Hot in Cleveland: Two Reunions, Group Birthday, and a Wedding

The group birthday episodes on Hot in Cleveland are some of the series' best. While they easily become over-the-top and unbelievable, they remain hilarious and the characters respond to the situations well. Throwing in a couple of reunions and a wedding definitely made for a memorable end to the fourth season. The birthday celebration and Elka's/Betty's reunion with the old friends will soon fade, but Joy being reunited with the man who made her a teen mother, and the fallout from Victoria and Emmet's wedding will certainly influence the upcoming season.

Speaking of which, I don't know how I feel about the direction this show is taking... It was originally the four girls, but this season has really seen an increase in Mamie episodes, as well as Emmet and Wilbur. Is more characters a positive thing for this series? With Joy's babydaddy sticking around for a while, it seems as if the writers just don't have material to fuel a small cast, but that seems doubtful, given the talent. We'll have to wait a while to see how next season will go...

Hot in Cleveland "Love is All Around" (S04E23): It's group birthday time again, and the girls talk about the guys they want to date. Elka really just wants to reunite her old bowling team, as the five ladies packed quite a punch and turned heads fifty years ago. Mamie is an easy find, but tracking down Diane, Angie, and Peg takes more work. [that was a lot of set-up for "she made it after all."] It doesn't take much to get the group arguing again, and when they try to be nice, they have nothing to say to one another. [haha! While I can't say I've watched more than a couple episodes of Mary Tyler Moore, I can respect the great deal of effort that went into this reunion, as a few of the ladies have severe health concerns. On that note, if you're also a stranger to the hit, the cat in the window is an homage to a cat meowing at the end of the credits for that series. Oh, and you might recall that Mary Tyler Moore was on Hot in Cleveland once before, as Elka's cellmate when she was arrested for all of the stolen property.]

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The other ladies have issues of their own with their "dream dates." Joy's poetry professor prefers Elka, Victoria's industry date has webbed hands, and Melanie's plastic surgeon points out more flaws than she realized. [her fault for asking! and what was with Joy's dress? white strips down the back?]

Hot in Cleveland "The Man that Got Away" (S04E24) [Season Finale]: Victoria goes to the prison to see the holding cell where she'll be getting married, as the outdoor wedding is off when the warden changes. [haha, bribes! what was the point in having Victoria have hideous hair for a split second?] They can also only have three guests and an officiant, not 150, so Victoria gets creative and has someone from UK People become ordained and wear a hidden camera. However, he turns out to be Joy's long-lost babydaddy. [really? we just had a small-world episode!] Joy asks him why he never contacted her in 30 years, and he admits to being a coward. [yeah, I'll say!] He wants to meet Owen and Wilbur, but they're out of town, so he'll be sticking around a while.

After the wedding, Emmet finds out that he may be facing more prison time because of additional charges, and asks Victoria for an annulment so she an live her life. [ten additional years??!?] The next morning, however, Emmet has gone missing. [he ran away? I don't get why he would have done that.]

The season ends with Melanie getting a call that she is pregnant. [remember when I called this?!?]