THE WEDDING, PART 1

Production #177-960
Tape: November 12, 2004
Air: November 19, 2004

Starring
Amanda Bynes (Holly Tyler)
Jennie Garth (Valerie Tyler)
Wesley Jonathan (Gary Thorpe) 
Leslie Grossman (Lauren)
Nick Zano (Vince)
Allison Munn (Tina)

Special Appearance By
Gavin DeGraw 

Guest Starring
David de Lautour (Ben Sheffield)
Ed Kerr (Rick)

Co-Starring
Lisa Arning (Julie)
Lisa Kaminir (Dr. Anderson)

Written by 
Caryn Lucas

Directed by
Shelley Jensen

EPISODE SYNOPSIS/REVIEW

     Doubts about Rick's fidelity to Val and the burgeoning romance of Vince and Tina -- alternately out in the open and kept under wraps -- share the stage as Caryn Lucas sets up big life changes for many of the "What I Like About You" cast as they present their first ever midseason cliffhanger episode, "The Wedding. Part 1".   

     We start on Thanksgiving, the day before Val's wedding, where the entire gang is in the loft. The big issue is the dalliance a week ago with Rick having seen Julie. Some in the group assume that Holly has told Val about this, but she still does not know. Meanwhile, Ben is off on a two month tour with Jack Johnson, and wants to take Holly with him. Lauren is a size too small to fit into her bridesmaid gown. And Tina is set to see her married veterinarian beau after dinner. So far, so good, right?

     After dinner, Val says she learned something about the wedding -- that Gavin DeGraw would sing at the wedding. And Holly blurts out the name Julie -- but afterwards clarifies it by adding the name "Andrews" and recommends they watch "The Sound of Music" together. But Holly has to tell Val about the pizzeria tryst, about how Julie called Rick and wanted to see him again because she was seeking closure. Val thinks to herself that the closure is okay, but Holly senses she's upset. Over at the communal apartment, Vince is upset about the possibility of two months away from Holly as she tours with Ben and Jack Johnson. He breaks his usual bravado and tells Gary that Holly doesn't even know he's alive. While brooding, Tina comes over since the doggie Dr. reaffirmed his love for his wife. They commiserate over a can of whipped cream. It gets messy -- real messy -- and through the Reddi-wip sprayed all over each other, they kiss -- and then one thing really leads to another as the two frustrated lovers find solace in each other's arms. 

     Late that night, Holly makes a call to Tina, but Vince answers. Both wind up at the loft later, where Holly tells them about Val and her new doubts, and Vince and Tina struggle to keep secret the fact that they spent time together. There's only one person who can set everything right, so Holly calls Julie to try to see what the real story is -- and perhaps tell it to Val herself.

     The next day is Val's wedding day. As sure as a genie can marry an astronaut, the day is full of bad surprises. Lauren can't fit into her bridesmaid gown without ripping it, having to resort to greasing herself with butter to fit into the dress ("It's in my purse, next to the baked potato").  Vince and Tina, meanwhile, have to keep themselves seeming distant. Holly winds up having to interrupt Julie (Lisa Arning) at a therapist's session to find out the truth behind why she called Rick. Julie tells Holly, "He called me." So apparently Rick may be back smitten with Julie -- not good for Rick and Val as a couple. The wedding is held up as Holly rushes back to Lauren and Val as they prepare to enter the church. As they are approaching the altar where Rick is waiting, Holly finally tells Val that Julie didn't call Rick, and that Rick called Julie.

     And that's where we stop and start an agonizing wait of seven weeks for whatever happens next in the twisted tale of "What I Like About You". What we think might happen is Holly may confront Rick in defense of her sister, given the "I'll hurt you if you hurt her" tone of a week ago. And things could get very rocky between Val and Rick -- remember, he's still technically a guest star every week on the show. And since the continuity on this episode is open ended, for the most part we'll leave the review aspect of the summary open ended. But just a few observations:

     1) Gavin DeGraw, who appeared to sing "More Than Anyone" at the wedding, sure didn't sound like the same guy on the record. In fact, he sounded off key in parts. What the hell?

     2) Let's hear it for whipped cream, folks!

     3) Gotta love the dynamic performance by Amanda Bynes in these wedding-related storylines lately. Nobody more than Holly wants the marriage of Rick and Julie to be a success, and it's easy to see how Holly nowadays values honesty and openness above anything else. This makes Holly Tyler the little sister we all want to have, and less an exaggeration, a cartoon, or something less than real life. This could be the key to the newfound groove of this series.  

SHOW NOTES

Both this episode and the follow-up, "The Wedding, Part Two" were produced on November 12, 2004. The second part will be telecast on Friday, January 7, 2005.

Lisa Arning made her first appearance as Julie in "The Big Picture".

From "What I Like About You" Fan Site at ABNOW! (http://www.amandabynesnow.com/wb/)