Welcome to season two of Say Yes To The Dress! I know we got a little preview of this way back in my post on the pilot, but the graphics team must have gotten a raise. This episode looks great! Informative graphics for everyone!
I know you’ve all been dying to know what happened to Claudia after the season one cliffhanger, so I won’t keep you in suspense. She doesn’t appear anywhere in this episode, including in background shots. I think we can all agree that Claudia was definitely fired. Instead, consultant Keasha takes center stage in this episode, and Nicole Sacco has been promoted to Director of Fittings & Alterations. In season one, Nitsa was the Director of Alterations…. so I’m not sure what happened there.
Let’s get to it.
Jennifer Nardone has traveled with Kleinfeld’s with five bridesmaids and her mom to find a strapless mermaid gown. Jennifer was diagnosed with thyroid cancer two years ago and has just found out that she’s cancer free. The entire appointment is deeply emotional for both her and her mom, as neither of them were sure she was going to make it to this appointment. Jennifer wanted to come to Kleinfeld’s specifically since that was where her mom bought her wedding dress back in 1978, and she wanted to share that experience with her.
They’ve been paired with Keasha, who is working through an extremely busy day.
Keasha is way more enjoyable as the protagonist than Claudia was. She’s charming and self-deprecating, but still good at her job. Keasha also has a gift for explaining why she’s good at being a bridal consultant without being extremely delusional about her own abilities. Keasha’s only struggle, we learn, is that she has a tendency to go too long in her appointments. Relatable!
Keasha connects with Jennifer instantly. She reveals that her doctors found a lump in her breast, but she’s been too afraid to go and get it checked. Keasha starts crying. Jennifer starts crying. I’m crying. Everyone is crying.
Jennifer falls in love with the very first dress that she tries on: a beaded Lazaro mermaid gown. She tries on a few other dresses, but Keasha eventually puts her back in the dress and adds a veil, and Jennifer’s entire family basically starts openly weeping on Kleinfeld’s couches.
Emotions aside, I am desperately curious about this new display that SYTTD is using to show us the final dresses. Where do we think this room is? Is this a random room in Kleinfeld’s that TLC took over and decorated like this? Who designed this? Is this the room where they keep Pnina Tornai trapped?
As a blogger, I appreciate this shot. It’s much easier to get a picture of the actual dress than when it’s on a person who is moving. This dress is, I think, dated in a way that doesn’t age too badly. The shape is very prom dress-esque and the beading is overly formal, but I doubt Jennifer is going to look back at this with regret.
We also get an informative graphic, and a close look at the detailed beading! I salute the editors at SYTTD, because all of these graphics look one million times better than what they did in the first season. Congratulations to everyone involved.
Our second bride today is an alterations bride. Angelina Zito already bought her dress, but she’s had no less than fifteen separate fittings since then to make sure her dress is perfect. Nicole, bless her heart, seems to really like Angelina and doesn’t mind humoring her.
In this episode, we see Angelina show up at Kleinfeld’s three separate times – one of them wasn’t even for an appointment, she just wanted to say hi?
Surely she has better things to do with her time! Her wedding is in like two weeks! But no. At her 17th and final appointment, she buys a little purse to go with her wedding dress and tearfully asks Nicole if this is really her last fitting. Nicole reminds her that her wedding is in two days – can you even imagine – and this is the last one. Angelina asks what happens if she loses weight. Angelina. It’s two days! Just keep doing what you’re doing!
Nicole, I should add, is also getting a protagonist-edit in this episode. Everyone speaks extremely highly of her and her work, and it’s clear that she is extremely good at her job and very capable. Still, she’s funny and kind and a straight-shooter.
Here is Angelina’s dress, which is eerily reminiscent of a ruffled can-can skirt meets saloon girl. As someone with hips, I don’t understand wearing a silhouette that’s fitted through the widest part of your body and then flares out. Especially with these ruffles.
Yes, that is visible boning on top of the lace on her bodice. There is no way that serves any kind of structural purpose.
In another part of the Kleinfeld’s alterations department, Vera has been thrown out of a fitting with a bride that says, “I don’t want her anywhere near me, she’s evil.” Elise immediately goes down there to try and smooth the situation over and make sure Vera is okay, and the bride almost immediately starts pouring her heart out to her about how her fiancé treats her like a child. This is two weeks before her wedding!
Vera is really upset about it, understandably. Because Vera is a better person than I am, she’s mostly upset that she reacted to the bride’s stress instead of remaining calm and collected. I refuse to believe that Vera did anything wrong, and neither does Elise.
This is something that I actually really like about Elise. She fully recognizes that the brides will eventually no longer be there, but her employees are here to stay and she makes sure to take care of them. Even with a purchase as big and loaded as a bridal gown, Elise does not take shit from unruly customers and she stands up for her staff. More bosses should take notes.
Final Score:
- Entourage of 5+ people – +3 points
- Bride has a “bridal moment” – +5 points for Jennifer
- Bride keeps showing up at Kleinfeld’s – +17 points, one point for everyone time Angelina appeared
- Tragic backstory alert – +7 points
- Manager intervention – +5 points
Score: 37/100
Bye beautiful! See you next week!
