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The second episode of Hot in Cleveland aired last night on TV Land and it was totally GAY!
SPOILER ALERT
It opens in chilly Cleveland with Lesbian Thespian Victoria (Wendie Malick) announcing to Melanie (Valerie Bertinelli) and Elka (Betty White) that she was invited to speak on an A-list lesbian cruise to the Caribbean. The catch is that she needs her new wife Joy (Jane Leeves) to agree to go so Victoria can appear to be down with the ladies. Joy quickly consents when she is bribed with the promise of a high priced designer handbag. And wanting to get out of the cold and into a warmer climate, Elka enthusiastically agrees to join them, saying “she’ll go gay for heat.”
The ladies arrive on board to find that the subject of Victoria’s speech; My Journey to Joy: My Sexual Awakening at the Hands of a Middle Aged Lesbian, is the talk of the cruise. They also find that the only man on board is one sexy captain with an agenda -- to find out if Victoria and the rest of the Cleveland crew are actually gay.
After the run-in with the captain, Melanie is pleasantly surprised when she runs into her sister, Caroline, brilliantly played by Laura San Giacomo. This story line is the most heartwarming and honest of the episode. We find out that the sisters have been relative strangers to one another for years, and by Caroline being spotted on the lesbian cruise, this is an opportunity for her to finally come out to a member of her family.
Now, we have finally arrived at the point in every sitcom where the comedy hijinks and hilarious misunderstandings commence. Let’s start with Caroline assuming that Melanie is also gay, and Melanie doing little to correct her, in the hopes that she will gain her sister’s trust. Then we are introduced to Caroline’s girlfriend Nan (Sandra Bernhard), who wastes no time in making a move on Melanie behind Caroline’s back. You know, because lesbians can’t keep it in their caftans. Then there’s Elka, periodically popping up in her designer muumuu, between her many trips to the buffet table. And lastly, we have a crazy threesome developing between the captain, Victoria and Joy.
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Unfortunately, Melanie’s charade doesn’t last long; her plan is foiled when Caroline catches Melanie hitting on the captain. As viewers, we’re ok with this because this gives the sisters some real time to bond. The two share a touching moment together when Caroline explains why she never came out, "You wouldn't understand," Caroline says. "When you're a kid and you find out you're gay, you automatically have a secret and that makes you feel different from everyone else. And it's even harder when your sister is little miss angel. It would have been really nice to talk to you about it. Maybe I was scared, scared you'd think I was weird, scared you'd tell mom and dad, so I just put up this wall and I got used to living behind the wall."
And there it is…. Caroline succinctly sums up some of the emotions that people go through during their journey to coming out. Thank you!
After the sisters have their moment we are thrown back into the main area of the ship and it’s time for Victoria’s speech. Joy arrives, nervous about what Victoria is going to share with the group, and also sporting a serious case of beard burn. Melanie and Elka point out the burn and Joy quickly runs to the dressing room to apply more make-up.
There she finds Victoria…doing the same thing.
A fight over who should get the captain ensues, and everyone waiting for the lecture to begin can hear every word because Victoria’s mic is on. Melanie picks up her phone and frantically begins to text them, “The L-Words heard everything.”
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Then, Caroline turns to her sister and delivers the best line of the night, when she sarcastically asks, “do you know ANY lesbians?”
Last night was a solidly amusing episode that offered up a few good laughs. We have to give props to the writing staff at Hot in Cleveland for writing back-to-back, gay friendly shows for the middle aged audiences at TV Land. But just a note to Hot in Cleveland’s scribes -- non-lesbians are allowed on lesbian cruises. Keep up the good work!!
