S02.E24: The Spring Gala

[AnnaRose]

Quote

The Season 2 finale: When things start to fall apart at the last minute, Katie figures out a new way to make the spring gala a success. Meanwhile, Greg attempts to be a "fun dad" and winds up adopting a dog while Katie is occupied with the gala.

[chitowngirl]

Yay! Katy got a win!! And it would have been a good series finale, but we get another season!

[readster]

Something I just don't get is why they let this group of women run everything like they are the mafia. They are women who married rich men, who apparently don't care about them. Two of them are drug addicts who do very strange and crazy things. Even question why they do it and yet get away with things. That said, I loved the rest of the episode and what a great way to use Greg and the kids. Though, still the assistant is so over the top it isn't funny. 

[AnnaRose]

I loved this episode, and the gala looked like so much fun.  Nathan Fillion was hilarious, and such a good sport!  I like that they include the bloopers at the end of the season finales - so funny!

I'm so glad this show is coming back with new episodes in the fall.

[Yeah No]

Wow, I think this was the best episode yet.  My favorite line was a blooper when Dietrich almost got his crotch trod on by the pig and said, "I know I don't use it very much but I've grown rather fond of it"!  LOL

15 hours ago, readster said:

Something I just don't get is why they let this group of women run everything like they are the mafia. They are women who married rich men, who apparently don't care about them. Two of them are drug addicts who do very strange and crazy things. Even question why they do it and yet get away with things. That said, I loved the rest of the episode and what a great way to use Greg and the kids. Though, still the assistant is so over the top it isn't funny. 

In spite of what I said above I do agree with you.  These are "mean girls" times 10 and why are they even allowed to get away with stuff like cancelling reservations for a community event?  Isn't someone overseeing the gala that could get them in trouble for it?  It's unrealistic plus just way over the top.  I'm just over this type of nasty female character on TV shows.  Enough already.  It doesn't set a good example for girls, some of whom might actually think they're "cool" and want to be like them!

And the assistant, again, not a bad idea but too over the top into stalker/creepy territory.

[theatremouse]

I found the whole gala plot underwhelming all season long, mainly because the premise about the previous person going nuts over it was because she cared about what happened at at the gala. Katie didn't really give a shit? She cared about sticking it to the ladies who thought she couldn't pull it off, but she didn't really care about the event otherwise so the stakes felt...not very stake-ey to me. Plus there seemed to be a stronger element of gaslighting done to the previous Chair. "The vendors all said you called and cancelled" is pretty clearly someone screwing with you, so it's not an effective gaslight. I also question vendors for parties that large that would even let you cancel over the phone as opposed to signing something, or at least emailing something, and I didn't think the Pretend Nice Lady had gone so far as to say, hack Katie's email or anything. I think she just made the calls to amuse herself with the chaos.I also question why they needed Giant Fancy House as the location when the whole event seemed to be in a single very large tent on the grounds. A lot of the elements they set up for the planning this over such a long time, when she actually managed to pull off something acceptable at the last minute, even though I know the point was her triumph, if it were actually doable and didn't raise major suspicions, then the stakes actually weren't that high to begin with.

So I'm sort of torn about the episode because I did laugh out loud multiple times. But the story on the whole was just not terribly interesting.

[ItCouldBeWorse]

On 5/17/2018 at 2:11 PM, Yeah No said:

In spite of what I said above I do agree with you.  These are "mean girls" times 10 and why are they even allowed to get away with stuff like cancelling reservations for a community event?  Isn't someone overseeing the gala that could get them in trouble for it?

How would you you prove who did it?  Katy had the wrong suspect.

Also, India is <1% Buddhist.  A giant Buddha as the centerpiece seems fairly ignorant.

They scrubbed out actual, used trash cans for the punch?

I did like Oliver's ballet class performing the dances although in a society which gives a HS girl a hard time for wearing a cheongsam to her prom, an entire town wearing traditional Indian garb would likely get quite a reaction! (And I do wonder where the ballet troupe got their costumes in a matter of hours.)

