be sweet or real. But to each his own. To me she seems like a very moody person, one you would have to walk on egg shells around to keep from setting off. She may be quite pleasant most of the time when things are going her way or she is not in a bad mood. Otherwise, she comes across as someone you would not want to upset the apple cart around. Someone to avoid. Not to mention she is just lacking in class or at least that is how she presents herself. But, she seems to come by it naturally since her mother and grandmother seem to go along with anything she comes up with.

[karalott]

nikkij, I'm just going to give a BIG to your entire post. You summed up exactly why I adore Kendra, and why anyone I've met who is a fan likes her. One of my co-workers, who works in the sales office, loves her and relates to her since she's a new mom herself who's having body issues. I have to say the partnership of Kendra/Louis disappoints me, but I think I'm more disappointed in Louis than Kendra. They're doing well but I get the feeling Louis isn't completely happy. Something just seems completely off. If Louis isn't working, I would have loved to have seen Maks, Tony, or had Damian return to be her partner. Either way, I'm enjoying Kendra very much and look forward to seeing her every week. I think if she let her nerves down she'd do even better. And I don't think she's doing too badly so far. My wish down the road is they get Hank to do the show

[Bloomers]

nikkij, I'm just going to give a BIG to your entire post. You summed up exactly why I adore Kendra, and why anyone I've met who is a fan likes her. One of my co-workers, who works in the sales office, loves her and relates to her since she's a new mom herself who's having body issues. I have to say the partnership of Kendra/Louis disappoints me, but I think I'm more disappointed in Louis than Kendra. They're doing well but I get the feeling Louis isn't completely happy. Something just seems completely off. If Louis isn't working, I would have loved to have seen Maks, Tony, or had Damian return to be her partner. Either way, I'm enjoying Kendra very much and look forward to seeing her every week. I think if she let her nerves down she'd do even better. And I don't think she's doing too badly so far. My wish down the road is they get Hank to do the show

I get mixed up thoughts and messages with Kendra. Except from seeing her name and picture in passing on the front of mags in the grocery store, I didn't know who she was.
I watched her dance, and I wanted her to do well because it looked like she had the potential to do well.....until she started talking!
I thought Kendra was a very pretty lady, but what she kept saying was the opposite! She harped about being a tom-boy and how awkward all this was for her. Moreover, Kendra kept saying unladylike, unfiltered things which did not go with the image which was being presented on the dance floor!

People do have to be themselves. That is true. However, Kendra has every possibly of becoming the lady - or more of the lady - that Louis is trying to make her into if Kendra will just yield some and try. We have seen Louie do this already with Kelly, and we know he is capable of doing just this if his partner is willing to go along with him.
The question is really, though, what does Kendra deep down actually want? Does she want to become more of a lady, or does she want to remain the tomboy and the way that she is? It is all a matter of what she wants..... and that is as it should be; however, until that is resolved, Kendra is going to be emotionally torn and conflicted throughout this process.

[Parkhillian]

People do have to be themselves. That is true. However, Kendra has every possibly of becoming the lady - or more of the lady - that Louis is trying to make her into if Kendra will just yield some and try.

Bingo!

I really don't care if a person strips, has lived at the Playboy mansion, yada yada yada...none of that matters to me. I really don't know Kendra, I have never watched her show, but I find her distasteful based only on her demeanor on DWTS. She is just there to me, I find little appeal in her dancing and even less in her personality.

[Rattus]

Bingo!

I really don't care if a person strips, has lived at the Playboy mansion, yada yada yada...none of that matters to me. I really don't know Kendra, I have never watched her show, but I find her distasteful based only on her demeanor on DWTS. She is just there to me, I find little appeal in her dancing and even less in her personality.

Mostly ditto, except I did see the occasional episode of the Hef show, and I took a real dislike to her not because she she is vapid and dullwitted, but because she appears to revel in the fact that she is vapid and dullwitted. I don't fault people for not being exceptionally intelligent - that is an accident of birth. I do, however, fault people who use their stupidity as part of their arsenal of "cute".

