Y'all are crazy.
One of the bonuses of Netflix is the opportunity to binge on your favorite shows. I watched three seasons of The United States of Tara nonstop over the course of two weeks. Orange is the New Black? Two more weeks, then watched it again with Dave when he decided to start watching it.
Well, I'm on my second viewing of My Big Fat American Gypsy Wedding (MBFAGW). What the hell is the appeal?! I'm planning on doing a little typing out loud to figure this out for myself.
Dresses: the crazy, blingtastic creations by dress designer Sondra Chelli are a girly-girl figure skater's dream come true. Crystals and feathers and beautiful fabrics and princess heels and crowns and doo dads and whatnots. The reveals allow you to gasp right along with the girls as the impossible fantasy gowns become reality.
Time warp: it's modern day, but the cultural norms for family dynamics is something straight out of the 50s. The men leave school early to work in the family business, marry and start families with their teenage brides. Most of the women are happy with this arrangement, filling their days with chores and children. On one hand, it seems like a blissfully simple existence full of love for family. But on the other hand, it's a horribly chauvinistic existence that it seems a few of the women, like Melly, bristle against.
Celebration: being Polish, I love a good wedding. And outside of the occasional birthday party, baby shower or baptism, that's what this show is all about. Dramas over dresses, dance halls, tuxedos, bachelor parties, and more just make me laugh. I especially enjoyed the Maryland couple, who had eloped 14 years ago, renewing their vows. She was adorable, he was sweet, and they were a couple clearly in love that had mutual respect for each other, something that was missing from the young couples exhibiting their swagger at the tender ages of 17.
Reoccuring characters: the first season of MBFAGW featured many members of the same family, and you scrambled to keep them straight. No problem, this show offered a spin-off, Gypsy Sisters, featuring the quartet above. Yes, I have a favorite, Kayla, far right, who while second in command to Nettie, seems to be in a happy relationship and is the most level-headed. Melly is a hot mess, but with reason.
Culture: it would be easy to dismiss the clan as white trash, but that would be unfair. I'm aware of the stereotypes that get flung around, I'm Polish and had to endure "dumb polack" jokes as a kid. The gypsies were a marginalized culture abused by the British who brought them to America as slaves. They have kept with them family pride, poetry, music and dance.
Rubberneckin': they are a wild, strange bunch that contradict themselves in all sorts of ways and it's fascinating to watch the powder kegs ignite.
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