Edited May 22, 2018 by ItCouldBeWorse

[readster]

6 hours ago, Yeah No said:

Wow, I think this was the best episode yet.  My favorite line was a blooper when Dietrich almost got his crotch trod on by the pig and said, "I know I don't use it very much but I've grown rather fond of it"!  LOL

In spite of what I said above I do agree with you.  These are "mean girls" times 10 and why are they even allowed to get away with stuff like cancelling reservations for a community event?  Isn't someone overseeing the gala that could get them in trouble for it?  It's unrealistic plus just way over the top.  I'm just over this type of nasty female character on TV shows.  Enough already.  It doesn't set a good example for girls, some of whom might actually think they're "cool" and want to be like them!

And the assistant, again, not a bad idea but too over the top into stalker/creepy territory.

Perfectly said, it doesn't come off as funny and basically the message is: "Just be a bitch because you have money to burn, but your husbands don't want to sleep with you, but have no problem with spending your money. Plus, apparently everyone in the town is like: "Wow, what great people because they treat everyone like they are scum when all of them came from poor homes themselves." It's why I got tired of Oliver's crap all season, it took Spencer dying before he realized that dying rich, doesn't really lead to anything in life. I'm also disappointed that Spencer seriously didn't leave anything to Oliver or the Otto Family in general. Now, granted he bought all of Greg's book copies that finally got him tenure. But considering they stuck Greg in a former utility closet and super stalker assistant. Seems like it was: "Well, we tried, but we wanted to show that Oliver being Spencer friend was worth nothing." 

[butterbody]

2 hours ago, ItCouldBeWorse said:

How would you you prove who did it?  Katy had the wrong suspect.

Also, India is <1% Buddhist.  A giant Buddha as the centerpiece seems fairly ignorant.

They scrubbed out actual, used trash cans for the punch?

I did like Oliver's ballet class performing the dances although in a society which gives a HS girl a hard time for wearing a cheongsam to her prom, an entire town wearing traditional Indian garb would likely get quite a reaction! (And I do wonder where the ballet troupe got their costumes in a matter of hours.)

But not a single Bindi in the bunch.  Kudos to them for that.

[Yeah No]

6 hours ago, ItCouldBeWorse said:

How would you you prove who did it?  Katy had the wrong suspect.

 

All she would have to do is make allegations to the right people.  Obviously if the all the merchants say someone called to cancel, it points to some kind of sabotage.  Telling the right people at least makes them aware that someone is trying to sabotage the event, even if there's no proof of who did it or that it's intended personally at Katie.  And I'm sure they would not dismiss that.   All she would need to do is tell them who she suspected.  That would be enough.  At first she pinned it on the group in general but even if she had the wrong person the others were at least in with her on it in some way if only to support the sentiment.  Personally, I would never let that kind of thing go by without telling SOMEONE about it.  Otherwise they get away with it completely.  She could even tell the mean group that she let TPTB know that someone attempted to sabotage the event.  It would be good to get them worried that they'd be found out.  And the meanies who are just being generally nasty but not engaging in outright sabotage would think twice about being mean again knowing that she has a backbone and is willing to stand up to them.  They're bullies.

Edited May 18, 2018 by Yeah No

[readster]

On 5/18/2018 at 12:57 AM, Yeah No said:

All she would have to do is make allegations to the right people.  Obviously if the all the merchants say someone called to cancel, it points to some kind of sabotage.  Telling the right people at least makes them aware that someone is trying to sabotage the event, even if there's no proof of who did it or that it's intended personally at Katie.  And I'm sure they would not dismiss that.   All she would need to do is tell them who she suspected.  That would be enough.  At first she pinned it on the group in general but even if she had the wrong person the others were at least in with her on it in some way if only to support the sentiment.  Personally, I would never let that kind of thing go by without telling SOMEONE about it.  Otherwise they get away with it completely.  She could even tell the mean group that she let TPTB know that someone attempted to sabotage the event.  It would be good to get them worried that they'd be found out.  And the meanies who are just being generally nasty but not engaging in outright sabotage would think twice about being mean again knowing that she has a backbone and is willing to stand up to them.  They're bullies.

That's exactly it and having evidence that the same thing happened with the previous gala and happens when someone else instead of the "Mean Housewives" throws the galas. Somehow it always goes wrong or is sabotaged the day of or days before. As much as the show wants us to believe that most of the higher ups in Westpoint are rich morons. When a pattern is shown, that can be legally damaging to the town. Then heads will roll, look at Dixon, IL with the former treasurer who stole millions of dollars because no one dared to keep an eye on the checks and balances, while other towns saw something was up and even told them: "Guys, something isn't right with your budgets." 