[Florimel]

Bingo!

I really don't care if a person strips, has lived at the Playboy mansion, yada yada yada...none of that matters to me. I really don't know Kendra, I have never watched her show, but I find her distasteful based only on her demeanor on DWTS. She is just there to me, I find little appeal in her dancing and even less in her personality.

I have to say I agree with you. I didn't know her before DWTS and came in with no opinion of her one way or the other. I don't care at all about her past, but I don't care for her on this show. She may be a good club dancer, something anyone with the slightest bit of musicality can learn to do, but in ballroom she looks awkward. Nothing I've seen from her on this show prompts me to hope she improves.

[norealityhere]

There was a lot of hype about her, per Karalott, prior to the show's premiere.
She was supposed to be one of the frontrunners.
I haven't seen that so far.
Louis is not my favorite pro, but I do find him to be one of the best male pro dancers on the show. Kendra practically toppled him over last week. That was sad to see. More sad, for me, is there is no chemistry whatsoever with their dancing. I feel bad for Louis.
I'd seen Kendra a couple of times on the Girls Next Door. I've never seen the Kendra show. Sorry, but I'm just not liking her personality or her dancing.

[nikkij_26]

Kendra is a tomboy thru an dthru and always will be. She's the tomboy who occassionally dresses up like a sexy girl when warranted and like a lady on an even rarer occasion when warranted. SHe tried getting into being the "lady" all the time during this experience but, now she has resigned herself to trying to be the "lady" once a week on Monday nights when she has to dance. However, Kendra never does well when she has to pretend to be anything other than her real self. She's more comfortable being real. Trying to be the non-sexy "lady" she thinks viewers, Louis, and the judges want her to be combined with her own huge stage fright nerves is keeping her from enjoying the experience and reaching her full potential as a dancer. Kendra is athletic and does have the ability to do well. Louis needs to play to who Kendra really is and conform the dances to her strengths and not vice versa.

Kendra is not like some of Louis other success who need the outside body transformation like Kelly and others that leads to an inner transformation of self esteem. Kelly already was a girly-girl, a goth/emo girly-girl, but a girly-girl just the same. So, it wasn't a huge leap for her to want to be a lady and once she lost weight getting into the clothes and stuff. Kendra would rather dress in sweats aand soccer shorts 24/7. Kendra when she gets dolled up is a beautiful to die for girl. However, she'd rather not get dolled up unless she's going out to a club and even then that's more a sexy vixen type dolled up,not DWTS ballroom glitzy lady dolled up, and for a very limited time. Louis would do better to play to Kendra's fun, comical, sexy side during the Latin dances. Kendra will have to learn to be graceful during the more ballrrom dances but, Louis could play to Kendra's inherant vunerable side during those dances with choreography and styling. Kendra's battle is also an inner one not an outer one, which like I said Maks is better at working with than Louis. Louis himself has recognised this in interviews and I'm not sure he used to knowing how to deal with it like Maks is.

Also Kendra isn't playing up being "dumb" as a way to be cute or utilizing it to get ahead. Kendra is just being Kendra and being self-deprecating about wat she considers her flaws. The same way Kirstie is self-deprectaing about her weight and others about things about themselves. It's a coping mechanism and her trying to not take herself or what she considers her mistakes too seriously. Kendra is not everyones cup of tea and some people will judge her quickly and write her off without bothering to look at her closely because of who they think she is. Which is cool because not everyone has to like everyone and we all have different tastes in people. However, for those who bother to to be open and take the chance to get to really know her, they will find she is a vunerable, endearing, sweet, loyal, kind girl, who is a supportive, loving wife, and a good mother, who is well worth getting to know. There is a reason she has fans and a reason people like her. However, everyone doesn't have to which is the nature of life.

[norealityhere]

I watch this show to see who engages me as a viewer. Some start off really well; some do not.
I have enjoyed many people on this show who weren't the greatest dancers, simply because their clear joy at being on the dance floor made me want to watch.
She just doesn't bring that to me. I hope she will improve in time.