Courtesy of ABC
It seems that our little show has found its stride, as this week’s episode delivers one of the most entertaining hours of GCB’s first season. Despite a few hiccups, the show treats us to hilarious musical numbers, a mud fight, and Diva-Off 2012.
Let’s bitch it out.
Again this week, the show groups the ladies together with various degrees of success. Much like last week’s wedding episode, the ladies come together for a common cause and get to show their wonderful chemistry. Now I have been asking for a cat fight since the beginning and lo and behold, through His divine goodness, the show has given me one in the form of a mud fight. I love seeing the ladies get down and dirty while slinging literal mud at each other. They have fun, we have fun, and it just goes to show that I…am always right.
Amanda (Leslie Bibb), trying to do something nice for Pastor Tudor (Tyler Jacob Moore), decides to direct the church musical, in the hopes of outshining his Holy nemesis the Rev. Steve. Of course, this is also a means to show how much she has changed. But unfortunately, Evil Amanda comes out to play and boy is it a welcome surprise! I get that Amanda is supposed to be the reformed good girl, but seeing her be so mean is great…and hilarious! More evil please!
Speaking of characters that need more oomph, human sedative Heather (Marisol Nichols) is given a bit more to do this week as the playwright of the new musical extravaganza. It’s always enjoyable to see her interact with the other mean girls and ‘Pride Comes Before A Fall’ let’s her have some fun when she gets caught in the middle of the wheelings and dealings of the musical. The problem is that even when this is happening, something about her continues to scream “cardboard cutout”. Her backstory remains pretty vague and the writers don’t seem to be pushing it forward, which more or less makes her a serial datist. That’s not much of a character trait and it’s not much for us to chew on. Now I have devoted a lot of time to this character (see most of my recaps) and I am tired of listening to myself bitch about her, so from now on I will no longer address her shortcomings. Instead she will henceforth be known as “And then there was Heather”. If she’s such an afterthought the the writers, then we will treat her as such unless proven otherwise.
Courtesy of ABC
Moving on, we have the delicious campy duo of Caruth-Reilley/Cockburn. Cricket (Miriam Shor) and Carlene (Kristin Chenoweth) are such great fun together and they topp themselves this week with what shall be known as Diva-Off 2012. I haven’t seen a display of diva theatrics like this since Mariah Carey and Whitney Houston sang together at the 1999 Oscars. (See video below.) Their manipulative and downright nasty attempts to get the lead role were truly something Wicked! And while her high note doesn’t shatter glass, Carlene is able to crash the party while flying through the air like a flimsy kite on a windy day. That POV shot is beyond priceless!
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i7qX3eQVnQ0]
Meanwhile, Sharon (Jennifer Aspen) isn’t able to lend a hand to all the musical fun because she is busy pushing her new business venture (Losing It with Jesus). She even enlists the help of Gigi (Annie Potts) as her personal stylist (thankfully freeing Potts from her boring romance storyline). With all the fun we’re having watching the musical storyline it might have been easy to lose the Sharon-Gigi storyline, but luckily it doesn’t get lost in the shuffle. Seeing Gigi coach Sharon on how to speak and act is great and then seeing all of the advice fall apart on the local Texan shopping network is hilarious. But what really knocks this one out of the park is the sweet exchange between these two ladies in the dressing room. The show is really at its best when it balances campy craziness and wonderful emotional scenes that allow the characters to develop. Memo to GCB writers: it’s also a great way for the audience to develop meaningful attachments to the characters .
Other thoughts:
- Is it me or do the men need more to do on this show? I feel like Ripp (David James Elliott) is just waiting to be the next J.R.
- I feel like there might be a romance blossoming between Amanda and Pastor Tudor. Wait…can he even date?
Best lines of the night:
- Cricket: “Since I have been up, I have fired my west coast legal team, bought a small mining village in Ghana and rehired my west coast legal team. Do you really think I have time for a silly play?”
- Gigi: “Your outfit looks like Tinkerbell threw up all over it.” Giving Sharron some much sought-after advice.
What did you guys think? Did ya’ll love that cat fight as much as I did? Could the show give Glee and Smash a run for their money for best musical numbers?
GCB airs Sundays at 10pm EST on ABC
Sharon is fast becoming my favorite character. Her attempts to lower her voice and use her hands, per Gigi’s instructions, were so ridiculous and funny at the same time. And I love the signature Sharon curl! How can I get my hair to do that!?
This whole episode, I wanted to fast forward through all the other parts and just watch Sharon and Gigi. Maybe its because Annie Potts makes everything brilliant. Or because Sharon is sweet in her attempts to grow as a person. I don’t know, but I really enjoy it.
Sharron and Gigi’s storyline was hilarious!! And I agree Annie Potts is divine. I just wish they would give her more to do than a sleepy romance. As for Sharron, well she is just blossoming into a great character.
But how could you want to fast forward though any scenes involving Cricket and Carlene? They are truly magical.