[Yeah No]

4 hours ago, readster said:

That's exactly it and having evidence that the same thing happened with the previous gala and happens when someone else instead of the "Mean Housewives" throws the galas. Somehow it always goes wrong or is sabotaged the day of or days before. As much as the show wants us to believe that most of the higher ups in Westpoint are rich morons. When a pattern is shown, that can be legally damaging to the town. Then heads will roll, look at Dixon, IL with the former treasurer who stole millions of dollars because no one dared to keep an eye on the checks and balances, while other towns saw something was up and even told them: "Guys, something isn't right with your budgets." 

I loved your post and I agree but I got a chuckle out of your typo.  It's Westport, not Westpoint.  West Point is the military academy in New York State.  Sorry to be the "word police".

[readster]

17 minutes ago, Yeah No said:

I loved your post and I agree but I got a chuckle out of your typo.  It's Westport, not Westpoint.  West Point is the military academy in New York State.  Sorry to be the "word police".

Doh!

[SnarkySheep]

So...it took Katie all year to plan the gala. But with the help of her family and friends, it could be done in five hours?? Huh.

[Cowgirl]

I liked this episode on its own, but I was really disappointed that it didn't feature Cooper Bradford and his parents!  I thought we'd finally get to meet the 'rents!  Katie induced Sara Rue's character and others to donate items for the silent auction by "selling" seats at the Bradford table.  Well, when it all came to be, I don't think there were even any tables.  

I too wondered if they were making punch out of used trash cans.  In my mind I like to imagine that they were brand new cans that the recycling committee had on hand, wrapped in plastic and unused. 

I missed the fact that there were bloopers at the end!  Rats!!

[zoey1996]

Glad they let Katie have the "win" by pulling off the gala despite the "mean moms" trying to sabotage it. 

I sometimes think Katie should just get over herself.  I'm not familiar with Westport, CT or cities/towns that are similar, and maybe I'm just ignorant, but I have to doubt that Katie's the only overweight woman, and the only one with limited means/money, in that area.  Not to mention, her husband makes enough as a college professor so that she doesn't have to have an outside job to make ends meet.  

But then I remember, it's just a sitcom, and things can be unrealistic and funny at the same time.  I generally laugh more than once during an episode, and that's all right by me.

[AnnaRose]

I'm with you Zoey1996.  If a sitcom makes me laugh enough and is overall enjoyable, I can handwave and forgive a lot!

[floridamom]

I don't know why my recorded always cuts off a show at the end. I have it set to record the "SHOW". Does anyone know why it does that and how I can avoid it? I missed some of these bloopers and I would have liked to see them and the very end of most shows I record. thank you.

[ItCouldBeWorse]

16 hours ago, Cowgirl said:

I missed the fact that there were bloopers at the end!  Rats!!

 

2 hours ago, floridamom said:

I missed some of these bloopers and I would have liked to see them and the very end of most shows I record. thank you.

I warched the show at abc.com and the bloopers were included. Probably the same in Hulu or On Demand. Whenever I miss part of a show for whatever reason (turned it on late, phone call) I can go online next day to see the part I missed.

Edited May 22, 2018 by ItCouldBeWorse

[AnnaRose]

5 hours ago, floridamom said:

I don't know why my recorded always cuts off a show at the end. I have it set to record the "SHOW". Does anyone know why it does that and how I can avoid it? I missed some of these bloopers and I would have liked to see them and the very end of most shows I record. thank you.

I always set my DVR to record at least 1 or 2 minutes over the regular ending time, because so many shows go over.  My old DVR only had 2 tuners, so if I had two shows recording in the next timeslot, I couldn't set it to record later.  My current DVR allows 4 recordings and even has an option when scheduling recordings to choose how much extra time you want to set it for, which makes it very easy.  I used to miss the ends of shows all the time, so I know how aggravating that is!  

ABC.com is great about allowing viewers to watch their content though, so definitely look into that.  It may only be available if you're in the Us though... I'm not sure.  (If that's an issue for you.)

