Hot in Cleveland: Involved with Music

by Amy K. Bredemeyer

Who knew that you'd be able to come up with an episode of Hot in Cleveland where all four of the ladies would have different interactions with musicians? It's an intriguing idea, but it didn't turn out for the best. You knew at least one of the ladies would be dating a musician, and, in this situation, it was Victoria. And, any of the remaining three could have been obsessed with meeting a favorite retired singer (Victoria wouldn't be happy with someone who wasn't uber-famous), but only Melanie filled this position here. This left Joy to be the one to impersonate a musician, and Elka to be the one who stole from a musician (those two could have gone either way, don't you think?). I'm not sure if it's just because the Johnny-Drago storyline was ridiculous, or if the whole episode just didn't jive with me, but I just wasn't a fan and have no plans to watch this one again.

Hot in Cleveland "I'm with the Band" (S03E11): Victoria is reporting about a famous rock duo (Johnny & Drago) that recently broke up but is reuniting for a benefit in Cleveland. She also happens to be dating Johnny, and even dresses like a schoolgirl when he comes over. Unfortunately, since she doesn't want a commitment, he's going to be seeing one of his backup singers some more. [the chocolate jokes? not so sweet.] Victoria's solution is to date someone who will make Johnny mad... so she chooses Drago, who is a bit more crazy. She even fakes making out with him, Weekend at Bernie's-style. [but it wasn't even funny.] Drago and Johnny end up fighting over Victoria, and Johnny tells her that he'll write a song about her, but he won't get to play it in concert because the fans only like to hear "the old stuff." [I thought that was pretty funny... since it's pretty true.] They end up making out and getting back together. [of course.]

Melanie gets really excited about a soft rock group that's going to be recording for the benefit, and apparently Joy is still dreaming of being a rock singer, so they also head down to the studio. [how tiny are Jane Leeves' ankles??] Elka also comes along, with plans to chop a celebrity's hair to auction off for her shelter. [this is my favorite premise within the episode. clearly.] She tries playing the grandmother

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card to get near Justin Bieber, but it doesn't work. Showing a security guard some puppies in a locket she's wearing doesn't do the trick, either. Later, when Drago is passed out, Elka snips a lock of his hair, tho! Meanwhile, Melanie tries to track down her longtime beloved star, but it turns out that he's a different guy with the same name! She doesn't realize her mistake until his name and title are announced later... but, luckily, he's also a fan of the same soft rock band so they still go for dinner afterward. [haha on Zoey Deschanel's "adorkable."] Joy runs into a famous singer at the snack table and poses as "Opal (Winfrey) from the BBC World Service" to ask her for an interview. Joy asks her to demonstrate her six-octave range, but she only pulls off four. She tries a few more times but ends up losing her voice. [I didn't realize that was Joy's plan all along, haha!] So, Joy dresses as the singer in an attempt to take her place, but she can't sing like her. [I'm not sure what Joy was thinking. Even if she could sing like the original girl, wouldn't she want credit in her own name?]