[floridamom]

The cable company changed to Spectrum (I don't like them) and when I set to record a show, it doesn't give me the option to add those one or two more minutes. So, I don't know what to do. Why does it cut off? As stated, I've requested the show to be recorded.

[possibilities]

Complain to Spectrum-- that's crazy!

It took me a long time to find the manual option to adjust my DVR to record an extra minute or two. There might be a way you don't know about yet, and if there isn't, there should be! I can't help you because I have DirecTV and I figure whatever you've got will have different specs.

[AnnaRose]

13 minutes ago, floridamom said:

The cable company changed to Spectrum (I don't like them) and when I set to record a show, it doesn't give me the option to add those one or two more minutes. So, I don't know what to do. Why does it cut off? As stated, I've requested the show to be recorded.

Huh.  We just switched to Spectrum and that's how we got the much better DVR... so they do have them, at least in our area.  Even with the old DVR I was always able to edit the time to add a minute or two at the end.  (Well, actually, it tended to be buggy, so sometimes I had to remove the scheduled recordings and redo them for it to take.)

[Cowgirl]

Spectrum lets me record over too, if I want.  You have to go into the "record" option for your show (even though you've already set it to record) and then "change recording settings" and then it will show you the options to record longer. (Hope this is correct. I am at work, not home.)

[Cowgirl]

So, was I the only one who bemoaned the fact that Cooper Bradford and his parents weren't featured? (See my post above on that.)

[Yeah No]

On 5/22/2018 at 2:36 PM, floridamom said:

The cable company changed to Spectrum (I don't like them) and when I set to record a show, it doesn't give me the option to add those one or two more minutes. So, I don't know what to do. Why does it cut off? As stated, I've requested the show to be recorded.

It happens because the networks put as many commercials as possible in the middle of a show, when they know people are watching, which often makes them run overtime.  The cable box is set to record a show when it's supposed to begin and end, which is exactly on the hour or half hour depending on the show.  I complained to Comcast about this a few years back and they said there was nothing they could do to prevent it, but offered the ability to record a few extra minutes as a work-around.  I've noticed lately that Comcast has found a way to know when some shows are going to run overtime and will extend the recording time to account for it, but they don't catch every show so I never know when it's going to happen.  I saw the bloopers at the end of this episode but even if they got cut off I could always catch the episode on Comcast's "On Demand" feature.

[chitowngirl]

Plus, if a show runs over, you’ve missed the first few minutes of a show on another network, so the thinking is you’ll just stay on the network you’re watching. 

[IDreamofJoaquin]

Wish there were more bloopers.  There has to be with 24 episodes.

Finished the second season after binging on Hulu all week.   I really like the kids a lot more now.  They are over the top but it's a fictional comedy series so I'm just going to go with the flow.  They're delivery has gotten better and have made me laugh plenty of times, especially Anna-Kat.  I don't find her annoying.  I was surprised to see Oliver grow up so fast over just one summer hiatus. He seemed to go from 10 to 15.  I had to look up the actors age in reality and okay he's like 13 in this but he seems older??  I recognized Taylor from a Disney channel movie - Zombies - so I guess that's why she had to color her hair.  

Some of the story lines seem to forget where they are at and I noticed that last season too.  There were three episodes where Cooper was annoying Katie and then at the end of the episode she realized he needed a home/family.  Of course with all of Anna-Kat's diagnosis as well and some other family quirks.

I am surprised to see people commenting about the show seriously since it's supposed to be a sitcom. Like the basis of the show is Katy is a no nonsense mom.  I laughed at the bleeped out swearing and middle fingers. 

Katy Mixon got really big (mostly noticed the puffiness of her face, the pregnancy belly I get) and I had to Google "Katy Mixon children".  I was surprised to find out she only had two children and they were born after the show had started.  Not to critique her weight (I'm not 120lbs either) but because it is Hollywood and average size ladies stand out there was talk about her being pregnant at the end of Mike and Molly because that's when she started to gain but between that ending and me starting to watch this show just recently I just never needed to follow-up with it.  I'm wondering where the weight gain came into play or if she was just okay not having to live up to Hollywood standards.  I'm happy she is on the show and is doing well.  She's fun and I like her. 

Edited December 22, 2018 by IDreamofJoaquin